Atlanta Mission Trips -
The last youth mission trip was very involved and very encouraging. We had our schedule down so well we had free time we didn’t know what to do with. An entire building at Capitol View Apartments got painted. A colony of rats was driven out of the dumpsters Sol Luna Apartments, while 50 more feet of trail was begun. The kids at Lakewood Corps enjoyed some time at camp. Kids at the CVA Kid’s Club became the teachers when they led a dance class for the team. There were moments at Jonesboro that resembled structure – minus the time that Matt got bit.

The kids at both the CVA and Jonesboro kid’s clubs have begun to put more trust in the leaders, as well as the teams that are coming. Some of the kids at CVA latched on to the team members that were there consistently and continued to ask about them into this next week of the summer. Jonesboro is still proving to be challenging, but extremely rewarding. One girl asked for a Bible so she would be able to study the stories they heard more. A little girl picked a fight with Lyndee and banned her from her porch, only to be smiling for pictures with her the next day.

We started a new site with the Initiative for Affordable Housing. Magnolia Circle is their senior center. We spent a few days mulching, picking up trash, digging trenches, and playing Shuffleboard, while the residents watched from the porches or pointed out places we missed with the wheel-barrows. Some of them actually came out to see what we were doing, and it was great to visit a bit. The manager at that site, Dee Dee, is an amazing woman with a heart for her work and for her tenants.

Relationships are being built all over Atlanta, including just off the interstate on our way to Lakewood. Lyndee and Krista began making a couple extra lunches in the mornings to give to people they saw on the street during the day as they drove around. One day we hadn’t given them away yet and we noticed a man that we had seen nearly every day at the intersection right before we get on the interstate. I ran out and gave him both lunches before I learned that his name is Jose Lopez. A few days later, Krista, Matt, and Lyndee took another man from the same intersection to dinner at Wendy’s. His name is Larry Crawford. We’ve continued to see them almost daily and they’ve even begun to recognize a couple of us when we drive by. We decided to take the next step, and they both will be joining us for dinner and the evening service at Lakewood on Wednesday night. We are so excited! We aren’t sure where these relationships are going.

Hopefully we can at least get them plugged into Lakewood. Larry has family that may be able to help him get back on his feet if he can get into contact with them, so we will be working to try to get a hold of them. I’m sure both of these men have great stories, and I’m excited to get to know them better!

To serve with Experience Mission on one of our youth mission trips, visit our website at www.ExperienceMission.org. To check out additional media about Atlanta, visit our news website at www.ExperienceMissionNews.com. Youth Mission Trips change how we see faith, people and our life.