The Beck's Journey: Summer Team #2- The Fellowship, Round Rock

We were blessed once again by The Fellowship in Round Rock, Texas! This is their 4th trip and it's fun to welcome back friends who feel like family. They brought down a team of 25 high school students and leaders who came ready and prepared to serve in our communities. They were hard at work hosting a Vacation Bible School, participating in soccer camp, completing several much needed projects at the school, and loving on kids in our communities. This was the 3rd trip for Spencer Engelke, and for

this week's blog, he's sharing his story. One of the things we often share with groups is that while they are here, we want them to focus more on the relationships instead of the projects...and especially their relationship with Christ. It's our desire that we create an environment where group members can encounter Christ in new and fresh ways! I have a feeling that you will be encouraged, challenged and blessed as you read about Spencer's experience last week.

Love,
The Becks

A great big "Thank You" to Spencer for sharing what God's been doing...Enjoy!

Spencer and one of his buddies!

Hello my name is Spencer Engelke and really want to share my experience of Christ in the DR! I am a member of The Fellowship Round Rock and have been blessed to go to the DR three times. The Dominican Republic is an amazing country, the people in it are such an encouragement to me personally, and God has his hands on and in the midst of the Makarios ministry. The Lord has used their loving with reckless abandonment to further my relationship with Christ and the church. What I mean, in saying loving with reckless abandonment, is loving expecting nothing in return, without the fear of rejection, and just loving because they were first loved by Christ. This is so evident when you go to the DR, every single person on staff at Makarios is excited to meet you and invest in you. Even if you will only be there for a week the staff pours into you, whether that be with words or just a smile and a hug. As well as the children there, the kids just want to play and love you because you’re you, not because you earned there love or even built a relationship. They just love and it was so amazing to witness love like that. After seeing and experiencing that love three times The Lord has really changed my heart on the way I see people in the states. He has touched me deeply to love with reckless abandonment and understanding that amazing love can’t come from me, but only through Christ’s love. This experience of Christ has affected many aspects of my life such as, the way I view a bus ride with a random stranger, investing in people that most likely will reject me, and how I

Vacation Bible School!

long for acceptance. Especially with the view of acceptance, The Lord revealed to me that if you’re loving people for acceptance than heartbreak and envy will come sooner or later. Understanding that The Lord sent his perfect son to die for our sins and give us Christ’s righteous as an acceptance that exceeds everything else on this earth. Knowing that

the Creator of the universe loves and accepts me because what Christ did is so freeing. I am free to love because when judgment comes on this earth I know that I have a Father in Heaven that sees me as one of his children.(John 1:12) All this was revealed to me because God used other broken people to show his love. “ By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35) The Lord changed my heart in a big way in the Dominican Republic and all I can do in response is praise His Name and make it famous.