Hello everyone! We
have some free time now, so I (this is Spencer Owen) am writing a little
update about the happenings here in LA. We thank you for your continued
prayers for our group and for the people we serve here in LA. I know it's been
a while, so we have to get caught up a little bit.... Hope you enjoy!
Let's start all the
way back with last Saturday (almost a week ago already! I guess they say time
flies when your having fun! And boy, are we having some fun Serving God!) Saturday was
our day we went to Skid Row in downtown LA, so we were forced to take the Freeway (known as the Interstate in Iowa!) You
can say that's an experience in itself, but we arrived safely and we didn't get
lost! We arrived in the parking lot of a place called Union Mission. This is
the place where Kimberly and Gerald Fortier do their "Urban Street
Church" on Skid Row. We helped them set up and prepare for
their service. It's pretty cool to see a parking lot with nothing in it
transform into an area with numerous canopies with tables for food, clothes,
and health supplies, along with an area where people give their testimony and
Pastor gives his sermon, along with an area for people to sit. It took quite a
while, but by 11:15-11:30 the service started for 40 people or so
that are Skid Row residents.
Skid Row is an
interesting place, and if you've ever been on this trip you'll probably agree.
When you're driving to the area known as Skid Row, there are people on the
streets everywhere! It's just almost incomprehensible. There are so many people
in poverty. But to get through Skid Row you have to drive through the
"Diamond District" and the "Flower District" -- areas where
there are numerous jewelry stores and numerous flower stores. They are two of
the richest and fanciest areas of LA, and they are situated right next to the
poorest part of LA. There is seriously just a block difference between the
two.
During the service our
9 IOWAY members introduced ourselves and sang a song. They seemed to
appreciate us being there and were thankful for us bringing all the items. We
also listened to a man give his testimony to the crowd. Doris wrote his story and it was put on the blog
yesterday. Hope you had a chance to read it.
That was just one
testimony. Everyone on Skid Row has a story. Why are they homeless? Drugs?
Alcohol? Family issues? Fired? Laid off? and on and on and on. It seems like
their biggest question is WHY? "'For I know the plans I have for you,'
declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you
hope and a future.'" This is reassurance to us, and to the homeless that
God has a plan for us. He knows and we have to Trust him.
Saturday evening was pretty relaxing. We went out to eat
and just enjoyed each other's fellowship, recognizing how nice we have it back
at home.
Sunday morning we woke up and went to church. We split up
as one group went to Hope and one group went to Christ. We drove directly to
Santa Monica where we enjoyed a nice relaxing day doing some souvenir shopping
and doing some things on the pier. It was really sunny, not too hot, just
sunny. But imagine that...sunny in California..but guess who forgot to pack
sunscreen...Yup. Sunday night I was hurting and I was really red. I
can still feel it today and it's Thursday afternoon. We went out to eat as
a 'family' Sunday night and came back for evening devotion.
We headed to bed early Sunday night as we knew we had
an early morning ahead of us. We were all going to be early to our churches for
VBS just to finalize the plans, check over things, etc. My group left for Hope
and the other group headed to Christ. We welcomed new kids and returning kids.
Some of them had smiles on their faces recognizing a few of us from last year.
It's amazing how they remember us year after year. We had a good turnout at all
of our churches on Monday morning.
Monday afternoon most of us took a nap when we returned to
the hotel so we could get 'recharged' for our night VBS at two different
churches. We left for Faith and St. Phillip's in the late afternoon. We had a
great turnout at both of our churches. We did crafts with them, taught them the
lesson, and learned songs.
Our theme for VBS this year is "Set Sail With Jesus"
with a sailboat theme. The theme at Hope is "Investigation Destination -
Searching for clues for the King of Kings." The lessons for the week
and the theme words are as follows:
Monday - "Come" Fishers of Men
Tuesday - "Go" Jonah and the Fish
Wednesday - "Trust" Jesus Walking on Water
Thursday - "Serve" Paul serving God
Friday - "Celebrate" Paul's experience of being
shipwrecked on an island
At Hope the their lessons are:
Monday - The Birth of Jesus and the Wise Men
Tuesday - Jesus feeds the 5,000
Wednesday - Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem
Thursday - The King dies and lives again
Friday - He Lives and will Come again
Throughout this week we have seen many old friends and have
gained many new friends at the various churches. There is nothing quite like a
bunch of kids jumping all over you (no matter how crazy it sounds), but we all
enjoy it and they enjoy us too. We've had a lot of fun and it's sad it's ending tomorrow,
but it's awesome to know that even if we never meet again we will see each
other in heaven. These kids believe in Jesus and they know where they are going
when they die on this earth. I will miss all of them, but knowing that I will
someday see them again, maybe not on this earth, but in heaven is
exciting.
Thank you again for keeping us in your prayers at
home and in your congregation. We certainly can feel the presence of God here
in LA! Please continue to pray for safe travels and for the children and people
that have been blessed by our work this week!
Have a great evening everyone!
Spencer
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