Pastor Curtis' Missions Blog

Oh man was it early this morning. Picked up at 4:30 am for a 5:00 am departure. Through Peace Arch and all the way to Redding, California today; over 13 hours of travel time! 

But hold on! Let's back up a bit. If you're reading this you might be a tad confused about why I am joining a sister church on THEIR youth missions trip. Odd right?

Well, when I arrived here at Willoughby the first project or goals I set out to complete was to create a youth group format, schedule, and culture. Over the past 15 months, with a lot of effort put in by some key youth volunteers we have arrived a place where our youth group culture seems to be set, comfortable, and headed in the proper direction.

This led to me to the next big project for our youth ministry to tackle: Missions. 

Currenty our youth group is quite inwardly focused, and that is okay. We needed some time to set some culture and expectations. Our mission was our own youth group. Now that we're past that, we have to start looking outward.

I have my own personal thoughts and convictions around youth mission work, and there are alot of conflicts within my head, and I do not want to bore you with it. In short it looks like this: short term trips vs long term relationships; local vs far away; once a year trip vs ongoing; etc... Now these are not all either or, some of them can (and maybe should) happen. 

This leads to a place of discernment about what missions should look like at Willoughby CRC. Which led to a snagging an extra seat on this Mexicali Missions trip in partnership with Azusa Pacific. I'm excited to be a fly on the wall, offering support to the leaders, devotions with the kids, and whatever else is needed. 

I'll be posting updates here as often as I can, depending on access to WiFi. 

Thank you for keeping me in your prayers!

Oh! I didnt even mention that Amanda Gerber is here with me!

-Pastor Curtis