"The essence of Christianity is not merely to do the work that is asked, but is the appreciation of the One who we are working for."

The youth are being trained in a variety of ways. We believe that spiritual training requires having one's mind being transformed to the likeness of Christ's mind; this means changes in attitude as well as God-centered enjoyment that progressively looks less and less what "everyone else" enjoys. To be trained spiritually, as a Christian, is the necessity each soul needs in order to be disciplined in every single area of life. Burton's youth has recently undertaken memorization of the Fruits of the Spirit of God, which opposes the appetites of the flesh (as Christ teaches in John 3:5-8). These young men and women have shown tremendous growth in learning the True things of God, and to have more youth partake in learning with us would be a great blessing.

It is our hope that the spiritual training reaps practical results. Even giving thanks for a meal that was once eaten in vain is a precious improvement towards Christ-likeness. I think we should add that training is not miserable, horrible thing to experience. Training is often times exciting, and joyful. For example, whether I realize it or not, each time I shoot a basketball I am being trained to shoot more accurately. Because I find basketball enjoyable, training for basketball is enjoyable. Likewise, a Christian does not run from God, but finds no greater pleasure than to train under His graceful guidance.

-Ryan Bailey, Youth Intern