Youth Camp at La Montana

Youth Camp was AMAZING!!!  We took 39 youth to San Ramon to Campamento La Montana and we had a blast!  Many of these kids from our Youth Group are from the poorest neighborhoods in town and to experience something like this was more than special for them.  The teaching was solid and the youth were really challenged to know Christ, leave the old behind/forgive those in their past, and move forward as a strong witness for Christ.  We had man accept Jesus as Savior on the first night of camp.  The second night was the most powerful as the message was all about forgiving those who have hurt you in your past so that you can move forward and shine brightly for Jesus.  We cried and cried with some of them for hours as they worked through deep pain of sexual, physical and emotional abuse, abandonment, loneliness, etc....many of our boys cried as we held them and rocked them and loved on them.  It was such a beautiful thing for us to see Christ working in them--healing those hurts--so that they could move forward to become the men and women of God that He is calling them to be!!!  We were blown away by the testimonies on the last day where our kids shared what God did in their hearts through the camp experience.  We are blown away by God's faithfulness and even have one youth, Cristian, who we have been discipling for a few years now, feel like God is calling him to ministry--maybe even the pastorate!!  We are so excited about what God has for these youth in the near future!!  We know that these 39 will multiply and this group will change the next generation of Jaco!!!  Praise You, Lord!!!!

School Supply Outreach for Kids Club

Every year we do a school supply drive to provide school supplies for all of the needy kids that attend kids club on a regular basis and this year was no exception!!  We took advantage of the CIU Mission Team being here and they helped us pack the backpacks full of supplies.  Each kid needs anywhere from 11-12 notebooks, colored pencils, pencils, scissors, glue, sharpener, etc.  With the donations we received, we were able to provide 167 children with all the supplies they need to begin school in February!!!!  We had a blast packing the backpacks and then distributing them last Saturday during Kids Club.  Each backpack had a note attached to it letting them know that we were praying for them this year and that we love them.  Praise God for His provisions and for the joy of blessing these families in the name of Jesus!!!  Here a few pictures from the festivities!!!

CIU Mission Team/Horizon Kids Camp

We have had a super busy month thus far and were so blessed to host the Columbia International University Mission Team again this year!  They were with us for 10 days and were instrumental in the success of our 1st Annual Horizon Kids Camp under the leadership of our wonderful Children's Ministry Coordinator, Dale Scaglione!  They also helped with many other ministries during their time here.  They did an amazing job and many kids and families heard the Gospel for the first time!  We did this camp in English to reach out to those kids who are learning English at 2 of the local bilingual schools and it was a HUGE success!  We got such wonderful feedback from the parents and it was a way to really connect with them as well!  We shared Bible stories, crafts, games, music, snack, etc....we ended the week by inviting the families to see the kids perform their skits and songs that they had learned all week, and we had a cookout celebration as well!!  All in all, the week was a huge success and a real blessing to this community!!  The team also participated in our normal weekly Kids Clubs, construction projects, school supply outreach, women's and men's Bible Studies, etc.  They were AMAZING and we were so blessed to have them serving alongside us!  They really blessed our family as well!!!  Thanks, CIU, for your love and selfless service to our community!!!!  We love you!!!