“Bullseye! I did it!” The team cheers and pats her on the back. But this is not the only win for the weekend. The Iowa mission team has just spent many hours rebuilding the archery targets that Heart Shot Ministry uses in its Davenport range. They tear down the old targets, put in new stuffing, wrap them with chicken wire and tarp, and tape the borders on. The team then sweeps, cleans, stretches new tarp, staples, and muscles the targets onto their sides and back up again, all while encouraging each other and enjoying time together. 

Students who commit to this mission trip will accomplish many projects with the help of the Bendickson family, who started this ministry to help widows in the community. In our last two trips, teams have cleaned up truckloads of weed and yard debris and helped to move one widow into a new home of her own. Finally, they helped build a fence and stain a deck at the Heart Shot Ministry headquarters, which is an old church campground and lodge that the Bendicksons have converted into their home. hearing the word of Jesus from a unique perspective. 

At the end of each long day of serving in the community, the team meets at the shooting range where they learn about aim and keeping their eyes fixed on Jesus. They also learn about the importance of being still, so they can focus on the target of Jesus.