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Greetings to our friends, family, and appreciated prayer warriors!
We just had a boy accept Christ as his Lord and Savior at VBS! Praise the Lord! We had a large number of new kids show up last night at the Teen Outreach, many of whom we expect to see back tonight for the final evening of our ministry here in Kamiah. Please be praying for a harvest of souls tonight, or for a large number of seeds to be planted in the hearts of the youth here in Kamiah. In particular, there is a wonderful young man who belongs to another religion currently, as well as a young woman who is struggling to distinguish/decide between the gospel of Jesus Christ and Islam.
Another issue for prayer: Pastor Sam, the pastor of the local church we are working with here, would love to see this week's events lead to the formation of a youth group in their church. The church's membership is presently made up of almost exclusively Christians 55 years and older, but there is one teenage boy named Matt who loves the Lord and shows leadership qualities. Please be praying for both Pastor Sam, in that the Lord will direct his steps as he begins work on creating a youth group here in Kamiah, and also for Matt, that God will give him a heart for his peers in Kamiah who are still lost. Finally, please pray for the strength and energy to finish strong here and to safely and quickly make the 8-10 hour journey from Kamiah to Seattle tomorrow.
We appreciate all of your prayers! They truly make a difference!
Lee and the rest of the NWBC Youth Group here in Kamiah
Hello all,
This is just a quick post to give everyone an update on what God is doing here in Kamiah ID. Yesterday and today, we had new additions to VBS. The NWBC teens are doing a great job and all of the VBS'ers are having a great time and learning all about Jesus.
The teen night is going well also. Chris and Kyle shared their testimony last night. They gave honest and passionate gospel presentations. It is a privilege to see them stand up and share their faith with a mixed group of believers and the lost.
Pray that there would be professions of faith from the VBS and teen night. Pray for energy, both physical and spiritual. Also, please continue to pray for Sam B's ankle, Sam R's blisters, Kelsie's cough, and Miranda's back.
Jack
Morning VBS
If anyone has the faith of a mustard seed...
Loving on kids
sharing the gospel
Listening intently
Wednesday morning VBS just started and the kids are singing praise songs in the church. It's a wonderful sound to hear!
Last night at the teen outreach we had Haley, Compton and Evan share their testimonies and Amy shared the gospel. The Holy Spirit was very active in putting words into the mouths of those speaking, we greatly appreciate the prayers of everyone who's been praying for this!
The shower situation has settled into a good routine now, so no more bathing in the river (unless the kids just want a swim).
Please be praying both for the VBS this week and also for the teen outreach tonight. The number of teenagers has grown each night, and last night we had a girl rededicate her life to Christ! Be praying especially for the Indian and LDS kids, and also that the Lord will speak through the testimonies of the kids tonight: Chris and Kyle.
Great to hear Riggins is going well!!
Lee
Hey everyone!
I just wanted to give y'all an upadate on our first day of VBS and our first teen night in Kamiah!
We only had a couple of kids in VBS...but the kids that did come really need Jesus! 2 of the children grew up in extreme dysfunction in the foster-care system and have had a pretty painful past. We were so glad that we were able to minister to them on an individual level and really show them the love of Christ. We hope and pray that more kids will come throughout the week, but if they don't, we are just grateful that God can use us to touch the needy kids we had today. Please pray that God will bring who He wills, and that He will keep our students motivated to serve wholeheartedly, despite the results. They did an amazing job today loving on those kids and teaching them about Jesus.
We spent the afternoon walking around the town and talking to everyone that we met! Some students and leaders also went door-to-door to talk to people and tell them about the activities we have planned this week.
After a great dinner, we headed out to the football field for some ultimate frisbee. We are so thankful that we had such a great turn-out, and that most teens that did come were unchurched. Lee, Meghan and Sam shared their testimonies and did a great job! Please pray that God would use their stories to touch hearts.
We are about to head back to the church for family group time. No showers tonight, but Lee and Jack have just bathed in the ice-cold river...what an experience!
Praise God for an amazing group of students...they are doing an awesome job, and I am so proud of all of them. Please continue to pray for our work here~
-Amy
Wow, what a week! I'm so exhausted right now. It's about 11:00 local time and we are just winding down on our last night with the kids here in Riggins. We've been going to the cafe at night to hang out with the kids we've met and to eat the most awesome blackberry cobbler in the world.
Today was a great finish to a great week. We finished up VBS this morning with a "family day" which went very well. There were about 45 parents there to see the kids sing, to watch the slide show, and to hear Pastor Jim share a message. It was really cool. I'm so proud of our students for putting this on, as it was getting harder and harder to find energy the last two days. But they finished strong! Thank you for praying!
This afternoon some folks from the church took us whitewater rafting in the Salmon River. It was awesome! I must say that the people of Salmon River Community Church could not have been more hospitable. They were so great to us, providing us with meals, places to shower, prayer, and good times. We are thankful to God for this awesomely generous body of believers. It will be hard to leave tomorrow.
Last night and tonight we had around 25 teens come to the football field. It has really been fun to see how our relationships with them have grown during the week. Tonight was a little hard because we are saying goodbye. Please continue to pray for these kids! Last night Jordan and Sally did an awesome job of sharing their testimonies. Tonight we wanted the rest of the crew to get a chance to share so Paul, Abbey, Evan, Chelsea, and Jacob shared. It was a good finish to a wonderful week of ministry. For the last three nights I have ended our time by explaining the good news of the gospel to the kids. Again, please continue praying for the kids we've met here. Many were already Christians, some trusted Christ this week, and for some a seed was planted. Thank you for all your prayers!
Tomorrow we'll clean up the church and leave for Spokane. I probably won't update the blog again until we arrive back home. Please pray for our travel. Enjoy the photos!
Rob
Jordan:
Sally:
One of our rafts:
Another one:
(l tor r) Dan from Spokane (ask us about him when we get home), Cleve, Dallas, Lucas, Jacob, John, Trent, Corey:
Evan:
Abbey:
Paul:
Pastor Jim cooking some hot dogs:
Chelsea:
Jacob:
What a day! We did things a little differently today, with the whole group taking a drive up to "Heaven's Gate" where you can see all the way to Washington, Oregon, and Montana (at least that's what they tell me). The photo above is of Seven Devils. I posted some other pictures below so you can see the beauty.
God continues to bless our time here. We had another big day at VBS with 34 kids. Tomorrow is our "family day" where the parents will come to see what's been going on for the past week. Please pray for our final day and for the kids here in Riggins. For the week we have had 42 different kids come to VBS, which is awesome considering that is almost exactly 10% of the population. God is working!
Last night at the football field was also a huge success. We had 33 kids come up for wiffle ball, kick ball, and ultimate frisbee. Leah and Sam shared their testimonies and did a great job. Our students are getting so bold, and I am so proud of them. They are taking every opportunity to turn conversations to matters of faith, and are becoming comfortable with sharing the gospel message and finding out where these kids stand. One of the girls we have been praying for, Megan, trusted Christ last night. Praise God! Keep praying! Jordan and Sally are going to share in about 30 minutes from now.
Pray for our energy level, and that we finish strong with VBS and our time with the teens. We are going rafting tomorrow and having a cookout tomorrow night up at the high school. It's going to be a very busy day!
I'll have another update tomorrow.
Rob
Elk:
Abbey & some friends:
Ultimate frisbee:
Leah sharing:
Sam giving his testimony:
Leah in front of the group:
Impromptu birthday party for Matt, he turned 10, we had cake & ice cream:
Sam, Lucas, Corey, Evan:
The group at Heaven's Gate. Seven Devils and Hell's Canyon in background:
Paul playing in the snow:
Pressed for time today, so I'll make this short. I'm hanging out here with Evan, Jacob, Michelle, Lucas, Chelsea, and two girls we met in town, Izanna and Megan. The rest of our group is at an Elk Ranch with some of the local teens. It's been a fun afternoon.
Last night was great! We had 32 kids show up. When I told the pastor's wife this morning she said, "That's impossible!" But I did multiple counts just to make sure. God is truly honoring your prayers and blessing our time here. Megan and Robert shared last night and both did great. The kids are really listening. Some of them came back with us to hang out at the church afterwards. We are having great conversations with these kids each night, so keep praying! And our kids are growing so much, too. It is really an awesome sight. Pray for Sam and Leah tonight as they will be sharing their testimonies.
VBS was great as well. We had 36 today. There were several who trusted Christ this morning, so praise God! The kids are loving it and our kids are doing an awesome job.
We're starting to get a little tired since we are doing so much during the day and staying up late with the kids we've met, then having our own Family Time. So please pray for our energy level.
I'll update again tomorrow. Enjoy the photos and keep praying!
Megan sharing her testimony:
(l to r) Chelsea, Megan, Blake, Izanna, Sally, Leah, Michelle, Jordan
(l to r) Jacob, Corey, Arnie, Katie, Lucas
An NWBC tradition brought to Riggins -- Wiffle Ball!
Sam the angel:
VBS Worship Rally:
I'm back at the River Rock Cafe, this time enjoying blackberry cobbler with Michelle, Robert, and Lucas. The rest of our group is out canvassing the town, meeting and hanging out with kids. Some are at the city park with some of the kids we met last night. Others are hanging out at "the beach", and some are washing windows for someone from the church.
Last night was awesome! We had 19 kids join us at the high school for Ultimate Frisbee, football, and some other games. It was a good chance to meet kids and hear their stories. Our kids are really investing in these new relationships and the kids here seem to like hanging out with us. Several of them came back to the church last night to spend more time with us. But before we left the football field, Lee and Michelle shared their testimonies with the whole group. They listened well and the good news of Jesus Christ was heard loud and clear. We'll do it again tonight from 6-8. Megan and Robert will share their testimonies, so please pray for them during that time.
VBS was also great this morning. We had 34 kids today. I'm so proud of our kids, they are doing a wonderful job of putting this on. Please pray for us tomorrow as we will be sharing the gospel message with these little ones, some who don't go to church. Also, remember to pray for our family day on Friday where we invite the parents to come hear their kids sing, watch a slide show from the week, and hear a message from Pastor Jim.
Thank you so much for praying. We are truly seeing the fruit of your prayer! I'll have another update tomorrow. Enjoy the pics!
Hanging out with kids:
Sally, Chelsea, Monica, Matt, and Leah:
Lee sharing:
Michelle giving her testimony:
This morning at VBS:
Pastor Jim and Wally:
Jacob, Evan, Jordan, Paul, and Sam acting out the Bible story:
I'm sitting here with 5 of my favorite people at the River Rock Cafe in the beautiful town of Riggins. This place is great! It sits right on the banks of the Salmon River surrounded by a very steep canyon. The weather is beautiful!
We had a great time in Spokane with the other teams on Friday and arrived in town Saturday night and our group helped with the church service on Sunday morning. Jacob, Leah, Chelsea, and Megan helped lead worship, I preached, and Jacob & Chelsea shared their testimonies. It was a lot of fun and we already love this town, especially the families of Salmon River Community Church. Pastor Jim and his wife Judy are awesome!
After church we broke up into groups and went to different houses to have lunch with some of the families from church. It was really awesome to share a meal with these great people and learn about their lives here in Idaho. They all had such great stories about life in "the narrowest town in America."
We have already met a bunch of teens from the area and they are hanging out with us as I write. This afternoon, we are out meeting kids and inviting them to come hang out with us at the high school tonight. It's a lot of fun, the people are friendly and enjoy talking to us.
This morning we began VBS with the younger kids. We had 27 kids show up which is a really good number. There are only 400 people in the whole town! Last year, the numbers went up each day, so we hope that trend continues.
We've got some work projects to do this afternoon so I should probably go now, but now that I know where to get internet access I will update you more regularly. Enjoy the photos!
Rob
Worship Service:
VBS:
Guys sleeping arrangement:
Some of our group in the Big Red Wagon, Spokane:
We would like to say a huge thank you to all of you who contributed to our missions dinner, whether it was through prayer, attendance, or donations. By God's grace we raised over $5,000 that night alone! Praise the Lord!