StoryLetter April2024
We have had an incredible month at West Sound YFC! With an increase of students attending our centers we have heard so many stories from students who come from all different backgrounds and we have been witnesses to God changing their hearts and their lives.
Ministry Stories
We have been seeing a huge influx of kids at the Underground this month. There were days where we would have up to 50 kids hanging out in our center. In this we have had the opportunity to meet a ton of new kids. One student named Lizzy recently started attending the center along with her friend Jack.
Lizzy one day shared with one of the volunteers at the Underground that she was an atheist. We shared with her that even though our staff and volunteers are Christian she is always welcome at the center no matter her religious or spiritual beliefs.
Through her time at the center Lizzy has grown more comfortable with our volunteers and she even joined us for Club! Lizzy was open to hearing the message and was participating, answering questions, and even providing input about the message.
We were focusing on mental emotional health and it was awesome how this subject seemed to be exactly what they needed to hear that week.
Stephanie
Campus Life Leader
East Bremerton Area
I was taken aback when two of our students ran up to me and asked if they could be baptized. Danielle and Andy have been coming to The Next Door for years now, they came on several of our trips and joined us for many of our events.
As I asked them about why they wanted to be baptized both students shared the same sentiment…they knew about God when they were younger but they had grown in their relationship with Him and were ready to take the next step to follow God!
As is true of the majority of students that we care for in our centers, Danielle and Andy did not know much about baptism and what the Bible teaches on it. It was an honor to talk them through it and to hear their hearts about why they wanted to take this step in their faith!
What was extra special about the baptism was that we did it in house! We got a hold of an inflatable kiddie pool, filled it with water, and had a special meeting for them at the Next Door, the place the students know and love!
Danielle and Andy both had family in attendance and some of our students who had never seen a baptism got to watch their friends make a true statement of faith!
God is alive and moving here in Poulsbo, it is amazing to see how He put it on their hearts to get baptized, and how God showed them His love. It was an incredible moment to see how God is working through the students that we care for each week!
Joe Koski
Development Director
A Beautiful Disaster.
Friday’s at The Next Door is a roll of the dice. Because it is right after school, we usually have students coming in under the impression that we are having drop-in center time, when in fact it’s Club.
The distinction is important as one is unstructured and the other is a program that presents the gospel. Friday is meant to be the latter which makes some of the conversations awkward to start off with.
As students came in I would ask, “Hey, are you here for Club?” which would elicit a questioning look as they would walk by me looking for food.
We started off our difficult discussions by asking students whether they had ever experienced someone who seemed different on the outside than on the inside. I was expecting the students to throw their friends or enemies under the bus. Instead one of the students said, “Yeah, me. I think I put a different idea of who I am out to people so that they think everything is okay, but the reality is different.”
I was certainly surprised, this was a student that didn’t know Jesus, didn’t know me very well, and yet she shared something very deep and personal right out of the gate. The next question that I had was “Have you ever had an experience where you expected one thing, but something else happened? Or tell me about a time when something happened that you didn’t expect.”
Again, these students surprised me, “Yeah, my mom took me to a Mexican Restaurant and told me that my sister had died. I wasn’t expecting that.” Another student shared, “A couple years ago someone broke into our house and we had to get a guard dog because it scared my mom and I.” “My grandpa died yesterday.” “When my parents got divorced, I didn’t see that coming.”
All my lesson plans flew out the window. I was sitting in a room full of students that were not only dealing with heavy stuff, but were ready to share their hurt with adults that they had not known for long. They were not sure what to do with these stories, but they did feel safe to share them.
One of our amazing leaders was able to relate to the students and experienced similar situations throughout their life. As she opened up to them, I felt the need to thank these students for being willing to share. I told them that not only did they experience something painful, they were not expecting it.
As all of this was happening, by the way, in the most chaotic small group that I have experienced in a long time, there was giggling. One of the students kept running in and out of the room, and one of the people sharing their most intimate pain, was also trying to make everyone laugh in the process.
Through all the chaos, these students shared, through all the chaos, we were able to receive their stories. Finally, through all the chaos, we were able to share with them that there is a God who created them, that loves them, that looks at the heart. A God that is not impressed with perfect people, but wants to have a relationship with each of them.
Bart Lesco
Executive Director
Upcoming Events
Join us for our Be The Story Trivia Night where you will have an opportunity to win cool prizes, enjoy food and learn more about YFC’s mission and how you can help!
April 27th at Western Red Brewing in Poulsbo
May 10th at Tracyton Movie House in Bremerton
