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This summer our outreach ministry was pleased to provide scholarships for Hayden Rotzoll, Ellie Greene, and Andrew Hegle to participate in the ministry of Koinonia. As has been our habit for many years concerning ministry projects, we encourage those who have benefitted from the support of the church to share highlights of their ministry with the church family. In doing so, our hope is to encourage you all in the Lord with what He is doing in and through our youth.

Hayden Rotzoll

This was Hayden’s second year on the trip, and the Lord worked in her heart to be more open to talking to both the people in the crowds they ministered to and to other youth on the trip whom she previously would not have tried to talk to.

Hayden says that on a few nights “they had to drag me away from conversations after the performance.” She enjoyed talking and praying with members of the audiences and also with the other youth especially on the bus. She often asked others to share their testimonies with her.

One of the awesome things that the Lord did on the trip was to bring one of the Koinonia youth to a saving knowledge of Jesus. This particular girl was on her first trip.

On the third day Larry ate a duck egg and got sick because he is allergic to them. So the group was hanging out singing songs of worship.

This girl played a song for the group which brought everyone to tears. Later that evening she “got saved!” For the rest of the trip she was talking to people about how Jesus saved her, and she couldn’t wait to get home and talk to her brother about it!

Ellie Greene

Ellie is also a veteran Koinonia Singer. This year the Lord was working in her heart to remind her that God is still there even when she doesn’t feel him. The trip for Ellie was not as impacting on her emotionally, but she was impacted strongly through the study and discussion of His Word.

In the times of devotions, in the conversations on the bus, and in the focus on Psalm 119 which happened throughout the trip, Ellie came to know in a greater way the sweetness and the power of God’s Word.

One of the most impacting things Ellie saw the Lord do was in the conversations with people after their performances. Some of these conversations took place with people who had never heard the gospel. She was deeply impacted by these talks.

Finally, Ellie was encouraged by the way the Lord was working on some of the youth on the trip who went “from going through the motions to pursuing God.”

Andrew Hegle

This was Andrew’s last year on the trip, and it was different from other years because he “did not have a eureka moment” like he had in the past. Instead, he felt encouraged in his walk with the Lord “step by step” and was able “to be content and patient.”

As this is his last year with Koinonia, Andrew is looking at the future beyond high school. Koinonia has been such a big part of his growth in the Lord, but he knows that the Lord will continue to lead and guide him in other ways since the Lord works in many other ways.

His desire is to continue to seek the Lord wholeheartedly. Join with him in praying that he and all the Koinonia crew will grow so that their faith will become their own and not just because of being around other Christians.