Aslan Performing Arts Center:

An Urban Summer Camp Ministry

Dear Friends and Family,

As many of you know, I am currently a student at Belhaven University pursuing a degree in Music

Ministry. Over these past three years at Belhaven, I have studied the theological foundations of music

in worship, Cross-cultural music ministry, strategized for International missions as well as having basic

music theory and an introductory course in the compositional process. I have always had an interest in

Spanish culture, and though I am not fluent in Spanish, I do have a good command of the basics and a

good ear. Through my teachers here at Belhaven I learned of a Summer Arts Camp in Madrid, Spain

started by a Belhaven Alumni, Héctor Ramírez and his wife, Lilli. I am so excited to see how all of the

classes I’ve taken and skills I’ve been learning will fit together in a real, practical way to minister to

Spanish people. In order for me to go on this trip, I need to raise approximately $1600 within the next

two weeks for the plane ticket alone and another $900 by June 5th , which makes a total of $2500. There

are specific ways that you can help:

 Pray. Pray for the Holy Spirit to guide and give me confidence to share my testimony with

everyone I will be interacting with. Pray for the hearts of the kids and their parents, that they

would be open to hearing the message of the Gospel and receiving it.

 Donate . As I said, I need to raise quite a bit of money over the next month in order to go. Any

financial help that you can offer would very much appreciated!

 Share. Send this letter out to others you know that would be willing to pray over me and this

camp and/or help financially. This is a huge task, but I know that if God wants me to go, He will

help raise the funds for me to do so.

Spain's history in relation to the church is tumultuous. The people have a hard time reconciling an

institution closely associated with political conquest with a God who loves and cares for them. Because

of this, association with a church is greeted with disdain. However, Héctor and Lilli discovered that

people understand the need for artistic development and will gladly send their kids to arts camps. This

quote explains the mission of this arts camp:

“ Our purpose and mission is to reach a secular and religiously apathetic

society with the redemptive message of Christ ...the Christian worldview

sees the individual as a person made in the image of God with emotional,

intellectual, practical, aesthetic, physical and spiritual needs that have to

be me t in order for him to be a complete and mature human being.”

“ It is therefore our purpose, in the midst of this secular and religiously

apathetic society, to reconcile the artistic and creative aspects of life

with the reality of the personal God revealed in the Bible.

“ You need to know that none of the children coming to the camp are

from Christian families and, in fact, have prejudices and may even

be hostile towards Christianit y. Our job is to help break those barriers

mainly through prayer and our personal work and testimony.”

Much of the work we will be doing here will be teaching Music, English, Art, Dance, and more,

culminating in a twenty minute musical which we will write and the kids will perform for their

parents at the end of the camp. The goal is to show them through our lives the reality of Christ.

Gospel presentation will be mostly through personal interactions with the kids and their parents. Each

volunteer will need prayer throughout this time as they interact with others, sharing about what God

has done for them and helping them understand how all of the arts are evidence of God's image in

every human being. We will need the Holy Spirit to direct us and help us know when to speak and

when to simply act out our faith in real, practical ways.

Thank you for taking the time to read and respond to this letter! Thank you for your prayers, support,

and love for me as I prepare to go out, making disciples who honor God artistically and practically

because of the redeeming power of Jesus.

With much love and gratitude,

-Lydia-