“Fern caught my attention from the  first night I met her at SLAM. She was quiet, but she had this loving and gentle spirit about her and that’s what drew me to her,” SLAM mentor Lauren shares. Immediately following that  first night at SLAM, Fern and Lauren began to build a deeper Life-on-Life relationship outside the walls of the program.

Outside The Program

Fern & Lauren at The Bean

Lauren knew that their relationship was growing when she asked Fern to hangout outside of SLAM and Fern’s response was, “Why wouldn’t I want to hangout with you? You’re cool!” However, as is the case with many of our youth, Fern has grown up in Chicago, but has rarely gotten out of her neighborhood to explore other parts of the city. Fern was excited when Lauren took her to the iconic Chicago landmark, Cloudgate (The Bean). On another occasion, Lauren even celebrated Fern’s birthday with her favorite deep dish pizza at Giordano’s.

Overcoming Anger

Their relationship however, has gone further than just food and fun as they’ve shared about family, self-confidence, and other struggles. “My relationship with Lauren is strong because she’s always there when I need someone to talk to,” says Fern. In fact, one of the biggest struggles they’ve had to work through is Fern’s anger. At her birthday dinner, Fern shared that she really desires to be less angry. This opened the door for Lauren to encourage her with Scripture. “I was able to challenge her to be ‘slow to speak, slow to anger.’ Fern then started to share with me ways that she has started to talk to God. I’ve been really encouraged by her growth this year.”

Celebrating Fern’s birthday at Giordano’s

Through these conversations, Lauren and Fern continue to grow closer. “I see Lauren as my best friend, and someone I can look up to. Without her in my life, I wouldn’t see Christ the way I do now,” Fern shares. While much of Lauren and Fern’s time together centers around meals and recapping the high school drama of the week, it’s the ever-present conversations about Jesus’ love that takes their Life-on-Life relationship deeper.

Jamal is no stranger to the hardships that come along with growing up fatherless. By God’s grace, we became connected to Jamal during his freshman year in high school, and since then he’s built Life-on-Life relationships with mentors that he prays will last a lifetime. Read the following interview with Jamal, and learn about his Life-on-Life relationship with his mentor, Mike. This story is just one of many from our “Year of Life-on-Life” campaign. Click here to learn more.

Year in School: Senior at Wells High School

Memories growing up: My dad was never around—I remember wondering, “Where is he?” “Why did he just let me go through that?” “Why did I have to become a man by myself?” My mom was also un t to care for my sister and me when we were little. Eventually we were taken into foster care. About a year later, my aunt found us and we moved in with her. My upbringing was tough, but I’m thankful I got connected with GRIP The School.

How did you get connected to GRIP The School (GTS): During my freshman year of high school at Wells I went to a GRIP program called The Lab. At The Lab we learned about God through spoken-word and hip-hop based on the book of Psalms in the Bible. The Lab was my  first encounter with God and Christians—they showed me love that I couldn’t  nd anywhere else.

What do you like most about GRIP The School?: GTS is where I met Jesus. It started when they shared the verse in John with me, which says, “Abide in Me, and I in you… I am the vine; you are the branches.” Soon after that I began to fully understand that Jesus died on the cross so that I could be saved from sin. Now, I continue drawing closer to God and learning more about Him.

Best memory with your mentor: Last summer my mentor, Mike, connected me with a summer program called The Bridge. It’s a summer-long college experience at Wheaton College where students live on campus, get mentored by a RA, learn how to engage with God and prepare for college. I was nervous to attend, but Mike really pushed me. He went with me to visit the program, helped me apply, and encouraged me along the way.

An impactful moment in high school: While I was at The Bridge I met another teen there named Israel. Israel was raised Catholic and was never close or intimate with God. He asked me how to become close with God and how to become a Christian. I explained to Israel that you had to be convicted of your sin and realize that you can’t live this life on your own without God. We then prayed together and Israel gave his life to the Lord!

Future Goal: I am currently living one of my goals–graduating from high school this year. I know I’m making my aunt and family proud. I also have a passion for law enforcement because I want to protect people. I never really felt protected myself. If I’m in law enforcement then I can help people feel protected and serve my community.

Prayer Request: God is continually showing me how sinful I am. I just want to draw close to God. Pray that I remain faithful to God and am motivated to pursue my goals.

Partner with us at year-end to empower more Life-on-Life relationships!

The need for churches to step up to serve Chicago Public Schools is urgent.  Chicago Public Schools continue to face financial crises with the latest budget cut announced on Monday, February 6th.

If you are a local church or a Christian concerned about how to practically step up, please click here contact us.

After this story went to print, our student, Andrea, was shot. See update to this story below.

Andrea lost her mother to cancer when she was 11 months old and her father was in and out of jail growing up. She was raised by her grandmother and currently is under her brother’s custody. And now, 17-year old Andrea  finds herself in custody court because her brother wants to pass off his guardianship.

“Who else would be willing to accept guardianship?” was the question Andrea found herself faced with in custody court this December. Not certain how to respond in court, Andrea was relieved to know her GRIP mentor, Kelsey, was right by her side to support her and be a voice when she didn’t have the words to express. “She is very helpful, honest, and always there for me. She’s here through all the hard times and I love her for that,” Andrea says.

Overwhelmed with emotions, Andrea and Kelsey were able to speak with the judge alone and share Andrea’s thoughts for the judge to consider. “I’m so glad Kelsey was there with me, because she was able to defend me and help me to talk to the judge,” shared Andrea.

At GRIP Outreach For Youth our mission is to break the fatherless cycle through Christ-centered, Life-on-Life relationships. And as part of entering into the lives of our youth we encourage our mentors to visit their youth at home, meet their families and get to know them holistically–to better come alongside the family and strengthen and deepen the relationship. Over this experience Kelsey has been able to engage with Andrea’s brother and even helped Andrea take steps towards her aunt accepting guardianship.

“Having Kelsey in my life makes me know someone cares,” Andrea shares.

Each week Kelsey has gotten into the practice of blocking off her Sunday afternoons to take Andrea and another young lady, Deonna, to church and then lunch. And when Andrea isn’t working, Kelsey has started to teach Andrea how to drive, which Kelsey shares “is terrifying.” She reflects, “I couldn’t do something like this, if I didn’t have Christ… Andrea’s needs are so much more important than the unease that I’m feeling or the fear that I’m feeling. It’s just motivating to know that this is going to be hard, but she needs this. God has put me here for this reason.”

Update:

Those reasons continue to become clear to Kelsey as her mentee, Andrea, was shot in January, making her one of the 587 shooting victims so far this year. By God’s grace Andrea’s life was spared, and she is on a road to full recovery. After undergoing multiple surgeries, including one on her kidneys, she is grateful to have her mentor Kelsey by her side through this entire trial.

Andrea was released from the hospital recently, and is continuing to attend church with Kelsey each week. Pray that this circumstance would be used in Andrea’s life to draw her closer to the Lord, and a deeper Life-on-Life relationship with her mentor, Kelsey would continue to be formed.

Become a part of this work to build more Life-on-Life relationships!

Recently our Executive Director, Scott Grzesiak, had the opportunity to share the work of our ministry on Moody Radio’s Karl and June Mornings. Listen to the segment below and celebrate two stories of transformation through Life-on-Life relationships!

Become a part of this work to build more Life-on-Life relationships!

Peter and Juan

What does it take to change the course of a life? Juan, a 14 year old freshman at Chicago Public School, Phoenix Military Academy, wanted to  find out. Even more so, he wanted to see revival in his school—so he boldly took action.

Juan took the initiative and approached the school faculty with the desire to start a Christian club. He was quickly connected with Peter, a chemistry teacher at the school who supported Juan in his efforts. Though, it wasn’t long before Juan ran into barriers when inviting his classmates. “In today’s age, students are more keen to not want to hear the Word of God. They say ‘I want to do my own thing, and I don’t want anyone else controlling me.’ So the hardest thing was actually getting people to come,” Juan shares.

“There were some great times in the club where we felt God moving through us,” he said.

However, Juan and Peter continued to meet and one-by-one students began attending the club, which presented the next challenge—bridging the gap between Scripture and the daily life of Juan’s peers. That all changed though, when Juan discovered and began to experience the audio, video, and curriculum of the Streetlights Urban Multimedia Bible. “Many of the students didn’t know how to connect to Scripture, but Streetlights would use pop culture references to help the individuals understand how [Scripture] connects to our world today. The Streetlights curriculum helped me lead the Christian club,” Juan reminisces.

“At that point, I saw certain students awaken to their own brokenness and sinfulness,” says Peter.

With Juan’s boldness, Peter’s support, and the Streetlights Urban Multimedia Bible, two students came to know Christ as their Savior through the Christian club! When Juan started this club 5 years ago he desired to see revival. Now, after graduating from high school, and seeing the renewed lives of these young men and women from the club, his dream may one day become a reality in this school. Also, with the release of the new Streetlights mobile app, Juan is listening to Scripture on-the-go, and Peter is looking forward to sharing it with the students who continue to attend the Christian club!

The Streetlights Urban Multimedia Bible has produced two curriculum volumes to empower youth and young adults of all literacy levels to engage Scripture and grow in their relationship with God. With your financial support, we can create and distribute the third volume of curriculum, titled Faith Movement, covering Genesis 11-25 and the entire book of Acts, showing a young person what a walk of faith looks like in Abraham and what the community of faith looks like in the Church.

Become a part of this work to build more Life-on-Life relationships!

It’s been amazing to take part in the high school graduations of many of our students this year! Through your partnership our mentors are walking Life-on-Life with students through high school and beyond. The students below as well as many others have been involved in our programs and are still in Life-on-Life relationships with their mentors.

One of our gifted young ladies, Deonna, graduated from Chicago Quest High School this past year. With guidance from her GRIP mentor, Kelsey, she is excited to attend Eastern Illinois University in the fall and pursue a degree in Forensic Science!

Chris is a young man who graduated from Al Raby High School this past year, and we can’t wait to see how he lives up to his potential as he attends University of Illinois in the fall. Pray that he would be surrounded by a strong community of people who love the Lord.

Javon is a veteran in our SLAM program where he’s been a student for 4 years, so it’s exciting to see him graduate McKinley Lakeside Academy. Through a Life-on-Life relationship with his mentor, Mike, Javon made the decision to go into the workforce in Chicago this fall. Pray that he would get a good job and grow in his work ethic and experience.

Daequion and Donald (left to right) graduated from Al Raby High School this year, and plan on going into the Navy. Pray that they would stay connected to their GRIP mentors through this transition.

Venita met her mentor, Chika, through our GRIP The School Initiative in Al Raby High School, where she graduated this year. Venita plans on attending Northeastern University Illinois in the fall and is seeking guidance from her mentor on what she should pursue.

Antuajn is one of our SLAM students who graduated from Chicago Quest High School this year. He just returned from a mission trip to Ethiopia where he was serving and teaching children. Pray for Antuajn as he makes decisions about his future.

Become a part of this work to build more Life-on-Life relationships!

Growing up without her father in the home, Iris has the odds stacked against her. In fact, 71% of high school dropouts come from fatherless homes. By God’s grace, Iris is being raised by her mother and grandmother, but she still misses sitting down to dinner with both her father and mother to talk about her day, or how school is going. In the midst of this challenge, Iris is grateful to have met her GRIP mentor, Alexis, 2 years ago, and Iris is on a path to overcoming the odds.

“I see Ms. Alexis as a good friend. Anything I want to talk about, I can always call her or come visit at any time,” shares Iris.

And, this is no exaggeration. Alexis remembers, “When she would text me late at night with frustrations or problems she was having at school or at home, I knew our friendship was going deeper and turning into a Life-on-Life relationship.”

There was even a season last year when Iris’ grade in her first period class was declining because she kept oversleeping. So, Alexis started serving as her wake-up call, “I would call her early in the morning to make sure she was up and getting on the bus in time for class.” Alexis celebrates, “Now she’s improved her grade and gets to class on time without me calling her!”

Iris is grateful for the enormous impact Alexis has had on her life, “At one point I was scared to talk about God or hang with new people, but now all of that has changed. Alexis has taught me that there’s more to life than trying to fitt in or be something that I’m not.”

As a sophomore in high school with dreams of college, Iris is on her way to being an anomaly—among the small minority of youth who come from a fatherless home and don’t dropout of high school. Even more than that, the hopes Alexis has for Iris go straight to the heart. “I hope that I can be there for her graduation and help send her to to college. Most importantly, I hope that Iris sees herself as a daughter of God, and calls Jesus her personal Lord and Savior,” Alexis shares.

Become a part of this work to build more Life-on-Life relationships!

“Growing up, my grandmother knew what was going on in the community with all the violence and shootings and killings, so she really didn’t want me to go outside,” shares J’meer. Like many of our teens, J’meer lives on the west side in one of Chicago’s most violent neighborhoods, North Lawndale.

As J’meer grew older, his grandmother began to give him more freedom, so he started to attend SLAM—one of GRIP’s youth outreach connection points—where he met Matt, his GRIP mentor. Two years into their Life-on-Life relationship J’meer experienced the very violence his grandmother had tried to protect him from. One summer day in July 2016, J’meer stepped out on his front porch to walk to the corner store—a walk he had made many times. Suddenly he heard shots ring out and realized he was caught in the crossfire. Before J’meer knew what was happening he fell to the ground—he had been shot in the eye.

“In that moment, I just had to prepare to die,” J’meer remembers.

In the chaos, J’meer knew that if he were to die, he didn’t want to die with bitterness in his heart. In the ambulance with sirens wailing, and with maturity beyond his years, he prayed to forgive his shooter.

Matt shared with GRIP, “Instead of asking the question, [as a victim] ‘Why would God do this to me?’ J’meer thinks that God did this for a purpose and to make him a better person.”

J’meer said, “After this incident and growing in my faith, Matt has just been there to work with me. Of course I have a lot of questions, but I can always go to Matt, and he’s going to help me no matter what. I consider Matt to be family and family lasts forever.”

You can have a part in changing more teens’ lives like J’meer’s by partnering with GRIP!

Life-on-Life with youth requires hope— imagining a future that is not yet realized, and painting a picture for our teens that they may have difficulty seeing otherwise. This is the very challenge that GRIP mentor, Tyler, was faced with when he met Angel at SLAM.

When Angel found his way through the doors of our SLAM outreach program, he was a volunteer mentor’s dream teen. Being one of the most outgoing and friendly 18 year-old students you’ll ever meet, his mentor, Tyler, now admits that it was a bit overwhelming at first. But behind the smiles and energy, Angel remembers that before he met Tyler he would often lose hope. He says, “Before I met Tyler I wasn’t sure if I could ever be anything in life.”

As Angel and Tyler spent more time together in each other’s homes, going out for ice cream, grocery shopping, or just playing basketball at the park together, Angel quickly started to see Tyler as a mentor and friend. “It was a big step when Angel called me often to hang out,” shares Tyler, “We both knew our relationship was going to be Life-on-Life.”

“It was a big step when Angel called me often to hang out.”

Angel and Tyler continued to grow deeper in their relationship when they realized they had a common a affection for music and technology. They started playing music together, which ignited Angel’s passion for music and inspired him to start thinking about college. Now, a year later we’re celebrating that Angel has been accepted to Taylor University on a full ride scholarship and in the fall will be pursuing his dream of studying communications!

Even more significant than pursuing his dreams, Angel sees the eternal impact that his mentor, Tyler, continues to have on his life. “Before I met Tyler I had a difficult time understanding the Word of God. Through our relationship, he has taught me how to be a man, and he makes the Word of God easier to understand. My faith in God has grown significantly through Tyler,” shares Angel.

“My faith in God has grown significantly through Tyler.”

You can have a part in changing more teens’ lives by partnering with GRIP!