It has been a while since I last posted. I hope this week to give more info on what happened and what is going on now.
-Ben
Friday, April 10, 2009
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Germany's Rainy City (Ludensheid)
Friday
Our first full day at this location and they gave us the morning off, they thought that we had just arrived from the states and needed to get over jet lag. In the afternoon we worked outside on the mountain. I went around and picked up wood from up on the mountain and brought it down to stack it outside in the storage area.
Saturday
That night we went to the church which was part of the FCJG ministry. We did the worship and the message. Most of the people there were from a part of the ministry and some were locals and people from the rehab.
Me on the bass for worship
Me praying for Alex
Alex gave his life to the lord that night.
The rest of the week was spent doing a lot of different things. We spent some time helping with their newsletters, organizing and putting them in the envelopes. We went out to the mall and stores and just walked around talking to people. We had a few long times of prayer for the city, people and ministrys working there. On our last day we spent the whole day working on the base and cleaning it. I did the hedge trimming......all day. That evening we had a Germany BBQ with tons of meat and bread. That night we all went out for ice cream, and it was the best ice cream I have ever had. It was a ice spaghetti, it looked like a plate of spaghetti with bananas and chocolate syrup.
Me and my ice cream
Our first full day at this location and they gave us the morning off, they thought that we had just arrived from the states and needed to get over jet lag. In the afternoon we worked outside on the mountain. I went around and picked up wood from up on the mountain and brought it down to stack it outside in the storage area.
Saturday
That night we went to the church which was part of the FCJG ministry. We did the worship and the message. Most of the people there were from a part of the ministry and some were locals and people from the rehab.
Me on the bass for worship
Me praying for AlexAlex gave his life to the lord that night.
The rest of the week was spent doing a lot of different things. We spent some time helping with their newsletters, organizing and putting them in the envelopes. We went out to the mall and stores and just walked around talking to people. We had a few long times of prayer for the city, people and ministrys working there. On our last day we spent the whole day working on the base and cleaning it. I did the hedge trimming......all day. That evening we had a Germany BBQ with tons of meat and bread. That night we all went out for ice cream, and it was the best ice cream I have ever had. It was a ice spaghetti, it looked like a plate of spaghetti with bananas and chocolate syrup.Me and my ice cream
Monday, July 21, 2008
Germany and the Freaks (Berlin)
Monday
We spent some more time touring the city and learning more about the history and major parts.
We went to a remaining part of the wall still standing in the city and we went to checkpoint Charlie.
Germany Team Guys
Trying to escape
Chris and I along the river
French Dome
After dinner we went back to the church and did a small service for the kids service.
Tuesday
In the Morning we went to the Garden of Desire and did worship and prayer there.
The Garden of desire in front of the Berliner Dome
A few of the guys went and prayed over the cathedral. We saw people coming and going in and out and taking pictures but they only saw so much, they seemed to miss the messages put in plain view about Christ. in the picture you can see in the center there is a statue with gold writing next to it, there is written two scriptures......but I'm not sure what they are.
That night we hung out with the youth that were at the church. The church that we were staying at has a ministry that was a hang out room for local youth and they did a BBQ for them o that night. So we hung out with them and talked, most of them were drinking and smoking and us not doing it and not taking any when they offered allowed us to show them something different. Us not doing the same thing as them allowed for more conversation and more to talk about.
Wednesday
In the morning we prayed over the YWAM team there. We went to the apartment where they had set up a main base and guys living area and prayed over it and the people who lived there. We went to the girls apartment which was in an old soviet apartment building. We prayed over them and the house, that it would be a place of peace where it feels like home.
That afternoon we went to Kreuzberg and did worship in the park. The park that we went to was mostly known for drugs, alcohol and problems. We went there and did worship and prayer in the area as a spiritual battle for the area. The whole time we were there it was raining.
That night we had pizza at the church with the leadership of the church. We had dinner with them and a time of fellowship then went into a time of worship and prayer for each other. That church was doing a thing called summer to go where they hosted outreach teams and worked with them.
Thursday
we spent the day traveling to FCJG, a ministry in Ludensheid.
That night we had a short introduction time.
We spent some more time touring the city and learning more about the history and major parts.
We went to a remaining part of the wall still standing in the city and we went to checkpoint Charlie.
Germany Team Guys
Trying to escape
Chris and I along the river
French Dome
After dinner we went back to the church and did a small service for the kids service.
Tuesday
In the Morning we went to the Garden of Desire and did worship and prayer there.
The Garden of desire in front of the Berliner Dome
A few of the guys went and prayed over the cathedral. We saw people coming and going in and out and taking pictures but they only saw so much, they seemed to miss the messages put in plain view about Christ. in the picture you can see in the center there is a statue with gold writing next to it, there is written two scriptures......but I'm not sure what they are.That night we hung out with the youth that were at the church. The church that we were staying at has a ministry that was a hang out room for local youth and they did a BBQ for them o that night. So we hung out with them and talked, most of them were drinking and smoking and us not doing it and not taking any when they offered allowed us to show them something different. Us not doing the same thing as them allowed for more conversation and more to talk about.
Wednesday
In the morning we prayed over the YWAM team there. We went to the apartment where they had set up a main base and guys living area and prayed over it and the people who lived there. We went to the girls apartment which was in an old soviet apartment building. We prayed over them and the house, that it would be a place of peace where it feels like home.
That afternoon we went to Kreuzberg and did worship in the park. The park that we went to was mostly known for drugs, alcohol and problems. We went there and did worship and prayer in the area as a spiritual battle for the area. The whole time we were there it was raining.
That night we had pizza at the church with the leadership of the church. We had dinner with them and a time of fellowship then went into a time of worship and prayer for each other. That church was doing a thing called summer to go where they hosted outreach teams and worked with them.
Thursday
we spent the day traveling to FCJG, a ministry in Ludensheid.
That night we had a short introduction time.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
I'm in Germany! (Berlin)
Wednesday to Thursday:
We left the base at 11 in the morning and flew out at 4 in the afternoon. Our first flight was from Dallas to Frankfort then we caught our connecting flight to Berlin. We didn't do much that day, but from 5 to 6 we had a welcome party with the YWAM Berlin team. The Church that we are staying at was originally used by the secret police back when East Berlin was the Democratic Republic of Germany.
Friday:
In the morning we left for a tour of the city. We took a train to downtown and walked around checking out the main sites and historic places.
St. Mary's Church
Neptune fountain
Altes Museum
Berliner Dom
TV Tower
I thought it was really cool how this was made my the Democratic Republic of Germany(Communist rule) and when the sun shone on it it formed a cross in the air. Christians used to laugh at it cause the Government was so against religion but one of the things they erected shone the glory of God.
Brandenburg Gate
Capital Building
That afternoon we went to one of the parks and met up with a local group to do some street ministry and invite people back to the park for a service.
Saturday:
We got up and met with the leaders of a kids club to plan out what we were doing. We played Games with the kids for an hour or so. I was in charge of helping out with soccer, which was strange because I haven't played since I was young. Then we brought them all in for a bible story and one of our dramas.
Sunday:
Today we went to the service at the church we were staying with. We started out the service with our Clincher drama, which I will load up a video of as soon as possible. Then three of the team members shared a testimony and I was one of them. I shared about my coming into ministry, taking a leap of faith into what God has called me to do even though i am unsure and not capable of doing it by myself depending on God. I talked about not fearing what you have to do because greater is in you than that which is in the world.
We had the afternoon off, so I decided to walk around the area and check out stuff but everything was closed. So I went back to the church and went to sleep.
At 4 we met as a team and we were supposed to go to one of the parks and do street evangelism, but it was raining out and nobody would be there. We prayed as a team and decided to go to the park with the TV tower and have some worship and prayer over the area. When we were worshiping we had a guy come up and listen, so we talked with him. His name was Frank and he had skin cancer for which his doctor gave him 6 months to live. We prayed for him believing....NO.....knowing! that God would heal him (so please pray for him). He is going to see the doctor tomorrow, so we know that God is going to heal him and use him. Then we had a couple stop and watch, one of our girls went over and talked to them. They felt like there was something drawing them into us, but they claimed it was the music.
Our intercessory prayer team felt like we were to pray into the ground and dance for the lord, in the middle of the park full of people. It was amazing.
TV Tower Park
We left the base at 11 in the morning and flew out at 4 in the afternoon. Our first flight was from Dallas to Frankfort then we caught our connecting flight to Berlin. We didn't do much that day, but from 5 to 6 we had a welcome party with the YWAM Berlin team. The Church that we are staying at was originally used by the secret police back when East Berlin was the Democratic Republic of Germany.
Friday:
In the morning we left for a tour of the city. We took a train to downtown and walked around checking out the main sites and historic places.
St. Mary's Church
Neptune fountain
Altes Museum
Berliner Dom
TV TowerI thought it was really cool how this was made my the Democratic Republic of Germany(Communist rule) and when the sun shone on it it formed a cross in the air. Christians used to laugh at it cause the Government was so against religion but one of the things they erected shone the glory of God.
Brandenburg Gate
Capital Building
That afternoon we went to one of the parks and met up with a local group to do some street ministry and invite people back to the park for a service.
Saturday:
We got up and met with the leaders of a kids club to plan out what we were doing. We played Games with the kids for an hour or so. I was in charge of helping out with soccer, which was strange because I haven't played since I was young. Then we brought them all in for a bible story and one of our dramas.
Sunday:
Today we went to the service at the church we were staying with. We started out the service with our Clincher drama, which I will load up a video of as soon as possible. Then three of the team members shared a testimony and I was one of them. I shared about my coming into ministry, taking a leap of faith into what God has called me to do even though i am unsure and not capable of doing it by myself depending on God. I talked about not fearing what you have to do because greater is in you than that which is in the world.
We had the afternoon off, so I decided to walk around the area and check out stuff but everything was closed. So I went back to the church and went to sleep.
At 4 we met as a team and we were supposed to go to one of the parks and do street evangelism, but it was raining out and nobody would be there. We prayed as a team and decided to go to the park with the TV tower and have some worship and prayer over the area. When we were worshiping we had a guy come up and listen, so we talked with him. His name was Frank and he had skin cancer for which his doctor gave him 6 months to live. We prayed for him believing....NO.....knowing! that God would heal him (so please pray for him). He is going to see the doctor tomorrow, so we know that God is going to heal him and use him. Then we had a couple stop and watch, one of our girls went over and talked to them. They felt like there was something drawing them into us, but they claimed it was the music.
Our intercessory prayer team felt like we were to pray into the ground and dance for the lord, in the middle of the park full of people. It was amazing.
TV Tower Park
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Chicago or Bust!!!
Chicago!!!
Our time in Chicago was nothing less than amazing. Most of the ministry that we did was just building relationships, praying over the city and for people. The first day we were there we walked around and took surveys and talked to people There, Then to get home we had to ask for $.50 for the bus ride home. The bus fare was to show us what the city was like and how on a daily basis people have problems and need help but don't want to ask for it. On the second night we went to one of the parks and handed out food to the homeless and talked with them. The last night we were there we walked around "boys town" and prayed over the area and talked to people (boys town is the gay section of town).
Art outside in daily plaza downtown
Me on the 99th floor of the Sears Tower
we were given the day of on Saturday, so I hung out with John and Jackie Gardner. We went to the sears tower and walked around the city and the park. I tried my first Chicago style hot dog (hot dog, bun, pickle, onions, peppers, tomatoes, relish......and so on)
We left Chicago on sunday morning. We had planned to do a service at one of the churches, but we got canceled. We traveled all sunday and spent Monday and Tuesday getting ready and having meetings to prepare.
Us crammed in a 15 passenger van
Our time in Chicago was nothing less than amazing. Most of the ministry that we did was just building relationships, praying over the city and for people. The first day we were there we walked around and took surveys and talked to people There, Then to get home we had to ask for $.50 for the bus ride home. The bus fare was to show us what the city was like and how on a daily basis people have problems and need help but don't want to ask for it. On the second night we went to one of the parks and handed out food to the homeless and talked with them. The last night we were there we walked around "boys town" and prayed over the area and talked to people (boys town is the gay section of town).
Art outside in daily plaza downtown
we had been in the plaza all afternoon talking to people passing by and praying for anyone who wanted it. We had cards that said we were praying for people so we handed them out and asked if anyone wanted prayer for anything as they went by. I believe we as a group prayed for over 150 people that afternoon.
Me on the 99th floor of the Sears Towerwe were given the day of on Saturday, so I hung out with John and Jackie Gardner. We went to the sears tower and walked around the city and the park. I tried my first Chicago style hot dog (hot dog, bun, pickle, onions, peppers, tomatoes, relish......and so on)
We left Chicago on sunday morning. We had planned to do a service at one of the churches, but we got canceled. We traveled all sunday and spent Monday and Tuesday getting ready and having meetings to prepare.
Us crammed in a 15 passenger van
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Outreach started! Houston
Saturday:We left at 9 on Saturday morning with one van, 1 trailer and 13 people. Our first stop was at the YWAM Houston base leaders house for orientation. We spent some time there introducing ourselves and they told us about their ministry and the "what to and not to do". We left their house and went to the rescue center in the third ward of Houston to drop off the girls and the couples then the guys went to the MLK community center to drop off their stuff and figure out our sleeping situation. We were told that at the community center (gated in buildings) not to leave the property and ask if we are ok to play basketball outside, it was a very bad community to be hanging around in.
The first night we were there we went to a tree in the center of Montrose and did worship and prayer. After that we went out in groups to the streets of montrose and did our first ministry time. We walked around with bottles of water and snacks and talked to pimps, prostitutes, drag queens, gays, homeless, drug addicts and more. we just gave them a bottle of water, snack, talked and prayed with them. What could be a better way to be Christ to someone than just be kind and loving to them and praying for them. It is amazing just talking to them and treating them with love they recognize the wrong themselves and you have no need to tell them about it.
Sunday:
We got up and went to a church to do a service. It was a small church of about 50 people and they met in a Chuck E cheese kinda place. We did our dances, Dramas, testimonies and one of the girls in our group did a lesson on shame, how it was something that just held us in our sin and kept us from our growth with Christ. After the service we help them clean up and they took our whole team out to lunch.
Monday:
We got up and worked at the rescue center. The rescue center is a small gated in block with 4 houses in it. The girls took care of the kids and sorted clothes while the guys emptied out the buildings and organized all the junk.
in the afternoon we had a meeting about what to do for the service that night and we headed our for an hour and a half drive to Galveston, TX. We were going to a youth retreat for one of the Houston churches......a church of over ten thousand and half of the youth group was there which was about 250 teens. Their team led worship then they turned the service over to us. our plan was:
-dance (Spanish hip hop dance)
-introductions and information
-dance (called Jump)
-Me speaking on taking a leap of faith
-Clincher drama
-David Elliot
-Personal time of prayer
It was an amazing night. At the end our team was spread out all over the room to pray with people and hear their stories and confessions (if they wanted to). Its an amazing thing to get your problems off of your shoulders and tell someone and get prayer for it.
We had been going from early in the morning till late at night so a few of us decided to hit the energy drinks.
Tuesday:
We got up and went Downtown for a time of prayer. We went up to the 60th floor of the Chase bank tower, where there is a lookout. We spent time praying for the "7 spheres of influence"
-Business
-Art/Entertainment
-Media
-Family
-Church
-Government
-Education
We just spent 40 minutes praying and interceding for those influences in Houston.
When we were done praying, we went out to eat. The base leaders treated our team out to Chipotle, if you don't know it is a burrito restaurant with delicious and large burrito.
After eating we went down to the planned parenthood building to pray and do worship over that. On that one city block there is a planned parenthood abortion and planning clinic and on the other half is a Christian run pregnancy clinic. We prayed over both of them and a lady came out of the pregnancy clinic and told us about how she had been working there and they were reopening to compete with the planned parenthood clinic.
Wednesday:
We got up in the morning and went to a place called open door ministries, a place for recovering alcoholics and drug users. We worked in the kitchen from 10:30 until 2 organizing the pantry, freezer, refrigerator, and doing other miscellaneous jobs.
That night we went to a parking lot in the Montrose to do a service called "Street Church". A church service for anyone from the streets; pimps, prostitutes, gays, homeless, drag queens and anyone else from the streets. We did the service then gave out meals and clothing.
That is our time here so far. I am trying to keep this as up to date as possible, but it is kinda hard being so busy.
As far as finances go, I am still in need of another $1500 for outreach. We leave for Germay on the 9th of July.
Thank you
God Bless
-Ben
Friday, June 13, 2008
No even a week left.
Well, I has been good. I only have a few days left before we head out for stateside outreach on Saturday. For our stateside we will be going to Houston, TX and working with the YWAM base there. We will be doing street ministry in poorer and downtown areas, working with a churches and street kids.
Next Saturday we leave Houston for Chicago. In Chicago we will be taking Urban outreach Classes, learning about how to do outreach in large cities. In the afternoons and the nights we will be putting what we have learned into practice.
Then on the 9th of July we will be leaving for Germany. We are flying out of Dallas with one layover in Germany.
I am very excited about this outreach. There is so much we are going, and great things are going to happen. I am going to be honest and tell you that I am also freaking out about it. During my first school the school took so long and outreach was something that we couldn't wait for it to happen, as much as I am excited about it.......this school has gone by so fast that it feels like there should be more.
Please keep my in prayer. First for my focus on what I should be doing during this time, and second for Finances. I still only have $750 in so far for the outreach and I am in need of $1,850 to play off the plane ticket and the grounds fees. I know That God will supply for what he has called me to do.
Thank you
-Ben
Next Saturday we leave Houston for Chicago. In Chicago we will be taking Urban outreach Classes, learning about how to do outreach in large cities. In the afternoons and the nights we will be putting what we have learned into practice.
Then on the 9th of July we will be leaving for Germany. We are flying out of Dallas with one layover in Germany.
I am very excited about this outreach. There is so much we are going, and great things are going to happen. I am going to be honest and tell you that I am also freaking out about it. During my first school the school took so long and outreach was something that we couldn't wait for it to happen, as much as I am excited about it.......this school has gone by so fast that it feels like there should be more.
Please keep my in prayer. First for my focus on what I should be doing during this time, and second for Finances. I still only have $750 in so far for the outreach and I am in need of $1,850 to play off the plane ticket and the grounds fees. I know That God will supply for what he has called me to do.
Thank you
-Ben
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