The youth of the Hope Lutheran (Lubbock, TX) mission team planned, organized, and led a three day VBS at San Pablo Lutheran Church through YLM

A team of thirteen from Hope Lutheran Church located in Lubbock, Texas made the nine-hour drive to El Paso, Texas for the fourth week of June –their goal was to implement a three-day Vacation Bible School (VBS) at San Pablo Lutheran Church with the help of Ysleta Lutheran Mission Human Care (YLM).

“We had our youth work together to plan, organize, and lead VBS,” Pastor Dan Borkenhagen shared, “They took care of everything –the skits, crafts, games, and music.  They definitely stepped up to the challenge.”

Games, crafts, and snacks were supplied by the mission team

On Monday, the first day of VBS, it was ten minutes after their starting time and no children had arrived.  Pastor Eric Hiner rallied up the team of twelve youth, took a few dozen flyers, and headed off to the nearby Kennedy Projects.

“Not a single one of them disagreed with the need to be flexible,” Jayne, a volunteer with YLM and long-time friend of Pastor Dan, explained, “They went out and passed out flyers.  We worked together to set up more signs to draw attention, and we had a few kids show up on the first day.”

They brought over 40 new backpacks and spent Monday evening filling them with school supplies

The second day brought several more, and the third brought double the amount, along with parents.

“It was great to see how this group of teenagers saw the need to change the way they did things to fit the cultural needs of the children they were serving,” Jayne shared with a smile, Pastor Dan adding how a couple of kids, a little girl who was crying and a shy little boy who didn’t want to play, ended up joining in on the fun several minutes into VBS.

The mission team was willing to help complete an unfinished construction project in Sparks

“The greatest blessing was, at the end of the last day, the kids were coming up to our youth and asking when they will be coming back,” Pastor Dan laughed as he shared more, “When they found out we were from Lubbock, Texas, they then asked if we would be back next month.”

Aside from hosting VBS at San Pablo, the Hope Lutheran mission team also brought down between 40 and 50 backpacks, filling them up with school supplies in the afternoons.  They purchased loose-leaf paper and composition notebooks when they ran out.  They invested time and effort in reorganizing the warehouse where the school supplies are being kept, making everything easily accessible for the upcoming Back to School Backpack Drive-Thru.

They also worked to help complete a building project in Sparks, finishing the mudding and sanding of walls and ceiling in the one room addition built the week before.

“They were very respectful of the family and their home,” Jayne, who joined them along with Juan, YLM’s Maintenance Director, shared afterwards, “They worked hard, got sweaty and dirty, but completed their task.”

“They really enjoyed that,” Pastor Dan explained, “Helping complete the room addition.  They had a lot of fun doing it.”

Throughout their stay, Pastor Dan challenged his youth to see the gifts of God in the challenges they faced.  These young people who came to share Jesus with the children of the San Pablo community were grateful for the challenges because they saw God’s presence in the midst of those trials.