"I'm sick of being sick of being thirsty for a drink of the one thing You can give me..."

I've been feeling a little under the weather lately. I don't know if just allergies or what, but it's no fun.

Kidzone went really well on Saturday. My favorite part was when Jose asked us to pray that he would be able to visit Mexico. He loves Mexico. I could tell because he had a baseball cap with the color scheme of the Mexican flag. It was one of those hats that is embroidered so thick that the words are almost 3D. We talked about Ephesians 2... How we are God's workmanship. One kid had a shirt on that said "God at Work". He had no idea what it meant but I did. How could I not. I was seeing God work right in front of my eyes. We prayed for sick family members, we prayed for a trip to Mexico, we prayed for school. We played football, played with a puppy, drank Sunny D. All of these things were routine for me until something just clicked.

"Kevin. Not only are you My workmanship, but you are being used by me to love these kids with My love. These things, these games and prayers and snacks... they may seem small but that's ok because I'm at work and my work is perfect."

At The Table

Last night we kicked off all of the many youth programs we have at Sugarloaf. I have been fortunate enough to lead the 9th and 10th grade group. Despite my worries and nerves, the program went very well. It's funny how that works. People get nervous. I understand that, but I get worried about stuff. And I'm always wrong. I guess I can call it nerves if I want to. Or I can call it what it really is. Distrust, lack of faith in God... I'm glad that I'm always wrong though. It builds the faith. It shows me that God is God and this is His plan and I'm just a part of it because he has chosen me to be. That's life, not just youth ministry.

I can't wait to get back into the apartments next Tuesday. God had me elsewhere this summer but I missed it none the less.

On a totally different note, I feel like God has something big planned. It's like something is about to happen that's going to change my life tremendously and I have no idea what it could be. Whatever it is, I'm excited about it.

pray for all of this stuff. I would appreciate that.
"Pray without ceasing." 1 Thessalonians 5:17

The Silent Boriken

I'm back in the states! Right now I am at my first state project. It's very different from the overseas projects. Middle schoolers are aloud to come to these ones... It's not as bad as you think. These kids are incredibly hard workers. It's a blessing to me to see a generation that seeks God's face. Last night was the concert of prayer. The theme was "silence". Some advice to all of you... Watch the "Noise" Nooma Video (You have to buy it to see the whole thing). I was reminded of the importance of true silence... Time when I can just listen to God. How sobering it was, especially in the midst of this crazy summer!

"The Lord your God is in your midst, a Mighty One who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing." Zephaniah 3:5

Jonathan Morales and me (AKA Boriken Warriors)

@ the rainforest in San Juan

Aguadilla

I'm back! We arrived safely to Aguadilla yesterday around noon. Our second and final project in Juana Diaz was great. The week didn't seem to promising at first. A lot of little things were going wrong so I began to feel discouraged. That changed quickly. There were seventy Kids each day at one of the VBSs we had around the city. The construction crews accomplished way more than what was expected. On Friday evening a student was baptized in the Caribbean. All for the Glory of God. Non for or by me. How humbling...

Lauren is coming to Florida to visit me! I can't wait. The distance and lack of communication has been difficult but rewarding. God has really shown me how important she is and how much I really love her! Enough gushiness... Sorry

"The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit."

Kevin

First Project

Yesterday we finished our first project in Juana Diaz, PR. The participants left in the morning and a new group came in in the afternoon. It was an awesome week. The Spirit moved as He tends to do. The Father was obviously working in the lives of so many of the students. The group shared their faith around 135 times (there were around 115 participants) We are about to leave to go to El Mesias which is a local church in Juana Diaz. HAPPY FATHERS DAY TO ALL!

On our off day (Wednesday) we went to La Parguera. We went snorkeling in the afternoon. In the evening we went to the glowing bay (there's a name for it in espanol. But anyways, there's somethig crazy in the water that makes this bay glow. It's actually the alge. It was beautiful! To see all that God has created is always worshipful.

One last thing...

If you guys could pray for Michael. I met him while he was playing his guitar in front of walmart in Ponce. We began talking about faith and it was apparent that he has a very misconstrued view on works, deeds, and materialistic wealth among other things. I prayed for him and we both agreed that the time we spent together was a divine appointment. Pray.

To God Be the Glory
Kevin

The Happy Hotel

I'm sitting in my hotel room with the other kevin. He's the audio/visual guy. I call him "the bull." Starting tomorrow I will begin calling him "El Toro." Yeah, that's right... We are FINALLY leaving for Puerto Rico tomorrow! Last night we had a "Mock Set-up" in roswell GA. We set everything up so our national staff can see that we know what we're doing.

Before we left for training yesterday one of the national staff members read a verse that has been on my heart for the past two days. "Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." -2 Corinthians 3:4-6
Think about that. That's me. That's you. The letter refers to the Old Covenant or The Law. Without Christ the letter kills because we all fall short. But now we have this confidence in the truth that Christ has saved us and commissioned us to do awesome works. That confidence was all but gone last week. I was scared, nervous, anxious, and i missed (still do) my FIANCEE!.... I had such a lack of trust.

If your counting on yourself than worry away. You should be anxious, nervious, or scared. But our sufficiency is from God! Praise Him!

No worries, Bro.

Continue to pray. Our team is doing three projects in a row in PR. We have no days off for the next three weeks.


P.S.- Be sure to check out www.igracemusic.com
listen to "come ye disconsolate" from the "Beams of Heaven" album.

Training at Truett

This past week I have been spending my time in prep for the world changers projects this summer. To be honest, It has been difficult. We are held to a high standard as music leaders. There are alot of things that can and Will go wrong this summer. I am being constantly reminded that my discomfort is out of selfishness. This is God's story, His work, His project.... I am just fortunate enough to be apart of it. 1 Peter 2:9. We're a chosen race. I did nothing to deserve this. Pray for ALL of the projects this summer. Pray that we always remember the purpose of our work... The Glory of our Almighty God.

The Greatest Gift...

I am about to leave for my last day of apartment ministry before my trip. I'm excited about what God is going to do this summer so I can't be too sad. But man, I'm going to miss the kids at Brighton Springs. Especially the ones that have been coming to the youth service at Harbins Ridge. Pray for Larry, Angelica, and Mario. I brought them to an evangelism event on Saturday. They had a great time and we had an interesting discussion on the way home. Pray for strength and wisdom for me as we hopefully go depper into this discussion today. We are going to be discussing Jeremiah 29:11. It's so amazing to think of the awesome plan that God has for our lives!

God really blessed me through everyone at Sugarloaf on Sunday night. Everyone pitched in for a new guitar case (Much Needed!). I got it today! This summer it will remind me of my church family and how much God has used them in my life.

Bless God!
Kevin