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quarterly newsletter issue #5 march 2011 bay #8 3530 11a st ne calgary ab canada t2e 6m7 1.877.356.0707 office@aymi.ca www.aymi.ca youth workers the unsung heroes larry moore aymi executive director i believe that every church is full of unsung heroes people whom the lord uses in quiet ways throughout their lives in service that few ever see dictionary.com calls the unsung hero a person who makes a substantive yet unrecognized contribution and there are many of them it s not possible to point out everyone who would fall into this category but i want to take a minute to draw your attention to at least one of them the youth worker continued inside eternal riders partners with aymi my name is dallas mclean i have been working with eternal riders for 6 years i did four years at eston college and now work full time for eternal riders as a missionary to the riding culture skiing snowboarding surfing wakeboarding skate etc i currently call revelstoke bc my home where i am actively involved in reaching out to the ski and snowboard community eternal riders is a organization that is dedicated to evangelism and discipleship in the riding culture we do this through the er clothing line ride with us camps sports media speaking at youth outreaches and partnering with professional athletes we also sponsor secular events and host our own demos and competitions all these are tools we use to preach the gospel and encourage believers in their faith the organization was founded in hawaii by a professional wind surfer and is now in usa canada europe and tahiti date our latest tour included an amazing weekend at encounter in eston sk and then a stop at bethany college in saskatoon and let me say this the stop at bethany was an interesting one i enjoyed one of the most fun dance workshops i have ever taught and the students were able to share in 2 of my most embarrassing moments 1 standing on a chair while the entire student body sang happy birthday to me and 2 hitting the floor for some sweet dance moves too early in the performance as the rest of my team looked on while still in the standing portion of our routine thank you bethany for making my 30th birthday and my first tour a memorable one continued inside up this summer we are doing our 6th annual ride with us wakeboard camp at bonnyville ab its an amazing opportunity for people to develop their wakeboard skills connect with professional athletes and encounter christ we are very excited to partner with aymi this year in our efforts to take the message of christ to this generation please keep us in prayer.

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motivational media motivational media assemblies has recently undergone some changes as well with brian and meryl reesor feeling like god was now leading them in a new direction lindsay hodges has taken over the responsibility of the direction of this ministry continued from the front page our time in saskatoon was a lot more low key and l1 had time for reflection team bonding and free mcdonald s coffees questions like what makes you feel most alive were asked of us helping us realize that god has definitely brought l1 together through our passions and yearnings to see youth take a bold steps in their faith as they follow god my thoughts on how god is using l1 to advance the kingdom and help us stand in places the world has claimed for its own were solidified as we were ministered to by pastor eldon at circle drive church thank you :o finally mogul mania was waiting l1 packed up and packed into our van and headed to n battleford for our last performance and lots of free mcdonald s feasts here we learned how suffocated you can feel under the pressure of labels lies and being identified by your past we also heard and saw how liberating it is for people when christ enters into these areas and speaks the truth about who we are in him praise jesus sweetly we believe strongly in the presentations and programs offered to public and private schools from elementary to senior high although the start has been slow this year we anticipate that motivational media will build into a substantial ministry of aym we are excited to be able to offer this to the school systems but also to put people in place that will be able to work alongside our local churches in these areas to reach young people with the message of the gospel summer youth missions 2011 every year as we prepare to launch into another season of discipleship y p training and missions we are searching for the lord s heart in where we will go what we will be doing and most importantly what the lord wants to say through his word our vision and passion is for canadian youth to become disciples through the opportunities that training camps and missions offer this is how he has called us to live out our purpose for this ministry it s not the program that makes the difference it s jesus there are thousands of lives that have been impacted by the dynamic of team missions over the past few decades we often hear stories and testimonies of how god touched and transformed the lives of young people we know or have just met these young people have encountered christ at bootcamp on their mission or through individuals who have spoken into their lives during the program there has been an ongoing hunger for the presence and power of god that has been met with a deep work of the holy spirit year after year this is not our doing it is his but we want to be obedient to follow where he leads and to continue in our calling to make disciples of every nation for us it is the special calling of training up and sending out youth to share their faith and the message of jesus christ we cannot do this without the partnership of so many churches that faithfully support this ministry and open opportunities for outreach by hosting our missions teams prayer is such a big part of the work when the body of christ begins to pray and intercede for corporate outreach to the community and our nation god hears and he answers we want to say a huge thank you to all who have given so much in your prayers resources and facilities over the years to see the hearts of our nation s youth impacted with the holy spirit s life-changing power we encourage everyone who has a heart for the youth to be faithful in prayer and to step out in faith and do that which god has challenged you in your heart to do if it involves supporting this work or joining us as a volunteer or staff member to see youth won for christ and discipled we will share in that blessing this summer is going to be even better than what we have already experienced here is a bit of what is shaping up and what we are trusting god to do sk eston program july 24 ­ august 14 10 missions approx across the prairies and internationally africa malawi and south africa kosovo europe there are so many people who are lost and are in physical and spiritual poverty jesus will stretch out his hand through his body as we are obedient he will show himself and rescue the lost bc surrey vancouver program august 7 21 4 missions approx in southern bc and to our southern neighbours los angeles california dream center puerto vallarta mexico calvary chapel mission these missions will be a lot of hard work as we reach out to people who have been broken by life s disappointments and poverty he is sending in more labourers into his vineyard qc gatineau program august 7-21 4 missions approx into quebec ontario and the maritimes this is a new opportunity for us to reach deeper into our diverse country and its people god s plan for our nation is unfolding and he is mighty to save if you would like to prepare for a mission outreach through your church or ministry if you know of some young people who need this in their lives or if you would like to get behind what we are doing through prayer or financial support please contact us today!

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youth workers the unsung heroes continued from the front page these are the people in our churches who gladly works with our pre-teens junior highs and senior highs most of the time they aren t paid anything for what they do and if the truth were told many people wonder why they do it at all most people only have a cursory view of the church on a sunday where the youth worker is not noticed because they are rarely on the platform here is a small glimpse into some of their lives they often spend a couple of evenings a week at events with a group of teenagers that many adults are happy to be away from they have their heart broken regularly as they listen to problems that students share because there is no one for them to talk to at home if they do get paid for their work they are often asked when they are going to get a real job they regularly deal with the youth ministry being last on the list for the church s budget and the first one to be cut they honestly believe with every fiber of their being that their youth can make a significant difference in the world they encounter great loneliness many times because there are so few people that can identify with or understand their call they have to balance the culture of their students with the culture of a church which many times doesn t understand them and often doesn t want to what drives a person to give up their evenings their weekends and in some cases their lives for a group of people that can be hard to understand and communicate with and get little of earthly value in return i think in many cases they are driven by a call that looks similar to what david had when he wrote in psalms `so even to old age and gray hairs o god do not forsake me until i proclaim your might to another generation your power to all those to come ­ psalms 71:18 sure there are others in life that face similar and even harder things but today it is the youth worker`s turn to be honored thankfully there are many churches that understand the value of their ministry as well as the value of them as a person maybe you attend a church like this but even if you do let s make a point of honoring them here are some things you can do when you see your church s youth worker tell them you appreciate them and what they do regardless if you have students in the youth program or not volunteer to drive or clean up or if you are really brave spend an overnight with the youth group as a chaperone if you have a couple of extra bucks buy them a gift card for a restaurant that they like at your church s annual business meeting be their cheerleader and advocate most of all tell them you are praying for them and then do it what we do at aymi is very important many of us have given our lives for the sake of what god has called us to in this ministry however i want you to know that it s these people who are on the front lines every single day they are the real heroes they re my heroes.

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for all your design needs .com lindsay hodges lifeforce director thankfully our lives are dominated by change although some of this change may not seem good at the time it needs to take place in order for us to grow as individuals or even as organizations this year has seen a tremendous amount of change in our offices new ministries are joining aym at our facility in calgary we re building out some of our office space to house more staff street invaders is expanding and lifeforce has seen some change with different kinds of teams in new places over the past number of months i have felt that a change is coming to my life as well as i have prayed and fasted it seems that my time as lifeforce director is coming to a close in some ways it feels like a big decision but in other ways not so much as there is a peace in following the plan god is laying out before us there is also a great deal of excitement in having danny and alycia delong return to canada to take over the direction of lifeforce they are an amazing couple who will push lifeforce forward as an organization to see thousands more impacted with the gospel over the past 20 years i have been a part of lifeforce in many positions team member team leader bootcamp and academic director and executive director all along i ve been mentored by some great people like chris foster phil collins todd atkinson wendell quincey and larry moore i ve also learned from dozens of others that have led teams with me and for me hosted teams for me worked alongside me and have been some of my best friends and supporters through difficult times the truth is i have been unbelievably blessed and honoured to work with staff leadership and students alike who have sacrificed a significant portion of their lives and finances to travel across canada and overseas to bring the message of jesus to those who have not heard it each year i cannot wait for the year end celebrations where we sit around and talk about what god had done to us and through us the reminders of those testimonies will stay with me for the rest of my life at this time shelley and i do not have a particular direction we feel god is leading us i believe that some of those kinds of decisions will be influenced by the speed of our daughter s healing in the meantime i will continue to work at aym overseeing motivational media one of our new public school presentation ministries and other elements of the office here in calgary aym is growing as god is increasing the size of our tent and i m excited to see where he leads us as an organization danny and alycia after 6 years of working to establish lifeforce in the united kingdom we are excited to announce that danny and alycia delong are returning to calgary to take over as directors of lifeforce teams international they have been able to see lifeforce grow as a significant ministry in the schools and churches of the west midlands and will be passing the reins to new young leaders that will continue that work their work in the uk spanned far beyond traditional lines of what the canadian lifeforce base has done and we re excited to see what ideas and new vision danny and alycia will bring to our operations out of calgary although dates are not confirmed at the moment they are looking to move back around june of this year and will be starting in the office in the summer please pray for them as they look to develop and expand the success of this ministry pray for our ministries join our prayer team by emailing us your address at prayer@aymi.ca we want to take this opportunity to say thanks to mark niles for all of his hard work dedication generosity and passion that he has shown through his many years of working with aymi it wasn t unusual for him to use his own money to travel to churches and youth groups to encourage them and invite them to be a part of street invaders mark has resigned from aymi and street invaders and is focusing on developing a tent-making career in photography in order to have even greater freedom for future ministry endeavors he will be missed and we want to say a huge thanks for all he has contributed god bless you mark we want to thank brian and meryl for their efforts to get motivational media canada up and running here in calgary and pray blessings on them and their family as they move into a new phase of their lives summer youth missions ministries international thank you from the aymi family.

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