Spirit Movement Tour 2010 Day 6

Day 3 at the worksite. By the end of the day inside and outside projects are nearing the finishing phase. The fence is done, the planters are done, the sun shades are in process. The replacement cabinets were delivered and assembled today and the materials moved from the old cabinets and organized. Then the old cabinets were taken apart as they were falling down anyway. The dark blue wall is painted, but some areas need touch up/second coat.

The family of one of the clients brought us pizzas for lunch! The mom wrote us a wonderful card, which I’ll transcribe here:

Because of your hearts, the work of your hands; the efforts that you have exhibited we Thank You! We pray a special blessing upon each one of you. Know that you have made a difference. You are His hand extended.
God Bless
Sincere Thanks
Luke 9:24
If you try to hang onto your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for My sake, you will save it.

Matt read it aloud to the students after lunch and they were touched as well.

A bit of fun was had on the worksite as well – the students ganged up on Kenny and “mudded” him. We had to hose him off. Good thing we had the water all ready from washing the back of our bus.

After work we went to a large indoor pool facility for some wet fun. They had a water slide and diving boards. The students and adults really enjoyed it! THEN we came back to home base for some AMAZING lasagne & garlic bread. And our "usual" two desserts. Berry cobbler after dinner and ice cream later. It was “dress up” night – which doesn’t mean formal, but rather goofy/fun. The students are VERY creative!

Our worship tonight was about “The Journey” and we used some songs from the band Journey. Fun! During their free time, the students had a “rave” (so I guess they weren’t tooooo tired...) But they were tired enough to cooperate and go to bed on time. Thanks be to God!

Spirit Movement Tour Day 5

Day two at the worksite. A TON of progress was made. All the fence posts are up, we got most of the long side with cross-pieces and slats done. Several of the planter boxes have been completed.

The large room paint is done!!!!!!! We had some great detail painters doing trim work. The darker color in the kitchen area is mostly done and tomorrow we will finish it. We bought cabinets to replace the rickety crafts cabinets they had bolted to the wall. Those will be put together tomorrow.

A couple of interesting side projects sprang up. A group of girls made wooden “holders” for the small oxygen cylinders that were stacked in a corner. And another couple of students helped with a project of setting up binders in which client records will eventually be stored.

MANY students are discovering gifts and talents they didn’t know they possessed and learning new skills. They are learning teamwork, perseverance, improvising, and empathy in addition to physical skills.

Spirit Movement Tour 2010 Day 4

Wow what a day! Our first day on the job site. We had an orientation and met some of the Mosaic residents while things were being setup. We had part of our crew outside (with shade avail), preparing to build a fence. This crew dug postholes, first with a manual posthole digger and then moving on to an electric auger. Still there were challenges of lots of rocks! Boards had to be sawed and measured. Most of the fence posts are now up. We got a start on the planter boxes as well. The second group was inside, painting a large open activity room and kitchen. We had to move equipment and shelves from the walls, mask the edges and paint. One 5 gallon bucket of paint was used and we aren't done. The kitchen was also cleaned, with everything removed from cabinets/shelves, washed, and organized. Our groups demonstrated teamwork and enthusiasm and did a fantastic job.

The students really worked well together, even those who had not been as outgoing. Several learned new skills. One of the things that impressed me was that at lunch, before the adults finished eating, some of the students were already back to work. AND we are loving worship and small groups every night. The Spirit is definitely working in us and through us.

The staff was SO impressed at the amount of work accomplished. Both they and we felt blessed!!!!!!

Spirit Movement Tour 2010 Day 3

We are in Farmington, NM and really glad to be off the bus and in one location till the end of the week! We went to Navajo Lake this afternoon. We saw the beauty of God's creation in a much different setting than we are used to. And Monday we start work at Mosaic!

Spirit Movement Tour 2010 Day 2

Cooler day on the bus!!!! We saw cows and drinking water by hand pump at an Oklahoma rest stop. Oklahoma has terribly bumpy roads! No bus-sick yet though. We're looking forward to a more "normal" night tonite in Amarillo...pizza for dinner, worship, and a little bit of free time before lights out.

Start of the Spirit Movement 2010 Tour - Day 1

The start of our 2010 mission trip to Farmington, NM! We head out from St Stephen to Memphis, TN.

It was a LONG day on the bus. The students spent time getting to know each other better. We had some problems with the bus being hot, but the students dealt with it pretty well.

In Memphis we had delicious bbq, great worship, and a good night's sleep.

Spirit Movement Tour: The Day Before

Well according to the "offical" count down on our website we have t-minus 14hours till we depart for Farmington, NM. I will admit I have gone through the full range of emotions this week. I woke up Monday morning and was unbelievably excited. Tuesday came and I pretty much had a mental break down. It seemed like everything was going wrong and I was completely freaking out. Wednesday came and I was exhausted. I wasn't sure how I was going to make it through this week let alone the 10 day trip that is right around the corner. And then I woke up this morning... This morning I woke up and felt a sense of pride, not for myself, but for our students. I'm so proud of our students, that they would want to spend 32hours on a bus, driving cross country to go to a small town in the mountain desert during the summer time to serve a bunch of people they don't know and will probably never see again. I am proud because they WANT to do this and they WANT their friends to do this. I'm proud because they are telling their friends about what they are doing this coming week, they are telling their co-workers and bosses about it. They are posting it all over facebook and telling the world that they are disciples of the risen Jesus and they are going out to do His work! This pride brings so much joy to my heart and hope for the future.

I already know that this trip is going to be a tough trip. It is going to be physically and emotionally draining. It's going to be emotional, high energy, and impactful and I can't wait for all of it! Our theme this year is how the Spirit moves in you. It's all about letting the Spirit lead us and knowing that God is present and will take care of us. Already, I have had to let my gaurd down and trust fully in God that he will provide and the trip hasn't even begun. We all will need to do this throughout the next ten days and it is going to be a challenge. But it is a challenge that I know our students WILL meet. They will experience Jesus first hand and they will see him working through them. They will feel him giving them the energy and strength to do things they didn't think they could do. I can't wait for all of this to happen and I am excited for you all to be a part of this journey! I encourage you all to follow us each day on the website, www.SolidRockYM.com. You can use the same devotions we will use each night during worship. Comment on this blog and respond to our students who will be writing here each day their thoughts and telling stories from the day. Interact with us and join us on this journey!

May the Spirit move in you this week as He will in us. May you be blessed by those you serve in the name of Jesus. May you be His hands and feet each and every day of your life, bringing love, joy, hope, peace, and grace to ALL!

We are changing the world, one small piece at a time, are you?

Peace,

Kenny