The majority of you reading this are probably thinking, “What is ALS?”

“Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, is a disease of the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement.”* The first symptom of this disease that my grandfather experienced was when his foot stopped working. We were not sure what was going on. He kept tripping and sometimes falling down because of it. It was not until March that he was officially diagnosed with ALS. My Grandfather was in the hospital recently, on a ventilator in the MICU (Medical Intensive Care Unit). He does not like it there as much, because he does not get much attention and he is lonely. It is understandable why he does not get as much care there because he is doing OK and there are a lot of other people in the MICU that are not doing very well.

I am so incredibly happy to say that he is currently being moved into a home for special care. This will be much a better place for my grandfather. He will get better care there, and he will also be able to zoom around the home in a motorized wheelchair with his ventilator on the back of it and tell his jokes to all the people there, even if they may not be funny.

When I visited my grandfather over the summer, I really got to look into all of the difficulties this disease causes. Because my grandfather lost the muscle control of his legs, he had to be placed into a wheelchair. My grandfather is a devout Catholic, but when he realized that his church did not have a wheelchair ramp, he had to go to a different church, which he was very upset about. So maybe the next time you go to your church, see if there is a wheelchair ramp. If there is not, maybe you can ask for one to be installed and allow even more people to come to church. After his legs stopped working, the disease took away the muscle control in his arms. He had trouble going to the bathroom by himself, taking a shower and much more. He became very depressed that he could not do these simple tasks, so he ended up just staying at home and watching TV. We ordered a motorized wheelchair for him, but by the time it came to my grandparents’ house, the chair was of no use to him. The disease moved so quickly that each accommodation or device we ordered came too late to be of use. He had to get a speech therapist, a home nurse who helped him get dressed, shower and get to the bathroom, plus a physical therapist. He still was not happy.

Then he got a cold, and because my grandfather is somewhat conservative, he didn’t like to cough in front of us. Because of this and the fact that his muscle control problems made coughing very difficult and painful for him, he rarely coughed, so his cold got worse. The cold turned into pneumonia, and he had to be placed into the hospital in the MICU.

I am not trying to make you feel sorry for me or my grandfather; actually I want this article to have the opposite effect. I want to raise awareness about ALS. When my family first received the news, we did not know what the disease was and we had to look it up. The fact that I had never heard of such a horrible disease before appalled me. How could I not know about this? Why does no one know about this? And it turns out that most people do not know about this disease. I just want to raise public awareness and let people know that fatal diseases like this are out there. So thank you for reading this article, and I hope that you were inspired, or at least learned something from it. Even if no one reads this article, I am happy to have shared my experience, and to have been given the opportunity to speak about ALS.

By Ally Wright
Ally went on a mission trip to YouthWorks’ Queens site during summer 2011.

Source
*”Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.” PubMed Health. N.p., 27 Aug. 2010. Web. 14 Nov. 2011. .

Last summer, the First Evangelical Lutheran Church youth group from Taylors Falls, Minn. sent a team of 16 youth on a YouthWorks mission trip to the Indian Reservation in Cass Lake, MN. On the last night of their trip they met as a team and discussed how they could take what they learned back to their community and make a difference in people’s lives closer to home. That night, they decided to put together a team to pursue what it would take to update, replace and repair the church’s playground.

They spent the summer and early fall meeting together researching the costs, personnel, materials and equipment it would take to pull off such a project. After the research was completed, the student leader, Gabriel Francis, wrote up the information as a grant proposal and submitted it to the YouthWorks Foundation.

Every year, through their 1K Challenge program, the YouthWorks Foundation awards 10 grants of $1,000 each to youth groups from all over the country who want to show Jesus’ love and impact their local communities. This grant was submitted mid-October and three weeks later Gabe received a phone call from YouthWorks with the good news that First Lutheran’s youth group was one of the groups approved out of many submissions nationwide! You can imagine the excitement of the team! Funds have already been received, and the team is just waiting for spring so they can get started on the project.

The team identified a need in both the church and community. The need applies directly to the families and children in the area around the church in Taylors Falls, Minn. This need is for a playground with safe, up-to-date equipment. There is currently no such area where the local kids can play. The church’s current equipment is unsafe and broken with rotted wood and rusted metal. The team researched new pieces to add to the current equipment; identified what pieces need to be torn out, repaired and painted; thought through who can help with the construction; and considered what sort of ground layering needs to be laid down.

This new equipment and play area will be accompanied by a youth-led ministry focusing on bringing young children and their parents together in a kind of community get-together. This ministry will involve a community cookout and activity night about once a month during nice-weather months. It would include games with the youth group for the children, as well as a few structured events such as skits, stories and music. This ministry will be planned and staffed by the youth.

The core group of youth who worked on the research aspect of this project are: Gabriel Francis, Dylan Lynch, Shawn Valez, Dustin Valez, Ben Trudeau, Devon Fredlund and Kayla Donahue. Adults supervising are Michelle Lynch (Youth Minister), Jason Fredlund and Buddy Mattson.

The group decided there were five things they wanted to see happen because of this grant/project: a stronger community, more youth involvement in the church, outreach to children, a high return rate of kids who come and the ability to keep up with the way life in our area is changing. First Lutheran Church is extremely excited and proud of the leadership of these fine youth.

Article provided by the First Evangelical Lutheran Church youth group.

The following video is their response.

I’m a girl who suffers from an eating disorder. My mom’s anorexic and by seeing her bad habits and wanting to help her so badly, we both became anorexic. I can also say that both my grandmas’ sudden deaths last year did not help either of us at all.

After a few meals with them, the staff started noticing how I wasn’t eating much at all. I only ate an apple a day, if that. Noticing that, the Schuylkill staff there sat down and talked with me one of the nights and listened to my whole story and after that we prayed together. I will admit that tears did fall from my eyes; they touched my heart so much and made me feel that I need to eat more, and I can’t let my life go now.

After talking with them that Thursday night, I felt so good about myself that the next day I ate even more. I’ve never felt the way I did that night after talking with them. I have been fighting with these problems for months, and my mom has for over a year now. I’m proud to admit that after months of not feeling good each day and even developing breathing problems, I’m finally almost completely done with this battle. If I didn’t get to go on that mission trip and sit down and talk with the staff, I think I would be really, really sick and getting worse.

Besides the battle on the trip, I had so much fun serving others; it’s what I love to do. Getting to work with the kids at Kids Club was amazing, but hearing them curse was horrible. Even when running the crafts, we set up a project that says something about Christ that they would want to do. I enjoyed getting to know the kids there and getting to work with them.

On the last full two days, I enjoyed working with the elderly at the senior centers. I had some experience working with the elderly before the trip, because my church helps out at a place nearby, but getting even more experience and being with them all day was so much fun. They are so friendly and love to talk to you.

Also, the other churches that we got to meet were so friendly, and we keep in touch and will for a while. I’m excited for my church group to get our service project started so that we can continue to help others while not on a mission trip.

The activities we did were really fun, especially the scavenger hunt. It was such a neat way to get to know the town better. Even though I don’t like ice cream, I still enjoyed taking pictures at different places. Tuesday, when we toured a coalmine, it was amazing; I never thought I would see the inside of one.

Then, Wednesday, it was really fun playing the best game ever with a staff member on the sand from the lake; we got him to love the game “Ninja.” And, of course, on the way back from the lake, I went to go get out of the car and ended up getting my head shut in a car door since we were parked on hill. That got some laughs from everyone, but I ended up with bumps on each side of my head and couldn’t open my mouth all the way for days.

How could I forget Thursday, the best day of all. My crew got to serve at the Community Cookout, which was a neat experience and we even had some entertainment. I loved the songs from Club and even wrote down some of the names so now, whenever I’m feeling down, I listen to them.

I really believe that this trip brought be closer to God and made me realize that the first step to getting better is forgiving myself. I can’t wait for the day to come where I’m anorexic-free again, when I will be as healthy as can be. The verses that kept me strong through this are from Psalms 139:1, 13–14:

“You have searched me, LORD,
and you know me…
For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together…
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”

My story may not be prize-winning, but I wanted to share it anyway to show how nice my staff was.

–Melissa, Schuylkill County 2011

Write down your answers, then follow the directions at the end to find out!

1. What do you like to do on the weekend?
a. Paint the inside of your closet
b. Play in a four-square tournament
c. Manage your finances
d. Take the bus downtown to hang out at a nursing home
e. Play Xbox with your friends

2. What job would you like to have at your church?
a. Church Secretary
b. Youth Minister
c. Nursery Coordinator
d. Building Maintenance
e. Outreach Coordinator

3. What type of candy bar would you be?
a. Snickers
b. 3 Musketeer
c. Baby Ruth
d. 100 Grand
e. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup

4. What is your favorite subject in school?
a. Math
b. Lunch
c. Art
d. Gym
e. Social Studies

5. If soaked by a squirt gun, you would most likely be:
a. Grateful for cool water on a hot day
b. Worried your cell phone got wet
c. Looking for an empty bucket
d. Wondering if the water could be put to better use
e. Too deep in conversation to even care

Add up your points for each answer to determine your point total:
1. a=4, b=2, c=1, d=3, e=5
2. a=1, b=5, c=2, d=4, e=3
3. a=1, b=5, c=2, d=3, e=4
4. a=1, b=5, c=4, d=2, e=3
5. a=4, b=1, c=2, d=3, e=5

Use your point total to determine your position:
5–9: Site Director
10–13: Kids Club or Outrageous Sports Camp Staff
14–16: Urban Staff
17–20: Work Projects Staff
21–25: Program Staff

Write your results in the comment section below!

If you are at least a year out of high school and are really wondering what YouthWorks position would be a good fit for you, click here.

(We’re especially looking for men and guitar players to apply!)

Winners: Jay and Trevor. THANKS FOR VOTING EVERYBODY!

If you bought a drawstring bag, which color would you choose? Use the comments below to vote on your top 3 choices, in order.

Teenagers who tell us their favorite colors by the end of Sunday, December 4 will be entered in a drawing to win a FREE DRAWSTRING BAG!

Top Row: Navy, Black, Blue, Red, White, Gray, Teal

Bottom Row: Yellow, Forest Green, Aqua, Orange, Pink, Purple, Maroon, Brown

I will always remember the generous, kind, passionate, caring and loving people that I met. I wish I could’ve spent more time with them. For the first time I felt the Holy Spirit actually working in me when I got my feet washed. It is just so neat that I can’t explain it. I met some incredibly awesome people and don’t ever want to forget about them.

I am going to try and make a difference in the community in which I live because it all goes back to God! He did everything for me, so I should give back to him all that I can.

I have an AMAZING God and can’t thank him enough for all the blessings he has showered upon me. I love you, Lord!

by Emily Hoffman

Central Christian Church
Huntington, IN

Students have jumpstarted a Blessings in a Backpack program, which provides kids who receive free or reduced lunches with a backpack of food to eat over the weekend. This year student leaders are expanding the program to reach more kids and generate awareness within their community.

Constance Free Church
Andover, MN

The youth group is piloting a week of service, where teenagers will lead 4^th and 5^th graders in local- and global-focused service projects. They hope to repeat this camp every summer so elementary students will continue to realize that they, too, can make a difference through service.

Family of Christ Lutheran Church
Lakeville, MN

Recognizing the many difficult issues with which people in their community struggle, teenagers are beginning a “prayer bear” ministry. Their commitment to pray for individuals will come with a note, a stuffed bear and interaction with those they are ministering too.

First Evangelical Lutheran Church
Taylors Falls, MN

Teenagers will be leading the charge to replace the church’s old playground equipment to create an area where community kids feel welcome. The youth group will also expand their ministry by inviting kids and their families to the church once a month for a cookout, games, Bible stories, skits and more.

First Presbyterian Church
London, OH

Fresh produce has been added to the menu at the Welcome Table Soup Kitchen thanks to teenagers who will begin a community garden in the local FFA greenhouse. In addition, the 70-plus people attending each weekly meal will be able to take home the extra greens.

Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
La Crosse, WI

Taking what they learned on their Kokomo mission trip, students are making dish and laundry soap to donate to those in need through local service organizations. One-third of the soap they create will be sold so the initiative can continue after the initial funding has been used.

Pinelands United Methodist Church
Hammonton, NJ

With a desire to build stronger relationships with the rest of their congregation by serving together, the youth group is beginning a monthly community outreach that will provide ongoing service for the elderly and at-need through cooking meals and completing service projects.

St. Luke/St. Paul’s Lutheran Churches
Emerson, NE

With no gathering place for youth in town, teenagers are partnering with churches and community organizations to found a youth center to give students a place to hang out and avoid other negative pastimes. Teenagers are fundraising by running the local recycling program each weekend.

Webster Groves Church of the Nazarene
Webster Groves, MO

As they build and maintain a garden at a local nursing home, the youth group will be sewing relationships with residents. Teenagers hope the garden will give the elderly a sense of pride in the place they live and the opportunity to build community with youth around a common effort.

Zion Lutheran Church
Valley City, OH

Faith Rebuild, an organization started by a member of the youth group, buys, brands and markets bags that are sold to raise funds for fighting malaria, hunger and lack of clean water around the world. This year they will expand the initiative by creating a website and selling at larger venues.

*We’re posting a six-day devotional this week. Come back each day and spend some guided time with Jesus.

Your mission trip might be over but your journey continues. We hope this devotional will serve to help you continue to engage with God and God’s Word. As you read from the Bible, think about what God is saying. Pray and talk to God as you process your experience and then do something about what you are learning.

DAY 6

Read.

Psalm 143

Think.

David was obviously distressed when he wrote this prayer. What about his prayer stands out to you?

What challenges have you faced since you’ve returned from your mission trip?

What prayers have you prayed since being back? What are some of the ways you have experienced God’s faithfulness, righteousness or unfailing love in the midst of those prayers?

Pray.

Pray through Psalm 143 using your own words and expressing your own emotions, thoughts and experiences.

Do.

Take those emotions, thoughts and experiences and write about them. You could write a poem, a journal entry or even a story. It’s your choice.

*We’re posting a six-day devotional this week. Come back each day and spend some guided time with Jesus.

Your mission trip might be over but your journey continues. We hope this devotional will serve to help you continue to engage with God and God’s Word. As you read from the Bible, think about what God is saying. Pray and talk to God as you process your experience and then do something about what you are learning.

DAY 5

Read.

John 17:6–26

Think.

“My prayer is not for them alone (the disciples), I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message…” That’s you and me. Jesus’ prayer is for us. What did he pray for?

He prayed and then he had to go, but his ministry was not done. He left it to the disciples and to the ones who would believe in him through their message… that’s you and me.

Pray.

What did Jesus pray for you? Pray for those things.

Do.

What might it look like for you to carry on Jesus’ ministry in your community?

Make a collage or a piece of art that answers this question. Put your art somewhere you will see it every day. Let it remind you of your desire to love others in a way that represents Christ.