Polar Bear Weekend

A few weeks ago we rallied 7 of our high school teens and headed to to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin for our first Young Life camp experience.  We joined 400 other Chicagoland high schoolers for a fall retreat called Polar Bear Weekend.   As you can see by the pictures, we had a great time.  Some of the teens we took, who are new to Sunshine, had some of the blinders fall off and began to hear and experience the gospel.  Pray that seeds will continue to be planted in their lives as we invest in them on a daily basis.  

One of my favorite moments was when Devonte, one of our seniors, volunteered to pray at the closing session with our group.  Not only did everyone's jaws drop, but he proceeded to go around the circle and pray for each of us individually.  God is truly moving.                                                     

As we got home another one of the boys asked one of the leaders about summer camp.  He was very persistent about knowing about the price.  Our leader responded, "Well before your Sunshine scholarship it is around $300 for each of you."  Our student said, "Ok.  Well then I'm going to get a job now, and save money for my spot.  How many other spots for teens do you think that I can save for by then?"  Clearly this one young man experienced the amazing things God can do at camp.  

Sunshine Christmas Store

Dear Friends, 

    The Sunshine Christmas Store is an annual opportunity to empower low-income families who otherwise may not have been able to afford quality Christmas gifts for their children.  Donations allow our parents to purchase gifts for $0.25 on the dollar that would otherwise be too expensive at most department stores. Our main goal is to share the love of Jesus Christ and the gift of salvation that he offers to the world. However, the Christmas season can be a painful time for parents who are not financially able to give gifts to their kids.  Our Store is just one of the many ways God has given us to show Christ’s love in a tangible way. 

     This is made possible through the generous support of churches, and individuals! We are asking for your support of our 2011 Christmas Store. We are asking for new, unwrapped items for children ages 0-18. Shopping for our store could easily become an annual church Christmas tradition.  We only ask that the gifts reflect sensitivity toward the African-American community we serve and that each donation would cost no more than 50 dollars.

    We have tried to make this as easy for you as possible.   As an option, we have registered as a Target List so for you who are out of town, a gift bought online can shipped straight to us at our building. (Address Below)  Our Target LIST name is: First Name: “Sunshine” and Last Name: “Gospel”, List Name: “Sunshine Christmas Store” and be accessed online or in stores. Of course, any other purchases can be sent to us or delivered.  Items needed include:

-Toys     -Games     -Clothes     -Baby Items     -Sports equipment     -Books     -DVDs and Electronics     -Wrapping Supplies

Final Drop–Off Date: Monday, Dec 5th 2011 9:00a.m.-4p.m.

Location:  Sunshine Gospel Ministries 500 E. 61^st Street Chicago, IL  60637

Christmas Store Date: Sat, Dec 10^th 2010 from 10:00a.m.-2:00p.m.

If you have any questions, please contact me at brost@sunshinegospel.org or 773.493.0656

Sincerely,

Brittney Rost

                                                        Christmas Store Coordinator

Education

Education has been on my heart and mind.  As we work with the kids in our neighborhood, the inadequacies of education flood every aspect of their lives.  As we sit in tutoring we see many of their scores behind, yet the real wake up call as struck me as I have stepped into their schools.  Over the past year I have been volunteering at Hyde Park Academy: our neighborhood high school.  As I have developed relationships there, spent time in classrooms, the lunchroom, or built with students, my eyes have been opened.

This is Hyde Park:
-It is ranked as a level 3 school, the lowest standing a Chicago public school can receive and is currently on probation
-Out of 1,800 students enrolled, the attendance rate is 73%
-Students meeting or exceeding testing standards: Reading 20.3%, Math 7.4%, and Science 8.4%
-The graduation rate is 47.1%

I'm sure that after you read these stats you feel the same way I do, a bit hopeless, yet concerned as to the changes that need to happen.  My weekly involvement in the school seems to just be a drop of water in the vast ocean.  Yet as I build relationship on top of relationship I pray that God will give me the wisdom and guidance as to best point these kids, who seem to be lost in the system, to the hope they have in Him.

As to the kids in our programs, we have started to be proactive in their education.  High schools in Chicago work different than most places.  Kids naturally go to their neighborhood high school, which in our case is Hyde Park.  Yet, if they score well enough in their 8th grade testing, they can apply for selective enrollment schools, which are the ones outside of our neighborhood and throughout the entire city. This requires testing, applications, and parental involvement, much like what most know as college applications.

By the grace of God most of our 8th graders have scored above the bar for their 8th grade testing and have met the minimum for selective enrollment applications.  So the fight begins.  We have begun to attend selective enrollment high school's open houses.  Our first was this past weekend at Walter Payton high school downtown.

Please be in prayer for our kids who are both in the rough schools and trying to find a better option.  With a lot of prayer and a lot of fight, we pray that we can begin to change lives from victims of the systems to victors.

6:8 at Cornerstone University

3 of the guys from Sunshine have partnered together to form an artistic group called "6:8".  Mike Avery who dances, CW Allen who raps, and Pete Blodgett who is the DJ, have put together an amazing show.  Two weeks ago they had a show at Cornerstone University's Missions Week.  We went as a Sunshine Staff and took teen girls who sold shirts at the show and experienced a college visit.  Not only were we able to support our guys but the girls are beginning to get their eyes opened to what their next step of education may look like.

Here is a video of Mike doing one of his new dances at the perfomance!

Ms. Smith

As I become a part of this community and seek to build relationships, I have been so encouraged by the amazing people that have accepted me.  One of the relationships I cherish most here is that with Ms. Smith.  Ms. Smith helps out faithfully every Monday night in our Awana program for 1st-8th graders.  The kids love her, and so do I.

Ms. Smith's smile and jokes are always contagious.  I am so thankful for this relationship and all that she is teaching me.  I recently gave her our Young Life U-Turn shirt and she wore it proudly for all to see! She joked- "I know I'm going crazy.  Brittney's got this old woman wearing a shirt that says, 'Young Life'".  She surely is young at heart!!

Chicago Half Marathon

I crossed the finish line once again!!  3 weeks ago I finished my 2nd official Chicago Half Marathon!  After a few months of training and lots of cheers, I completed the race and even dropped some time from last year!  It wasn't easy.  The sun was burning my cheeks and shoulders, though it was nothing compared to the burning muscles in my legs.

I cannot begin to thank the people that came out to cheer me on! I had over 15 people at different spots in the race.  Close friends of mine, the Hamernick family, and my softball team all shouted loud and proud!! Below is a video of the girls jumping in a running a bit with me!! 

Nassi Gets Baptized

One of our teen girls, Nassi, got baptized last month at our monthly church service at Sunshine.  We headed to the beach and she publicly declared her commitment to Christ.  We have been walking with her since she was a baby, as a lasting relationship from Cabrini Green.  As she moved to the South Side a few years ago she got back in our programs.  We are excited for all that God is doing in this high school freshman!!  Pray for her and her continual growth.

SKINNY Jeans and Instantly THICK Shampoo

The inside of my new jeans are embroidered with the word, "SKINNY". My outside of my shampoo bottle says, "INSTANTLY THICK". I shook my head as I got ready in the morning and thought of the irony. I feel like the subject of BEAUTY and SELF IMAGE have been on my mind a lot lately.
What is beauty?

Worldy beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder. I grew up in a middle class caucasian setting. Beauty was skinny. Beauty was size 0. Beauty was something almost UNATTAINABLE. No one was ever small enough. The less curves the better. Small girls constantly had the words on their lips, "I'm so fat." In my frustration, and not wanting to feed their attention-seeking mechanism, I would reply, "Dang you are." All jokes aside, I always fought for that too.

Being a year-round athlete and in amazing shape in high school, I realized that no matter how great of shape I was in, my size 10 or 12 would never be a size 0. That was rough as a white girl when the world around me told me beauty was small.

THEN I MOVED TO CHICAGO. I remember when, for the first time, I was the only white girl in a work setting: my summer at Sunshine Cove. For 8 weeks I was the minority. During one of the first weeks, one of the girls started joking about how I was "THICK". THICK?! I thought.... excuse me? See, thick was NOT a compliment in the white world. I took offense. Yet, because of the close community we had created, these beautiful black women explained. Many people in their culture say thick is beautiful. Curves are a good thing, in many cases, a great thing. CULTURE SHOCK. This mindset was opposite of how I had ever thought. My culture told me skin and bones. Now THICK IS IN!? Look at what I had been missing out on!! Well after 5 years of being a part of Sunshine and the South side, African-American culture has been something that I identify with just as much as my white culture.

MY CURVES ARE BEAUTIFUL. I, over the past 5 years, have developed a love for my body. I laughed as I told a friend a few days ago about this mindset change. Never was I self-conscious, I was always a confident young girl, but it is crazy that from culture to culture BEAUTY CHANGES. Even from one person the next beauty is viewed differently. One black man may find a thick girl attractive while another looks to the small girl as perfect. One white girl may find a trim muscular man as perfect while the next sees the husky man with a belly as handsome. Light skin, dark skin. Long hair, short hair. Tall, short. Athletic or not.

Proverbs 31:30 says, "Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised."

It took a culture change to show me this, but I pray it doesn't take that for every woman and girl out there. MY BEAUTIES: Know that you are gorgeous! I tell you all this daily, but the joy of the Lord and his fingerprint of Himself on you is the most beautiful thing in the world. We are made in His image... Even me and my curves. ;)

This new song by Pro shares my heart even further. Listen to him sharing his heart about the song, and then the song "Beautiful" that follows...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzpL2uyO2bY

Meet Myieisha

Myiesha has been a part of our programs for the past few years, but really got involved this summer through the softball team. After being chose as one of our 7 girls to go on the Montana trip, she shares this testimony:

“I really want to thanks mrs Brittney my softball coach for letting me go to Montana... I want everyone to know that I changed and am in his Word all the way. I want to thank the pastors and the people for telling me God just don’t tiptoe he come all the way in and really came to my heart and showed me a big differences so I’m a better over looking person and read the bible and try my best to stop sinning.”

Pray for Myiesha and the other teens who through summer programs have made decisions and new commitments for Christ. We're proud of them all, it's not easy to take a stand in their worlds. They need all the prayer you can offer!

The Mountians Are His, The Valleys Are His

We all started to wake up from our road trips naps. As I looked out the window I realized we werent in the midwest anymore. Mountains! One of the girls looked out in the window in amazement and then turned to me and said, "Britt, I've never seen real mountains before." Tears filled my eyes.

This trip to Bozeman, Montana was the opportunity of a lifetime for me, but most of all, for our teens. While in there we fly fished, hiked a 9,600 foot mountain, camped out in Yellowstone, saw a bear, buffalos, waterfalls, geysers, hot springs, and had fun while doing it all. Our host families were amazing and welcoming, making the trip even better!

Thanks again to all of our friends in Montana who made this trip so great! We love you all and miss you already!!

Delight

These past two weeks have been loaded. Loaded with everything. I think I have felt just about every emotion there is in the book. From love, joy, hope, excitement, celebration, to wounds deep in my heart, discouragement, and pain.

God has reminded me once again that I don't have it all figured out. I can't control any of it. It's out of my hands and He doesn't need me to do one last bit of anything. Yet, in the brokenness He has reminded me, actually this is the first time that I have truly understood, that being broken, humble, and dependent on my face in the presence of our holy God is where He needs us SO He can use us. I always thought I knew that. I had no idea.

I wonder if He needed me here before He could show me what He truly has for me. I know He needed me here. I hate that I can be so stubborn that He has to take away my greatest joys to sometimes hold me closest. Yet, here He has shown me His love. Our jealous God wants all of us. When He has us closest is then when He can show us what all is in store amidst this great love of His. As I stay close to Him, I pray that He reconciles those things once again. I am sorry for being so stubborn.

Psalm 37:3-7 has been on my lips and heart this week.

"Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this:
He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the just of your cause like the noonday sun.
Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him..."

A's in Action

We recently had a friend and volunteer at Sunshine, Abbey Nelson, who is a student of film production of Loyala in Los Angeles, come to our game to capture some moments. These pictures captured a few of our smiles and action on the field! Thanks Abbey for these amazing pics!

On the Radio!

This Wednesday we were able to head downtown to be on WMBI Moody radio once again! As our softball season started, I had gone on the morning show to share with people about our team and Sunshine. Listeners even responded with supplying us with full equipment for the season.

As a thank you and follow up I went back on the show with two of our girls, Deanna and Taniya, and our assistant coach Nikki Blodgett! We had so much and it was a great experience for them!

We will post the link so you can listen to our segment soon!

Summer in the City

For the next two months our summer staff have a rotation of blogging on our Sunshine Flashlight Blog http://sunshinegospelministries.blogspot.com/. Make sure you check it out throughout the summer to keep up to date on what is going on in the city and to see the hearts of some of our summer staff!!

Financial Update

God has been faithful. As I come to the end of each month He has provided. Its been amazing to watch and work through the process of support raising. 10 months ago I started from scratch with one monthly donor. As I look through names now, there are 12 people, families, or organizations that have become monthly supporters.

I cannot thank you all enough for your generous hearts. When I am in need, that additional gift, monthly gift, note of encouragement, or prayer has been enough to push me through and grow my faith. God is doing big things here on the South Side and it wouldn't be possible without you!

At this point I am very close to being at 100% of my goal pledged. With just a few more people becoming monthly donors, I would be able to reach this goal! If this is something you are considering I would love for you to join the team. You can contact me at brost@sunshinegospel.org in you are interested or want more information. I pray that a few of you will have this on your hearts and allow God to use you in this way financially.

Thank you in advance!
Brittney

The Flesh Is Weak

I was so busy. So tired. It was the last week of programs. Softball was starting up. I had just gotten back from a trip so I needed my rest. Excuses, excuses.

I've heard it said, "Sometimes sleep is the most spiritual thing you can do." I understand that. God has created us to need sleep and rest. There comes a point in time when we should say no to the demands around us and lay our heads on the pillow. I loved this concept last week... all too much.

I have a confession and am asking for forgiveness in the same breath. Last week I pulled this "rest" card far too often. I pressed snooze and said, "Lord, let me worship you by getting this extra 30 minutes of sleep." I laid down at night having just skimmed a chapter of the Bible so I wouldn't feel as guilty and could say I "read" something when accountability in my life would ask. I put God on the back burner and though I may have gotten a few mornings of a little extra sleep, my life reflected this lack of nourishment. I was weak.

God has brought an amazing man in my life that took the brunt of this. Though I have already asked for forgiveness and you, sweet man, have given it, to you I want to apologize again. See, as the week unfolded and my nourishment became less and less, directly related was the health of my heart and my attitude. I acted in foolish ways, said foolish and selfish things, and had no love to give when it was needed. The relationship that was growing and blossoming, for the first time experienced extended periods of turmoil.

The loving man that God has brought me consistently forgave and corrected my actions, even for a few days. At the end of this period he checked me, "Britt do you see how your lack of faith directly affects our relationship?" He didn't know the hours, or lack of them, that I had put into my relationship with God. He DID know that when he asked me how my time with the Lord was that day I always could respond with a quick answer about fellowship or growing in courage as I "read" Acts. Generic answers to get him off my back. And then I would quickly change the subject and get moody and rude about another issue. God has shown me his grace and love through this man. Yet I was letting my screwed up priorities and lack of discipline directly affect how I loved him back.

First our time and commitment to God, or lack of it, directly affects our relationship to Him. When I'm too tired or too busy for Him, I break His heart and as my Divine Lover He is jealous for me. To you Lord, please forgive me for the times that I have not loved you and made you my priority. Forgive me for forgetting what is most important. I praise you for always welcoming me back with open arms. I want to yearn for you oh God. Here I am.

However, what I learned most this week is my responsibility to be fully present with Christ to love those He has put into my life. I was trying to love my boyfriend out of my flesh, fighting then apologizing, then picking another fight in the same breath. Out of love and grace he pointed out how he can directly tell when I'm loving him out of my own efforts and out of the love of Christ. How dare I try to love by my own merits. I know not love without the ULTIMATE LOVE as an example. To have blossoms of love and grace, patience and joy in my life I must be rooted in the only true example of that love. So forgive me Lord, teach me how to dig deep into you as my rock. Forgive me Dwayne, I want to love you like you deserve and show me, by the love of our Savior.

Lesson learned, at least for now. Post-drought I have had amazing times with God in the past few days. My boyfriend and I worked through this and are stronger and more committed than ever.

May I not, anytime soon, become one who forsakes time with God for time to do things around me. I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes by Martin Luter, initiater of the Reformation. He said about his prayer life,

"I've got so much work to do today, I'd better spend two hours in prayer instead of one."

May this be my mindset.

School Year Programs Come to a Close

Last week our school year programs came to a close. We finished Awana, Club 2-5-2, and Horizons strong.

Here is a video from our Awana program. Enjoy!

61st Street A's

The team roster now has 11 names on it of girls who are proud to call themselves the 61st Street A's! We started to weeks ago with a hot practice in Washington Park. Girls fought about which hand the glove was supposed to go on and realized that fake nails to not mix well with the big yellow softballs. Yet, this past Friday night we had out second game and have given both teams a run for their money!!

We are rookies, and we claim it! The first game was filled with questions and confusion but we always fight hard. Though we have no victories yet, the girls have learned what their attitudes and actions can communicate with the people around them. During game one, the umpire came up to me both during and after we played. He went on to tell me that he had never seen girls have so much fun and have such positive attitudes playing the game. Girls were cheering each other on, laughing, but yet focused and intense. The other team didn't have the best attitudes and the few of the girls even asked me afterward, "How did they just beat our butts and we still had 10x more fun than them?" Our post-game talk pointed the girls to the potential that they have in representing Christ with their attitudes. Not only are they good players then, but with a name like Sunshine GOSPEL Ministries, we represent Christ every time we step foot on the field. They were excited about the reputation they got after game 1.

The next game we had, this past Friday night, was at another park. Before the game, we had a mom and teen girl come up to me as we were warming up. They then went on to share that they were from the first team we played and had come to watch us because we were so much fun on the field and had made such an impact on them with our attitudes playing the game. Praise be to God! This kind of league-wide impact wasn't something that I really thought of, nor can I control. The girls carried us on this!! Nikki and I (my assistant coach) are so proud of them!! We are excited for the impact we are making and are getting better everyday we play!! Look for our first post-game victory shot soon!!

Anticipating Summer Days

Planning meetings, emails, and exciting talks have been stirring up on 61st Street. Our youth outreach staff have been gearing up for yet another summer! This will be my 5th summer doing ministry with Sunshine and I'm more ready than ever. Maybe its the hope of hot days, cold cups of Koolaid, and days at the beach, but I keep looking ahead!

We're in the process of hiring on our summer staff of 4 college/young adults to help with day camp, 4 high school teen interns, and 2 or so middle school/high school interns. The element of summer community within our staff and interns is always fun and exciting! I even will be gaining a roomate or two for a few months. IF ANYONE YOU KNOW IS INTERESTED IN APPLYING, HAVE THEM CONTACT ME ASAP! brost@sunshinegospel.org

June, July, and August will have many of the previously established programs, but also many new ones to add to the docket. Our elementary school options will look the same for the most part, with our day camp running for 5 days a week for 5 weeks. However our middle school and high school programs will take on a fresh twist. Instead of developing yet another program to come at set times and do the predictable programming, we've decided to have focus groups with the options being:

1. Middle school or high school boys basketball

2. Middle school girls softball

3. Dance ministry

4. Writing and Arts ministry

In doing this, we hope that the teens will be able to find their niche and have fun while doing it. Then weekly we will come together at Thursday night Uturn club. As a staff we are excited to see relationships develop and discipleship happen!

We also are planning for taking our kids and teens to camp at the beginning of the summer. There will be 4 days for the elementary and directly after that 4 days for the teens. We also are headed back to Montana for a high school trip at the end of the summer.

For my prayer warriors: Thank you all for being in prayer for us as we have been planning. 1.Pray that details will continue to fall into place and that excitement for the summer will continue to grow.

2. Pray that the summer staff selected will be perfect for the position, be unified, and be a great addition to our team.

I will keep you all in the loop as to the summer happenings at Sunshine. God is doing big things and daily I am humbled that I get to be a part of it in this city!

Guard Our Hearts??

"Just guard your heart..." I've heard this saying since I had my first crush in elementary school. I tell this to my girls when they find themselves liking a certain guy. My friends call me with issues with men they are "talking" to, and I encourage them or discourage them in what they're saying... "Just guard your heart." It's always the closing line, the solution. But is it??

I sat with my teen girls this week and my heart got more and more heavy as I heard all the stories and talk of the guys that they so freely throw their hearts to. In their vulnerability and trust, I hear what is going on in their worlds. Men, or should I say little boys, who have no regard for their tender emotions, not to mention the objectivistic view they have of these young women, are slowly destroying their hearts. I'm not even preaching against the horrible trends of sexting or physical affection. Those lies are a whole different issue for another day. But where, in our interaction with the opposite sex, do we guard our hearts or let our guard down? Where is the line that goes from friendship to putting our heart on the line, all walls down?

I have been processing all of this in regards to personal past relationships coming to a close and considering what a future relationship would look like and in knowing how to give these girls proper and solid instruction. As I've prayed for wisdom in how to explain TRUE LOVE to these teen beauties, God revealed yet another treasure in His Word to me this morning....

Proverbs 4:23 is the verse that this phrase comes from, it reads, "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." In context, the Proverb is speaking of holding true to words that will bring health. However, in just reading this nugget, I want to know more! How in the world do we do this?!

Yet today God drew me to key connection in as I read Philippians 4:6-7. Here Paul is exhorting the church in Philippi as he is sitting in prison. He tells them, "DO NOT BE ANXIOUS about anything, but in everything, BY PRAYER AND PETITION, offer your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, WILL GUARD YOUR HEARTS AND MINDS IN CHRIST JESUS." To me, this is a, "WHOOP THERE IT IS!!!," passage!! How have I missed this connection before? The solution to achievement of Proverbs 4:23 is right here. Not being anxious + seeking the Lord in prayer = God's indescribable peace that GUARDS ARE HEARTS AND MINDS!

What a reminder of a simple core of our faith- prayer and trust in the Lord. We can't figure it out. I can't tell my girls a formula to protect their hearts. I can't draw a line in the sand and know when its closely approaching. Yet, seeking the Lord and letting His peace that we can't understand guide us?! THATS THE SOLUTION! I don't know what the Lord has for me with my future relationships and how I should handle this heart of mine. It is so refreshing and reassuring that I don't have to know. Giving it to the Lord and living in tune to His Spirit will give us the peace that will guide our hearts and minds. God, may your peace guard my heart and mind today.

humbled by this Love.

I love it when the Lord wakes me up in the morning thinking of Him. Usually Im startled by my alarm at 7:30 am, roll out of my bed to make my morning coffee and spend some time in the Word (fighting my heavy eye-lids). Yet the days when He wakes me up refreshed and with His praises on my heart and mind, those are the days I feel most alive. I've been digging in the gospels this month, along with seeking wisdom in the book of Proverbs. However, with my weight of ministry on my heart, today I dove into Ephesians, hoping to get a fresh viewpoint of His love for me and for His people.

First, let me tell you that God has been shaking my world up with the thought of His love. David Crowder's song "How He Loves" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCunuL58odQ

has been in my head and on my lips....

Vs. 1

He is jealous for me,

Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy.
When all of a sudden,
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
And I realise just how beautiful You are,
And how great Your affections are for me.

Chorus:

He loves us,
Whoa! how He loves us,
Whoa! how He loves us,
Oh how He loves.
Yeah, He loves us,
Whoa! how He loves us,
Whoa! how He loves us,
Whoa! how He loves.

Vs. 2

We are His portion and He is our prize,
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes,
If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking.
So Heaven meets earth like a sloppy wet kiss,
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest,
I don’t have time to maintain these regrets,
When I think about, the way…

So as I got into Ephesians 1, I was blown away thinking about how he PREDESTINED us to be His children. Check out vs 4-6, "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. IN LOVE he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will-- to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves."

May I never forget that I was chosen, before the world was even formed, to be His child. He chose me to spite the sin He knew that I would fall in. He chose me, knowing I would spit in his face repeatedly as I waded in the pool of mediocrity and the distractions of the world. He chose me, knowing I would get distracted, knowing I would choose things above Him, knowing that I would constantly fall on my face. YET HE KNEW, and He still sent the One He loves... for me. For me, a woman who is a sinner, but was forgiven. For me, a woman who continues to sin, but continues to be forgiven by his undeserved grace and love. I am humbled by this Love. The ultimate Love.

Softball Season!!

I am very excited to tell you all that I will be coaching our middle school girls in a softball team for the Near West Little League this spring and summer!!

As we prepare for the season, we are in need of a few things...

**Softball gloves. None of our girls have their own gloves (yes we are rookies). I know so many of us have a few laying around our garages and basements. If you could donate to help our girls start practicing, that would be amazing!!

**The cost for each girl to be in the league is $25. We will ask the girls to pay a small amount of that sum, but are also looking for donors to help with this cost, as well as the costs of things like team snacks, gas to the West Side for games, etc.

If you could help in any of these ways please contact me at brost@sunshinegospel.org. Your generosity puts feet to our ministry!! Thank you!!

Woodlawn Community Church

A big issue we've been trying to conquer is getting our kids and families connected to a local church. The church our staff currently attends is great, Christ Bible Church of Chicago. Yet, it is located outside of our neighborhood, about 15 minutes away. We've been facing issues with our kids wanting to go to Sunday morning fellowship, yet it hinges on rides by staff. Though we fill our cars to the best of our ability, we obviously desire and know God has a heart for local fellowship.

So we have started Woodlawn Community Church, a family worship service that we have once a month. So far we have had four. We fellowship, sing together, get in the Word, and even share lunch. It has been amazing and fun to see the people that have shown up. We've had a great time thus far. God is doing big things, pray for the development of this service and fellowship.

Breakout

Last night was our first high school girls small group! I had two girls up to my apartment for dinner and brainstorming for what we want our group to be. I was encouraged as the girls told me about where they feel like they are in life and what how they would like to grow in their walk with Christ. We decided that they would both like a deeper understanding of Christ, salvation, and the Bible in general. (That doesn't leave much out!) The plan is to start working through John together next week.

Pray for the girls this week in:
-Keeping their commitments on not cheating and not talking to certain negative influences.
-Our passion to get in the Word together.
-Understanding and wisdom for me as I try to step into their worlds and do life with them.

The connection I have made with these two is already deep and genuine. There are a few more girls that possibly may be involved too! I'm already seeing them grow and I pray that it will happen all the more.

Horizons

Our middle school tutoring program at Sunshine is called Horizons. We have usually have about 15 kids that come twice a week for this program. I help out on Mondays, leading the girls reading group. We're working through a Christian novel about the dramas of middle school and take time after ever chapter to talk about how the issues relate to their lives.

These girls are great and make me laugh every week. We had a lot of fun yesterday on Valentines and dominated the reading relay!

Winter Camp '11: Elementary Truths

This past weekend we spent a very snowy Friday, Saturday, and Sunday taking our elementary and middle schoolers to Winter Camp 2011 at Sunshine Cove in Michigan. We arrived Friday night and by Saturday morning we were all bundled up and on the tubing hill. Lots of fun was had in the snow, but inside during chapel hours and cabin talks we uncovered with the kids what it means to "Stand Up" for Christ in their environments.

Four of our middle school girls came and were in my cabin. With small numbers we were able to go deep and hit on the core issues they're dealing with. It was a blessing and a challenge to hear their passionate hearts for Christ yet the extreme curveballs culture is throwing at them. I was moved deeply when we sat in a cabin breakout group and my girls shared with me their fears of "being a punk" as they would say- not standing up to the rumors and challenges to fight or be a part of drama around them. We sat and talked and they asked for my advice of how they could act in a Christlike way but still be respected. I was a little hesitant as the teenage culture in which I was raised didn't deal nearly as much with this. I gave them a few practical things and they were encouraging each other. I thought the conversation was clos

ing when one of the girls, who had been silent most of the conversation, spoke up and said, "Wait guys, all of these things are great, but what if we just prayed for our enemies at school?? God is the only one who really can make these situations better." I was blown away. Duh! Why hadn't I thought of this elementary element of our faith? Stop and pray. It is the best thing we can do in any situation. These girls constantly challenge me in their childlike but deep faith. Just when I think I am discipling them, God reminds me at how much they are changing my life too. We stopped and prayed right then and their for their enemies at school. Thank you girls for pouring into your counselor and reminding me what faith is.

Pray that these girls:

1. Will "Stand UP" in their faith amongst their peers. They face many challenges with being a "punk" and scared when not facing up and dealing like the rest of their peers do to the threats and drama around them. Pray for wisdom in how they should deal with people, especially other girls who challenge them daily in negative ways.

2. Pray for purity as the issues of teenage pressures weigh on their shoulders.

3. Pray that they will become women of prayer and evident time with Christ.

School Volunteering

So I've started the volunteer process in the two local high schools. One is call Hyde Park Academy and the other is University of Chicago Woodlawn Charter School. The volunteer screening process, from background checks to fingerprints is pretty extensive, but is actually assuring. As I go through these forms, pray that relationships will be established and God will place in one or both of the schools that He sees fit. I probably be doing tutoring and eventually would love to coach.

Keep these schools in prayer. As I've looked at the stats and scores of the schools my heart breaks. You can see what I'm talking about, especially at Hyde Park Academy -http://www.cps.edu/Schools/Pages/school.aspx?unit=1390 , and you can check out U of C Woodlawn at http://www.uei-schools.org/woodlawnhs/site/default.asp . I'm excited to jump into these campuses and begin building relationships!

Welcome to Colorado!

Yesterday I flew into Denver Airport arriving for my two weeks at New Staff Training. 150 of us jumped into charter buses to take a gorgeous two hour drive through the Rocky Mountains to get to Young Life’s Crooked Creek Ranch in Fraser, CO.

Not only was I excited to be with 150 other first year Young Life staff members, but I was in awe of the handiwork of God all around me. This was my first time in mountains of this magnitude! I’ve walked around for the last 24 hours with my jaw dropped and my heart in worship to the Creator of this beautiful land!

Tonight, after our first day here, we are kicking of 1 of 2 seminary courses that all staff are required to take: Foundations of Youth Ministry and Communicating Christ to Adolescents. I am excited to learn, once again, as a student of the Word, this time sitting under professors from Fuller and Dallas Theological Seminary!

I have some prayer requests as I am away from the South Side and here in the mountains:

1. Academic focus. As this is a seminary course, we have had lots of reading and papers and there are many more to come. Often my mind is elsewhere, thinking of the upcoming ministry opportunities and new transition concerns
2. Urban connections. Many of the staff here are suburban and rural focused, and though I have made special connections with many of them, there is something about the connection with those who do urban ministry. Pray that I can be encouraged and encourage those around me to push forward for Christ.
3. Heart refreshment and new passion. I want this time to be that of renewal and new fervor for the calling of Christ to ministry.

I will keep you all updated on my time here! Thanks for keeping me in your prayers.

Starting Up!

On January 3rd I started my first official day as a full time staff member at Sunshine! My heart was overflowing with excitement and peace that I was exactly where Christ wanted me. It is amazing to look back and see how far God has brought me over the past 5 months, from support raising, trips back and forth to Chicago, to settling down in my desk.

I was there for 4 days working before I headed off to Colorado. When I get back, I will move into my apartment, and start our programming full force! Pray that the details continue to fall into place!