This year, the organization Master’s Commission committed to sending two groups of young missionaries to Hope in Campinas for 6 months each. The first group of 5 men and 5 women have been at the City of Youth since January.
They minister to the house parents, work with the graduating class of students at the City of Youth, and are available Tuesday through Sunday to serve in any way our staff may need them.
The graduates’ feedback is very positive: “Through them we see that we, too, can change. They give us advice. When they talk to us, they encourage us. They talk to us as though we have already overcome our difficulties. They give us confidence, as if nothing were impossible, and then we start to see God that way.”
They work with the house parents first on their own personal spiritual walks, spending time with the Lord, and then how to pass that on to the boys and girls. The MC group prays with the staff, encouraging them not to give up in this ministry the Lord has given them. Homes that used to meet just once a week for Bible study now also have regular devotions each morning. Seven girls at Hope Ranch have accepted Christ since January, and the house parents relate that they can see great improvement in the behavior of the boys and girls.
The missionaries have themselves been encouraged by the work being done at the City of Youth: “God is changing their futures through us, and He’s healing their pasts, breaking down walls.” Students who barely talked to anyone or made eye contact now run up for a hug, or yell across campus to say hello and send a smile and a wave. “At the beginning, they wouldn’t give their opinions, but now they have more confidence. They’re learning to stand on their own!”
They minister to the house parents, work with the graduating class of students at the City of Youth, and are available Tuesday through Sunday to serve in any way our staff may need them.
The graduates’ feedback is very positive: “Through them we see that we, too, can change. They give us advice. When they talk to us, they encourage us. They talk to us as though we have already overcome our difficulties. They give us confidence, as if nothing were impossible, and then we start to see God that way.”
They work with the house parents first on their own personal spiritual walks, spending time with the Lord, and then how to pass that on to the boys and girls. The MC group prays with the staff, encouraging them not to give up in this ministry the Lord has given them. Homes that used to meet just once a week for Bible study now also have regular devotions each morning. Seven girls at Hope Ranch have accepted Christ since January, and the house parents relate that they can see great improvement in the behavior of the boys and girls.
The missionaries have themselves been encouraged by the work being done at the City of Youth: “God is changing their futures through us, and He’s healing their pasts, breaking down walls.” Students who barely talked to anyone or made eye contact now run up for a hug, or yell across campus to say hello and send a smile and a wave. “At the beginning, they wouldn’t give their opinions, but now they have more confidence. They’re learning to stand on their own!”