WWJD Week of Hope 2011 Day #3

I am the vine; you are the branches” (John 15:5). Theme: I in you.

Today was a wonderful “break-through” day for the entire group. Everyone was singing beautifully in the morning and sharing during evening devotion. Examining Christ’s suffering and sacrifice for us, we agreed that His death on the cross was both a tragedy and a blessing. We have developed a personal relationship with Christ and sharing our story is how we can reach out to others.

Tudie’s crew has made amazing progress and worked on several things today: trimming trees, spreading mulch, organizing and cleaning a bedroom, and sorting tools in the garage. We were blessed to shared devotion time with the entire family today and Ffej was blessed to hold baby “Bubba” our entire lunch time. Many God Sightings today were shared. One in particular was a cross being found in a dirty, dusty toolbox that reminded Jeff (our resident) that God is still with him even though his wife had just lost her job the day before.

Lindy and Mark’s group were able to finish scraping paint and getting two sides of the house paint before an afternoon thunderstorm. The thunder and lightning was a reminder of God’s power and beauty. Their resident Ginny brought everyone pink lemonade and the group agreed this was definitely a God sighting. Marney, Autumn, and Channing enjoyed visiting with Ginny’s 8 year-old granddaughter who was visiting. Connor and Izaiah had fun spraying foam around Ginny's house to keep the wasps out. Connor found an old wasp nest shaped like a heart and has been carrying it around ever since. The group is looking forward to finishing-up painting on Thursday.

WWJD Week of Hope 2011 Day #2

“I am the vine; you are the branches” (John 15:5). Theme: Remain in me.

On day one we learned what it means to be “the branches” molded in the image of God and wonderfully made. Today we concentrated on what it means to “remain in Him” We talked about and practiced being still (Psalm 46:10). Waiting for God to answer our prayers is a faith process, which can sometimes be painful. However, we know God will not abandon us.

We only had a half day of work today. Lindy and Mark’s crew helped a resident named Ginny scrape paint and caulk. Trudie’s group was blessed to have Ffej’s help today to move some larger car parts and a motorcycle. The group also pulled more weeds – 5 feet tall! They sure grow them big in Colorado! Everyone’s favorite thing is to watch the baby while his dad helps us.

After showers, we made our way to Estes Park for some free time. We spent a few hours browsing all of the little shops along the street. Some of our favorites were the rock shop and the old-time candy store. We had dinner at a sculpture park in Loveland. The park was full of many interesting bronze sculptures and we all had a blast walking around and taking pictures. We ended our great day with devotion time and communion.

God Sightings were shared today and our main theme seems to be hearts – a reminder of God’s great love for us all.

WWJD Week of Hope 2011 Day #1

We had a great trip over to Colorado. On the ride, we played a lot of games, made duct tape art, and some of us managed to get a good nap. The weather during the trip was the best yet. We settled into our new church facility, Christ Community Church in Ft. Collins. The accommodations are excellent and we have lots of room to spread out as well as air conditioning! Our staff consists of Hailey, Kelsey, and our very own Ffej. Ffej is tremendous help in the kitchen and it doesn’t hurt to know the cook.

We have two work groups this year. The first group consists of Marney, Autumn, Channing, Izaiah, Connor, Lindy, and Mark. Their assignment this week is painting, weeding, and trimming trees. The second group consists of Evan, Karl, Josh, Anna, Emily, and Trudie.They are serving at a resident’s house named Jeff who is disabled to help move car parts, trim weeds, and watch his son Justin.

We were blessed with a special guest, Binh, the Vietnam mission team leader for Children of Peace International (COPI). She shared with us her challenges as she prepares for the next mission. She always brings the group such positive energy that feeds our group.

Our theme for this trip is “Connecting” and John 15:5 is our theme verse – “I am the vine, you are the branches…”. Our group is learning about how to connect with others as well our savior. We ended the night with devotions talking about how we are created with unique gifts and are special children of God.