El Sal Day 1

Our first full day in El Salvador started bright and early with breakfast at 6:30am, followed by a short orientation before we headed to the gym for several hours of training. When we woke up we were thankful to at least have running water to bathe in, something we didn't have the night before and wouldn't have for most of the trip. The King's Castle camp is right on a lake, set within gorgeous, lush mountains and not too far from an active volcano. We spent several hours of the first day learning the songs, dances, and dramas that we would use to minister for the remainder of the week. King's Castle has a wide variety of ministries as they strive to respond to a diverse range of the physical and spiritual needs in El Salvador and Nicaragua. However, their principal method of ministry has always been through the avenues of drama and what they call "spectacle evangelism".

This means that when teams like ours invade the streets of El Salvador, they quickly get people's attention and draw a crowd by creating a spectacle -- clowning, games, music, dramas, dancing, yo-yo tricks, parades, puppet shows, illustrated sermons, you name it! I can't see this method working too well in the States, but it is absolutely perfect for this culture. As crowds gather, the curious spectators soon become drawn in to the core message of every King's Castle program: "Jesus saves and is coming soon."

The motto of King's Castle's method has always been (in Spanish), "utilizando todo los medios que estan a nuestro alcance", which means:

"...to utilize every method that is within our reach to preach the Gospel."

After sweating profusely for several hours, we were more than ready for a swim in the lake. Pictured below is the King's Castle dock and trapeze swing. SUPER FUN. Our team enjoyed a couple hours of free time before heading to dinner and then to the prayer tower for an evening of intercession and spiritual preparation for our week of ministry.

The dock.

One side of the beautiful view.

Hannah, Olivia, Brittany, Tiffany, and Sarah enjoying a refreshing swim.

Josh and Cannon getting ready to pull a dangerous stunt.

El Salvador Mission Trip

August 8-16 marked a significant "first" for the FOS community as 15 students and leaders ventured out on the first ever FOS foreign mission trip. At 4am on Saturday, August 8, while most of you were still in dreamy-dream land, we were groggily rubbing the sleep out of our eyes as we loaded the ECC bus and headed to Seattle to catch our 7am flight. As tired as we were, there was no mistaking the excitement and expectancy in each of our hearts for what we were about to encounter. After months of planning, prayer, and fundraising -- it was finally here!

After a long day of traveling we arrived in at the San Salvador airport at 5:30pm. It gets dark in El Salvador by 6:30pm, so by the time we retrieved our bags, made it through customs, immigration, and stepped outside, it already felt much later than it really was. Nonetheless, setting foot on El Salvador soil (or should I say "pavement") for the first time is not something any of us will soon forget. The sky was a deep, dark, royal blue. The tropical trees were a beautiful, rich, emerald green. The air was thick with humidity and littered with the sounds and silhouettes of lively birds.

There waiting for us were a group of five nationals (the El Salvadorian Master's Commission students who would work with our group all week), one lively American intern (Caleb), and the dream machine pictured to the right-- the Castillo Del Rey bus. We were really blessed to meet up with another mission team from Washington who arrived in El Salvador the day before us. These ten students and leaders from all over Washington were a perfect match for our FOS team. We bonded instantly and had a blast ministering with them all week.

After a very bumpy and rainy 3 hr bus ride we arrived at the Kings Castle camp. By this time it was quite late and we were all thoroughly exhausted so we headed straight to bed. We needed to get our rest because the next day would start bright and early with breakfast at 6:30am, followed by orientation and a whole lot of training.

More to come very soon!!

DC Team at FOS Church

This Wednesday night will be our Dream Center testimonies night. The entire team will be sharing stories from the front lines--we'll have pictures, videos, and narratives about how God changed us through this trip.

Come out to FOS Church on Wednesday, April 15th @7:05pm in the North Auditorium at ECC for the "Dream Center Stories" gathering.

Overcoming the Fear of Silence

Final full day of the trip today. We've checked out from the Dream Center and we're hanging out at our hotel this final night in Newport Beach. We fly out tomorrow morning and head home. I can't wait to see my family.

After checking out of the DC around 10am this morning we headed down here for a day of rest and reflection as we try to process the lessons we learned on this trip. We'll have one final meeting tonight where I'm going to read the students some of these blogs I've written during this trip, and use that as a springboard into a discipleship challenge that applies to our return.

What is it worth if we don't internalize it? What are the value of the experiences if we don't allow them to integrate into every compartment of our lives? If we aren't filled with compassion and broken for the lost of our city, is the sacrifice we offered up in this city worth much? I guess this shows my perspective on this trip. We need to change. I believe we all need to change, and I pray that this change was advanced through our time on this trip. This team is so energetic and excited just to be alive, and that's awesome. But they're young. Their youth is seen in the fact that our culture's tricks still dupe them quite a bit. They possess the insecurities, fears, and hesitations of 15 and 16 year old kids. There's is the struggle to find authentic fellowship with God in the midst of a culture that says "He's not really real."

I've never been a fan of creating a Christian sub-culture. I beleive in protecting them from things they can't process yet, but insulating them in a shelter where they can't tell the difference between real and aritifical light is counter-productive. This trip has been great because we've been able to live with them and process the lies of culture and where they lead people who blindly follow them. I want more than anything for these students to return changed. I want them to begin to experience true redemption in their lives.

I want this to be real and practical and life-changing. I want their sense of humor to change. I want their insecurity to be turned into confidence in who Christ has created them to be. I want them to realize they don't need a "crush" or a relationship with another insecure teenager to validate their existence. I want them to die to the idolatry that is manifested in the world of unlimited texting, video games, pointless movies our culture thinks are great, and constant noise clouding their minds.

Today's teenager fears silence. They fear silence because alone--without the Ipod headphones, or the TV keeping them company, or the mindless chatter through texts or messages from friends--they see themselves. They see someone who wants to live authentically and above the noise and passionately connected to the image they were created to identify, but they see that they are too afraid to take that step. That's too much to handle. It's 25 to 1 every day they walk on that campus, and living beyond the noise may very well kill your social life. And if you listen to 30 seconds of any song they love or watch 2 minutes of any show or movie created for them by our culture, you understand that if people don't love and accept you--life is not worth living.

I pray that this trip, where we literally forced them to get beyond the noise, gave them a taste of what life is like with a soul that doesn't fear silence. I pray they go home with a taste of quietness in their souls, a taste that turns into a constant daily craving for the REAL. I pray that the hunger pains in their souls for God's word and His presence that are re-awakened on trips like this, continue to grow deeper and deeper into their daily routines. I pray that it changes them.

I am going home encouraged. They are young, but they are real. They still fear silence. But God has created space in them individually and as a family through this trip. God has grown His kingdom in their hearts. He has bonded us together in relationship. They trust and know how much I and my leaders love them, and these relationships are the foundation for current and future discipleship. I am encouraged because this trip was just another step on the journey God is taking us on. It's a grind. The daily work of pastorally nurturing and discipling young people, leaders, and their families is a hard road. But I know that we are all in it together. And for my part, I am more inspired to continue to work, study, preach, connect, build, disciple, and pray harder than ever to see God's kingdom explode in the lives of these young people.

I see something happening here...

A Life Changing

I come down to this trip with a different perspective than anyone else that steps on the plane. There are the obvious things--like the ultimate authority and responsibility for all 19 souls--and the less obvious--like the realization that this trip is as much about discipleship for the kids as it is about actual ministry they will do. They've set it up down here so that church ministry groups from across the world can come out and maximize their days here--getting high impact ministry experience within a structure with great accomodations and a setup that insulates them from danger, but allows them to interact with raw real-life suffering. All added together the DC is used by God to change literally thousands of lives every month, many on the streets of LA, but many more lives who take it back to their cities and implement the mission of reaching the lost there. Amazing stuff. This place is changing the world. They are changing the physical and spiritual landscape of their city--and spreading it around the world through lives that get rocked here on short term missions trips. It's awe-inspiring.

My perspective coming in:
So as I headed down here I was thinking about all these things. I was not thinking about how we could make this trip "fun," but how we could maximize the experience, be intentional every minute with the students, and set up a structure where the most transformation possible could take place in us and through us. But I've been surprised by this trip. To borrow an oft quoted phrase from one of my favorite authors: I've been "surprised by joy." I have found--in this team of 14 teenagers and 5 youth staff leaders--the most life-changing, loving, and Spirit saturated joy I think I've ever experienced. I called Carissa last night after we returned to the DC at about 10pm--and talked to her for a half hour about how much I've laughed in the last 4 days. I've found--in Max, in Joel, in Sarah, in Joey, in Kaleen, in Katelyn, and in ever one of our kids--my joy. I put Joy in my little girl Olivia's name because I knew in her I would always find Joy--and I do. After missing her and Carissa (and our soon to be born Sophia Hope) in the first few days, I found myself longing to be home. But last night it was like I stepped back as God revealed to me what we have in FOS. He summarized 4 days of unbelievable moments, one on top of the other, in my soul--and flooded me with joy. I've been experiencing His joy throughout the whole trip--laughing uncontrollably until my face hurts many times--but that joy is only experienced in its fullness because we are creating space for God to fill us with it.

Let me explain:
Yesterday was an unreal day.
We ministered at Skid Row all day. Our kids did amazing. Watch an innocent, enthusiastic, mission-inspired 15 year old sophomore from Tumwater High School walk up to a 59 year old homeless man, face chapped from years sleeping outdoors, entire earthly abode carried on his back; and watch that teenager hand him a snickers bar and say, "Good morning, you want a little extra energy pick-me-up for today? Here's a Snickers. We're serving a free hot lunch at 1:30 right down the street at the VOA--we'd love to have you join us! What's your name?" Watch as that face--torn and bruised from the world humans broke--cracks (literally) a smile and says, "Sure, I don't have any plans for lunch....um....my name's John..." Watch that scene and if tears don't fill your eyes there may be something wrong with your soul.

Yesterday was filled with moments like that. Life is measured in moments--and my life was filled yesterday until it started bursting at the seams...and when it overflowed my soul I found what life is supposed to be called--it's supposed to be called "Joy."

A night to step back and see JOY:
After a day filled with intense ministry--our kids were worn out. We wanted to surpise them last night with a really exciting night that would clear their minds and souls and refresh them. Christy and I planned just such a night--but we didn't tell any of the kids any details. All four van drivers were pelted with questions as we drove to Glendale--a very safe suburb of LA about 15 minutes from the DC. We pulled up to the parking lot of a giant YMCA building--parked and got out--and as the kids gathered around I tried one out on them to see how they'd respond. "Okay guys, we've been given an opportunity tonight by our friends here at the YMCA! We get to serve dinner to everyone at the Y!" What happened next was hilarious. Carlee--who provides the dictionary definition of words such as enthusiasm, spunk, excitement, and energy immediately jumps up in the air and squeels--YES!!! ALRIGHT!!! HOW EXCITING!!!

You seriously had to be there to appreciate the scene as I made this announcement: it all happened in an instant: Carlee jumps up in the middle of the group joyfully enthusiastic and simultaneously all 13 of the other teenagers eyes dropped to their shoes--totally disappointed and exhausted at the thought of pouring out when empty--but with a kind of willing submission to the task needing to be done. I gave the joke about 7 seconds--but decided to break the truth to them to avoid mutiny. "Just kidding guys...Wow...you are fleshly pagans!" The nervous laughter started to bubble up as they realized I was joking. "This is a fun night you guys; we're proud of you for how hard you've been working these last couple of days and we're going to reward you with some family time."

We then launched into a competition between 4 teams made up of the students/leader from each of the 4 different vehicles. Each team needed a name: we had 1) The Pirate Germs (Margot, Davy B., Katelyn, and Erin R.), 2) Conchitas (Christy, Joey, Morgan W., Kaleen, and Lucas), 3) Team Dave (Megan, Dave B., Morgan N., Carlee, and Kelsey), and 4) The Managers (named after our vehicle--a slick Ford Flex SEL we call "the Manager:" this team was myself, Max, Joel, Sarah, and Emily). The game was a digital picture alphabet scavenger hunt. The goal of the game--run around the surrounding blocks taking pictures with a digital camera of things that start with letters from A to Z--each picture had to have a team member in it--as well as the object you were photographing. The 26 pictures had to be in order, and you could only take pictures of words on signs 5 of the 26 times. To give you an example: for "I" we took a pic of Emily in front of an "Intersection," for "F" I shot a pic of Max jumping up grabbing a hold of a Fire-escape. After we said "Go" all 19 of us ran with our teams down the streets to get the pictures. It was incredibly hilarious. The creativity of the kids was epic. After about 15 minutes all 4 teams were back at the starting point (the cars in the YMCA parking lot)--and we went through all 104 pics together--laughing at what we had thought of. We're planning on picking the 26 most creative (one for each letter) and putting it together in some sort of a DC photo-book when we get home. And for the recond...the Pirate Germs took home the title.

From there we walked through Glendale--making our way toward Cold Stone--where each team member got to order their favorite ice cream. There was only one guy working on a what was a normal slow Wednesday night for Cold Stone. As we walked in the guy just started laughing--and in true Cold Stone fashion--the college student who attends USC entertained us with songs, dances and some crazy ice cream tricks.

It was in this Cold Stone that I stepped back a few times and just experienced the moment. All 19 of us--laughing and enjoying each other--rehearsing inside jokes that have developed--overflowing with Joy that is in our lives because Jesus has saved us and given us each other. It was unreal. It was a night filled with moments that I will never forget. Memories that can't be erased now fill our minds--and these memories were able to inhabit us to a fuller extent because God created space in us through our sacrifice of serving him during the preceding two days of ministry. Everyone agreed this morning that last night may have been the most fun any of us have ever had.

Cell Phone Controversy:
Yesterday we took all their cell phones away. I implemented a texting/messaging fast that will continue at least until we leave the DC Friday. Why? I just felt like we needed it. Our leaders still have phones--and kids can call their parents if they have to at night--but if you're 15 and you live in America--you can't experience moments of deep focus if you have your cell phone on you. That's just reality. A few kids balked at it at first--but by this morning I was hearing things like "I don't even miss my phone--I'm not even thinking about it--It's actually nice not worrying about it" from most of the kids.

In our devotional today I brought up yesterday's memories--Skid Row all day and great family time all evening--and I pointed something out to the team, "Do you guys think we would have had the time of our lives last night if we had spent all day playing video games or watching TV?" A loud "No way!" resounded from the troops. I continued: "You know why we were able to experience deep joy and real love with each other? Because we had allowed God to create space in our souls for it. We turned off our phones--got away from the vegetating experience that marks our existence--and truly connected with who God created us to be." Heads nodded as they began to realize the image that we've been created in. It's the image of a God who is love, who holds ultimate Joy within Him--and whose heart breaks because the world He created to reflect the love and joy that is Him has been raped by sin. As we realize this and work to change it--and work to restore His image on our faces and within our reach--it is at those moments that we touch Him and He touches us.

My life is changing. All 18 of my team members would sit here and say the same thing. We are finding Joy. We are finding Love. We are realizing that sin takes these from us and that our culture tries to distract us from understanding this. As we've stripped those distractions away we've seen Him. I've seen Him.

I saw Him last night more clearly than I have in a long time.

I saw Him in John Maxwell "Max" Martin--and his unbelievably hilarious one-liners. I saw Him in Sarah Stanley and her sweet and thoughtful demeanor and great sense of humor.
I saw Him in Joel Vandekieft and his unexplainably intelligent wit.
I saw Him in Emily Hamack whose mature leadership looks like Jesus.
I saw Him in Katelyn Ritchie's artistic genius and creative laughter.
I saw Him in Davy Butler's honest hunger for true life.
I saw Him in Erin Rice's deeply unique and gut-busting antics.
I saw Him in Carlee Collins awe-inspiring child-like innocence and unadulterated enthusiasm. I saw Him in Lucas Halter's pure hunger to enjoy every moment to its fullest.
I saw Him in Morgan Wilson's desire to laugh at everything concievable.
I saw Him in Morgan Nicholls and her appreciation and thankfulness for the perspective God is creating in her life.
I saw Him in Kaleen Mercer's depth and capacity to internalize true love and joy at barely 15 years old.
I saw Him in Kelsey Hummel's beautiful smile--lighting up lives that can't escape it's sincerity.
I saw Him in Joey Vela's honest love for people--no guile, no pretense--purely motivated by a pulse that beats deeply for Jesus.

And I saw Him in my leaders. In Dave Baskett--raised in Elma--first time on a plane 4 days ago--who has become THE student favorite with his shear "Daveness." I saw Him in Christy Briggs--the woman of God who changes more lives than anyone I've ever met through using her God-given talents with the most epic kingdom mentality I've ever seen (this trip would hardly exist without her). I saw Him in Margot Knight--weeping 27 steps into Skid Row in the morning--compassion uncontrollable for a dying world--and dancing with Joy surrounded by friends who her heart now calls family--in Cold Stone that evening to the Beatles tunes blaring from an Ipod. And I saw Him in Megan McClain--whose heart beats for justice, whose mind is on fire for God, who dwells deeply in life as a woman of God's presence, and who leads our girls with such intelligence that they may not realize her impact until they are many years down the road from here.

A life is changing. It's the life God gave to me. I have been surprised by joy.

Thank you Jesus.

The Difference -- Changing Lives

Parents: We told you that one of the differences that would be made was in your students. I can profoundly say that this is happening. I watch these students that I have had the joy of getting to know for the past two years or less as they have come into the ministry, and they are growing. To watch them walk up to a homeless person with boldness, to have another student ask if he could share when we get back to school. All of them are changing and growing and learning profound things that will impact the way they live their lives as they come home. God is good and He is alive in the hearts of these students. It has brought me to tears many times in the last two days. I can't wait for you to experience the impact that these students can and will make as they return!

For all those who gave to allow us to be here:

Thank you for being a part of this and giving so these students and leaders can experience this growth.

Day Three-Down On Skid Row

Well, today was intense to say the least.  I awoke on the floor of the gym, my air mattress deflated...  Soon, we went to breakfast, and were up and running with our missions activity for the day.  Today, we went down to skid row.  This was a pretty rough place for anyone to be.  We went down there with a guy named Matt who works at the Dream Center.  We went down to the roughest part of LA that I have ever seen.  A place populated by drug addicts, prostitutes, and the homeless.  Our mission?  To get them to a lunch that we had at the VOA Drop Point, and hopefully get them to come to church at Angeles Temple tomorrow (or possibly hook them up with different ministries at the Dream Center).

When we arrived at skid row, it was such a culture shock.  This was a place where the streets are littered with trash, and desolate people line the street, longing for someone to share their stories with.  We met a lot of people today.  Some were more fortunate than others, each at different points of life.  It was heart wrenching to see people who had no place to go.  People longing for a bite of food, or a place to find shelter for the night.  It was in seeing these people that illustrated so vividly to our team how fortunate they truly are.  

I remember walking down the street, and encountering this homeless man who was playing guitar.  We talked to him, and it turns out that he used to be in a band, and even played with Jimmi Hendrix in the '60's.  It was so amazing to hear this story.  It really helped our team see that people, regardless of their dingy looks, or outward appearance, are still people.  They all still have a story of their own, and a lot of the time, it is much easier to judge someone based on appearance rather than getting to know the person inside.  So much of the time, we see someone on the street, and immediately pass them off as someone who doesn't try, when in reality, they do.  I think we do this because it is easier for ourselves.  It is easier to make an excuse for someone else, because then we don't have to feel the conviction which makes us do anything about it.  We all have to keep in mind that everyone that we see on the street is a human as well, and how we would feel if we had fallen on hard times and we were in their shoes.

Anyways, I have five minutes until our team meeting, so I must wrap this post up.  I miss you all, and will be praying for you, as I'm sure you will be for us.

My love and prayers until next time,

-Davy Butler

Skid Row

I don't have long to write, but I need to get these things out...

This morning we walked the streets called Skid Row in inner-city Los Angeles, encountering a broken world. We interacted with desperate humanity, as raw and real as is possible. Some laughed in our faces as they saw 19 rich white kids from the North trying to love them like Jesus. Others ignored us. Others got angry. And still others accepted our love with a "thank you."

It ripped out my soul.

I know that I saw things that no one else in my group did. The kids did great, and many of the leaders wept as we experienced both the brokenness of our shattered world and the child-like love and enthusiasm of young teenagers reaching out to veterans of destruction, abuse, and heartache.

I was in back of the group as the security blanket--my job was re-supplying the kids with candy bars and flyers, as well as keeping an eye on the entire landscape and diverting any potential problems.

From that vantage point I saw more than I wanted to. I know most of our group (if any) didn't see these things; though they were rubbing shoulders with them. My eyes populated my soul with images that I will never forget. Images that are creating space for God's kingdom within me.

I saw:

The prostitute getting a fist-clinched lecture from her pimp on the other side of the fence of the courtyard we were passing out Snickers bars in. He grabbed her around the waist and shielded her from us as we walked by. As I looked over my shoulder I saw her desperate eyes clinging to the bars of her prison. Will she ever escape?

The half-dozen drug deals, transactions that took place just before or after the herd of kids passed by, shielded by sly handshakes and practiced subtelty, just out of eye sight of the patrol cars, bikes, and motorcycle cops that circle the blocks every minute.

The recent Dream Center discipleship dropout--Chris--who I prayed with. He couldn't hack it after 4 months in the program. Just to strict. 3 days ago he headed back to Skid Row, but he's hungry for something more--and is dying to get out of here. We prayed, and he opened his heart to experiencing God's power and wisdom. Where will he be next week?

Walking into the Midnight Mission--one of 15+that span these 8 blocks I walked up to the wall where there were inscriptions of marbel honoring donors and supporters of the work. It was hard not stepping on the piles of trash and rolled up tarps that peppered the landscape. I barely had a room to walk between the piles of refuse. As I stood there I realized that the trash was moving...wait...that's not trash....that's not refuse....that's humans. My eyes were opened as I realized that I had just wandered into someone's living room. All around me there were dozens of people sleeping--blue tarps, trash bags, old newspapers, and fast food wrappers being used as blankets. They shifted in their beds while I choked back the flooding emotions as I realized that God's images, God's likeness, God's faces--were wallowing in our world's gutters right at my feet.

The streets ran with muddy puddles. That's how they clean them down here. At the top of a slope a city worker will spray down the sidewalk, and as the streets run black and gray workers from the various missions sweep the muck into the gutters. We stepped over the gutters in our $60 puma's and nike's, making sure we didn't splash anything on our designer jeans ("my Mom would kill me if I did.") These streets might as well run red with blood. The dirty water is our societies way of sanitizing the mess. But these running gutters are the muck of lives that are draining away.

We go back to the VOA this afternoon (a Veterans mission in Skid Row) where we will serve lunch to all who responded to our invitation. Pray God breaks through and uses our efforts to show His love in these broken lives.

Thank you for praying.

Be sure that we are safe and that the incredible leadership of our Dream Center ministry team leaders is putting us in position to experience dynamic high-impact ministry.

Day 4 of 7

I wrote this blog early this morning to update our status. I couldn't connect to the network for some reason at that time, so here it is a bit late...

It's early Wednesday morning—the halfway mark of our trip. I believe today will be the most challenging day of our trip. We are working with a ministry all day called "Under the Bridge." Our ministry is an outreach to Skid Row—a several mile stretch where homeless youth and others live under bridges and on street corners. In the morning we'll canvas the area inviting people to a meal in the afternoon. After lunch we'll have a ministry time with those who come. It should be a real stretching day for our team—we're excited about it.

Yesterday had three aspects to it:

We started off with our morning team devotional. We met for an hour and a half after breakfast reading our Bibles, praying, and discussing what we read. It was really a great time. It's awesome to see the hunger in each student to experience transformation this week. We're reading through Psalm 119 and 2 Corinthians 3:17-4:18. Pray God continues to plant a hunger for his Word and presence deep in the hearts of each of us.

After this time we took a tour of the Dream Center—which is always a great way to start the first ministry day of the trip. I was struck by how everything that they do is intentional and connected to their mission. Everything is missional. They think of so many ways to bring in money, raise awareness, and reach out to this community. Before the tour we had a mini-service put on by their discipleship program (a la Masters Commission) called "The Movement." They started a Masters program 4 years ago with 17 students, and this year—as they've re-wrapped it and upgraded it to "The Movement" they have 120 students. Imagine having 120 on-fire students 18-25 in your church who have committed to 10 months of intense discipleship training and focus on what God wants to do in their life. The production that they put on was pretty powerful. The big idea was "End the Wait," challenging students to step up and respond to God's call to reach their city. It gives me Goosebumps thinking about it as I write this a day later. There was barely a dry eye in our group as we experienced their 30+ minute musical/dance/dramatic presentation. Wow.

After the morning activities we took part in our first ministry on the streets of LA with the Food Truck ministry. We went out in 3 vans following the giant green "food truck" which stopped in 2 very needy neighborhoods to pass out food. It's a great ministry. We get out of the vans and basically form assembly lines to get everything unloaded and set up. After about 30 minutes on site we've bagged over 500 sacks of groceries—filled with different items sorted into categories. A line of over a hundred families at each site gathers to receive the food. After we finish the setup the line comes through and we hand to each family what will be many of these families only food this week.

After we got back to the Dream Center we met for over an hour to discuss our impressions and the impact this ministry made on us. It was a powerful time. We went around and every person shared what God had done in them through this experience. I have a little Sony digital voice-recorder that I made each person talk into as we debriefed. A little funny at times—but now I have over a half-hour of verbal testimony—ON TAPE—of our students and leaders expressing the transformation happening in them right after our high-impact ministry time. No....I won't use the tapes for blackmail—just for discipleship.

Pray for us today.

Priorities

If your life is a painting, your priorities are the paint. They determine the quality of the painting. Your legacy can be written through pale water colors or with richly deep artists brush strokes. Each day unfolds through the choices we make--determined by the priorities we keep.

If I lose my life jumping in front of a bus because I was pushing a child out of the way who would have been hit, my priority is that child's safety over my own. The world would call me a hero. Why? Because despite the fact that our culture denies the existence of absolute truth, it can't deny the implications. Life holds incalulable value.

At 5:24am this morning I was hesitating to step into the coldest shower in the history of mankind. After sleeping on and off for 5 hours on a gym floor through a deflating air mattress (At midnight I fell asleep on air, in the morning it was more like a plastic floor covering), the awakening I was dealing with in this shivering moment was beyond rude.

Our girls are sleeping in the short term missions (STM) dorms, as our entire team did last year, but this year our guys are being called on to "rough it" on the gym floor with about 50 other guys. The missions dorms are a very nice setup. Bunkbeds and shower rooms with warm water, clean accomadations,etc. As for the guys, our situation is a bit more adverse. At about 10pm we set up our beds in the gym (last night it was more like 10:30 becuase there was a basketball game going on); and we have to be packed up (beds and any luggage we brought in) by breakfast--at 7am. We carry our stuff (including bedding) up several flights of stairs to the vehicles where we keep it during the days. If you come on a missions trip with the entitlement that you deserve a more "permanent" residence to lay your head in--you're out of luck.

It was in this context that I, the first of 50 men greeting the dark morning, stood testing the ice-cold water with the faint (and fleeting) hope that eventually luke-warm would meet me. I finally took the plunge, realizing that holding out hope of heat was vain, and that I still had to drag my 6 guys out of their beds and get things going before too long.

Have you ever taken a cold shower? No, trust me, you haven't. If you've ever taken a comparably cold shower you know that it's crisis management. You don't take a whole lot of time to reflect and think. But for some reason this shower was different for me. In the midst of my arctic awakening I began to think about priorities.

The Dream Center has their priorities straight--that's why our guys (and the guys from 12 other short term missions team) are sleeping on the gym floor this week. You see, the 4th floor has been changed from STM dorms to housing. The conference room has been transformed into a play room. The rooms have been changed from bunkbeds that house thousands of teenagers every year to living rooms and bedrooms that house single moms and families that were sleeping on the streets last Christmas. 11 families are living on the floor we stayed on last year, down from 12 a week ago, because the Dream Center just got their first family in this ministry into a home of their own last week.

One story: A woman who works here at the DC told us this one today. A few months ago, a young woman in her early 20's was a few days from being homeless. She had a little baby and was about to give birth to a second, but she was loosing her apartment because her boyfriend was just put in prison. She didn't have anywhere to turn. She walked into a church looking for answers. The woman telling us the story met her, and because there was no options for her at that point, took her into her own home. A few weeks later the DC opened this "family housing" ministry, and this young woman was hooked up with a place to live. In the months she has been living there she has finished her GED, and is currently enrolled in college classes to get her degree so that she can provide for her babies--who don't have a Daddy to take care of them. Those little ones are sleeping where my bunkbed sat last year at this time. They are playing in the room where we had our team meetings. They are taking baths in the warm water that we had the privilege of experiencing last year on our trip here.

So there I stood--skin now numb to the ice cubes pelting my body through the shower head. I began to pray. I began to thank God that the DC has there priorities straight. I began to thank God for the opportunity of sleeping on a gym floor so that parents and children can have a roof over their heads and carpet under their feet. I began to think about home. I began to wonder about God's kingdom in Olympia and Lacey and Tumwater. I began to ask God if it was possible for me to take a cold shower every day so that single moms and hurting kids could experience some hope and love. I began to seek God and ask for the wisdom and ability to sacrifice so that those who no one else loves could experience the love of Jesus Christ.

It was at this moment that I realized--the water was getting warm. But I turned the shower off anyway, I was already done.

What a Day

I ment to post this on tuesday, but I never really got around to it... So here it is...

(Written April 7, 2009)

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Hey everyone!

Today has been a quite a day.  This morning, I woke up to Pastor Andrew saying "Wake up, Davy!  It's 6:15... The showers are warm too!".  So, groggily, I got up, grabbed some clothes, and managed to find my way to the bathroom.  I undressed and got in the shower, turned on the water, and was instantly awakened by a shock.  The Dream Center must have their own personal glacier that fills their water pipes, because that water was so COLD!  

After my arctic shower, we went to breakfast... Breakfast today was oatmeal, orange juice, toast, and doughnuts.  It was pretty good.  Later, we went to the gym (aka our room), and  got a chance to meet The Movement (a group of students age 18 to 25 who are doing a ten month internship here at the Dream Center).  They led worship with their band (which was so stellar I bought their demo).  After that, they gave us a brief break and introduced themselves through a series of human videos, songs, dancing, and a "Stomp" style song.  After that meeting came to a close, we got a tour of the Dream Center.  I know that I promised pictures (and rest assured, I have a bunch), but the Internet here is slow which makes uploading pictures a near painful process.  We learned a lot of really cool stuff about the Dream Center, and after the tour was done, we went to lunch.  Lunch today consisted of a pretty good chili, some corn bread, diet Pepsi, along with a salad.  Pretty standard.

Next, we went off to our missions activity for the day; Food Truck.  This was a lot of fun.  For those of you who don't know, this ministry is a truck loaded with food (hence the name) and then that food is distributed to a bunch of people who might have a tight budget, or no money for food all together.  I can honestly say that this was truly an eye opening experience for every member of the team.  Quite a few members of the team had never gotten the opportunity to experience poverty at this level.  While we were bagging food for the recipients, we got a chance to meet some of the people that we were handing it out to, as well as sing, take pictures, and joke around with them.  We made two stops with the truck... The first one was in a Asian/Mexican community.  The language barrier was a little rough, but it was easy to connect with these people through the simple act of giving them food.  It was so inspiring to see the look of happiness and relief on their faces.  

After that, we made our second stop in a predominately Mexican neighborhood.  The communication there was a little easier, since I've had two years of Spanish.  It was totally awesome and gratifying to see that you were making a difference.  We got a lot of pictures, and made quite a few new friends.  Then, we went back to the Dream Center and re-capped todays events.  It was here when I realize that at home we see poverty in a whole different light.  Sure, we see it on TV, but then we relate those images of real people to just images, and strip them of their humanity.  We forget to realize that those people are still people in need, or change the channel because we feel bad.  But here in LA, as a lot of students are figuring out, there is no changing the channel.  This is life.  And there are people in need who will remain so until someone steps up and makes a difference.  I'm ready to step up.  Are you?

Dream Center Check-in

We checked into the Dream Center about a half hour ago, and now we're sitting around waiting on Dominoes to deliver our dinner. UNC is killing MSU in the championship game, so no one from the team is engaged in that game--we're just hanging out in the outdoor section of the cafe figthing off the mesquitos.

We have a tired crew here, sunburned from the team-building games on the beach today, but ready for what God's leading us to the rest of the way. Tomorrow morning we'll get a tour of the Dream Center, and tomorrow afternoon we'll hit the streets with the Food Truck--one of our favorite ministries.

On our way here today we drove through Bel Air, Beverly Hills, and Hollywood--getting a good perspective on the outward appearance of the "LA" lifestyle. As we got closer and closer to the Dream Center, reality set in more, as we saw homeless people curling up on the streets for some sleep, and families begging for food. The proximity of desperately hurting people to multi-million dollar homes is pretty stark and eye-opening. Tomorrow we hit the streets to reach those hurting masses.

Finally Here

Hey friends, family, and FOS!

So, as I'm writing this, I'm sitting in the cafe in the Dream Center.  We are all beginning to get settled in, and I just got done ordering seven pizzas for our team.  All in all, it has been a long-ish day.  We began by going down to Huntington beach where our team worked our way through a series of team building exercises...  I felt like the team building exercises were a lot more productive this year then they were last year, solely because instead of leaving the team building up to the students to interpret as they would, we instead had discussions about what was important with that exercise.  

After our team building exercises, we went down to the water and got to play on the beach!  It was loads of fun, and we got a lot of pictures... (I'll upload them a little later... I don't have my cameras USB cord with me right now...).  Later, we ate at In-N-Out Burger, and went over to Wal-Mart to grab some sunscreen, towels, and whatever else students needed.

When we left Wal-Mart, we all got into the cars initially planning on going to Hollywood, Sunset Strip, and Santa Monica for some sight seeing (not for the sake of sight seeing, mind you, but rather for builing a base of comparison for the things we'll see in the coming days).  We ended up not going to Hollywood, but rather heading over to Beverly Hills and driving around looking at houses.  This is where Joey Vela almost got hit... by SAMUEL L. JACKSON!!!  I was so excited!  Not that Joey almost got hit, but rather that I got to see a friggin' movie star!  Anyways, we got some great pictures and video of Beverly Hills which I'll post later.  

Soon we traveled over to Sunset Strip.  There was a lot to see, and it inspired a lot of pictures, laughs, and inside jokes in my car (which consists of Margot Knight, Erin Rice, Katelyn Ritchie, and myself).  After we left the Sunset Strip, we somehow managed to navigate our way over to the Dream Center.  Needless to say, California traffic was the worst.  However, we finally got here.  After lugging Erin's MASSIVE bag up a flight of stairs, we began to get settled in...  Although, I soon learned that instead of a room, the guys have the great pleasure of sleeping in the gym for the remainder of the trip... Bummer, huh?  I'm sure that this is what God wanted for our team though.  Tomorrow, we have a tour of the Dream Center in the morning, followed by a ministry called "Food Truck".  This is where we get to load all sorts of food on a truck (hence the name), and go to several neighborhoods and distribute it to several families who wouldn't have enough food for the week if not for this service.  I'm stoked for what promises to be a powerful week of minitry.  Please keep praying for us, and I'll make sure to upload pics/vids as soon as I can.  

God Bless,

-Davy Butler

Sunny So Cal

We woke up today in our hotel in Long Beach, greeted by a nice sunny day. Our plans for the day look like this:

Right now our students are eating breakfast and doing their daily devotionals.

By 10:00am we'll take off from here and head to the beach for some team building games. The focus of today is building unity in this team. The unity and camraderie we develop today will be the foundation of our ministry in the next 4 days. You don't go into a fox hole with complete strangers--what we're able to accomplish in ministry will be founded on trust, unity, and a selfless commitment to one another through Christ's love.

After some team-building we'll head to In n' Out burger for lunch (a local favorite). Then, before checking into the Dream Center this evening, we're going to do something new this year that I think will make a big impact on the team. We're going to take our 4 vehicles on a tour through Bel Air, Rodeo Drive, and the "famous" Hollywood sites. After this trip we will drive right down the street to the Dream Center (literally right off of Hollywood Blvd.) where for 4 days we'll be experiencing and witnessing the true side of Los Angeles--the hurting and suffering masses of Southern California. I think the stark contrast between the glamour and reality will make a profound imprint on the hearts of our team.

Tonight we check into the Dream Center. Another update will come then.

Pray for us today.

After Midnight in Long Beach

I'm currently laughing as a battle winds down between Joel and Max over who gets the real bed and who takes the roll away in our hotel room at the Quality Inn in Long Beach. Our flight was about a half hour late, but we touched down at about 10:00pm. The team is excited about this first night as we prepare to sleep in until around 8am tomorrow morning after a long day of travel. After we check into the Dream Center tomorrow night our normal wake up times will be around 6:30am all through this week.

Joel has taken Max down with a "cheap shot" (according to Max--Joel claims it was self-defense). The battle continues.

The flight was good. Personally, I took some time to read. I finished Nicholas Wolterstorff's Lament for a Son (book review coming soon on my regular blog: www.spacecreated.blogspot.com). I was also able to get through another chapter of G.K. Chesterton's Orthodoxy. I finally started William Wilberforce's biography as well.

Whoa! Sucker punch (Max even admits it). That shot was just wrong... Joel is crippled.

A few others on the team got reading done on the flight; but most listened to Ipod's or giggled profusely (Kelsey, Kaleen, and Emily to be specific). One of our leaders, Dave Baskett, was actually flying for the first time in his life. In all it was a good trip.

The battle for the bed has been solved. Max gets the roll away. Joel didn't actually defeat him, but when they couldn't decide who rightfully gets it Joel appealed to the "I got here first" card. Truthfully he did get there first.

Justice? I don't know... That's a quandary to ponder another day.

Day 1

Day 1 of the trip has begun.

We leave Olympia for Seatac in about 7 hours. I woke up this morning at 6am with the realization that when I go to sleep tonight I will be in Los Angeles. That's always a weird dynamic, but I know our team is excited about what this next 7 days holds for us. Having taken a team of 24 to the Dream Center last year, I know that all 19 of us headed down there today will encounter some life-changing experiences.

In a little less than 2 hours our team will be prayed over and commissioned in the 10:30 service. That will be the official beginning of this trip for all of us--and I know that this will be a journey that will shape our lives.

Here we go!

We leave in a matter of hours and I am so excited about what God is going to do in and through this team. He has hand picked each and every member and has a plan for them. Please pray for wisdom of the leaders as we guide these 15 students. Pray for the students that their hearts and minds would be open to God as He teaches them new things through this trip.

The Countdown Begins

Hey FOS, friends, and family!



With only two days left until the team leaves for California, I decided that I had better get cracking on this blog. First off, I would like to post the team roster.



The leaders we have on the team are:



Christy Briggs

Dave Baskett

Margot Knight

Megan McLain

Andrew Murch



The students who will be going on the trip are:



Carlee Collins

Dani Dillashaw

Davy Butler

Emily Hamack

Katelyn Ritchie

Lauren Miller

Lucas Halter

Max Martin

Morgan Nicholls

Sarah Stanley

Erin Rice

Joey Vela

Kelsey Hummel

Joel VandeKieft

Kaleen Mercer

Morgan Wilson




As we move closer to our departure date, I would ask you to keep the team in your prayers... Please pray for the transportation throughout this trip. Pray for the safety of the team as they fly, drive, and walk from one place to another. Also, keep the maintenance of the vehicles that the team will be using in your prayers. Thank you all, and keep updated for more post's throughout the trip!


-David (Davy) Butler