"Circles of purpose"

As most of you know, this past weekend was our 1st ever youth retreat. Steven Covey in his book, "7 habits..." talks about "circles of influence". We "changed" that principle a little. Since Barb and I spent so much time, effort and money on the youth retreat, we went into the it with "multiple purposes". Of course the biggest circle (purpose), which is the primary focus of the retreat, was getting the kids in the word, praying and more unified. That circle was easy and accomplished!

"Second circle"

Another purpose of this retreat was for the new AIM guys to learn names and get to know the youth better. They have only been here for a month, so starting off right with the youth is important! This wasn't too hard either. Friday night, Omar and I hosted a kind of "passing the torch" ceremony with the new AIMers. We primarily let Ben and Bill challenge and encourage the new AIMers, without giving advise. We basically talked about how it was "their time" now, b/c Ben and Bill are no longer AIMers and had other responsibilities in this plant. We told them they have been deemed capable and trustworthy to get the job done. It was a good time and I as I understand it, it was well received!

"Third Circle"

I wanted to challenged the kids with discipline. Discipline in their personal prayer time and time in the word, but even the spiritual discipline of praying with others and things as simple as cleaning up after others and serving others. This circle seemed to come easy as well, b/c a lot of our older youth members jumped right in and set the standard high! They were praying and reading with the younger kids and set a great example for all! I'm really proud of the way they took to this "circle" and I pray they keep it up as they grow in Christ!

"Fourth Circle"

Another circle was delegation. We as the "gringos" have always been temporary. Perhaps one of the biggest weaknesses of missionaries is often how important they are in the over all scheme of things. When they are gone people often leave and stuff tends to fall apart. I don't want that for this congregation and especially the youth. I have modeled for them for a long time. I'm currently working along side of them and eventually I will work toward watching them do it and finally leave. I used some CPM (church planter movement) principles and we split everyone up into groups to do DBS (discovery bible study) and work through it together. Many young men and women stepped up to help facilitate these groups. I didn't allow AIMers to lead these...they are ALREADY leaders. I didn't even allow obvious people to lead in most cases, b/c I wanted to see some of the younger ones grow into it. Obviously I delegated things like singing, dishes, registration, "night guard", prayers, etc, but I really wanted to delegate even some of the "more important stuff" too. I really wanted to raise up some leaders from this weekend and I think this goal was accomplished.

"Fifth Circle"

This circle is comprised of my "dependables"! This groups was Ben, Jazmin Rubio and Bill. Jazmin was the girls leader in most everything. She is truly dependable and very willing to work and knows what I'm expecting of her even before I tell her. Ben and Bill both lead a group session/devo. They were the only ones with this priviledge...I didn't even lead one. Ben did a good job starting us off Friday night. He talked to us about how important it is to shine our light here in Leon and how few lights there truly are in this city! Bill finished the weekend out on Sunday by asking us what we liked about the weekend. He lead us into a time of encouraging each other and talking about what has changed in our lives and our way of thinking during the weekend. Bill has helped me with this retreat for weeks now! He truly shined in all this. I'm really thankful and proud to have these three co-workers, b/c they in a very real way made this thing happen!!

It was a great first retreat for the kids! I think we might actually get ALL the kids to come next time (4 couldn't b/c of work and school), though well over 30 came. I want to thank you for your prayers and partnership. It is a good feeling knowing you are a part of this and we are not alone. We are really thankful to you for the important part you play in the Lord's work in Leon, GTO!!!