We are thankful for the many ministry opportunities God made way for through the summer. We prayed, prepared and in faith believed God to lead and use us for His glory and Kingdom purposes.
With kids and youth out of school for their break we made every effort to connect frequently and intentionally with them. It was our goal to further encourage them in God’s word so their faith would be strengthened as young disciples.
Camps are a great way to invite those actively involved and many others into a fun, faith-filled environment for consecutive days. The kid’s camps were highly anticipated thus the big turnout. The kids love it when we gather all the kids from surrounding towns for an event. They came eager to have fun, but also to learn more from God’s word. I am always encouraged by the child like faith displayed and a sincere love for God and His word. They diligently open the bible and memorize scripture. They are learning to apply God’s truth in the context of home and community. So thankful to see the impact their faithfulness has had on many despite their age and supposed lack of voice and influence.
The 3-day youth camp we organized was postponed to a later date than initially scheduled. We did so at Gods prompting, so that we would come even better prepared and readied with humble, united hearts before the Lord to serve the youth God would bring us. The theme of the camp was Lost & Found with teaching sessions centered on the Parable of the Lost Sheep, the Prodigal Son and the Lost Coin.
Jesus did come to this world to seek and save the lost and He promises that His sheep will hear and respond to His voice. We were amazed that most of those attending were all new youth and quite a few from our old batch of youth that are now married with kids. They deeply desired to be part of one of our camps after all the years despite not being youth age. God had His purpose and drew many of those attending to respond to Jesus’s call to repent and turn in faith to Him!! Just as sinners drew near to Christ as He communicated the demands for discipleship, many youths came ready with ears to hear and moved by His compassion and salvation! Thanks to all who prayed specifically for this camp. God answered our prayers and now the work of discipleship continues 🙂
Summer also provided an opportunity for us to receive foreign mission teams and mission equip participants. Each one who came did so eager to jump in a serve and learn in the process. Three returning visitors came to help us launch a new Hope for the Island ministry called Abilities Club.
This is a club that celebrates the neurodiverse and physically challenged in our community. We couldn’t have imagined a better response from participants and their caregivers. All were deeply touched and full of joy. We provided a safe focused environment with specialized activities and new tools for families. We so look forward to continuing this much needed program monthly to help nurture these kids in the Lord and provide educational opportunities that would be new to provincial areas.
Lastly, we are so pleased to provide an update on the incredible construction progress for Kalinga House. The structure and roof are near done! Workers have started to focus on the furnishings and finishing touches. We are thrilled to create a warm, loving and safe home to receive kids needing rescued from unsafe environments.
We are so thankful for the way God provided for this critical housing need. We will also trust the Lord to provide the manpower and means to operate this home. Please pray for this new ministry and God’s blessing on the home and those who will fill it. Please also continue to pray for all ongoing ministries at HOPE and our team who faithfully serve in obedience to Christ!
We continue to thank you for all ypur prayer and financial support.
Derek and Jenn Van Ryckeghem
Hope For The Island, Philippines
