God is our Shepherd (Spring Teams 2023)

Dear Friends and Family,

Here on the Rez we just finished our Spring teams. This year we had four back-to-back weeks of college students from all over the country coming to work and serve the community. Heading into this season I found myself feeling worried and tired by the daunting task ahead. Certainly, it was exhausting and I’m grateful for these past few days of extra sleep and rest, but it was also profoundly encouraging. Having RUF college students come is always heartening just by the presence of so many young believers. This time around though there were two specific interactions that were clearly blessings from the Lord.

The first one happened towards the very beginning of the month. Last year we had a high school student who made sure her young siblings were at kids club every day of the summer. Even on the one day she missed, she made sure another teen from the house brought the little ones to kids club. Towards the end of last she year passed away. Entering this year’s kids club I was conscious of the possibility that we wouldn’t see those little ones without their older sister making sure they came. For the first three days there was no sign of them. On the fourth day their mom brought them and hung around for a little while as they played. After twenty minutes or so she pulled me aside and asked if we could just make sure they got home safe and if we could, she trusted us with their care. “Of course!”, I practically shouted.

After that it became routine that she would drop them off every day and we would drive them home in our van. As the weeks rolled on all three kids came out of their shell more and more. One of them who I could never get to say one word to me, began a regular game of chanting my name as she flew on the swings. During the last team week our van became overloaded with other kids so we didn’t have room for them to go home on it. I told the kids it wasn’t a big deal I’d just walk them home, (they lived maybe three houses down from the kids club site). As we walked one of them loudly questioned whether or not I even knew where they lived. Before I could answer the oldest sister, who yelled my name from the swing, said. “He knows where we live! He always picked up our sister for youth group!”. It is an incredible encouragement to see their trust in the church growing this spring. I can't wait for the day they follow their older sister's footsteps and I get to pick them up for youth group.

The second interaction came towards the end of the month. On one of the last days of kids club I noticed two high school girls approaching the park. As I went to greet them and welcome them, one of them chuckled to herself and said, “man you’ve gotten old.” In that moment I recognized her as one of the kids I had met and bonded with as a team member seven years ago. It had been probably five years since the last time I had seen her. I laughed and said I remembered her. She was shocked I still knew her name. As she looked around kids club she remarked how it still looked the same as when she was a kid. Both her and her friend ended up helping run our jump rope station that day. I keenly remember playing with her and her brother at foursquare on the Friday before I left as a team member. Seeing her jump right back into kids club and playing with kids after being gone for five years was an encouragement to me beyond words.

All our bible stories the last week were about God being our shepherd. I feel as though God was laying that truth especially hard on my heart as I looked back over the spring. Even in hardship, the passing of time, and death itself. God always takes care of His sheep and brings them back home.

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.” John 10: 27-28

Blessings,

Trey