I'm so sorry for the
lack of an update yesterday, it was a full day!
Our two groups worked a hard day, with heat warnings. The Hot Buns
(Roofers), Caroline Clark, Jeremiah Gress, Elizabeth Dobbs, Bailey Phillips,
Bryce Barron, Sam Thomas, Chris Vanisko, Ashley Lewis, and myself worked until
the roof until it was just about too hot to touch. We were confident that
we would be able to finish the roof on the last day. The Honey Buns (at
Billie's house), James Hallonquist, Kaitlyn Smith, Shelby Eckelkamp, Katie
Rogers, Ben Murley, Caroline Dobbs, and J.R. Leal began their painting job on
Billie's Porch and continued their work on the new gutters. All in all it
was a great work day.
In the evening we were a part of a really powerful evening. It began with
another video, this time from Bizzle a Christian Rap artist. You can
watch his testimony here: http://www.mystep.me/truth-or-dare/bizzle
Afterwards our groups split up and we participated in a foot washing.
This is always moving thing to do and our group always shares their hearts with
each other. It was a long and emotional night, and as always, a wonderful
time.
This morning we started early. The Hot Buns, in an effort to try to beat
the heat and finish the job, arrived at their work site 45 minutes early.
We needed the extra time because we still finished 30 minutes past our regular
end time. The reward was finishing the roof up to the last shingle on the
peak. Yeah Bailey! It was a very long hot day and we were
definitely exhausted. The Honey Buns worked hard as well, they finished Billie's
rain gutters after lengthy problem solving and learning all about water
flow. They also cut and finished wood trim, shutters, and finished
painting the porch. Billie definitely blessed us all this week and we got
to paint handprint butterflies on her porch. The story of the butterflies
is truly a special one and and I can't wait for you to hear about it at
report-back.
This evening we again watched another powerful video, this time by Harmony
Dust, a victim of sexual abuse who has founded a ministry that helps women who
work in the sex industry. You can watch her testimony here: http://www.mystep.me/truth-or-dare/harmony-dust
Afterwards we had our own opportunity to share privately with God anything burden
that has been placed on our hearts and release it all to Him, another moving
experience.
After that we had a fun time in Next Step's version of Fear Factor, ten rounds
of really gross food to see which crew's teams could eat the different foods
the fastest, as well as hold them down. It was a spirited game that
lasted well into the night, but I am proud to say that St. Luke's was the
winning team and all those Messy Games Nights we have had over the years have
finally paid off.
Today was our last work day and tomorrow will be a day of rest before we depart
back to Texas in Saturday. We have had a wonderful time serving the
Joplin community and we are looking forward to our final days together.
Please pray for continued strength and energy. Although we are no longer
working, it is always nice to have energy while driving our wonderful youth
around in large white vans!
Merchant
No comments:
Post a Comment