Next Step summer mission trips are just a few weeks away! This means we are in the calm before things get crazy in the best way possible. In about a week our Summer Staff will start their journey out to Los Angeles, and students on their mission trips will be following soon after! I am always amazed by the work that God does through the group of Summer Staff and students each summer, and I know this summer will be no different.

God has HUGE plans for Los Angeles! This year we will be doing a VBS twice a week at Hope Gardens Family Center. In the past, we have helped Hope Gardens by watching their kiddos, but this is the first summer we will be putting on our own programming. This means that twice a week, through the work of the Summer Staff and students, about 50 kids currently experiencing homelessness will hear the gospel! They will learn that no matter what they have been through or what they may go through, they have a God that loves them unconditionally. We will also continue to work with our Union Rescue Mission and Enrich LA partnerships as well.

This summer, we will also be staying at a new church. Pasadena Foursquare Church (PFC) has joined the Next Step LA family and has been gracious enough to open their doors and let us join their community. This is a big blessing because this church is more central to our partnerships. This means less driving in LA traffic! PFC has already blessed the Next Step family in so many ways, and we are excited to bless them as well.

Needless to say, this summer will be filled with lots of new and exciting adventures with the same community Next Step has grown to love over the years!