On July 5th we left for Grand Rapids, Michigan with almost forty middle school students and leaders. We spent our week working with a ministry called G.R.A.S.P. (Grand Rapids Area Service Project). This was the third time our youth program at Castleton UMC has partnered with G.R.A.S.P. for a student mission trip and the first time either Steph or I have worked with them.
Right from the start when we arrived in Grand Rapids we knew we were going to get along great with the staff at G.R.A.S.P. Everyone was incredibly nice and very helpful. They made it clear that they were there to provide us with service projects in the community and then support our ministry to our students. They clearly from the start cared about us and our students and doing anything they could to help our students connect with God, each other and the community that week.
We split our students in to four separate groups. Three of the groups were sent to homes where we prepped and painted the exterior of the home. The forth group worked at a home right next door to the G.R.A.S.P. facilities constructing a fence and a play set for the home owner.
I was incredibly impressed by all of our students this week. I can’t think of a time where I honestly heard a complaint during the work day that someone didn’t want to work or felt they were working too hard. All of our students were more than willing to work as hard as they needed to be able to finish the tasks we were given.
In the evenings, just like in Denver, we spent some time letting students affirm each other by passing a tiny stuffed giraffe around the room a few times each night. The person that had the giraffe got to pick another student that they specifically thought had done a great job that day, or seen them do something above and beyond in some way. On both trips this turned out to be a great way for students to just affirm each other and let each other know that they were doing great things.
I loved the middle school trip. It was great to see our students doing amazing things all week long. On both trips our students really came together as a family and came away much closer after the trip than they began.
I am looking forward to seeing God is able to do through our students this next year as we’ve come home from two great trips and have a city that needs us just as much as the one’s we left.
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