RUSH 2019 Youth Conference!
RUSH 2019 took place the weekend of Feb 22-24. LCA had 38 people in total attending (19 girls, 11 guys and 8 leaders). This report from our Youth leaders Braden and Jenna Job will inspire you to keep on praying for the youth at LCA.
Our kids had been looking forward to the Rush weekend for weeks leading up to it. The conference is always a big highlight for our youth group. It is a chance to take a break from school and join hundreds of other students from all over the province in a safe place to learn more about God.
This years speaker, Jason Ballard from the Lower Mainland, led our youth to take charge of their lives and empower them to tackle their struggles. All weekend our youth took the front few rows at concerts and Rush Rallys (worship sessions and talks). This was awesome because we were right in the action and were able to enjoy the concerts from close up as a group. This helped everyone to really engage in the music and talks and fostered growth between the whole group. This also led to many kids joining in the mosh pit area and building memories of how crazy it was; getting squished and tossed around.
Staying at the church for the weekend is also always a highlight for the kids. This is where relationships really grow as everyone is essentially living together for the weekend which is something they have never done before. All this wrapped up with bus rides together to and from every destination to sing and talk and have a great time. Even during our amazing activities, our teens joined forces to take on laser tag, Crux climbing wall, Zorbs, and Scandia.
Spiritual growth is also a highlight of Rush. This year we had Caleb accept Jesus as his Lord and Savior which is a huge step! He has been testing the waters for the past few months, asking questions and seeking answers and we are so glad he likes what he has found in Jesus. We have and will continue to keep a close eye on him in his faith journey as he seeks to grow a relationship with God. We also had many kids re-commit themselves and have intense spiritual moments and for that we are also pleased. Jason giving the talks this year really connected what we have been doing this year at our Overflow sessions with real life. A lot of the youth often put up walls on how they feel. They act a certain way, avoiding difficult topics, putting on a mask to hide what they really feel inside. This year at Rush, God was truly present. He broke down walls, showed kids that they don't need to hide how they really feel and that its okay to feel broken, and He can heal that pain and work through others who will accept them and feel along side them without condemnation.
(Submitted by Jenna Job)