Impact Ireland 2007
OM International
IMPACT IRELAND REPORT 2007
By Melissa Gute and Ruth Garvey-Williams
Ninety five people
~ from eleven countries
~ serving alongside twelve churches
~ with one purpose - to transform lives and communities in Ireland.
International teams and local churches united for Impact Ireland 2007 (July 3 – 17). This year, OM Ireland’s summer outreach extended beyond Kilkenny and Carlow to include Cavan, Cootehill, Mountmellick, New Ross and Tullamore as enthusiastic volunteers demonstrated and communicated the Gospel.
During three days of training, team members received encouragement and guidance from guest speaker Dave McBride. Workshops helped to prepare participants for children’s work, personal witness and creative ministry with a chance to learn dances, dramas and Gospel illustrations.
One highlight was the Thursday evening prayer time when teams devoted three hours to praying for the world. At the end of the evening, the whole group prayed for each of the nine teams, committing Impact Ireland to the Lord.
Equipped and encouraged, the teams spread out to serve in the different towns. On the streets and in housing estates, in youth drop-in centres, parks and community halls, each team member had the opportunity to use their gifts to share Jesus. Teams ran children’s holiday clubs, youth events, sports activities and barbecues as well as serving practically in local communities.
For the second year running, The Rock youth drop-in centre was opened in Kilkenny attracting teenagers from across the city. A safe environment for young people to hang out and have fun, The Rock also provided many opportunities for teens to encounter Jesus.
Over 250 children attended holiday clubs in seven different towns, learning about Jesus through puppets, stories, drama, music, games and craft activities. The Big Red Bus (OM Ireland’s double-decker bus) visited Loughboy, Thomastown, Mountmellick, and Tullamore, proving so popular that children chased after it as it drove away.
After their hard work, the teams reunited at the Kilkenny Presbyterian Church for a day of debriefing. Each team shared stories of how God moved during their time of ministry. The day ended with a barbecue and a time of worship and celebration of what God had done during Impact Ireland 2007.
Miracles in Mountmellick
Arriving in the small town of Mountmellick, one team learnt that the small local church faced closure. The team wondered if the children’s programme they had planned would make any difference.
“[Before we got there] we were told that it was a rough neighbourhood and that the kids would be hard to reach,” Mags from Scotland said. “Yet, as soon as we arrived, we were surrounded by them.”
Approximately 30 children showed up on a typical day. While the kids club was in session, the teens of the town would hang around and observe, curious of what was taking place. Noticing them, the team decided to invite the older youth to play sports in the afternoons.
“Just by being there we got to reach out to the teens,” Valerie Sewell from America said.
Indirectly, some parents were also affected by the team’s work with the kids. One day after the club a girl ran up to Mags with some friends insisting that she come to her house and play the kids club songs on her dad’s guitar. After playing each song twice, the father came home and witnessed the gathering. The children insisted that Mags play each song again. The father caught on, learned the songs on the guitar, and now plays them for his kids in the house.
“It’s exciting to see how [our work] is going back to the families,” Valerie said.
On Sunday, the last day the team was in town, two parents and 12 children, who attended the kids club, showed up to the church increasing its congregation size by two hundred percent.!! One girl asked her mom if she could go back next week.
Answered Prayer
Arriving in Kilkenny to work as an au pair one month ago, a woman from Costa Rica began looking for a church. She was also praying for the chance to meet another Spanish
speaker.
The woman accepted an invitation to stop by the free coffee bar set up by Kilkenny Community Church. On entering the building, the first person she met was team member Alex Vasquez - a fluent Spanish speaker whose parents are from El Salvador..
“Her eyes got wide open and she started speaking to me in Spanish,” Alex said. “She told me she was so happy to hear someone who spoke Spanish. She just poured out her heart to me and told me that she’s been looking for a church.”
Alex invited her to the Community Church and the Costa Rican walked one hour to attend the Sunday morning service the next day. Enjoying the church, she soon met church members who were willing to provide transport for her and the following week she attended church once again.
Alex was also encouraged by the encounter. “I was kind of doubting how much of an impact I could have,” she said. “‘I’ll never doubt again!”
Come back soon...
Knowing they would only have three days with the Big Red Bus in Loughboy, some team members were worried about how much of an impression they could make in such a short time. Assurance came when a team member was given a note from one of the boys on the last day.
Hand-written, one side of the note read “We will miss you Big Red Bus. We will miss you all.” The other side was a detailed drawing of the bus complete with a puppet show in the top window.
Incorporating Bible stories into puppet shows was one way the team shared about God. They also used balloon modelling and face painting to show love to the kids.
Around 30 children showed up each day (aged from 3-12). “Who’s the King of the Jungle?” became a well-known song among the children in Loughboy. When one boy said, “The lion is the king of the jungle”, another boy said, “No, Jesus is the King of the jungle!” On the third day, as the team started to sing the song, all the children cheered.
Saying their final goodbyes, the kids expressed gratitude with many hugs saying they didn’t want them to leave and asking if they would be coming back next year.
Actions speak louder than words
Working with a children’s programme in the local community centre, the team in Tullamore also had many opportunities to demonstrate the love of God among people they met. One man noticed their behaviour.
During a lunch break he approached Brazilian team member, Juliana Rente, and asked her why they were so happy all the time. As she explained the joy of knowing forgiveness and salvation through Jesus, the man had tears in his eyes. “I’ve read those [Bible] passages many times before, but no one has ever put it so clearly to me, now I get it,” he said.
“I was amazed by how God had spoken through me and put the right words into my mouth,” Juliana wrote. “Not even language was a barrier.”
The man prayed with Juliana with a fresh understanding of what Jesus did.
Other team members in Tullamore were involved in offering practical help on a needy housing estate. Working to mow lawns and dig up weeds, they were amazed at the response. “This caused other neighbours to join in and help us help others, which was cool to see,” shared Malin Seth from Sweden.
The practical demonstration of God’s love for people on the estate also opened opportunities for the team members to explain their motivation and to discuss spiritual matters with people they met.
Seeing Rainbows...
When a group of snooker-players from Qatar spotted a double rainbow over Carlow they began excitedly taking pictures - most of them had never even seen a rainbow before, let alone a double one!
This gave Dave McBride an opportunity to talk with them but he was unable to give them a tract. Over the next few days, Dave began to pray for another opportunity to meet with them.
“I met them on the last day and asked if I could give them a booklet with a story from the Injil (the New Testament). It was about the prodigal son,” Dave wrote. “They received it gladly.”
Interested
It didn’t take long for Kendra Swanson to engage in conversation with locals in Carlow. Standing in line for a game at the local bowling alley she began talking with a woman who asked why this group of Americans were visiting the town. Opening the door for a discussion about beliefs, the woman confessed her growing scepticism about religion and voiced her questions.
Interested to learn about Jesus, the woman said she wanted to get a new translation of the Bible and to check out a local church.
“The coolest thing about it was that she thought it was awesome that she was just recently thinking about all of this and she really wanted to know more but didn’t know how to go about it,” Kendra wrote. “It made me even more on fire for God this week because the first person I talked to is now closer to Jesus.”
At the fountain
Becky from the same team and James from the local church dove into an in-depth discussion with some ‘punk’ girls at the Carlow city fountain. One girl seriously questioned her beliefs as Becky and James shared with them Christ’s unconditional love and sacrifice for the world.
Becky shared, “After James had left, I had been talking to them about local music scenes when all of the sudden, fifteen minutes after mentioning God, the girl said, ‘You know, you’ve really got me thinking about God. I’ll be up all night. Just wanted you to know.”
Becky recognised God’s power and his ability to move in what seems like the most unlikely situations, helping people with their doubts and questions.
“I thought for sure the girls would shrug us off, but they talked and listened intently,” Becky wrote.
The Rock
For the second year, a team from Cornerstone Church in New Jersey, USA came to Kilkenny to run the youth drop-in centre called “The Rock”. From the first day, teens began to gather at St Mary’s Hall (the empty Church of Ireland hall in the city centre) even while the team was preparing the building.
Open for ten days, “The Rock” attracted between 30 and 50 young people from across the city every day. Both Sundays the team ran a youth worship time, bringing worship back to the church hall for the first time in many years. Another highlight came when a local drummer ran a drumming workshop for the youngsters.
A party in heaven
“The Rock” proved life-changing for one teenage girl. After hearing USA team leader Dave Hayman speak about loving people because God first loved us, she said she wanted to speak with him.
For the rest of the evening the two spoke as she told Dave about her lifestyle, and Dave was able to share the Gospel. Dave sent his own Bible home with her.
She returned to the Rock on Monday and then again on Tuesday when she spoke with team member Evonne throughout the evening. Evonne again told her of God’s love through the sacrifice of Christ Jesus, and she decided to accept this truth, committing her life to Christ.
The two were so excited that they began to dance!
“I could see on both their faces something amazing had happened,” said OM USA team member Denise Healey. “This to me is what it was like in heaven. They were joining in the party in heaven because she had come to know Christ.”
The Rock Receives Money
Making The Rock a permanent place is not only the dream of team members from New Jersey and adult believers in Kilkenny, but it is also the desire of Christian teenagers in the city. One local teen took action and presented a cheque for 390 Euros on Friday night during Impact Ireland.
Fifteen year-old Deirdre Kelly raised the money by hosting a barbecue (at the Presbyterian Church) in June. Calling on help from friends, she helped to set up an event where a cover charge of five euro allowed participants to eat free food and enjoy games outside. Sweets and desserts were available for an extra charge.
“[I did this] because we want to make the Rock permanent,” Deirdre said. “In Kilkenny it feels like others don’t care where you go as long as you’re not in their way. I want to have a place where people can come and feel loved and wanted.”
With the success of approximately forty people showing up to the barbecue, Deirdre plans to hold other fundraisers in the future.
Impact Ireland in brief...
« Planning two outdoor youth events on Tuesday and Thursday evening, the New Ross team prayed for good weather. The rain came down on Monday, Wednesday and Friday evenings but on Tuesday and Thursday, the evenings were dry and sunny!
« Sharing with a man from Israel who showed interest, one team member in Tullamore was frustrated not to be able give him a Bible. The team collected copies of the Bible from the church and when she met the man in town later that day another team member ran all the way back to the Big Red Bus to bring him one.
« When the team at The Rock youth centre had to ask one disruptive teenager to leave, they were concerned to see his older brother arrive the next day armed with a broken golf club. Many people were praying for the team that day and miraculously the brother simply looked around and then left without causing any damage or hurting anyone.
« Heading into town for a prayer walk, team members in Mountmellick met a group of children who had been attending their club. The children asked what they were doing. “We told them we were going to pray for them,” shared Heather Hall. The youngsters cheerfully accepted an invitation to join them. Standing in a circle holding hands the team members were united with the people they desired to reach as they prayed that God would be at work in the neighbourhood.
« Three hours passed quickly for the team from Adventures in Mission (AIM) when they agreed to spend an evening in prayer for the ministry at The Rock. They were later thrilled and amazed to hear how God had been answering their prayers for the ministry among young people in Kilkenny.
« Even visitors to Ireland had the opportunity to hear the Gospel this summer through the work of Impact Ireland teams. Working with the Kilkenny Community Church team for an afternoon’s street work, Andrew from OM Ireland shared with a group of Spanish students with the help of Alex, who translated what he was saying into Spanish! Further north in Tullamore, Brazilian team members were able to talk about God’s grace with their Brazilian host family!
« The very last conversation with people in Carlow proved significant for three team members. Meeting three teenage girls by the fountain in the centre of town they were able to talk about heaven and answered the girls serious questions. “I loved being able to share my faith openly with them and we were able to leave a New Testament and some leaflets with them” shared Susie. “We had to leave them earlier than I would have liked because our team was leaving, but I pray that God will touch their lives.”
« While Impact Ireland teams sought to see lives and communities transformed with the love of God, often the greatest impact of the time was felt in their own lives. One team member wrote, “Reading my Bible is now enjoyable!”
Another commented, “I’m excited to return home to do outreach in my areas. I love seeing people thinking twice about their eternity.”
And another wrote, “I’ve learnt I can share the Gospel just through the way I am, loving people and not forcing them.”
« The final day of Impact Ireland proved especially memorable for OM Ireland team members Alastair and Helen Kerr thanks to the arrival of their new baby daughter.
Credit: OM International
© 2007
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