Two years ago, I wrote a blog that began like this:

“Have you ever experienced God at work right in front of you? I mean, literally, right where you are and as a part of what you’re doing?  For those of you who have, you know it’s an event that solidifies your faith and becomes a mile marker in your life because you know that God did something and nobody can convince you otherwise.”

I wrote about the excitement I had as I anticipated being a part of the leadership team for what was then called the Brio Mission Trip; an annual summer outreach that brought hundreds of teens together to present the message of Jesus Christ to as many people as possible.  My expectations were high because of what I experienced the year before, 2008, when I first joined the team as they went to Lima, Peru.

On that trip there were 13 teams in all that spent 10 days in Lima venturing into some of the most poverty-ridden areas surrounding the city.  Each team had multiple opportunities to perform a drama that told the story of creation, man’s separation from God as a result of sin, and the possibility of a restored relationship through the atoning work of Jesus Christ.  And, how did God show up? There were nearly 7,000 men, women and children who professed a desire to become Christians.  And, on top of that, each of the teens that God returned to their homes with mile markers of God’s reality that will stay with them for the rest of their lives.

That experience repeated itself when the outreach, renamed “Never The Same” went to Guatemala in both 2009 and 2010.  As one of the adult team leaders, I saw the lives of hundreds of Guatemalans changed as God used the teens on my team to reach out to them with the good news of Jesus Christ.

This year the “Never The Same” Mission trip goes to Quito, Ecuador, and I’m hoping to be able to be a part of it all, as are my two oldest sons, Rob and Ben. Would you consider joining with the others we’re contacting to become a part of our support team? Yes, there’s always the financial part of such a request; the cost is about $2,500.00 each. But, regardless of whether you can contribute monetarily, an equally important need we have is for people
to be praying for us as we prepare to go, and while we’re there.

If you’re interested in becoming a part of this outreach and you’re not already in the Ecuador 2011 Facebook group I created, please request to join our Facebook group by visiting my Facebook page and requesting to join via the link on the left side of the page.

And if you can help financially, there are two ways you can send along your tax-deductible donation to Big World Ventures, the non-profit organization that organizes the mission:

- Online by clicking the “Sponsor Me” button on the righ side of the page or by visiting: http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/robert-kirkpatrick/big-world-ventures-inc

- You can also send a check to us.  Our address is 3425 Inspiration Drive, Colorado Springs, CO, 80917.  Please make out your Check to “Big World Ventures”.

Big World is asking that we have all our support in place by April 1st, so we’d be most grateful if you would let us know as soon as you can.

Rob and Ben are both excited about this opportunity God has placed before them, as well. I’ll post their comments soon.

For more information about the “Never The Same” outreach, go to http://www.neverthesamemissions.com/

That was just over two years ago and I remember the day as if it was yesterday.  All the pain, shame, anger and guilt he had been trying to suppress reached a point where they could no longer be kept inside.  Thankfully, he was willing to confide in me.  Pain and anger were understandable.  Anyone who has experienced the death of a loved one can relate; I certainly could.  But, for a young boy who had his mother taken away the pain was intense and the anger at God for allowing her to die…there was a special intensity.

But, why the shame and guilt?  Place yourself where he was.  He hated that his mom was sick and sometimes found his anger expressing itself in ways that he regretted.  But when Lee died he was stuck with no way to apologize to her for how he treated her.  As I talked with him I learned the source of the shame and guilt and how it had jaundiced his memories.  Every memory he had of Lee was followed with the accusation, “…And you were a jerk to her!”

My heart broke.  As we talked I learned that he had asked God for forgiveness, but it didn’t seem to be enough.  I asked him if he had forgiven himself.  He had not.

We talked further about the power of forgiveness, that Lee was surely not looking down from heaven echoing the accusations he was hearing whenever she came to mind.  God had forgiven him.  We were confident that Lee would have, as well.  What remained was for Rob to give grace to the twelve year-old boy he was when Lee died and forgive himself for the things he had done.

I know now that it was after that conversation that Rob found the strength to open himself to God and reach out to Him for the strength to remove his self-applied shackles.  Within two days that his countenance had lifted.  When I asked him why, he told me, “I realized I didn’t need to be carrying that anymore.”

It was that simple.

Here’s a link to the video I recorded of him sharing his testimony.  Ben, my second eldest son, provided the intrduction.

This will be my third time as a group leader for this amazing venture. Please pray for the people we’ll meet in Guatemala as we show up for more “Divine appointments”. I’d appreciate it if you’d also pray for the teens who will be a part of this trip. God’s got something in store for them, as well. This year there will be more

than 250 of us coming together in late June.

Now that our participation is definite, I’ll post more updates as the date draws near.

We’re hoping to return to Guatemala this summer. If you’d like to learn more, or are interested in supporting this outreach, we’d love to hear from you. Send me a message or post a reply.

Last year I went on an incredible mission trip to Guatemala where I really got a chance to be a part of God’s work. I also stepped up in my own faith. I really saw God at work in a very different way than I have ever seen. For example, God drew more than a thousand people to Himself as a result of the service projects and drama performances we did. It was an amazine experience and I’m excited to share with you that I think God is calling me to go back again this year.

During last summer’s trip God showed me how awesome and alive He could be both in me through me. Working with the others on our team and learning from the powerful speakers we heard each night changed my life. From the first day in Guatemala which was my team’s service day, I knew I was in for something that was a lot more than I expected.

Our job was to clean out a school that had been flooded when the nearby river overflowed. The flood had washed a layer of mud about six inches deep on to the concrete floors of three classrooms and the bathroom. Equipped with brooms and one hose we began to work, soaking the ground then pushing out the excess soil. After hours of tedious work we were all ready to head back to the hotel and collapse. We were tired, but it felt good because we were able to help.

The next couple of days we performed a drama that we had learned in Miami before flying down to Central America. The drama explains the gospel; how we are fallen and in need of savior and how God sent Christ to save us. The characters in the drama are toys, who represent us as people, and the Toymaker who represents our Heavenly Father, God. In the drama the Toymaker sends his son to restore the broken relationship with the toys. Sound familiar?

One of the days we were scheduled to perform the drama in a park. When we got there, the local police could not find any paperwork and, as a result, did not allow us to perform. So we moved to another park where at least four other teams had already been. We were a litte discouraged thinking that nobody would want to see yet another team present the same performances, but we went ahead and did the drama. At the end, when we asked if anyone watching would like to pray to become a Christian, almost no one raised their hand. But, when we invited people to give us their contact information so a local church could get in touch with them, we had so many come to us that we both ran out of paper slips and we ran out of Bibles! It was clear that God had plans for us to be there.

I’m looking forward to returning to Guatemala this summer and would appreciate your prayers and any support you can send to help cover our expenses.

Ben

Here’s a note from my son, Rob II, that spells out some of the details.
I believe we have been called to return to Guatemala this summer.  God’s opened to door for us and I’m really excited to get back. My dad, my brother and I have been accepted to this year’s “Never the Same” outreach from June 28 through July 11.

Over the past several summers God has been working in my life as He’s giving me a greater heart of compassion for His people around the world.  As I experienced last year and in prior years, this 2-week excursion provides amazing opportunities to reach out to help people in need and, in doing so, have the privilege of sharing the Gospel with the Guatemalans through a story we get to “perform” as a drama.

And here’s the exciting part: you can be a part of this outreach, too! First, you can help pray.  This is truly the most important thing you can do!  Please pray that God will prepare us for our outreach and bless our efforts as we minister to the people of Guatemala. Pray also that the finances will be provided to afford the expenses associated with an event like this. At this time we need to raise about $2,700.00 each.

Perhaps God’s given you the means to also be a part of accomplishing that second request. Would you consider supporting us with a small donation? We’ll need to raise all the funds by April 1st in order to pay for airline tickets and other items.  Very soon there will be a link on this Facebook page that you can use to help raise the funds.  In the mean time, you can send a tax-deductible check made out to “Big World Ventures” to our home.

That address is: 3425 Inspiration Dr.Colorado Springs, CO  80917

Whether you feel led to pray for us, contribute financially, or both, all of your support is appreciated.  I look forward to being used by God’s in Guatemala and letting you know all about how God has worked through this trip when I return in July.

Rob Kirkpatrick II

Can you believe it?

Work this out as you read.  Don’t skip any steps.

1. First, pick the number of times a week that you would like to have chocolate (more than once but less than 10)
2. Multiply this number by 2
3. Add 5
4. Multiply it by 50 — calculators are allowed
5. If you have already had your birthday this year add 1759 .. If you haven’t, add 1758.
6. Now subtract the four digit year that you were born.

You should now have a three digit number.  Now, scroll down.

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The first digit of this was your original number (i.e., how many times you want to have chocolate each week).
The next two numbers are YOUR AGE! (Oh YES, it is!!!!!)

Shared via AddThis

We met by the pool each morning before heading out for the adventure of the day.

Day two began with a hearty breakfast followed by devotions before boarding the bus.  We drove for a couple hours to an orphanage on the other side of Guatemala City.

The plan for the day was to do some clean-up work, help serve lunch and then have time to play with the children.

The photo gallery below covers all the helpful work the team did: organizing the school supply room, cleaning windows, scrubbing walls and floor mats, and doing some yard work.

Next update:  Serving lunch, playing with the kids and being blessed!