Update #2 from California

July 12, 2012

The IOWAY team is in Los Angeles sharing the love of Jesus. We arrived on July 4 and will return to Iowa on July 16.  Following are the reflections of our team as we look back on our experiences of the last eight days.

Courtney

Time. Don’t waste it. “I can’t wait for summer to roll around.  I can’t wait to eat dinner, I’m starving!  I can’t wait to go to a Skillet concert.”  These were things I thought about on a nearly daily basis.  What is time but waiting for the next best thing?

I was thinking about this on my plane ride to California.  I was switching planes and I had a couple minutes until it was time to board the plane.  That’s when it happened… I smelled the pizza.  I had to have some because I was starving! I hadn’t eaten in 5 hours!  After I chowed down my burnt pizza, that I was very depressed about, I boarded the plane to Los Angeles, never knowing that same person would never return.  What happened that caused me to change?  If only it could be explained by words…

Maybe it was hearing a choir of elderly angels at church on Sunday, loudly and off-key, praising God with everything they had to offer…

Maybe it was listening to a faith story of an x- professional football player…

Maybe it was talking to a little boy who was dropped off on a doorstep…

Maybe it was, for the first time in their life, telling a child Jesus Christ did everything for you…

Maybe it was watching a man digging in the garbage and eating the leftover McDonald’s someone had just thrown away…
Maybe it was listening to a child say he hears gunshots every night…
Maybe it was driving around and counting how many sacrilegious media messages we could pick out…
Maybe it was listening to a child run to his grandmother and say, “God is good!”…
Maybe it was creating over 400 care packages to hand out to the homeless on Skid Row…
Maybe it was sobbing all night listening to my own team’s faith stories…
Maybe it was being so nervous to teach the kids by myself that I had to use the restroom every 15 minutes…
Maybe it was being threatened by a very angry man for putting a flier on his door…

We think time is something we own.  It’s not.  Whether we like it or not, time moves on with or without us.  Many of us think that we’re invincible and we’ll never die or we’ll inwardly know when we’re about to die and we can then ask for forgiveness for everything.  The truth is we can die at any moment.

What does your time mean to you?  God has blessed us with whatever time we’re been given.  So how are you going to spend your last days? John 3:16

Kayla

I went on the 2011 summer trip and it changed my life! With no doubt in my mind, I knew I wanted to come back.  Many of my friends questioned why I work all summer and fund raise so much money for a mission trip for two weeks.  For me, all that work and planning is all worth it when I get to see the smiling kids at VBS when I tell them about Jesus.  Last year the kids made the biggest impact on me, and seeing many of the kids again this year was an amazing feeling that’s hard to explain.  Spending time with the kids, talking to them, or even just smiling at them, gives them hope. As many of my friends may not understand completely why I take two weeks out of my summer to help someone else, it is so comforting to know my family, friends, and my church is at home praying for me and they support me.  To get texts, calls, facebook messages and emails from home is so encouraging and it truly helps me.  I’m so thankful to have such a supportive church back home as this summer I go to Los Angeles and in a few weeks, will go to Haiti.

Jocelyn

This year was my first time on the mission trip to LA.  I’m very glad I went on it.  Both of the churches I helped at have their own unique flavor, but they both are filled with many amazing people of God.  It’s amazing to feel so welcome thousands of miles from home.  The kids there are incredible too.  They were so adorable and energetic.  I enjoyed helping all the people learn and grow in Christ.

I thought we would be focusing a lot on others, which we did.  But I’m glad we also got together to study God’s word and grow in our own faith. From our devotions and Bible study, my faith has been strengthened.  It has given me new perspectives on God, His love, and my faith.

I also was very impressed with the group from Iowa.  I have rarely seen other teenagers so kind, thoughtful, inclusive, and fun as they are.  I am certain that when we return, we will continue our friendships and encourage each other.

Morgan

My favorite parts about the trip is working with the kids at Christ and St. Philips and helping them with crafts.  Going to the beach was also fun.  I feel like when our team met we were all accepting of one another.  I also feel like the church members at St. Philip’s treat us like family.  I also like that I have seen the different parts of LA because whenever people think of LA they think Hollywood right away.  Seeing the less glamorous side of LA helped open my eyes and made me feel good that I could help people.

Zachary

I was not expecting that everyone was going to be so accepting from the congregations that we are teaching at.  They treat you like they have known you for a long time or that you are family.  I enjoy helping at VBS here because the kids listen so well.  When people are speaking they are all quiet and listen and try to learn.  The part I like the most is the interaction with kids.  It seems like the kids latch on to you and constantly want to be around you.  We as a group seemed to get along so well which really helps as a group so everything runs smoothly.

Emma

This trip has changed me by being with this group, because they have helped me look at personal experiences in a different way.

I love being with the kids and the older people because I love listening to their stories and their experiences.  Many of them are so inspirational.  Things that have happened to them can really open up my eyes to see new things and will bring tears to my eyes. The church members are so nice and everyone just treats you like family.  There is absolutely no disrespect anywhere to anyone. They see everyone to be of the same equality as God loves us all as His children.  Another thing is that no person here has judged anyone of us for being a different race or not having an accent, or maybe that white people can’t dance as good as our new friendsJ and they can “wobble” better than we can. (Wobble is a dance the Iowans learned a few days ago)

Alexa

Getting to LA and leaving LA is probably going to be the hardest part for me. Not only because of the plane ride (It was Alexa’s first time to fly) but because the children are so amazing to be around.  In a sense, you could say it’s almost like meeting your new brother or sister you didn’t even know you had.  They are so loving and kind.  One thing that was very shocking to me was a lot of the little kids did not know the song “Jesus loves me”.  If anything, that would be the one song that I knew since I was very little.  It was so fun teaching them the song and watching them.

Everyone at the church is so loving to us.  They welcome us with a warm heart.  When I am around them it just feels like being with family.

I am enjoying my time on this trip and wanting to return next year because it is so amazing seeing everyone growing in their faith.

Spencer

So far this trip has been awesome—once again.  Going on this trip last year, I somewhat knew what to expect, but things have changed a bit here.  The thing I looked forward to the most on returning to LA was getting to see all the kids.  The kids really move me, just knowing that some of them have never heard of Jesus, but giving me the opportunity to teach Jesus to them is awesome!  I teach 3^rd & 4^th grade at Hope & Faith this year.  The kids are so excited to return and they are excited to learn.  They ask me so many questions about Jesus and the Bible and I do my best to answer them.  They are absorbed into Jesus and the Bible.  I’m excited to return to Skid Row and once again have my eyes opened and realize how well we live.  The people here amaze me!  They are so friendly and welcome us with open arms and a friendly smile.  They are so grateful for us to be here and I am grateful I’m here to spread His word! Thank you everyone for your thoughts and prayers!

Bailey

This trip has been a lot of fun.  It’s helped me in lots of ways.  It’s strengthened my faith and has made me more thankful.  The kids that you meet are the best, they’re so nice, and they are all so thankful for what they have.  When I’m teaching the kids are so fun and love to learn about Jesus.  It’s awesome to see how excited the kids get to learn about Jesus.  Also, we went to the beach at El Segundo and had lots of fun.  When I first went on this trip I only knew one of them really well and after just these 7 days we’ve become so much closer and know a lot about each other.  It’s crazy how close this trip brings you to the other kids and adults.  I’ve had a lot of fun on this trip and definitely have made lots of memories already.

Amanda

I am Amanda and I am going to be a senior at Denison High School. I learned about the trip when Ellie came to the 30 hour famine to speak.  This trip has been a blast.  While being in LA, I have been inspired by the other members on this trip.  I enjoy spending time with the children we teach since the children are excited and ready to learn about Jesus and listen to what you have to say about Him.  This trip has strengthened my faith and made me realize when I go home I need to show I am a Christian more than I do now.  I am more thankful for the things I am blessed with since some of the children we work with are not as blessed as we are in our daily lives.  Lastly, we do a lot of other fun things like going to the ocean.  This trip is filled with making friends and memories and there are many more things we get to experience on this trip that are still to come.

Kim

My name is Kim from Sioux City.  I am an adult who came on this trip with ten youth from Iowa.  It has been a renewing experience to see the faith and talents of these young kids come alive and to witness their enthusiasm in working with young kids to spread the Gospel message through VBS.  They have undertaken all the various roles of teaching the lessons, leading music and crafts.  They do whatever is asked of them without complaining.
It is awesome to see these young adults use their talents and creativity to take on much responsibility and to do it well!  They are great missionaries.

I was a little reserved about driving in LA, but I can say with the Lord’s help it has been really good.  We have stayed off the freeways so far so the 3-4 lanes of traffic one way has been good!

God is so good and His word is alive!!