Austria Mission Trip

July 2-13, 2008

This trip is full

Athletes in Action - Christian Sports Camp

Leaders: Justin Brasuell (404.376.6934 / jjbrasuell@aol.com) & Clark Bosley
(404.797.8386 / clarkbosley@tnwinc.com)

We have a wonderful opportunity to partner with Athletes in Action, Campus Crusade for Christ, as well as JFBC and Oak Grove Methodist to help run a Christian Sports/English Camp in Austria.  This mission trip is open to anyone 13 or older, so families are welcome.   It will involve teaching sports and English, hanging with, witnessing to, and worshipping with 125 Austrian and German kids from 9 to 18 years of age.   

As many of you know, there are not many Christian experiences in this area of the world.  The state of the church in Austria is a sad one.  More people there die of suicide than in car accidents. Often the children have experienced divorce, sexual abuse, drug and alcohol abuse, etc.  These kids, even more than our children here in the states, need someone to talk to, they need a role model, they need love and advice. They need to know that there is a loving God and he wants to have a relationship with each of them.  This is where we come in.

For this one week, there are some key things we can do to help these young people:
 
1. Establish relationships and share our experiences with them. 
2. Help teach sports and/or English classes.  No previous experience is necessary.
3. Help with other logistics -driving vans, carrying luggage, planning programs, etc. 
4. Assist with worship or evening programs. As you feel led, you can teach, sing, or share personal testimonies.  If you do not feel comfortable leading, you can just participate!
5. Pray. The kids react well to invitations to talk and pray for them one on one.  There is a special prayer room where you can spend time and pray for and with the kids.
6.  Provide a Christ-like example to children who are being raised in an area, with virtually no spiritual influence, that has been through two World Wars, a Holocaust and centuries of persecution of Christians.  

The general schedule is as follows:

Wednesday, July 2nd, we will fly out at 4:15 pm and overnight to Munich, Germany. There we will rent vans and drive down to Salzburg, Austria (apx 1.5 hour). Thursday and Friday are spent in Salzburg adjusting, resting and touring the area (Sound of Music tour, historical city of Salzburg, Hitler’s Eagles nest, etc). We will also meet with camp leaders who will talk to us about the upcoming camp.
 
Saturday morning we will drive down to Saalfelden, where the camp takes place (another hour south). The camp begins at 4:00 pm, but throughout the day both staff and campers will be arriving. We will be expecting around 125 campers divided into two groups: 9-12 year olds and 13-18 year olds.  The typical camp day looks like this:

• 7:30  Morning Worship 
• 8:00  Breakfast 
• 9:00  Small Group Bible Study 
• 10:00  Sports or English Classes 
• 12:30 Lunch
• 2:30  Sports 
• 6:00  Dinner
• 7:30  Evening Program
• 11:00 Lights Out

The Camp ends on Saturday 12th at 1:00 pm, and we will fly back to Atlanta on Sunday morning 13th  at 10:15 am and out of Munich and arrive back in Atlanta at 2:30 pm.

Please think and pray about your participation and support of this mission opportunity.  And if you feel led, please contact Justin or Clark to find out how you can be a part of this important endeavor.