So Thursday Happened

My team had just enough stuff left to do on our work-site that I was thinking we should be done around lunch time. All we had left were a few small things painting wise like the trim and the front gable. Basically it was detail stuff. Turns out my work team is not a very detail oriented group and when it comes to doing trim they struggled. For many of you who know me details aren't always my strength either, but when it comes to painting all the years of experience I have gotten good at the details. There were many points where I had to try hard not to get frustrated. I wanted to just do it all myself, we would have gotten done a lot faster. I kept reminding myself that my role this week when it comes to the work is to encourage, equip, and teach the students to do the work... even if it takes longer than it should. After all, adults who took the time to let me do the work, is exactly how I learned to paint a house. So we are going back to the same house today and we still have a bit of work to do. 

Worship was awesome. We ended the service by opening the alter for as long as the students needed for prayer... an hour later we had to close it down 'cus they weren't going anywhere and sleep is important too. 

There were students who were grieving the death of a friend. There were students with all sorts of other baggage who just needed some time to deal with it. And certainly there were some who we just tired. 

We got a video of my sermon, I will try to upload it sometime soon. 

Last but not least there is a Facebook group for our living center with a bunch of pictures in it. I just realized that I could invite folks to it so I sent some invites this morning. If you would like to be invited and you have not gotten one yet just let me know and I will send one.

Mission Trip Wednesday

Why is it that mission trip is typically a week that I put on a few pounds?

It might just be because the cooks for the week are often some of the best cooks in a church that come to make food for teenagers and they make sure there is plenty of it. We have a fresh cooked breakfast, a sack lunch, an afternoon snack, a huge dinner, and fantastic desserts served 2 hours after dinner. Anytime there isn’t food being served there are snacks out. Lunch is usually your opportunity to eat a bit lighter. Yesterday that wasn’t the case.

Our client wanted to show her appreciation for the work we were doing by grilling for us for lunch. She was an expert grill master tackling hamburgers, hotdogs, and BBQ pork chops all at the same time. She paired that with

sweet tea and caramel cake. So Brad, Ryan, Autumn, and I ate really well for lunch. I personally wasn’t hungry again at dinner time but when these lovely ladies hand you a plate of food you take it. Ryan tried to say no to dessert the other night and ended up with twice as much as the rest of us. Which lead to the quote of the day Tuesday when Matt said, “if you were my grandma, I would be really fat.”

Ian won the activity for the evening which was a 2 round ninja tournament. He beat out a gymnast who was clearly a real ninja and another student who was jumping and flying all over the place. Then Ian had to play a bonus round with myself and the music leader for the week that incorporated feet and hands. He didn’t win that but still won the prize of a ninja turtle half-shell.

Worksite updates:

This is a map of where we are working

Patrick, Ian, and Dylan’s group finished their painting project and are being moved to a new worksite where they will be building a 30 ft wheelchair ramp.

Laken and Eli’s group is still working hard on their house. It’s a huge project over there with painting, siding repair, and a wheel-chair ramp all to get done by the end of the week.

Matt, James, and Gabe’s group is nearing completion of their wheel-chair ramp and is working on a fresh paint job.

Me, Brad, Ryan, and Autumn’s group has finished the major part of the our project of new siding on one side of the house. We have finished painting the majority of the house and Thursday morning should finish. Brad and Ryan will do a minor roof and water damage repair then head over to help Patrick’s group with their wheel-chair ramp.

I wrote this post Thursday morning before breakfast because I preached on rest last night and it was midnight before I had a chance to sit and write so I went to bed. 

Mission Trip Tuesday - #CTCYMphilly #instahunt

As it turns out when it comes to air mattresses, firm is the way to go. My air mattress had a bit of a leak the past two nights and when I woke this morning I was sunken into the middle of the mattress that had become as moveable as a water bed but even less comfortable. So for the sake of being able to move during the day the rest of the week I got a new one.

This morning I was awake a bit before everyone was woken up, and I noticed something odd. Almost every guy in the room was awake minus one row of students and a few others. Every guy from Lake Cities was still asleep.

Yet when it came time to get going they went. The vans rolled out right around 8 again and from what I heard there was great productivity all around.

Today the stories come from our evening activity. It was an Instagram scavenger hunt, and pictures tell a thousand words so instead of telling you about it, get on Instagram and search #ctcymphilly (I would provide a link but Instagram’s online version is a bit too limited to actually do that.)

There was some amazing dessert tonight as well… I am not sure what all was in it but it was great.

Hope you enjoy the pictures on Insta. My work team is on breakfast set up in the morning so I should be asleep now.

Wait Was Today Monday? - CTCYM Philly

Something still feels very wrong about this mission trip. Surely it’s not all supposed to go this smoothly.

So today is Monday and usually on mission trips Monday morning is really slow moving and students almost never get loaded in vans until after 9 and by the time you get to the work-site and by the time work gets actually started its 10 then lunch from noon to 1. Then back to work for about 45 minutes before someone needs to potty. You have to load up the van to head to the convenience store to go potty and 30 minutes later you get back to the work-site just in time to do 30 more minutes of work before heading to the showers, because you have to have time to pit-stop at sonic before dinner. Usually that means you get about 3.5 hours worth of work done on a Monday.

That wasn't what happened today… not even close.

When the alarm went off for the guys to wake up at 6:30 most of them were already awake and moving about getting ready for the day. Breakfast was served, lunches were made, tools were sorted, supplies lined up for everyone to take to their different work-sites and the last van, by some miracle, rolled out of the parking lot by 8:15.

8 work teams swarmed Philly Mississippi today and a lot of work got done. Some work teams completely finished their first work project already.

My particular work team has so far been the most efficient work team of any youth trip I have been on. Ryan and Brad worked all day on re-doing some siding with Hardy Board. The students from Cleburne got the rest of the house prepped to be painted by washing and scraping. Autumn folded some tin flashing to match the roof of the house for a repair that we will be doing. The project, which I have seen similar ones take all week and not be finished, is almost halfway done after day 1.

Other teams with Lake Cities Students had similarly productive days.

Patrick, Dylan and Ian’s worksite has been painting a ministry of the local church here called God’s Closet. Almost a thrift store but not quite, that concept seems to be following Patrick a bit. The worst part (sarcasm) of their day was that the UMW would bring them by fresh baked treats nearly every hour.

Matt, James, and Gabe’s work team did some major work setting foundation footings for a wheelchair ramp they are building. Although when I asked the students what their favorite part of the day was, they only mentioned girls and conversations about conspiracy theories. They are certainly having fun while getting some work done.

Laken, and Eli are on a work team together but I didn't get a chance to hear about how their day went.

The evening activity tonight was a game of Kill-ball. Ask one of the students when they get back how to play.

Worship tonight was about how God calls us to do big things that can sometimes give us a bit of anxiety. We think that we can’t do it and God says we can.

Hopefully my air mattress isn't above the basketball goal again when I head in there to sleep.