Dodge ball, soccer, basketball video games until 2:30 in the morning, loud music, games, chaos, lack of sleep and a messy church.  Sounds like what you might expect from teenagers. Boarded up windows, unkempt lawns, abandoned houses, garbage and stray animals.  This might be what you would expect in the hood of Detroit.  Worship, communication, relationships, bonding, service, work, a mission and a vision.  These are some of the many things that we often neglect to report...  So often we see and report the negative things that happen in our world and are caused by the next generation.  When they do something wrong, people are often quick to point it out and report it.  Some see them as a distraction or a hindrance to worship, simultaneously neglecting to see all that God is doing, both in and through their lives. 

A group of ten teenagers and two leaders from Trinity went on a trip to Rosedale Baptist Church in Detroit on November 4-6.  Garbage was removed from buildings, gardens were tilled and trees were planted.  In the process seeds were sown in people’s lives.  Racial and cultural barriers were broken, relationships were formed and the gospel was proclaimed proudly through both word and deed. 

Christ is uniquely at work in the body through the teens at Trinity in connection with Rosedale Baptist Church.  As Pastor Haman III spoke to the teens, he acknowledged that they are the future of the church of Christ.  While we are here to help, they must take the next step in bringing the gospel to the world, because they are the generation of tomorrow.  After his conversation, teens were encouraged to come up with ideas of how to impact their world.  They did a great job of coming up with ways in which they are able to make a positive difference in their world.  Rest in God, knowing that there are teens willing to stand up and take the next step of bringing the Word of God to a lost and depraved generation.  Support our teens as they continue to seek God’s will for their lives.  Pray that they may follow through on the calling they have proclaimed and the commitments they have made.  Pray that God will continue to bring forth leaders of the next generation.  And next time you see a teenager doing something right, please be sure to make a point of reporting this as well. 

~submitted by Dan Westveer