Saturday was the teams last day in Madera. The students from North Madera High met with the mentors at 1st Streets Church to continue their poster party. We were able to have more bonding time with the students and gave each a little present. The students finished the posters they needed and did their rally shirts as well! All is set for next week!!! The team will be keeping in contact with both North Madera High and Liberty High through their rally and the rest of the school year.

Last day together (Alysha, Jona, Steph, and Sasha)

We will miss the students greatly! All the team were blessed seeing how amazing these students are!

Prayer Request:

Praise that all the mentors made it back to Biola safe from Madera!

North Madera High- That their rally may go well this week coming up. That they may be bold and courageous through doing the events each day.

Liberty High- That all the permits get approved to do their rally and that all goes well with their planning. For Strength to continue with doing the rally.

Today Madera mentors split up into two groups teaming up with  Liberty High and Madera North Campus during lunch and after school to help them reach their campuses.

Liberty High School:

6 other students from the Christian club came along side Arielle to getting involved to outreach on their campus. The mentors asked each student “what their vision for their campus was?” and “what they wanted to see God do in their lives?” Mentors, Aly and Alysha were able to encourage the students and give them words of wisdom.

North Madera High school:

Mentors Zack, Jeryan, and Stephanie met with the christian club during lunch to ask students on their campus questions they had regarding life and God. The responses that we got from the students were unbelievable, asking questions such as, “what is the second coming?” “when was Jesus born and why did he die?” and “Is God three or one?” After school the mentors and student, Sasha were able to talk to four girls asking them, “what do you think happens after death?” The girls responses were amazing and open to hearing what we had to say explaining to them who Jesus is, what He did, and how He desires to have a relationship with them. At the end of our conversation we were able to pray for them and gave them information to how they could get more involved with knowing God. God is doing great things!

Mentors at North Madera High

Sasha and Mentor praying over two students.

Prayer Requests:

• Praise God! He has been moving through both campus in awesome ways and helping both students and mentors reach to others!

• Liberty High- Josh: understanding the forgiveness that God offers and what it means.
• North Madera High- Joana: Understanding God’s grace and being able to live in it.
• Team of Mentors- Strength and wisdom over all of us. Not letting fear conquer us.
• All of Christian club leaders: for any struggles their going through and for their family life. For continuous boldness knowing that they can be used by God in ways we can’t even imagine!

Thank you all for your support and prayers!

-Team Madera

On Tuesday, Team Madera had an amazing time praying with students Joana, Sasha, Emily, and Vince at North Madera High School sacrificing their lunch time. The mentors were able to join them in praying in between groups of students on campus. They prayed over their campus knowing the power it has.

The team was able to meet with both North Madera High School and Liberty High School Christian club leaders.

We were able to finalize plans for North Madera High School’s Rally week happening on April 13th-16th. They have decided to go witnessing after school and also ask students on their campus to fill out John 3:16 surveys, which asks several questions regarding the passage and what it mean to them. The team met with Matthew an after school guitar teacher who is willing to follow up with the students of the christian club once a week after the mentors leave back to Socal.

The team met in the afternoon with Liberty High school’s Christian Club leader, Arielle, and finalized the details for the rally in the next two week on April 22nd. Arielle longs to reach out to her high school and the problem of teen pregnancies on her campus which have led many students to drugs, alcoholism, and prostitution. Here theme for her rally is “Crazy Love,” explaining how God’s love is sufficient and never ending. Nothing can ever separate us from it. A few mentors will be speaking at their christian club meeting to encouraging to witness on their campus and pray for the students.

Christian club leader, Arielle, and Madera Mentors Meeting

Arielle and Mentor Aly discussing rally details

Fellowship:

Youth Pastor, Charles Rigby, along with 3 other college students from Valley West Christian Center met the team for lunch today. He spoke great words of wisdom and supported us in what we were doing in Madera. He is behind us 100% in prayer.

Prayer Requests:

• That everyone’s attitudes may remain high as we take things day by day, hour by hour, not knowing what that day may bring and what is to come.

• Endurance for North Madera High school and Liberty High School because they are doing their rallies later than expected and have taken longer than they thought. That they may be able to get through everything and not get discouraged from the delay in their rally. That they may be continually reminded that all is in God’s timing.

Hey Guys!

Thank you for agreeing to pray for our ministry. We are apart of the California School Project, a ministry at Biola University and we are mentoring christian high schools students in Madera, California which is 20 minutes north of Fresno. We are partnering with them to impact their campuses through outreach. We help them plan rallies, go witnessing, establish regular prayer, pass out christian literature, and other fun stuff. Our main goal is to see Christ glorified on campuses so that students may come to know God intimately. We get the privilege of doing this through developing high school christian club students in leadership, outreach training, and encouragement.

We are currently working with two high school campuses in Madera, Madera High School and Liberty High School. We have recently challenged them to do a week of outreach on their campuses during the month of April. From April 2-10 we will be helping the students to finish planning their outreach week in Madera, California. Giving them further outreach training and we will also be ministering to the homeless population in city of Madera.

Our team bible verse is Matthew 5:14-16, “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

Pray that God’s love would be at the center of everything we do. As we minister to the homeless in Madera and as we go witnessing on high school campuses with the Christian students. Pray that God would use our words to draw people closer to him. Pray that God would continue to soften hearts in Madera, and that we would talk to the people that he wants us to. Pray that the christian students helping in the rally will grow closer to God through this experience.

Thank you for your prayers. We’ll be keeping you updated during this outreach week.