God continues to show up in many ways in New York City!
Serving group 1 began their day by staying right here at our housing site to serve the local church that has so graciously hosted us this week. The group swept, cleaned the area inside and out, and just generally served wherever needed in the building. In the afternoon, group 1 spent time at Operation Exodus, a local daycare and tutoring program that serves almost 60 kids. Our students were so encouraged by the genuine energy and excitement for learning about and worshiping Jesus that these kids had.
This morning it was now group 2's turn to serve at "God's Love We Deliver" (the site that group 1 helped at on Monday). The kids packaged and delivered food to people with serious illnesses, and it really touched our hearts to hear the thanks of the individuals served. After lunch in a park, the team got to continue painting/restoring a mural with City Arts. The students really enjoyed getting to literally leave a mark on the great city of New York.
Gifted Hands was the starting point today for group 3. Gifted Hands is an art therapy ministry that strives to "reach out to the lost, hurting, and forgotten of the city." The team helped the organization spruce up their building in preparation for a big art show they're hosting in the near future which will sell artwork and jewelry made by homeless men and women to raise money that will go back to the ministry. Bathrooms were cleaned and painted, areas were organized, and the team even made its own mural to be sold at the art show! The team loved learning about a ministry that is really committed to providing training and skills to disadvantaged men and women so that they can break the cycle of poverty. In the afternoon, this group participated in a Neighborhood Emersion experience, where they got to find a homeless man or woman in the West Village and bless that person by sharing a meal and their time with that individual. Although it took a while for the group to find someone to serve, once they finally encountered a woman down on her luck, they really saw Jesus in each other's willingness to reach out and meet a tangible need.
Group 4 got to see for themselves the thriving ministry at St. John's Bread & Life, the site that group 2 served at on our first day in the city. Like group 2, group 4 was so impressed with the professionalism of the organization, their commitment to their "clients," and the sheer volume of committed volunteers that it takes to make the operation run. After their time serving at Bread & Life, Group 4 also participated in a Neighborhood Emersion experience in the West Village and Chelsea. The team interviewed several locals from the area to learn more about the area before encountering Paul, a homeless man whom they purchased a meal for and shared some lively conversation with. Despite his challenging circumstances, the team really saw Jesus in Paul and his genuine interest in the lives of the individual group members. It was a blessing for this group to spend that time with him.
Group 5 began their day at Agape Social Services, a local soup kitchen connected to Beulah Church. The group unloaded a delivery truck of food into their pantry and sorted the new items before preparing the kitchen and hanging out with the organization's incredible staff. After getting to know the staff, half the group went to help with the church's Vacation Bible School, while the other half helped serve food in the soup kitchen. The group felt like this was one of their most relational days, and really enjoyed connecting with the staff and playing with the children. After lunch, Group 5 also enjoyed their Neighborhood Emersion experience in Times Square. They too interviewed some locals and tourists passing through the area about issues of homelessness and poverty in NYC before connecting with a homeless man named Samuel. While not the most talkative individual, the group could tell that Samuel truly appreciated their efforts to serve him.
After eating dinner in their individual groups, all teams returned to the housing site for an abbreviated Porch Time. The team enjoyed worship and a great talk from Craig that challenged us with application points from the book of James, then all students headed to small groups with their leaders to process more deeply the lessons we've learned so far. All leaders brought back positive reports from their small group time, and we look forward to continued small groups on our last two evenings in NYC.
It's hard to believe that the trip is more than half over! God has already shown up in amazing ways, and we look forward to how He will continue to reveal Himself in our last two serving days. Again, we hope that everyone will be able to make it to the time of corporate prayer on Thursday night, July 14th, from 7-8pm in the Student Ministries Worship Room led by Travis Simone. We are so thankful for your prayers!
