Lincoln Avenue Baptist Church

During the hot month of July nine folks from Lincoln Avenue loaded up in a 15 passenger van and traveled 10 hours to St. Louis, Missouri.  We spent a week working with Global Encounter Ministries and First Baptist Church of Ferguson in the inner city.  The ministry site is a beautiful old park named January Wabash Park in the old suburb of Ferguson.  Our main objective is to minister to children in the community and to help their families connect with FBC Ferguson.

Each morning we arrive at the park between 8:30 and 9:00 for a time of prayer and seeking the Lord in preparation for a day of ministry.  A little after 9:00 we would drive through the neighborhoods we canvased the afternoon before and pick up children.  While we are picking up  children on our van route the rest of our team is greeting parents and children who are arriving at the park.

By 10:00 the thick Missouri humidity and hot July sun are pushing the heat index to near 100 degrees.  Our missionaries begin serving snacks and cold drinks to the crowd of children who have already gathered.  Around 10:30 the dedicated morning, park   joggers are finishing up their last laps and we begin to recite in chorus our memory verse.  “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:10  After a short Bible Study about how we are lost and Jesus is the great seeker some of the kids elect to head to the courts for a Basketball Clinic with Coach Tina Pinckard & Sophomore Kaity Shoaf.  The other children elect to attend an Arts and crafts clinic with everything from your typical beaded necklaces to your non-typical introduction to drama.  Around noon Michelle Dostal (our amazing meals on wheels) shows up with a hot meal for the children before we send them home for the afternoon.

After we enjoy a quick lunch our team loads up in the van to knock on some more doors and invite more kids to come tomorrow.  Around 2:00 the heat index is nearly 108 degrees and we are downing bottles of water to try and stay hydrated.  In spite of the intense heat our missionaries had thankful and joyful hearts.  We didn’t come to St. Louis to be comfortable – we came in the spirit of our Lord – “to seek and to save the lost.”

Jesus > anything;

Student Missionaries: Megan Kirkendall, Shawn Haskins, Kiara Perez, Hannah Dirks, Kaity Shoaf, and Addy Dirks

Pastor Andrew Dostal