Rock Harbor Field Trip!

Saturday August 25th Pacific Youth Correctional Ministries had a field trip for 25 incarcerated teenagers. Chaplain Rick and I and a few other volunteers were able to spend a good 5hours of quality time with these teen boys and girls.Rock Harbor Church in Costa Mesa holds 10+ years of memories for me. It was the church i went to right out of highschool, through all of my college years from 18yrs old-29yrs old. It is where God sparked my  heart for serving Him and others with the gifts and talents He has given me----> locally and globally! Very thankful for this church and the heart they have to worship God and reach out into the community and around the world!!

These teens were from 3 of the 4 different facilities that Pacific Youth ministers to in Orange County: Joplin Youth Center, Youth Leadership Academy (YLA), and Youth Guidance Center (YGC).

They arrived around 4pm and we had dinner and refreshments catered to them at Rock Harbor in Costa Mesa before the 6pm service. It was a blessed time of fellowship and getting to know them. Several of the teens had attended my Bible studies in YLA or church services we hold at Juvenile Hall so it was good to be able to sit down and have my 1st meal with them!:

After dinner and good conversations we headed into a different room to sit and hear the powerful life stories of Becky Tirabassi and Mikey Place. They shared with the teens how God had dramatically and radically changed their lives and delivered them from substance abuse and a life of destruction and a spiral of sin. Mikey used to be incarcerated in Juvenile Hall and now God has opened doors for him to be accepted into Calvary Chapel Bible college and people have donated to cover his tuition/boarding. Mikey was able to grow in the LORD while being ministered to through Pacific Youth Ministry during his time being locked up. What a great success story of seeds being planted and God reaping a Harvest!!! It is so encouraging to me. It was great to hear these teen boys hear the story of hope and transformation.

Here is a picture of Mikey sharing his testimony.He did a great job, God spoke mightily through him. ( i am sooo proud of him!!!):

 

After the testimony sharing we went to the 6pm service. The message tonight was perfectly planned by God: topic of suffering and carrying heavy burdens  (James 5). 

 

When the teens attend church services at the facilities (YLA, Juvenile Hall,Joplin & YGC) they have to sit in their seats. Saturday evening at Rock Harbor, we all ROCKED OUT!! No one was seated and every single one of the 25 teens were standing up, clapping, smiling, laughing and singing out loud!! It was a whole new atmosphere experience for them, and they absolutely LOVED it. I loved watching them be so joyful and excited to sing. It was the most joy and peace i had seen in them, ever!! It was good seeing them let their guards down and just worship the LORD freely.

 

Afterwards, many of the teenagers told me that they would love to visit Rock Harbor again or another church when they get released. For some of them, it was their first time EVER at any church. Everyone was on their best behavior and it looked like the Probation Staff had a good time also and were blessed by the evening.

 

I got an opportunity to pray over several young men who are getting released in the next few days. May they continue to seek the LORD and read His Word.

 

Saturday was unforgettable for me and the teenagers. I will never forget the JOY on their faces and the excitement they had. Please pray that these 25 teens continue to seek His face and grow in Him. Thank you for your support and prayers!!!!

 

Sunday August 26th :Chaplain Rick & i taught the church services at Juvenile Hall and Youth Guidance Center and we had 65 teenagers attend. Some of  the teens who went on the Sat field trip told me that their voices were almost gone & their hands hurt from clapping and singing so loud @ Rock Harbor. That made me smile.

 

My support account is very low at the moment...if you would like to help support me & this ministry with the teens, the donation info is on the right hand side of this page.Every amount helps! ------->     

 

His Servant,

Michelle Smith

The F Word

 The big F Word....

FORGIVENESS!

 

 

"Bitterness is like swallowing a bottle of poison-and waiting for the other person to die"
~Jon Courson
 

We ALL have been hurt by other people in our lives & we ALL  have hurt other people. The way we DEAL with that hurt will impact the HEALTH of our life (and the lives around us): It affects our mind, thoughts, heart, actions, relationships, etc.

 

When we do wrong to someone else by our actions or words, we  usually desire to be forgiven. To be shown grace & hear those precious words "I forgive you." What a beautiful relief to hear those words!! Lifts a burden off of us & off them.When we are wronged by someone else, we are challenged with the command by God to forgive them.  

 

Let's look at what God says about the F word:

Ephesians 4:31 "Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger..."

 

Matthew 6:15 "But if you do not forgive men  their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."

 

Ephesians 4:32-5:1 "Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children."

 

Romans 12:19 "Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written 'it is mine to avenge. I will repay,' says the LORD."

 

Psalm 86:5 "For You LORD are good, and ready to forgive."

 

Mark 11:25 "And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him."

 

Proverbs 19:11 "A man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense."

 

Isaiah 43:25 "I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions, for My own sake, and remembers your sins no more."

 

1 Corinthians 13:4-5 "Love is patient, love is kind...it keeps no record of wrongs."

 

These are just a few of many verses addressing the HEART ISSUE of forgiveness. If we waited till we FELT like forgiving someone, we would probably never forgive them!

 

I am writing this blog because FORGIVENESS is difficult for me at times when someone has deeply hurt me. Forgiving my own self is hard at times also. I am so critical &  hard on myself (a perfectionist mentality), i often am able to show grace to others before i am able to extend grace to myself. God's working on me with that  :)

 

I am writing this blog to confess,  that i was just made aware today (while i was doing discipleship with a teen girl @ Juvenile Hall, discussing forgiveness) how i have been bitter towards a certain person who had severely hurt me not that long ago. I invested over 3yrs in this person &  was betrayed, lied to, taken advantage of, used, manipulated, and despite me  being faithful, loyal & loving....they were unfaithful & not loyal at all. I thought i had forgiven this person for the heart ache & pain they had caused me, but i just realized today that if i am still holding that record of wrongs against them, i have still not fully forgiven them. They broke my trust towards others & i still struggle with trust due to being deceived.  Oh how i wish they would call me up & say "i am so sorry for all of the hurt i caused you, will you forgive me?" but i know the chance of that happening is VERY rare. So as i write this blog, i am confessing that i struggle with this. I NEED Christ's strength to fully forgive this man. 

 

I am so thankful that when God forgives us of our sins, He doesn't keep a record of them!! Aren't you???  When we place our faith in Jesus Christ & trust in Him, we are redeemed by His bloodshed sacrifice on the Cross. He looks at us as if we are white as snow, as if we never sinned. Completely justified!  I wish i could always see myself the way He sees me.Spotless. Blameless:

 

Isaiah 1:18 "Come now, and let us reason together," Says the Lord, "Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool."

 

We remember the things we've done & said & the painful things others have done & said to us & wish that we could erase them & forget.

 

If i ever ran into this person who betrayed me, i would hope & pray that i could look them in the eyes & say "i forgive you." 

 

I want to add that...forgiveness DOES NOT mean excusing that person for what they did. It means RELEASING that person & the PAIN, HURT, ANGER & BITTERNESS.

 

The Greek meaning of "forgive" means to: "let go, to give up and to keep no longer".

In Hebrew, the word "grudge" means the opposite: "to keep, to hold onto"

 

I remember when i was 24yrs old & had just ended a physically/emotionally/verbally abusive relationship with my fiance. I struggled for a few years with forgiving the traumatic pain & hurt he had caused through out the year & a half we were dating. I know it should not have taken me that long to forgive him. Part of that was my pride & another part of that was not understanding what TRUE forgiveness was. I thought i had to come to the point of "maturity" where i FELT like forgiving him. Well,  guess what?!! I never felt like it & years went by & i realized how my bitterness, anger, hurt & fear had affected my own life & other peoples' lives around me. I carried that hurt & resentment with me like a poison inside me.Thanks to God's strength i can say today that i forgive him & i now am able to share that past story with many people who have been or are going through similiar situations of being a victim of abuse. I am NOT a victim of him or that relationship anymore, because God has HEALED my heart  & because He has given me the strength to forgive & let it go.

 

Is there someone (maybe yourself) who you need to forgive? Are you bitter towards someone?

 

I challenge you to ask yourself & ask God  to search your heart. I thought i was "over it" & had forgiven the last man who hurt me & cheated on me, but then his name was mentioned & i reacted with bitterness. I had swept my unforgiveness under the carpet hoping it wouldn't surface again, but it did. So now i am giving it to God, even though i don't FEEL like forgiving him at all. I release the pain & heartache to the LORD.

 

I have been forgiven by others & shown grace. Most of all, i have been forgiven for my huge DEBT OF  SIN by my Father in Heaven. Who am i to say who shouldn't be forgiven? I am not worthy of being forgiven, so i need to freely forgive back.

 

I share with the incarcerated teens daily about love & forgiveness, yet today i did some deep heart surgery & found out that i had a root of unforgiveness in me. I am confronting that tonight & will be writing a letter to that person. But i will not mail this letter. It will be between me & God. After writing it i will rip it up & be done with it, letting it go FOREVER!

 

Is there someone you need to write a letter to or about? This may be a tangible way to release your emotions to God & allow His love to heal your heart so you can be 100% at peace  & healthy again.

 

LET'S SHOW MORE GRACE, COMPASSION & MERCY. LESS HATE, BITTERNESS & ANGER.

 

Thanks for reading & for your love & support. Love, Michelle

 

Leviticus 19:18 "Never seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone, but love your neighbor  as yourself. I am the LORD."