{"id":5948,"date":"2014-01-08T17:48:04","date_gmt":"2014-01-09T01:48:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/?p=5948"},"modified":"2014-01-10T16:00:11","modified_gmt":"2014-01-11T00:00:11","slug":"holy-interruptions-mission-experiences-for-youth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/holy-interruptions-mission-experiences-for-youth\/","title":{"rendered":"Holy Interruptions: Mission Experiences for Youth"},"content":{"rendered":"<style><!--\np.padding {padding-left:.5cm;}\n--><\/style>\n<p><center><em>Young people from Tibbetts UMC (Seattle, Wash.) participated in L.A.S.T. (Learning and Serving Together).<\/em> <\/center><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><strong>Holy Interruptions<\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Mission Experiences for Youth<\/em><br \/>\n<em>By The Rev. Jeff Lowery<\/em><br \/>\n<em><center><br \/>\n\u201cHoly interruption up ahead<br \/>\nDistractions and connections<br \/>\nWhizzing by as I take each breath.<br \/>\nGod help me notice, and not walk by<br \/>\nYour holy interruptions.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>From Holy Interruptions<br \/>\n<em>\u00a92013 by Jeff Lowery<\/em><br \/>\n<\/center><\/p>\n<p>This year was a fantastic summer of ministry at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastnw.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">L.A.S.T. (Learning and Serving Together)<\/a>.  This mission program is designed to link youth and young adults with service opportunities, helping participants connect their service to their faith.  More than 200 people from 19 different United Methodist Churches traveled to the sites in Portland or Eugene, Ore. for one of the eight week-long summer mission trips.  Jeff Lowery and his L.A.S.T. staff hosted church groups from Montana, California, Idaho, Washington, and Oregon.<br \/>\n<!--more What unexpected breakthroughs has God made in your life?--><br \/>\nEach day, youth were able to do something that made an impact on the lives of others, from making 2,000 lunches a day for a free lunch program in a park in Eugene, to organizing donations at a new food bank, to spending the day playing with at-risk children at a local community center.  Each evening the youth discovered how the life and ministry of Jesus calls us to go beyond our comfort zones and out into our communities.  The theme of the summer was \u201cHoly Interruptions\u201d based on a song I composed.  The song reminds us all to keep our eyes open for the many unexpected ways that God can break into our lives.<br \/>\n<center><br \/>\n<em>\u201cI believe that holy opportunities&nbsp;<br \/>\nPresent themselves when there is a need<br \/>\nHelp us God to be open everywhere we go.\u201d <\/em><br \/>\n<\/center><br \/>\nThose who traveled to Portland had the opportunity to participate in a summer-long project at Bethlehem-House of Bread.  Youth helped transition this 100 year-old church into a community center.  They tore down old walls, tended a new community garden, painted rooms and helped prepare the building to be used in a vital ministry that is just starting to take root in the Metzger neighborhood. <\/p>\n<p>Other groups that came to Portland spent time at Dignity Village, a homeless community near the Portland airport.  Youth from Hillview UMC in Boise and Tacoma Mason UMC helped paint a few of the more than 40 structures in the village.  One youth participant wrote, \u201cAlthough the work was fun, the really rewarding part of the experience was getting to meet some of the residents and hearing their stories.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Sometimes local churches that send youth away on mission trips are surprised by what happens in the life of their own church as a result.  Youth want to bring home some of what they experience.  One of the most meaningful worksites this summer was the Brooklyn Community Gardens in SE Portland.  Bob Harless, an adult from Foothills UMC in La Mesa, Calif. said, \u201cThe youth were inspired by their work in the Brooklyn Community Garden and are in the early stages of seeing how we can incorporate something like that at our church.  You can be assured how touched the youth were and felt a calling to serve.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mission trips are one of the many tools that support and deepen the faith development of youth and adults.  We are fortunate to have a mission site right here in the Pacific Northwest that can make a service trip affordable for small local churches.  <\/p>\n<p>L.A.S.T. is now starting to accept reservations for spring break and summer 2014.  For more information go to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastnw.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.lastnw.com<\/a> or contact the Rev. Jeff Lowery at <a href=\"mailto:revjlow@yahoo.com?Subject=Re: L.A.S.T. on the PNW News Blog\">revjlow@yahoo.com<\/a>, 541-654-1878.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><center><em>The Rev. Jeff Lowry is a deacon appointed to Sellwood New Faith Community, Portland, Ore.<\/em><\/center><\/p>\n<hr>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rqmweb.com\/results.asp?q=pnwumc&#038;resID=2694&#038;detail=Y\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Here I am Lord, Missionaries of the UMC (D4441)\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/RESOURCE_HereIamLord.jpg?w=696\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p class=\"padding\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rqmweb.com\/results.asp?q=pnwumc&#038;resID=2694&#038;detail=Y\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>Missionaries of the UMC (D4441)<\/strong><\/a><br \/>\nThis DVD contains stories of missionaries around the world.<\/p>\n<p class=\"padding\">To reserve this video now, e-mail <a href=\"mailto:ejohanson@pnwumc.org?Subject=Re: Missionaries of the UMC (D4441)\">The Regional Media Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><\/p>\n<hr>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rqmweb.com\/results.asp?q=pnwumc&#038;resID=3553&#038;detail=Y\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Change the World (D2022)\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/RESOURCE_ChangetheWorld.jpg?w=696\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p class=\"padding\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rqmweb.com\/results.asp?q=pnwumc&#038;resID=3553&#038;detail=Y\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>Change the World (D2022)<\/strong><\/a><br \/>\nMaking a positive difference in a hurting world, serving the least, lost, and lonely in Jesus\u2019 name, spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ, isn\u2019t that what Christians are supposed to do? Isn\u2019t that what Mission is about? This study will guide church leaders into the work of global mission by helping them find ways to use all opportunities and aspects of church life for missional outreach, from worship to education to fellowship to budgeting to facilities.  Transforming believers into disciples is Mike\u2019s passion.  As pastor of Ginghamsburg UMC in Tipp City, Ohio, Mike\u2019s church serves as the hands and feet of Jesus helping those in need from Dayton (local) to Darfur (international).<\/p>\n<p class=\"padding\">To reserve this video now, e-mail <a href=\"mailto:ejohanson@pnwumc.org?Subject=Re: Change the World (D2022)\">The Regional Media Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><\/p>\n<hr>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rqmweb.com\/results.asp?q=pnwumc&#038;resID=3118&#038;detail=Y\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"In Our Midst\tD4810\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/RESOURCE_InOurMidst.jpg?w=696\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p class=\"padding\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rqmweb.com\/results.asp?q=pnwumc&#038;resID=3118&#038;detail=Y\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>In Our Midst (D4810)<\/strong><\/a><br \/>\nThere is more to a city than meets the eye.  Edmonds, 20 miles north of Seattle, has multi-million dollar homes with expansive views of Puget Sound.  Boutiques and expensive restaurants line the streets in the downtown core. It also has people who need the services of the food bank at Edmonds United Methodist Church.  See how this church has met the weekly food needs for families over quite a period of time.<\/p>\n<p class=\"padding\">To reserve this video now, e-mail <a href=\"mailto:ejohanson@pnwumc.org?Subject=Re: In Our Midst\t (D4810)\">The Regional Media Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><\/p>\n<hr>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rqmweb.com\/results.asp?q=pnwumc&#038;resID=2608&#038;detail=Y\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"When Did I See You Hungry (D4401)\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/RESOURCE_SeeYouHungry.jpg?w=696\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p class=\"padding\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rqmweb.com\/results.asp?q=pnwumc&#038;resID=2608&#038;detail=Y\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>When Did I See You Hungry (D4401)<\/strong><\/a><br \/>\nThis short film by documentary filmmaker and award-winning author Gerard Thomas Strab is a photographic meditation on the plight of the poor and our responsibility to help.  The film features more than 250 powerful and poignant photographs from Mr. Strab\u2019s book \u201cWhen Did I See You Hungry?\u201d Gerard Thomas Strab spent months living among the poor in the impoverished sections of 29 cities in nine nations: India, Brazil, Kenya, Jamaica, the Philippines, Mexico, Italy, Canada, and the United States.  The photographs document the life of the poorest of the poor in a startling and disquieting series of intensely personal black and white photographs.<\/p>\n<p class=\"padding\">To reserve this video now, e-mail <a href=\"mailto:ejohanson@pnwumc.org?Subject=Re: When Did I See You Hungry (D4401)\">The Regional Media Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><\/p>\n<hr>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/download\/channels-69-january-2014\/\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Channels 69\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/Channels_69_Cover_149px.jpg?w=696\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p class=\"padding\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/download\/channels-69-january-2014\/\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>Channels 69, January 2014 (NOW AVAILABLE!)<\/strong><\/a><br \/>\nSeeing Christ in &#8220;the other&#8221; \u2022 Bishop: Securing Growth and Vitality \u2022 [GEN]ERATION TRANSFORMATION \u2022 Holy Interruptions \u2022 Musings: Being Transformed \u2022 Elders: Pogo and Jesus are Still Right!<\/p>\n<p class=\"padding\">To subscribe to Channels, e-mail <a href=\"mailto:channels@pnwumc.org?Subject=Re: Sign me up for Channels!\">channels@pnwumc.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><\/p>\n<hr>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Young people from Tibbetts UMC (Seattle, Wash.) participated in L.A.S.T. (Learning and Serving Together). Holy Interruptions Mission Experiences for Youth By The Rev. Jeff Lowery \u201cHoly interruption up ahead Distractions and connections Whizzing by as I take each breath. God help me notice, and not walk by Your holy interruptions.\u201d From Holy Interruptions \u00a92013 by [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":51,"featured_media":5950,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[111,112],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-5948","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-channels","8":"category-ministries-with-young-people"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/IDEAS_LAST.jpg?fit=700%2C357&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2l75j-1xW","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5948","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/51"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5948"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5948\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5975,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5948\/revisions\/5975"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5950"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5948"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5948"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5948"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}