Discovering Gifts by Learning Together
/EPIC Ministries at CFNA
“Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.” — 1 Peter 4:10
What happens when you put bicycles, small engines, Go-Karts, tools, and a group of curious young people together? At CFNA this summer, it created an opportunity to learn, discover gifts, build friendships, and serve together!
At the end of July, EPIC Ministries (Experiential Partnerships in Christ Ministry) partnered with CFNA to offer a weeklong “How It Works Camp” for youth ages 13–17. EPIC Ministries conducts community outreach and youth programs by connecting churches and organizations that want to serve with ministries that have projects and community needs. At CFNA, the project was coordinated together with Community Engagement Coordinator Amy Zeigler.
Throughout the week, youth learned about small engines, bicycles, and Go-Karts. They disassembled machines, explored the tools, parts, and systems that make them work, and then put their growing knowledge into practice. Language and cultural differences did not matter once everyone gathered around the workbench. “Engines and mechanics speak a universal language,” is what I observed. Those with more experience began helping others, and as knowledge grew, so did friendship and camaraderie among young people from different countries and backgrounds. Seeing these fellas from different countries and backgrounds come together around a common interest was of great benefit for me as an instructor.
Simon, a CFNA youth from Sudan, thought the experience opened the door to something completely new. “It was really nice to learn how to work with a bike, and also understand how an engine works. I never learnt anything like this, and it was very interesting. The pastor who taught us was very nice to us.”
Simon’s experience reminds us that sometimes discovering a gift begins simply by being given an opportunity to try something new. A young person picks up a tool, takes apart an engine, learns from someone willing to teach, and perhaps begins to discover an ability or interest God has already placed within them.
Our partnership between EPIC Ministries and CFNA is meaningful, as it creates spaces where young people can learn new skills, discover possibilities within themselves, build relationships across cultures, and experience the love of Christ through people willing to share their own gifts with them. Sometimes ministry happens around a Bible, sometimes around a meal. Sometimes it happens around a bicycle and a small engine!
by Pastor Larry Bell
EPIC Ministry
