Trip leader Dayna Bickham saw some of the most powerful ministry in Western PA happen in a skatepark instead of a church.
They flew past us with the whirl and bump of practiced skaters. Grinding the rail and landing the ollie. But more than that, these guys exuded Jesus: all from the deck of a skateboard – or on top of inlines.
There was even a 10-year-old dominating a scooter in ways I have never imagined. Tricks were happening everywhere.
In the middle of rural Pennsylvania, these kids are given a crime-free place to skate. and in return they listen to a quick 15 minute sermon.
The Gospel here is active and relevant to kids who otherwise might never have heard the name of Jesus as anything other than a swear word.
This park is located over a casket maker’s workshop, so life is over death. The warm reception everyone gets and the amazing one-on-one discipleship showed our team that real, effective, life-changing ministry doesn’t only happen in a church.
It happens in the real world with something as simple as giving kids a safe place to play.
This team didn’t just watch, some of them strapped on helmets and tried to learn how to “drop in”. Thankfully, only on the beginners ramp.
The take away I carry with me is this: ministry does not have to look like a full blown church service to matter. Real ministry meets people where they are and carries the Gospel in beautifully simple ways.
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Just an hour outside of the bustling city of Pittsburgh lies a small town fighting for its life.
Tucked in a valley between the Appalachian Mountains, the mining community of Johnstown, Pennsylvania struggles to survive. Throughout its history, tragic floods have repeatedly devastated the valley, killing thousands and driving residents and employers alike to higher ground.
Recent economic growth has hinted at a recovery in Johnstown, but this area faces an uphill climb. Almost 20 percent of families live below the poverty line.
Many people face these circumstances without the hope of Jesus.
Western Pennsylvania needs you.
Ministry:
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Skate Park: Your team will connect with the people that churches often avoid. Pack your skateboard and build relationships with local youth at Life Over Death Skate Park. This could mean cleaning and helping maintain the skatepark, as well as participate in a dinner with the skaters one evening and share testimonies.
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VBS: You might also reach out and help at-risk children, youth, and families in a government housing area.
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Farm Ministry: Or you might serve a local missionary family, working on their goat farm – anything from fencing to weeding.
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Youth Center: Most teams will also travel to the nearby town of Colver to help a local ministry partner with manual labor projects as he converts a 100-year-old hospital into a youth center for teens.
While you are in the beautiful Appalachians, you and your team could also wander through the peaceful forests, or you can hook your car up to the “Johnstown Inclined Plane”—the world’s steepest vehicular incline plane!
Experience love and life in a whole new way as you build relationships with people who need the hope and encouragement of Jesus.
Western Pennsylvania is fighting to recover. Will you be the one to bring promise to this ravaged valley?
Do you feel God calling you to serve him in a different type of ministry? Click HERE for trips to Western PA in 2016!
