One end is another beginning

Hey guys! Its been a while, and the New Lenox summit was pretty good. The size of the group we had in Happy Heart shrunk from the first Sunday to the last by about ten kids. But we had a good group. They were pretty rowdy and wild most of the time, but we did get the lesson in.
    Inside the sanctuary, we had 28 testimonies! So that was pretty good. I really wish I could have heard some of them, but just knowing that God was working in the church was great!
   We got to have a fall cookoff at the church. What that included was, some people teamed up, and others did it on their own. I, however, did it on my own. We could either make a dessert or an appetizer. I made a turkey cheese ball. It took me like four hours to make, but I did win best Fall Theme. During the cookoff, we worked with our tables to make the best pilgrim village. And our table won :) Pictures are on facebook, somewhere...
We also got to go to Chicago!! It was so much fun and a great time to spend with the team! Even though we got rained on a lot, it was a great memory! (pictures are yet to come)
    We are now in Hazelwood, MO. We just finished the first night of the summit and it was very good. I have the privilage of sitting in for ALL of the services this time. I am very excited to see what God has in store for me to learn this time. Today was about our nation and why we need revival. Tonight was about Biblical family principles, and revival in our own lives and why we need it. We took the Complete Spiritual, which you can get online at www.lifeaction.org under the Revival Resources tab and under the Revival Worksheets, which is most definitly not made to pass... which is good, because I dont come close. One thing that I have been asking God about is surrendering. What have I surrendered? What do I need to surrender? Is there anything I am not willing to surrender? All those questions run through my mind. But God has been showing me some of the main areas that I do still need to surrender to Him. I want God to be the Lord of my life, not just someone I can talk to and ask for things from. I want to be able to let go of the reigns and know that God has everything in control. I am very excited about the rest of the messages this week!
    Oh, and the girl who I sent the Bible to has recieved it and started to read it! PRAISE GOD! Please pray for understanding and a willingness to read.
     Please be praying for Danielle, a base camp instructor and a great friend of mine, she was sent home this morning due to health issues. She had an allergic reaction to something a few nights ago, and she will be further monitored at her family doctor. Please be praying that everything will be fine. I know that God has it all in control, but its very scary when we dont know whats going on.

Thanks for all your prayers!

Summit #4

We are in New Lenox, IL this week. We had a great 4 day break at the camp! I really missed being there, so it was nice to be back. I got to catch up on some sleep as well! We arrived in New Lenox on Friday night. I am in a host home with Tara this time. We are staying with Rich and Ann. They have 4 children, but only two are still living in the home. Brett (19) and Alyssa (22) are in the house. Amber lives next door and has four children who come over to the house every day. So I have gotten to know their grandchildren as well as their children. This summit has been pretty good so far. In Happy Heart, we have had up to 28 kids! Angela is sitting in this week, so its just me and Matt teaching. I am so greatful for the helpers that we have. They are so great. During one of my quiet times I was prompted to write out what I had to ask forgiveness for, to write out all of 1 John, and to give my old Bible to one of my friends back in Wisconsin. Please be praying for her to accept it well and to read it daily. I am praying that God will do something great in her life. As far as other prayer requests, please be praying for my focus and attention to be aimed at God. Also for the team to have selfless love toward everyone. For the people at this church to have open hearts to what the Spirit will have to say. I know that God is going to do so many great things.
Thank you for your prayers!!

Sarah

Marion, KY

Hey y'all. We are in Marion, KY right now. We got here last Friday and this Sunday is our last day. This summit was only an eight day summit. Everything has been going pretty well. God was really moving in the church last night. In happy heart, we have anywhere from 5-10 kids. It has been different teaching this week because our head teacher is sitting in on the services. But God has definitely given me grace through it.
I am loving the host home we are staying in. I am staying with Hilary again and we are with Stuart and Pam. They have two girls, Maggie(16) and Mauri (12) It has been great getting to know them this week. It has gone insanely fast and I can't believe we only have two more days left. I am going to miss them once we leave.
After this summit, we have about three days off. We are going to the Life Action camp. I am so excited to be going back there! Please be in prayer for the rest of this summit and the previous summits. God is still working in the church in PA! praise the Lord!
Thank you all for your prayers!

Sarah

How a leaf changed my life

As I was sitting on a log, admiring God’s great creation, a leaf fell on my foot. It wasn’t a green leaf; it was a beautiful orange leaf. As soon as it fell from the tree and landed on my foot, I started to think about my life. We as Christians are so much like leaves. A leaf is only alive for so long. It is always attached to the tree; however there are certain things that can tear it off. There could be a storm that blows the leaves off, or people could decide to rip them off. The ones that are still on the tree change color when autumn comes. The leaves become beautiful once they begin changing. But once they have changed, they fall off of the tree. We need to become like a leaf. When we were born, God accepted us as His children even if we don’t accept Him. If we accept Him, we are on the “tree” and if we don’t accept Him, we always have a rope leading to the tree. The rope is Jesus and the tree is God. There are things that will try and take us away from the tree. People will come and pull us into the worldly side of things, or a spiritual storm will come and make us question why we are hanging on so tightly. The funny thing is, that when we are full of ourselves, and prideful and arrogant, we are a green leaf. We are like everything around us. But when we fully surrender to God and die to ourselves, we become a beautiful, colorful leaf. It is then that we can “fall off” of the tree and land on someone’s foot to change their life. Then, when they are finished with us, we can simply sit on the ground, on our faces and worship Him for His greatness and power. While we are waiting and worshiping, He will send someone else to pick us up, examine us and start the cycle all over. But if we don’t surrender, we won’t be completely effective for the work God has for us. Because we won’t be changed by God, so we will still be on the tree, watching people pass us by. We need to be like a leaf, die to ourselves, surrender to God, and LET HIM CHANGE US!

How have you impacted someone lately?