Update on
Fort
Bend
Youth for Christ (FBYFC)
David Carter
10/13/2009
FBYFC is growing. I feel humbled that God would
give us such favor. Our ministry branches out into two counties now.
We started in
Ft.
Bend
County
doing ministry with about 2,300 kids a year in the
Juvenile
Detention
Center
. Now, all young people in the county, ages 10 to 18, who get in trouble
with the law, are given the opportunity to hear about the love of Jesus
and to receive Him as their savior. We have a Bible study everyday in
this facility along with three church services throughout the week. The
facility is located in
Richmond
.
In August , 2008, we were approached by
Brazoria
County
to consider overseeing all their juvenile facilities. After prayer, we
decided to take on
Brazoria
County
and bring the gospel to all their incarcerated young people. Our hope is
that they can see the results that
Ft.
Bend
enjoys. Our ministry doubled over night. Now, we are responsible for
approximately 5,000 kids a year. We operate in the detention center, the
residential center, and the boot camp. The facility is located in
Angleton.
Although we have 55 volunteers working with all
these kids, we could use many more laborers. There are many
opportunities, but the laborers are few.
We have been given a house in Rosenberg that serves
as our place to train volunteers and to meet. By God’s providence, we
have been using this house for a weekly prayer meeting with local
pastors. Our prayer is for unification of the body of Christ. It is
amazing to see pastors from many denominations and from every race come
together. We meet every Monday morning at 8:30am on the corner of Ave I
and
Alamo Street
in
Rosenberg
. Everybody is welcome.
Every Wednesday night, a number of our volunteers
run a Harp and Bowl prayer meeting in a local church in the Ft.
Bend-Alief
area. I usually serve as the facilitator. It is exciting to see many
lives changed as we introduce intimacy with the Lord into their lives
through this two to three hour meeting. We have some very talented
musicians. Everyone is welcome.
For more information about any of these ministries
can call me at 713-385-4130.
10/13/2008
Editor’s note: Recently, David Carter sent out an
update on their ministry. Then, he followed it up with an encouraging
email. This testimony includes updates from both the recent letter and
email.
FBYFC is growing and expanding at a rapid rate,
reaching more teenagers than any other time in our history. Last year we
were able to present the Gospel to more than 2,200 kids and had over
1,000 first time decisions to follow Christ.
In our Youth Guidance ministry, we have been given favor with the county
to have an open door to the
Ft.
Bend
Juvenile
Detention
Center
. All kids between 10 and 18 years of age, who get in trouble with the
law in
Fort
Bend
, are brought to this facility. We have a running joke that JDC does not
stand for
Juvenile
Detention
Center
! rather, it means
Jesus
Development
Center
. It's because we have Bible studies and/or church services there every
day except Saturday. We also provide Bibles and study helps to ensure
these kids get a good dose of the Word.
We continue to work with the teenagers in two boot camps. They have
weekly Bible studies in which we provide them with their own Bible and
one-on-one counseling. This ministry provides more of a high impact
relationship, since these kids have to stay with the boot camp for at
least 6 months.
In our Campus Life ministry, we work with kids in local high schools in
an off-campus club setting. Any teenager can attend Campus Life. The
meetings are high energy with much activity, including camps and trips.
The ministry greatly depends on forming strong, significant
relationships with kids in order to share Christ in an effective way.
We also played a significant role in Fort Bend Convoy of Hope. It was a
county wide program reaching more than 3,500 people from low income
families. These people were given food, medical treatment
(vaccinations), groceries, clothes, prayer, and a chance to receive
Christ.
And, here is more good news. We have been invited to
Brazoria
County
in order to start a ministry in their Juvenile
Detention
Center
. That just about doubles overnight our ministry to kids. Our goal is to
continue to take quality ministry into each county facility (which are
state run institutions) and then reproduce ourselves in other counties.
After so many years, I believe we have a good operating system that can
be duplicated.
Fort
Bend
has around 2,000 kids a year. Over
half of those kids respond to the Gospel each year.
I cannot guarantee that each decision made is genuine, but all we
can do is plant seeds and water and depend on God to give the increase.
Right now, we have 25 volunteers working throughout the week in
the
Fort
Bend
facility. We commonly call
the ministry the
Bible
College
because we have Bible Studies every day except Saturday, because that's
visitation day for the parents. We make up for Saturday by having two
Bible studies on Sunday.
We do need you prayers. We
need to believe for another 25 volunteers.
Your servants in Christ,
The
Fort
Bend
Youth for Christ Team
David Carter, Executive Director
