M-Fuge Report

Pastor Howie (Michael Howland)

I am so proud of all that were involved in our trip to M-fuge. I am thankful for our church family and I am awestruck by the faithfulness of our God. The Lord moved mightily all throughout the preparations for this trip, during our ministry time there, and continued to work in our hearts as we returned. In our own group of 41, we saw one get baptized, another rededicate their life to Christ, and yet another evaluating their life and the potential call to missions, either full time or part time. All of the participants were stretched beyond their comfort zones and they just shined! I was thrilled to watch the outreach that happened. Our group took it upon themselves to reach out to one another, caring for one another’s spiritual needs throughout the week. The group also worked hard to reach out to those they were ministering to. Some made their first attempts to have a spiritual conversation with those they did not know, others shared the gospel for the first time, and others learned that even the most simple and understated ministry task is still very much just that: ministry! Our team served by doing painting, construction and yard work, by creative arts ministry, children’s ministry and/or games and recreation. No matter where teens and adults were placed, they served wholeheartedly, trusting that this was where God called them. I personally was burdened for the people of Canada, especially since, for the first time, there were ministry sites where we were not allowed to share the gospel. Yet we were allowed to show the love of Jesus to those we came in contact with. I feel that God was reminding me that as important as it is to share the gospel, which I love to do, it was equally important to meet physical, emotional and spiritual needs. The ministry of presence and listening ear was a large portion of the ministry God called me to do. As you read in the testimonies, God provided financially, He provided just the right team members at just the right time, and He provided His strength, and He so faithfully worked in and through us. We are still seeing the results of what He has done today. God is so good!

Shelby Kamerick

Before I left for Canada, I had no clue what I was looking for better yet what I would find. This trip has really changed me and has turned my life around.
I never knew that by just listening to someones story could make you see things differently and realize every word they speak is not only telling their story, but yours as well. I never really had a ‘story’ before i went on this trip, I was just a person who said they were a christan but never once lived by it.
After witnessing people, who had gone through everything i had, and yet become strong believers in Christ, really encouraged me to do the same, and this time around actually live for what i believe instead of just say what i believe. I thought i could just put God off for later in my life and let me have my fun now because God will forgive me so i can just do what i want for now, because you’re only a teen once, right?
But what a horrible feeling, to be put off, set aside for later. If you’re human I’m sure someone has done this to you at least once in your life. When I thought about how that has happened to me many times before, it’s the worst feeling in the world. For me not to be wanted to be set aside with someone close yet i was doing the EXACT same thing to God, the person who gave me life, and thought it didn’t matter, I just thought back to what i feels like to be set aside by just a friend and that feeling is huge. It brings me a quote, “Be the change you want to see in the world.” And I thought about that and I realized I can’t set God aside yet wish I didn’t get set aside with a friend. I know now God can never again be set aside in my life again.
Gods love is everlasting and to know throughout all my hard times that I’ve set him aside, he still has the most love for me in the world, and that amazes me to know through all my wrongs his love will never die. I’m on fire for him and his love.
Words cannot describe how wonderful God is, and can be, and the ways he works.

Nick Maples

When I first decided to go to Canada on this mission trip it was six weeks before they were going to go. So I thought that I would have to pay for it right out of my pocket and that I might not be able to go because I would not have enough money. But then at the Motor Fest, John Porter asked when was I going to send out a support letter. I had no idea what he was talking about, so he explained it and then I made some up and sent them to a lot of people that I knew. They either committed to pray or send money to help me. When it was about a week left I had almost all the money I needed but was still $28 dollars short. Then my mom got a call from some friends to come and pick up a check that was for $30 dollars, so with that my prayer that God would help me get enough money to go came true.
During our time there the M-Fuge leadership tried talking to a lady about Jesus and she would not even converse with them about it. Two other boys and I were talking to her and she asked us for a Bible and if she could pray. So we said sure. We all bowed our heads and she prayed. We were then asked to sign her Bible showing her who gave it to her. Then one of our leaders talked to us afterwards and told us that they have been trying to get her to pray for 2 years and she would not even talk with them. That was really cool and I will remember that for the rest of my life.

Caleb Fisher

This was my first trip and it was more fun than I anticipated it would be. I was in the children’s ministry/ VBS track. We were able to share our faith with the games we did. For example, one day we had the kids draw with chalk and have the children indicate what was important to them. Then we explained how the children were important to God and how much He cared for them. I also joined the craft and song time, helping as needed. We reviewed Bible verses with the children as well. The parents even came to watch our VBS, which I discovered was yet another way that we were a witness to the families.
I found quiet times throughout the week to be a time of comfort for me. I normally don’t do devotions, but after this trip I have been excited to do it every day. Devotions at M-fuge really encouraged me to grow deeper as I attempt to apply God’s Word to my life. I found that the worship and sermons were just what I needed to keep me going at M-fuge, helping me to give my best to God. I also got reacquainted with many kids in my own youth group that I would never have bothered talking to before. With one of my best friends not going on the trip, it gave me the opportunity to talk to and make relationships with many other kids.

Paige Harper

I really wasn’t sure about going to Canada when I signed up to go. I had no idea what we were doing there, or if I was going to like it at all. Plus, I really wanted to go back to Mexico this year. But God pushed me out of my comfort zone and I went. The third day we were there, I got very sick and wasn’t able to go to the ministry site. I was mad at God because I wanted to go out and share His word. I had no idea what he was doing and why he was keeping me from going to do ministry. The next day I didn’t feel much better, but I couldn’t stand lying in bed all day again. So I went and didn’t feel well at all. I tried really hard to hide it, and to give God 100% even though my body wasn’t giving 100%. And then I went to ministry the rest of the week, but I still didn’t feel well. But after a whole week to think about it, I decided to let it go, knowing that God had some reason for making me sick, I just didn’t know what it was. I learned a lot about how God always has a plan, and even if you don’t know what it is, it’s going to happen that way. So just trust Him, because He knows what He’s doing.

Matt Epp

Canada was a great experience because I grew spiritually and built great relationships with other people on the trip. It gave me a motivating reminder that a quiet time with God is important and should be at the top of our list every day.
In Canada, I also had some great experiences hanging out with the people at the nursing home and daycare. It brought to mind that when you show the love of Jesus to these people, you are doing it to Him and building up treasures in heaven.

Randy Maurer

The M-fuge experience was one of the most fulfilling and rewarding times in my life. For me it was life changing. I’m so grateful to the people of First Federated and others outside our church body that made it possible for my son and me to go on this trip with others from our church. God is so faithful. This was a chance to get out of my comfort zone and to serve the Lord in ways that I couldn’t imagine. It was truly amazing to see how God used each and every one of us. And it was a thrill to see our teens used in a way that brought glory and honor to God. This trip was not about us, but about God and how he used each person and their gifts for His kingdom’s work. What I enjoyed most about the trip was the chance to get to know our teens and what was going on in their lives. Each evening we had the opportunity to meet in groups and share about what happened that day. It was so amazing to hear our teens’ experiences and the love they have for one another and the friendships they made with people from other churches. While we were there, four children came to know the Lord as their personal Savior. What an awesome experience. This trip will be forever etched into my heart and mind. I want to thank Pastor Howie for the wonderful job that he has done with our youth and the privilege to be with him on this missions trip. I can truly say that I’m a survivor and I would encourage anyone if they ever thought about going on a mission trip to just go for it. You’ll be blessed. Thank you, my First Federated family, for this opportunity.

Jacob Kucera

First of all, I thought it was really cool how open the youth group was with telling each other prayer requests and how everyone was praying for their requests during the Canada trip.
I was helping with Vacation Bible School that week and it really didn’t feel like it was really work because I wasn’t sharing the gospel directly or building churches, but I was planting seeds in the kids’ lives by getting them excited about learning about God.
I also went to a local Goodwill and helped with sorting all the clothes and stuff that came in. First, we had to look for stains and rips and if there weren’t any, we’d have to smell them to see if they smelled like cigarette smoke, mold or anything else stinky. I have allergies so that wasn’t too fun, but the manager was really grateful that we helped her out!
I met some great people from other churches around the US that were going to M-Fuge and that was pretty fun too.
In the end I thought it was a good investment and I think we really helped the people of Kingston, Ontario, Canada. It was really fun, and I’m looking forward to the next missions trip.