Last Day of VBS!

Our final day of VBS on Friday was really great! We had a lot of kids return from other days and even had three new kids still come. Many of the kids and families are excited to join us tomorrow for church service and our carnival afterwards. God did a lot great things this week and really worked in all of our hearts to show us how to love on the kids. It was a great opportunity to get to serve alongside people from Payne Free Church; that's one of the unique things about BUMP, we get to come in and PARTNER with local churches and come in as learners first, then leaders. It has been a blessing and a privilege this week to be at the site and we look forward to hearing what fruit will come from this week!

The Form of a Servant - BUMP 2016 Day 4

There are many reasons that BUMP week is great. As a Youth Pastor, one thing I really love is seeing my students learn the joys of serving in Christ's name (even when it's hard, tiring, and uncomfortable). The type of learning that happens at BUMP goes so much deeper than what even the best bible lesson can give.

This summer we have been studying the book of Philippians. This study has lead us to think about what Philippians 2:3-11 would look like in our lives. Sitting in a circle in my basement, a commandment like Philippians 2:3-4 - "Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others" - feels abstract and strange. But when it's 97 degrees, students have been trying to sleep in dorms that don't have A/C, and some soccer nets need to be carried to the park, those verses suddenly come alive.

Not only that, but the verses following that command take on a deeper meaning as well: "Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."

When we serve others in hard and humbling ways we get a deeper understanding of how Christ has served us! Our service pales in comparison to Christ's. Our humility is tiny compared to Christ's.

I'm excited to see how the growth my students have gone through this week continues to show itself when we return home. I pray that God will continue to give them the faith that works through love which they've had this week.

Soccer!

Faith Showing Us How Jesus Cleanses Us

Prayer Before Camp

Learning How to Kick

Wednesday.... BUMP 2016- Day 3

Wednesday.

The middle of the week. The half-way point. The pesky hump that always seems to have a little extra stacked against us.

The heat. With a real-feel reaching 97 degrees, we battled the potential for dehydration and exhaustion.

Fatigue. After a few days of late nights and early mornings, we all began to feel the weight of tiredness.

Low numbers. Today we had several kids in the community who were unable to attend, shrinking our group considerably.

All of these things combined for a challenging day that could have ended in disaster....but God.

God helped us maintain positive attitudes and healthy bodies in the midst of the extreme heat. He gave us the energy and encouragement we needed to continue connecting with the kids and leading by example. God showed us how amazing the opportunity to have one-on-one connections with kids could be, and how He always brings the exactly right people to the right place on the exactly right day.

Tonight, we are praising God for another day spent proclaiming Him, with excitement for what He still has in store!

Enjoy these photos of our day to day activities at Faith EFC! Thank you for your prayers!

Basketball!

BUMPers vs Kids Soccer!

Hip Hop with B-Girl Sara Kelly

We start and end the night with some worship songs led by our BUMPers

Small group discussion of the day's Bible story.

B.U.M.P VBS Day 2

Hello, friends and family! So far, BUMP has been going great. Today was our second day of the VBS. Yesterday 22 kids attended and today, 26 kids attended. The children seem to be enjoying the skit and the worship songs. We've been prayer walking every day and telling people about the VBS as much as we can. This morning at the rally, we heard a wonderful story about someone getting to know God and how she interacted with lots of people from different cultures and religions. At the Rally, we worship, work on devotionals, work with other BUMP members and have guests come in and share about what goes on the city. All of us are bonding, making amazing memories, and also doing push ups when we take our seat belts off while the car is not in park. God has been seen working at the site and in out hearts. We're preparing and ready for the hot week ahead with God leading the way.

- Elizabeth L, Lizzy M, Alicia F

Salt in the Shaker - BUMP 2016 Day 2

Salt in the Shaker

“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

-Matthew 5:13-16

Jesus warns his disciples about two opposite dangers: Failed salt and failed light. Salt can loose its saltiness and become useless. Light can be hidden and become pointless. As Christians, we can blend in so much with the world that we lose our saltiness, and become useless. So it is important to "keep oneself unstained from the world" (James 1:27). However, we can also remove ourselves so much from 0ur neighbors that our light becomes hidden, and we become pointless. So it is important to seek out the lost with the love of Christ.

Every Christian tends more towards one of these dangers than the others. Some are very happy to spend time with non-Christians but struggle to display allegiance to King Jesus consistently. Others are very focused on staying different from the world but insist on doing this by never coming in contact with people who challenge their faith and morals.

My personal tendency is to focus on becoming the best salt I can possibly be but to stay in the salt shaker. That doesn't feel silly on a day to day basis. However, when I think about it in Jesus' terms, I realize that it is rediculous. Salt is meant to be applied! Christians are meant to be loving and serving their neightbors! BUMP is a time to for myself and the rest of my team to be challenged. We get to pursue the blessings of greater faithfulness to our calling as salt and light.

Tonight we will do this through New Salem Church's Block Party. This is a chance for us to invite the whole neighborhood to New Salem Church , to serve them, get to know them, and show them love. This is a chance for us to let our light shine before others. This will be a goal for the whole week. Shining this light will also give us a chance to be salt. It will give us a chance to proclaim the good news and show off what is different about the church.

I love the way that BUMP embraces both sides of Jesus's command to be salt and light. I pray that our group will be formed into more matures disciples because of this week. We want to be salt and light. Servants of a different King by serving all the people he brings out way.

We're holding morning rallies at Bethlehem Baptist Church's downtown facility.

Correct answer!

 

WATER BALLOONS!

Give Us Your Eyes! - BUMP 2016 Day1

Hello from the Twin Cities and all of us at BUMP 2016!

We kicked off our first full day by worshiping with our partner churches and sharing a meal with the congregations. This provided the opportunity for the BUMP teams from First EFC from Sioux Falls, North Suburban EFC from Illinois, and Northfield EFC from Minnesota to be introduced to the churches and their communities where they will be serving for the week.

We dove right into the communities, passing out fliers, painting signs, and inviting families to participate in the VBS and Sports Camps that we'll be offering. Prayer-walking gave us the opportunity to ask God to prepare the neighborhoods and cities, as well as our hearts for what He wants to do this week!

All of the teams then came together at the end of the day for the evening rally at New Salem. We played games, worshiped together, and participated in communion.

Pastor Larry then shared with us from the book of Luke, challenging us to look at others as Jesus looked at the woman who poured the alabaster jar of perfume on his feet: with love and acceptance, withholding any judgments that all too easily creep into our minds.

As we ended the evening by listening to Brandon Heath's song "Give Me Your Eyes", we sang it in our own hearts, as a prayer for God to open our eyes to what He wants to do this week both in and through us. It is our desire that God will enable us to see everyone we interact with this week with the same eyes that He always has, filled with love, compassion, and understanding. We pray that God would place in each one of us His heart for these communities, in which He has already been at work.

All of this to say, we are beyond excited to be a part of God's work in the Twin Cities this week! Thank you for partnering with us in prayer for our teams, our churches, and the Cities!

30 Days of Prayer for BUMP Twin Cities

BUMP Twin Cities is only 30 days away! Pray with us as teams prepare to join God on mission in Minneapolis and St. Paul!

A changing trend in the cities

A 2015 article in the Star Tribune notes that the "the suburbanization of poverty is a national trend. There's been a dramatic shift in the Twin Cities since 2000.

Be praying for EFCA churches in the first-ring suburbs as they are presented with new opportunities to minister to those in need.

Read more of the article here: Growth of Suburban Poor Accelerating in Twin Cities

St. Paul's mayor calls for partnership with faith communities

St. Paul's mayor asked for prayer for the city's east side and Payne Avenue EFC, BUMP's partner for more that 20 years, was featured in a WCCO news report. Watch the video.

Pastor Larry Willman and Othalee McDonald are both featured in the story. Last year, we sat down with the two of them to hear the story of how Payne Avenue EFC and BUMP helped Othalee find his way to to God and the church in a new way...

When Othalee McDonald moved from his Mississippi childhood home in 1977, he never imagined a journey that would lead him to BUMP at Payne Avenue EFC in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Payne Avenue EFC’s vision of “Loved. Set Free. Changed.” perfectly describes McDonald’s path after growing up in the days of Martin Luther King Jr., “making a lot of people unhappy,” as McDonald put it. He and his brothers worked all day, frequently absorbing racial epithets, and so hatred became a natural outflow of the times. 

The pay his mother received for their labor would be whatever the employers felt like; anything but fair wages. He never wanted to work picking cotton, or whatever crop was in season, knowing how he would be treated. “I can’t talk about it. It makes me sad,” McDonald said at the emotional memories.

Moving to Minnesota

Moving north brought freedom from the segregation of Mississippi and McDonald vowed never to return. In 2006, he and his family purchased a home on St. Paul’s Eastside, just blocks from Payne Free Church. ABUMP site since 1997, students went door-to-door inviting everyone in the St. Paul neighborhood to the weeklong Vacation Bible School (VBS). They visited with McDonald and left him a flyer. He and his wife were looking for something for the kids to do and decided to bring their children.

While dropping the kids off, McDonald met Larry Willman, pastor of Payne Free Church, and a few other church members. Months later, the McDonalds were looking for a church home in their new neighborhood, and remembering the BUMP connection, they decided to give the church a try. McDonald never left.

McDonald’s involvement isn’t limited to Sunday attendance. For the last several years, he and Willman have been meeting weekly to study the Bible. McDonald said Willman was an answer to his prayer for help understanding the Bible and growing in knowledge rather than just reading it. McDonald was also baptized at Payne Free.

“I have blossomed with my knowledge and understanding,” he said. “It makes me smile and gives me goose bumps – from connecting with God’s Word.”

His joy is evident.

Finding Family

In addition to growing in his spiritual walk, McDonald has a multiethnic church family he can’t wait to see every Sunday.

“My brothers and sisters at church are amazing! I can’t wait from one Sunday to the next to see them!” He said. “They are always welcoming – no one is left alone. The warmth is part of the church DNA.”

If you stop by Payne Free, there’s a good chance McDonald will be the first to greet you, making sure you know how wonderful the church is.

“They opened my eyes on another level about the love people can have to people of another race,” he said.

Loving others also works in McDonald’s life outside of church as he is developing relationships of love and trust with his neighbors on an ethnically diverse street. It is not simply through words, but through actions. One way he shares the love he has for God and Payne Free, is by leading an adult class during BUMP week, giving parents a reason to stay while their children attend VBS.

“BUMP has been wonderful for me to see the kids come back every year.” McDonald said. “By mid-week, the parents begin to stay. We’re trying to get them to see the spiritual side of what we’re doing there. I invite them to start reading God’s Word. Some come back – not as regular as we would like – but they do.”

He is also part of a weekly small group where relationships are deepened to a more personal level and they care for one another.

Spreading Joy

His grandson, Tyshawn, now age 12, came to live with them when he was in kindergarten and regularly attends church with McDonald. In and out of foster homes at a young age, Tyshawn has found stability in the McDonald’s home and Payne Free Church. Willman explains that Tyshawn is his “right-hand man” when it comes to setting up for Sunday school and will be included in their next outdoor baptism service. During the 2014 BUMP, he was one of the church’s youth helpers.

Willman is encouraged by walking with McDonald on his journey. Suffering through nine back surgeries and other health issues, McDonald’s life is filled with daily, physical pain.

“Pain is second when I go to church, from the happiness of seeing my brothers and sisters,” he said.

“He’s the real deal,” Willman added. “He’s been through a lot but God has made up for the past with real joy.”

The partnership of BUMP and Payne Free Church provides opportunities for the church’s vision statement to take root. A week-long mission trip truly can plant the seed that helps neighbors know they are loved, find the key to being set free and lead to lasting change.

BUMP Back Home: Personal Growth and Strengthened Gifts

Emily Green  writes about her BUMP Twin Cities experience, looking back one year later. God grew her faith, strengthened her gifts and took her out of her comfort zone, all things He planned for her to use as she served Him back home.

Before coming to Hope Evangelical Free Church, (Roscoe, IL) I attended a Catholic Church. As I grew older, I came to the realization that church felt like it was a chore to me. After I finished 8th grade, my mom allowed me to look for a new church that made me feel more comfortable. A year later, I found Hope EFC and began my journey to know Christ there. From the fall of my sophomore year to the week before my first BUMP trip, my faith grew in a consistent, yet slow growth.

Payne Avenue teams 2014

In youth group I had heard about what BUMP was and became instantly hooked on the idea. I signed up not knowing completely what I was getting myself into. When I first arrived at BUMP, I was definitely overwhelmed with how many people were there. During the first day of being there, I had a bit of regret of signing up. As the week unfolded, I started to open my mind to the opportunities and ended up learning so many things. From everything I took away from that week, my faith blossomed and ultimately changed my life. There were two major things that stood out to me this past year.

Patience. Before the trip, I had just enough patience to get me through what had to be done. During BUMP, I was assigned to be a shepherd with one of the teens who attended Payne Avenue EFC, St. Paul. During the week, we had three girls who were able to push my buttons as well as acting up.

One night while I was praying for patience, God reminded me of Philippians 2:14 “Do all things without grumbling or disputing.” NASB I cemented that verse in my head and whenever I didn’t want to achieve something, I remembered the verse. One could say that this was a step in the right direction in my faith, but by the grace of God I decided to take it a step farther. I brought up the verse to the three girls and the next day they came in with a better attitude. From that experience, I definitely believe my patience has grown tremendously.

I also became aware of how well I do with kids after BUMP. There were a few “right away changes” but this one became more dominant compared to those. I got involved with babysitting the church choir kids as well as becoming a leader for AWANA.

The patience really showed through during AWANA last winter. One night I was assigned to work with a special-needs girl who had Down syndrome. That night the leader had posted on my Facebook wall, “Your willingness to help with (in order to keep the identity private I will not include her name) on Monday was beyond awesome!! You're just a natural & a breath of fresh air Emily!” The words “you're just a natural” really struck me as a surprise, because I knew my patience has grown but I didn’t realize it was that drastic. I only have BUMP to really thank for that.

Emily's 2015 visit to Payne Ave EFC during BUMP week

Comfort zones. Another thing I really got from BUMP was breaking my comfort zone from prayer walking. Going into BUMP, one thing I absolutely did not want to do was prayer walking. The first day of prayer walking, I was paired up with two people from a church in Deerfield, IL, and one person who went to my church. The four of us, as well as the leader from Deerfield, started up through the neighborhood. I had such a closed mind to the idea, so the first two or three days I honestly let my partner do all the talking. This was his third or fourth BUMP, so in my head I just thought he was going to accomplish it very well and he would be able to bring more people to our VBS. Ultimately, he was able to canvas well; not because he was a natural as I initially thought but because he was experienced.

As the week went on I realized that these people we were talking to were actually interested in what we had to say. I gradually started talking more and more as the week went on. At the time I thought it was a good learning opportunity because I was able to get out of my comfort zone. In all honesty, I didn't notice the huge change it had on me until this year.

This year my church decided to stay in the area and not go to BUMP. We decided to go to Rockford and help out there instead. The first day we went prayer walking and canvassing the neighborhood so we can get more people to come to the Rockford Rescue Mission and participate in our VBS. The first day we had three kids and we really wanted to increase the numbers we had on participants so we went out canvassing. The girl who I was paired up with was on her first mission trip. I was surprised at how easily I was able just to walk up to the door connect to the people, really get them talking, and getting them interested in coming to our VBS.

That night my heart just really opened up to the idea of staying in the area as well as realizing how much BUMP really is taking a toll on my life and my faith. I was no longer that scared student who was terrified of telling her faith to people and soon became the student getting people into talking. I am more confident in what I am doing in knowing where I am and where I will go in my walk with Christ.

I was crushed knowing I wasn’t going on BUMP this summer. Another student who had attended last year and I made it back up to Minnesota to visit her grandparents, as well as help out a bit at Payne Avenue EFC’s BUMP VBS.  Everything I have become this past year, I have BUMP to thank. Although I grew independently, BUMP ultimately changed my life forever - not only in my personality, but also in my walk with Christ.

BUMP Back Home

It always amazes me how quickly the BUMP week goes by. It was an incredible week -- all I can say is that God is so good. It was such a blessing to work with my team, but even more so to live with them for a week. We worked hard together and laughed even harder. We shared meals and bathrooms; shared in ministry and tasks and in struggles and prayer. I got to witness the growth of my team, as individuals and as a group, as they continued to learn to bring everything to God in prayer.

Its been two weeks since BUMP -- for me it takes about that long to process the week! This is an important part of the trip for two reasons: first, you get to relive and enjoy those funny moments you shared with your co-workers for the week and turn them in to 'inside jokes' that cement relationships established; second, it helps transition everything God taught you throughout the week back to your daily life in the community you live and serve in.

What I took back to my 'normal' life and my church was a prayer.  After being part of a fellowship of believers dedicated to serving, loving, and regularly interceding for their community, I was equally inspired and convicted of my relationship with those living in my community (especially those far from God).  My prayer for myself and my local church is that God would increase our hearts even more for the community surrounding us.  I pray that God would break our hearts for what breaks His, especially in reference of our neighbors.  That we would be diligent in prayer for them; and that we would be diligent in action. 

May that be your prayer as well.

20 years at Payne Avenue EFC

Here's an overview in pictures of Payne's 20th year with BUMP...

New Salem EFC's BUMP highlights

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