USING ADVENTURES AT SEA TO HELP MAKE DISCIPLES OF JESUS

This is what the kayaking ministry looks like, how it works, but most importantly WHY WE DO IT .

After an afternoon kayak trip with a friend the following partial quote appeared on my page on FACEBOOK.

“Discussions were deep and warm,  filled with  laughter ….It has been years since I have done this.”

To be successful in ministry there is really only one essential human element needed: time with people.  There is not a pastor, missionary, ministry leader anywhere in the world who wouldn’t do nearly anything to create uninterrupted blocks of time to spend with people.  Why do we take people out in kayaks?  For only one reason:  it creates those blocks of uninterrupted  time during which we can encourage people and work with them to help meet their needs, be they spiritual, emotional or physical.

This was our old logo on a T-Shirt. We’ll probably keep the logo but make this a ministry of El Faro church.

The reason the kayaking ministry works so well is that it:

• Creates hours and hours of uninterrupted time to talk with people while we share a healthy and exciting experience.
• Creates conditions in which conversations flow naturally.
• Creates conditions where people “open up,” making counseling possible.
• Creates inexpensive and healthy activities for church youth groups.
• Creates opportunities for creation care ministries.
• Creates a practical link to local and state governments.
• Makes the TEAM missionary very visible in the community and creates an understandable identity.
• Creates opportunities for interns interested in missions.
• Makes being part of the sponsoring church better than ever.

Kayaking puts us in contact with the community. This was a briefing on a beach cleanup project.

The kayak fleet is available to followers of Jesus in La Paz who want to use it as a tool to share Jesus with their friends.  Local schools, service clubs, youth programs, and environmental protection groups are also free to use the fleet to further their good and worthy programs.

HOW CAN YOU HELP NOW?

The kayaking  ministry is being relaunched on a shoestring budget and with what we have on hand. To help make this  ministry more effective, the following items are needed.

A sturdy and reliable vehicle, preferably a  mid-size crew cab pickup truck for towing the trailer.  This vehicle could be donated  in the US, and we would  drive it to the ministry area.

Kayaking gives us hour after hour to talk with people and develop freindships.

Paddles, personal flotation devices (life jackets), manual bilge pumps, spray skirts, paddle floats, bailing sponges, and dry bags for gear on camping trips.

One waterproof  hand-held marine radio.

Two first-aid kits.

Refurbishing the trailer: sanding, painting, protective padding.

A place to store the trailer and the boats.

Six small plastic kayaks to the fleet to allow grade-school children the opportunity to learn.

A volunteer to create and manage a web page.

Volunteers to help organize and carry out activities.

We would like to replace the aging  fleet slowly over the next couple of years. Some of the boats are now 20 years old and showing the stress of thousands of hard hours at sea–often paddled by inexperienced kayakers whose favorite paddling  pastime seems to be crashing into the North American continent.

If you would like to contribute to this ministry please CLICK HERE

If you would like to become part of this ministry contact me,  Steve Dresselhaus, at steven.dresselhaus@TEAM.org

The kayaking ministry is part of  TEAM’s RANCHO EL CAMINO  as an element of their adventure sports program.  The church home for this ministry is the EL FARO Church in La Paz.  The kayaking ministry serves as part of TEAM’S CREATION CARE ministry.

Below is a short video of Balandra Bay near La Paz where we take our beginner kayakers.    The focus of this video is the natural beauty of the bay and ends with the joy of sharing the experience with others.