“Now I beg You, forgive my sin…so that I may worship the Lord.”
-1 Samuel 15:18
We all need to ask for forgiveness—a chance to redeem ourselves before the majesty of the King. I need forgiveness. You need forgiveness. The children here at Fortress need forgiveness. It’s a part of the cycle of life. “Ask and you will be forgiven” is spelled out in the Instruction Manuel; but do we really ask?
I’ve noticed today that the kids long to be forgiven. They beg for it in their eyes. Love is shared throughout this whole building. Hugs and kisses and kind words fill the main room. Forgiveness (the act of understanding and accepting wrong while making peace with it) is not very well-voiced here. These precious kids long to be accepted and to feel wanted. That’s our mission.
Let me introduce a very sad, confused and lost man. This man’s name is Lonny Reyes. Sitting on the bus he readily explained that he feels the whole world is against him, and is “just ready to go home.” I’ve known him for half of a day, and already my heart bleeds for him. Lonny has been through some rough stuff. Lonny is 44 years old. He was very intoxicated, and ready to kill himself over mistakes he feels condemn him to an eternity in Hell. Lonny was an open door—a red flag for me.
Lonny needs prayer. We prayed with him, but I am afraid the darkness is dragging him down and he doesn’t understand how to find the Light. Lonny ripped my heart up and really has changed my life. Those short, emotional minutes spent with Lonny Reyes will forever stay in my memory. Please pray for Lonny Reyes. Pray that something comes in his way sent by the Father that shows him he’s needed. We can do it. I know I am rooting for Lonny Reyes. He needs Light.
-Christy Blevins
“LORD, I know you can do everything. You make plans, and nothing can change or stop your plans.” -Job 42:2
God is love. Sometimes it’s hard to just stop and soak it all in. How majestic our Father is…how beautifully perfect His creation is—made just for our pleasure.
I think today has been the hardest because I’ve started to realize there’s more to this opportunity than what I want to achieve. The King has this whole mission already planned, and has opened so many doors in front of my blind face. I want to love on the kids. HE wants me to reach out and do more.
Driving out around Fort Worth I think God was reminding me that there are more than just the children at Fortress who need His light shone into their lives. Lining the streets are numerous lost and scared people who could benefit from simply knowing that He is in control and loves each and every one of them. All the struggles and fears we face are just moments, passing aimlessly through what feels like eternity on this planet. HE is in control. The Lord our God, the King, the Father has it all planned out for us…so no worries, my friends. He’s got our backs— BUT we must remember to place that confidence into His open arms.
What I haven’t realized until this point is I am surrounded by amazing examples. I have so many wonderful friends here at Fortress, in my youth group, at the house; all of them show me every day what it is like to be a real-life believer. These kids are so wonderful and close to our God. They inspire me to fight for my beliefs and try to succeed in becoming a true “Jesus Freak.” Inside and out; all the way.
- Christy Blevins
“Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness.”
-Psalm 100:1-2
SHOUT FOR JOY TO THE LORD. I feel like I don’t ever choose to just rejoice the King of Kings. I never just thank Him that I was created “…on purpose, for a purpose.” as said by Ramon in our group devotional.
It’s different here. These people, who have so little, can sit and enjoy the sunlight while praising the LORD for blessing them with a new day, while I complain about my toe-nail polish chipping during the night.
Listening to some of these children compare the number of bullet scars left in their houses and how long one or both of their parents have spent time in jail really opened my eyes to how real all of this is. How frighteningly real their lives are. Day in and day out they, only children, sit listening to sirens and gunshots while I worry with petty, insignificant things that I consider to be necessities.
Food is a necessity. Shelter is a necessity. Love is a necessity. I expect these things; they are lucky to hope for these things—and still… still all of the people I’ve talked to in just one day are so happy. They are so helpful, respectful, encouraging. They love the LORD. They shout for joy to the Father. They are truly thankful. I can learn a lot this week. We need to learn a lot from these examples. It’s a necessity.
-Christy Blevins
My name is Christy Blevins. I’m sixteen years old…well, seventeen in a month. I was born and raised fifteen long hours from Fort Worth in Knoxville, Tennessee.
I love children and aspire to one day teach and minister to those who don’t have access to free education. Missions – well, ministry- is my passion. I’ve traveled near and far trying to do what I can to make a difference, but I think this mission is one of the toughest because this feels real. It’s scary and this can happen to me—to anyone. I never really thought about how good life is for me.
I have a feeling that this week will change my outlook, and emotionally and spiritually test everyone while re-enforcing everything we have learned in our walk with the Father. Like a fire, the Lord and his good love is growing stronger by the minute in my heart. There is nothing that will stop this girl. I’m on a mission.
By Emily Griekspoor
Riverwalk Church of Christ, Wichita, KS
In mid-June, a number of high schoolers from my youth group at RiverWalk Church of Christ traveled to Fort Worth, Texas for a mission trip. We weren’t really sure what we were going to do or what would be expected of us. We just knew that we wanted to make a difference and have some fun. After the 6 hour drive to Fort Worth, we settled into our hotel rooms and prepared to attend the orientation that would inform us on what we would be doing throughout the course of the week. We had the opportunity to learn a little bit more about the children we would be spending the week with and what our responsibilities would be. The kids we would be working with don’t have a lot. In fact, they have nothing compared to all of the conveniences we have.
Each of us was assigned our duties for the week, to ensure that every day was successful and well prepared. We were also asked to not have cell phones, watch TV in our hotel rooms, use cameras, or listen to iPods all week. This was so that we could understand a bit about how the kids we would be working with did not have all the modern technology and luxuries that we were accustomed to. After the first day we settled into a familiar routine. The buses picked up the kids and we waited at the park for everyone to get there. Volunteers from TCU came to lead a sports camp and then everyone came back to Fortress for songs and lunch. After lunch, groups went to three rotations that centered around the daily lesson. After the kids left in their buses, we cleaned up and prepared for the next day.
Another opportunity we were given was very unique. We were divided into three different groups of about 4 or 5 each to have an Urban Experience. Basically, one group would go out into Fort Worth every afternoon and do different things that showed us how people lived in the area. The group that experienced the activity would come back and make a presentation to the rest of the group. Each group experienced something different. The first group went out into urban Fort Worth and met and talked to people living in the area. The second group created a budget for a single mother with 3 children. The third group used that budget to “grocery shop” for food for a month. It was an amazing opportunity to experience what these people go through every single day.
We all took away different lessons from working at Fortress. Some of us gained an appreciation for how hard it is for families to live with a limited budget. Some of us discovered what it really means to live out your faith by serving. And some of us realized how little we need to truly be happy. Whatever we learned, I am confident that it will shape our lives and make us the people God intended for us to be. Fortress changed us. Fortress changed us because God wanted it to change us. That’s the reason we were there. Sure, we impacted people and made a difference. But the people at Fortress - the kids, the staff, and the interns – they impacted us too! The relationships we developed meant so much. We loved the kids and we received love in return-a simple exchange of the passion and dedication that God gave us when He created us.
I will never forget the people I met at the Fortress ministry. They taught me so much. They taught me how to love, how to serve, and how to be a Christian example. I will never forget the awesome impact that was made on my life and I will never forget the relationships I established there.