A218 Community News Blog

Sydney Update

Hey ACCESS218, 

I've only got a few minutes...but I wanted to tell you all that the Sydney Launch is going great. We've had a few days to acclimate to the time zone and see a bit of the city. Hillsong Conference opens to delegates in about an hour from now. The Sydney team will be working in different areas for JAM, which is the youth section of the conference. I don't know what to expect other than God doing that stuff that only he can do in our lives. So I ask you to continue praying for the team. Jeremy, Ashley, Becky and I will be serving as connect group leaders.  Ross and David will be serving in production. Chelsea and Jason will be serving in student experience. And Craig will be serving in transport. We'll be serving this week from 7:30am to 9pm until Friday.

The great encouragement is that every time we tell someone we are serving in JAM, people reply, 'Oh yeah, JAM is going to awesome this year!' In fact, the expectation about this year's conference is totally contagious. It is an honor to be a part of it...

Make sure you pack the WhereHouse this Tuesday Night. The little known fact is that the Main Gathering keeps gathering momentum every week during the summer. It is gonna be awesome and you need to be there. 

I'll send updates as I can. I am thinking and praying for you all...

For His Dream,

Derrick Scott III

Houston Launch #4 - Ecclesia Church

From Emily Howard --

Sunday morning the team spent time at a local church established in the downtown Houston area that was founded by Chris Seay by the name of Ecclesia. We all served in whatever capacity we were capable of beginning with the set up for the service; chairs, candles, stage props etc. There were some unique aspect of this church unlike most churches in our area. The location or building was used for multiple business; there is a coffee shop open on a daily basis and also an art gallery displaying artwork from many artists including locals. The area where the church is located has been built up a lot in the recent years as we were told by Tiffany who is on staff with the church (sidenote: Tiffany went to Hillsong Leadership College in Sydney...awesome!) Because the location is in a residential area they receive on again off again animosity from he residents but try their best to sever them and love them like Jesus loves.

During the service (which was incredible) we split up as a group and helped with offerings and serving communion. First service I served communion with Nelson and Sarah Culver. This was the first communion serving that I or Sarah had participated in, and I know we both enjoyed the experience. I found great joy in these words: "the body of Christ, broken for you"...think about that for a minute. All I can say is Praise God an Amen, for he is good! After the service we enjoyed fellowship with members and locals and spent some time in the air conditioned coffee shop. The second service was identical to the first with us serving communion and assisting with offering. Being able to step along side the church was incredible and hopefully convicted the group to be more than a but in the seat, no matter what church we are going to. We are here to serve and advance the kingdom! After two powerful services by Chris Seay we settled in at the church for some pizza with staff members. The fellowship and conversation was as if we had known each other for years or were old friends picking up again. The welcoming we received from Ecclesia and the staff was amazing...

After a morning and afternoon at Ecclesia we ventured a little deeper into downtown Houston to do some shopping at the Galleria. The Galleria is a huge mall that actually has an ice skating rink in the center of it. We did not ice skate, but still it was a sight to be seen, I mean really; have you ever seen a ice skating rink in the center of a mall? We ate dinner as a team at the Rainforest Cafe and enjoyed the downtime after a busy few days! We "swiftly" ate, paid for our bills and ran for the van so we could make it to a Robbie Seay Band concert at Copperfield Church. Robbie Seay is Chris Seay's (from Ecclesia) brother. The concert was pretty awesome, hands were raised and God was praised!  The concert was followed by another stop at a Starbucks-I am pretty sure we have been to a Starbucks every day on this launch!

We met Aaron Edwards and Travis Reed who is the owner/founder of The Work of The People which is a company that shoots videos and short films that we use in our gatherings at times. Having the opportunity to sit and listen to their visions and some of their stories/testimonies over coffee was something that was not particularly easy for Nelson to schedule, but he pulled it off and I am glad he did. We are driving back to our host house now and my guess is that it will take approximately 10 minutes for the entire teams to fall asleep. We will be headed back to Ecclesia in the morning to help install a cork floor in their student center.

Thanks again for all the prayers and support, you guys rock!

Emily

Houston Launch Update #3 - Santa Maria Hostel

From Katie Walton --

Today we worked with the Santa Maria Hostel, an organization that helps women who are dealing with drug and alcohol abuse problems. When I first heard that we were doing this, I really didn't know what to expect but I knew that it would take me way out of my comfort zone. When we arrived, we were greeted by Pamela, the volunteer coordinator (who is also a Dominican sister, so fun!!!). At the hostel, Saturdays are family visitation day so there were lots of little kids running around. As we were waiting to start the arts and crafts with the women, visiting hours ended and the family members had to leave. Seeing the moms saying bye and hearing the babies cry and cling to their mothers was definitely the hardest part of the day. It was pretty intense and almost every member of the team was fighting back tears. It definitely brought home the reality of the situation the women are facing. 

For the art project, we made collages with the clients. It was amazing getting to spend time with the women. Some of them told their stories openly, others barely responded to questions. No matter how they interacted, it was awesome to think of the amount of hope in the room. The simple fact that the women were in a treatment program meant that they were working towards a better life for themselves and their children. The whole Santa Maria Hostel experience was one that opened my eyes to the reality of the pain of drug addiction and the hope that recovery can bring.

Houston Launch Update 2 - San Leon

From Joey Rodil --

On Friday, the team took a trip to an area called, San Leon. This area was affected by Hurricane Ike back before the last Presidential election. I add that last part because it is very important to this region. Why you ask? Because the hurricane hit the Galveston, Texas area right before the election. There was so much media coverage and concern for the political realm that the devastation in this area caused by Hurricane Ike "slipped" by us as we focused on the election. This story was told by a couple, Monty and Susan who moved from Indiana to be the gap between those who were forgotten and help. They are apart of the United Methodist Committee on Relief. They help people rebuild their houses and assist them with acquiring materials and aid to do so.

Our team had the opportunity to help a family in San Leon make repairs on their mobile home and clean up their property. Hank and Cherie were very grateful that us "young people" would come out and help them. We walked on their roof to paint a seal that protects their home from the heat, we moved wood and dry wall, cleaned up debris around the property, did electrical work and most important of all talked to Hank and Cherie about their life. It was amazing to get to know this couple and help such grateful people. Some of us were able to play with their 8 year old son, Blake. He was a little energetic boy.

After that, we went to a park to reflect on what we did for the day and to ask God, why are we here in Houston and what do you want us to take back. God is doing amazing things within our team and within ourselves. I pray that we come back with broken hearts for the "forgotten" and an initiative to remember them.

Houston Launch Update 1

Hello all,
Our Houston Launch team of 9 led by Nelson arrived yesterday morning. We are staying with Jeff and Sarah Beth Morris, some friends of friends of Kelsey in Pearland, TX. It has already been an exciting two days. Last night, we attended the young adult service at Lakewood Church (pastor is Joel Osteen) called Canvas. Turns out we walked into their trivia night...and we dominated. Out of 15 other tables, we won with 400 points. We even correctly answered 4 out of 5 bonus questions about the young adult pastoral staff. We had a fun time and it was a good introduction to the city.

I had an interesting conversation with Jeff (the guy who owns the house we are staying in) last night. We talked about the need here in Houston. These are not completely accurate statistics but they do help explain a little bit of what is happening here. It is said that Houston might have the third highest population of homeless people in the country. It is also said that the Houston metro area has the highest number of mega-churches and highest number of sexually oriented businesses. Just these statistics makes my heart break for this city. I know that Jacksonville has its own issues, but I can't help but remember that God has a dream for both our cities. I am praying and hoping that our time here in Houston would be a small piece of God's dream advancing in this city.

More updates to come from members of the team. We spent most of Friday working on a home in San Leon, Galveston County, TX. Looks like we'll be doing a variety of activities over the next few days with churches in this area. So stay tuned and please continue to pray for us.

For His Dream,
Derrick

Updates, prayer requests and the reason why...

Hey ACCESS218!
I pray that you are doing well and loving the summer. Just wanted to give you some updates on our friends around the world. I've been talking to the asia team each morning and it sounds like they continue to be symptom free. They are hoping to be released by the end of the weekend. Let's continue to pray for their health, their safety and their sanity (as being in hospital for over a week can tend to be boring.) They are all in good spirits and are thankful that we have been so concerned about them.

Also, Anna has been released today from the hospital. She continues to improve and is so thankful for all the thoughts and prayers that have poured in over the last week. Keep it up...she still has a bit of a healing journey ahead. Also pray that she regains enough strength to come home this weekend.

This weekend is really important for all we have been concerned with over the last week and a half. So I encourage you to keep their names and situations lifted up in prayer. So thankful for a God that hears the prayers of His people!

I am in Grand Rapids, MI at a conference called Acton University. Looking forward to getting home for next week's gatherings (both Forward and the Main Gathering). Even though I am away, I continue to think of you. Every talk I hear reminds me of the potential of college students and young adults in Northeast Florida. Everyday, I am more convinced that if you desire it and are willing to do the work required, you can make a significant impact for the transformation of the world from neighborhoods to nations.

I know it is the summer and some of you are on break, and I know we have been focused on our friends and their health over the last week. But please don't forget that there have always been bigger reasons for events like the gatherings and the launches...greater reasons for our friendships and even our community. Those greater reasons have to do with the kingdom of God advancing on our campuses, our workplaces, in Northeast Florida and throughout the world. And this is the movement that (I hope) we all want to be a part...God setting the world to rights. Great days ahead for us because when God is for us, who can be against us.

I miss you all so much. If you get a second, drop me an email...tell me how things are going for you this summer and how I can be praying for you. I know I don't always respond to emails, but I read every single one. So I do hope to hear from you soon. Until then, please know that all of you...from the attendees of the main gathering at CRC, to the UNF community and the folks at JU, to the post-college gang at Forward, all of those who don't fall into our neat A218 categories and even the older-somethings that support us so much...you are all in my heart and prayers. Love you so much.

One final thing, and this is really important. Joey returns from vacation this week. So he should be available for all sorts of annoying requests this weekend...we all missed him so let him know that he was missed and make him work now that he has had a nice, long vacation.

Love God, love your neighbor and love your life...

For His Dream,
Derrick

Launch Update

Hey all,
So the latest update is 8 members of our team have been diagnosed with the h1n1 virus. They need to be symptom free for 5 days before they can be released. Thankfully, precautions and treatment began before the diagnosis was confirmed, and they are continuing to get great care. So let's continue to pray for a speedy recovery and peace in the coming days. 

Also, Anna is still in need of our prayers and support. Pray that she would begin to see some improvement by the end of the day.
 
I am still in regular communication with the team. So as I am updated I will pass the info along. 
 
Remember: Don't panic and limit your online discussions. Thanks for your care and consideration.  
 
This evening, we are going to have a prayer gathering for our community members. It will be at 8pm at CRC. If you are able, it would be great for you to attend. Our hope remains in Christ, and hope never disappoints.
 
As always, if you have any questions, drop me a line.
 
For His Dream,
Derrick

Haiti Launch Update

Hey ACCESS218,

So here is my official Haiti Launch Update. And the truth is, I do not really have one. Haiti has affected me in ways that I do not really have words for quite yet. I am still processing what the trip meant to me and what it will continue to mean to me. It was, as I have said, unbelievable. And yes, I think that every single person in ACCESS218 should consider going on the next trip there.

Yes, there were heaps of inconveniences: heat (though it could have been worse), bugs ('Off' became my cologne of choice), different food, the language barrier, interesting sleeping arrangements, lack of electricity and inconsistent plumbing. But somehow, from the moment you get there to the moment you get back to the states, all the inconveniences seem to pale in comparison to the friends you make and the ministry you get to be a part of.

The main reason I went on the Haiti Launch was to meet with the young adults of our sister church in Tiburon and discuss the possibilities of a ministry to young adults in that area. What I discovered is that the young adults in Tiburon are very much like the twentysomethings in Northeast Florida. Similar fears, similar hang-ups, and similar obsession with marriage. In fact, as I sat and listened to them in various meetings and conversations, I thought of many of you in our community who have overcome obstacles and difficulties. I cannot wait for you to meet Obenson, Alexandria, Evelyne, Rudolph, Harrold, Amos and many other Tiburon young adults who would fit in quite well with our diverse community.

All in all, there will definitely be more trips for me to my friends in Haiti. I am praying about if, how and when ACCESS218 should reach out to the young adults of South Haiti. I know there are parts of me that will never be the same after this trip. And I am excited about that...nothing like being re-ignited for the mission of the kingdom all over again. Oh wait a sec...that's what happens on A218 Launches!

You can read more reflections about Haiti on my personal blog: www.ds3blogging.typepad.com. But if you are not on a launch (or even if you are), you seriously need to think about the Jacksonville Launch. It will not only be one of the greatest events we've ever been a part of, but I know that God does great things in us on the Launches. For many of you reading this, the Jacksonville Launch is the only summer opportunity you can feasibly be a part of. Don't miss this chance to impact the lives of middle and high school students. The dates are July 17-18. You could have a life changing experience in those 2 days.

You never know what will happen on a Launch, but you can always trust that God has so much planned. I did not want to go to Haiti at first, and now I wish I could take another trip in August. Praise the good God for all He has done and continues to do in Haiti! For His Dream, Derrick

Orlando Launch : Sunday

On Sunday morning we had the opportunity to hear Gary Haugen from International Justice Mission. The work of IJM is both compelling and challenging. We spent part of the afternoon with some CFL Wesley students and young adults. Its always fun for our students to get to meet other students from around the state. We finished off the day by attending Status and experiencing what part of the church looks like in Orlando. 

Overall, the Orlando Launch was really incredible. Josh Haskins did an excellent job planning and leading the trip and the Team couldn't have been better.  We had a debrief time on Sunday afternoon and shared some of the things we learned and how serving the Church in Orlando has impacted us. Hopefully, you'll get to hear more of those testimonies soon. But for now, know that God worked in really amazing ways and many lives were changed. 

Thank you for your prayers and support for this Launch!! 

Orlando Launch : Saturday II

After sporting our neon green t-shirts while volunteering with Orlando Children's Church, we headed over to Harvest Time International.  In their warehouse was a mountain of clothes that had been donated to be sent overseas. Our job... to sort through the clothes, pull out all the underwear and pack the remaining clothes in boxes. 

"operation underwear" begin... 

It was all work and no play for us...  

Okay, so maybe it wasn't all work and no play, but the team really did a great job and accomplished a lot. We were able to pack about 13 of the large boxes full of clothes and make a huge dent in sorting through the mountain of donations.