iRock Ministries

intentionally Reaching Our Community Kids

Sep 25 2010

Khamani Meets Jesus today!

Khamani is one of those lives that was impacted for eternity. As I sat and talked with him in the prayer tent and got to know a little bit about he and his family we had opportunity to talk about Jesus. After sharing what we both knew about Jesus, Khamani, 6 years old, prayed and asked Jesus into his life. That is a life that will be changed for eternity. Many more made that same decision today. In comparison, what God accomplished that day in the lives of people all over Hagerstown made all of the work and efforts of the volunteers seem miniscule.

“I have come so that people may live and that they may enjoy life to the full” John 10:10

Among the many tents, the mounds of groceries, the variety of inflatables, the thousands of hotdogs and the numerous carnival games you find God’s most amazing creation…people! Today Convoy of Hope partnered with local churches and volunteers from the Greater Hagerstown area to bring hope to those who may be struggling financially and spiritually. Convoy of Hope is a faith-based organization with a driving passion to feed the world through children’s feeding initiatives, community outreaches, disaster response and partner resources.

Families received assistance in the way of food, haircuts, access to various community agencies, clothing and shoes. Today people were given hope and help as our honored guests. From medical and dental care to family portraits, people were shown the love of Jesus. It was a time to invest in the lives of others and Rusty and I were privileged to be part of what God was doing today in Hagerstown.

The Kids Zone is perhaps my most favorite area. There is no greater joy than to see the smiles on the faces of parents and children alike as they race from one fun activity to the other. In a world where pressures of life effect even the youngest of children, today they were allowed to just be kids. Whether they were jumping, running, fighting wanna-be pirates or waiting patiently for a balloon animal, kids brought excitement and energy to the festivities.

Many lives will be impacted today, some for a few hours, other for a few weeks and some for eternity.

Galatians 6:10 “Whenever we have opportunity we should do good to everyone.”

Written by Terry Williams · Categorized: News, Testimonies · Tagged: Convoy of Hope, Hagerstown

Sep 08 2010

Calvary Fall Festival

Each year Calvary AG invests in the community through their Fall Festival. This year the festival will be held on Saturday, October 2nd from 12 noon until 4:00 pm at 8234 Woodsboro Pike, Walkersville MD. This is a day prepared to recognize the uniqueness of every individual and provide a safe place for families to have fun, meet new people and be blessed through the various activities offered. There will be games, food, free groceries and kids haircuts.

Admission is FREE. We invite the entire family to come and join in the fun. I will be attending along with a few tricks up my sleeve to share the reason why we invest in the lives of people. You won’t want to miss being there. We invite you to be there RAIN or SHINE!

Written by Terry Williams · Categorized: News

Aug 29 2010

Team Reaches Out During Sun Dance

It was the third week in August and our team boarded a flight headed to Omaha Nebraska where we would then spend the next nine hours driving, stopping to stock up on supplies and making our way to Wagner on the Yankton Sioux Reservation in South Dakota. We would spend the first night there before heading on to Mission South Dakota the next morning. Little did we know that God had entrusted our team to bring light into a week filled with spiritual darkness. Just 3 weeks prior to our departure, God had changed our location from the Yankton Sioux Reservation to Rosebud Reservation where we would be in the middle of the Sun Dance Ceremonies taking place that week.

Sun Dance circleThe Sun Dance is a religious ceremony practiced by a number of Native American peoples, including the Lakota on the Rosebud Reservation. In 2003 traditional spiritual leaders of several tribes banned non-natives from sacred altars and from attending the Sun Dance. In most Sun Dance cultures, it is forbidden to film ceremony and prayer, so few, if any, images exist of authentic ceremonies.

It was our understanding that many of the ceremonies include specific dances and songs passed down through many generations, the use of traditional drums, the sacred pipe, tobacco offerings, praying, fasting and, in the case of the Lakotas, the piercing of skin on the chest, arms or back.

The object of the Sun Dance practice of piercing is to make a sacrifice to the Great Mystery, and to pray while connected to the Tree of Life, a direct connection to the ‘Creator’. A common explanation is that a flesh offering, or piercing, is given as a part of a prayer for the benefit of one’s family and community.

Voluntary torture is part of the climax of the Sun Dance in the Lakota tribe. In those cases, the dancers were pierced through the breast or shoulder muscles by skewers which were tied to the center pole, and they danced by pulling back until their flesh tore away.

The sacrifice of the dancers through fasting, thirst, and self-inflicted pain reflects the desire to return something of themselves to nature, with special reference to the life- sustaining buffalo, in exchange for past and future benefits.

The great Sun Dance ritual establishes the tenet that there is no final death, for all living things can be renewed. Human beings, however, like all their fellow creatures, must cooperate in order to bring about universal regeneration.

While the Lakota people were trusting that their sacrifices and ceremonies to Wakan Takan (the Great Spirit) would bring about universal regeneration, our team was sharing with ~50 children and youth, that came each day to attend sports camp, about forgiveness and eternal life through Jesus Christ’s sacrifice. That week Ephesians 6:12 resonated in each of our spirits. ‘For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” God had given into our hands the hearts of children that we might be able to share the love of Jesus with each of them.

We spent each day playing, instructing, encouraging, feeding and loving each one. We got to know where they lived, their names and their personalities. They were no longer children on the reservation, they were now individuals that had become our new friends. We were told that the Lakota people will allow non-natives to pour into their children until they are age 12. Beyond that age they are reluctant to allow any further interaction. For whatever reason, we were excited to be given the privilege to teach these children about Jesus during the most impressionable years of their lives. We were able to pray specifically for each one throughout the week until we were also able to see 20 children make first time decisions to follow Jesus, including several youth.

KoltonKolton came each day eager to play and listened intently as we shared the message of Jesus’s love and forgiveness during the closing rally. On that final day of camp, when given the opportunity to give his life to Jesus, he raised his hand. You could see in his face that his decision was real as he asked for forgiveness and that Jesus would come into his life. He wept with one of our team members as he realized how much Jesus loved him. His life was changed for eternity that day.

We are now trusting God to work through the resident missionaries, Pastor Johnny and Heidi Wade, as they continue to water the seed planted by our team.

Please keep the Lakota people in your prayers that God would continue to use Pastor Johnny and Heidi and future teams as they reveal the “True Creator” and how He can be their God and Savior.

Visit our Facebook photo album to view more photos of our time on Rosebud Reservation.

Written by Terry Williams · Categorized: News, Testimonies · Tagged: All Nations Family, ceremonies, Heidi Wade, Johnny Wade, Lakota, mega sports camp, mission, Native american, reservation, Rosebud Reservation, sioux, south dakota, sports, sun dance, sundance, wagner

Aug 21 2010

Committed to children

My travels take me to many different locations, different size churches and different levels of commitment to reaching children. God has blessed me with a work that allows me to provide help regardless of the venue. One such place that has touched my heart is Warrenton AG with Pastor Hurley and Bonnie Shortt. They are such an inspiration and source of encouragement as I watch them speak into the lives of their congregation. They touch young and old as they exemplify what it means to live as Christ.

During my initial visit I met the team that would step out of comfort zones and make strides in reaching the children in their community for Christ. During our session I had the opportunity to share the sheer joy of reaching children using different methods and approaches. Regardless of the technique used, I impressed on them that the most effective way to teach children is simply through love. This team, though small, have a genuine desire to reach children with the message of Jesus’ love and forgiveness and I’m looking forward to seeing what God does in and through each of them.

Following the session, the leaders were invited to observe as I demonstrated various methods of teaching during the kids service. Though the group was small their willingness to participate was encouraging and exciting. They were engaged in the service as I taught about the importance of sharing their specific gifts and talents with those that need to hear about Jesus. What sweet spirits. Although my methods of sharing the lesson were different than what they were accustomed to they adapted and entered into the service with excitement and enthusiasm.

Kids enjoy the unexpected and being asked to participate in the activities as much as the teacher enjoys seeing their kids engaged in the message.

I’d like to thank all of you who serve and give of your time and enthusiams as you touch the lives of children for eternity.

2Cor. 8:17 For Titus not only welcomed our appeal, but he is coming to you with much enthusiasm and on his own initiative.

Written by Terry Williams · Categorized: Highlights, News · Tagged: Bonnie, encouragement, enthusiasm, Shortt, Warrenton

Jul 02 2010

Our Family is Growing

Since our last newsletter we have seen some exciting changes in our family.
In April our first grandson arrived. With much anticipation, Nathan Jack came into the world bringing joy and happiness to his parents, Russ and Frances. Needless to say we are very proud  grandparents and anticipate each visit with excitement. Each day Nate grows cuter and stronger. We look forward to teaching him about Jesus

Amongst these major events in our family we have been able to invest in our church families. We have been able to visit and minister at 6 churches, help with 2 Easter services, teach on Mother’s Day, attend 3 missions conferences and conduct 2 training sessions at the NACMC (North American Children’s Ministries Conference) Each gave us opportunity to pour into the lives of children and the people that minister to them on a weekly basis.
Serving as BGMC coordinator for the Potomac District, I was able to help prepare and mail 315 bright yellow Buddy buckets to every church in our district encouraging giving to missions through Boys and Girls Missionary Challenge (BGMC).

Just recently I was part of a summer long lunch program for low-income families. This week I was able to help as the team served lunch, led a craft and spent time with the kids.
With sculpting balloons and pump in hand, it was with great excitement that I was able to make and teach kids how to twist a variety of balloon sculptures. On the last day I presented each child a balloon cross letting them know that Jesus loves them. Though it may seem like a small act of kindness it is showing the love of Jesus through service and time committed to bringing hope to families.
Now we turn our attention to a summer filled with kids camps. Our first camp is the beginning of July as we prepare for Camp Wannahockalugie, a day camp in Hagerstown, followed by 3 weeks of district kids camp and then a trip to the Sioux reservation in South Dakota to conduct a sports camp, serve meals, share ministry and help as needed with home improvements on the reservation.
Please be in prayer that as we plant and water the seed that God himself will make it grow and that many children will be added to His family this summer.

Written by Terry Williams · Categorized: Newsletter · Tagged: balloons, BGMC, camp, grandson, Hagerstown, sioux, south dakota, summer, wannahockalugie, wedding

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