June 11th

I have had limited access to internet so I will try my best to keep this updated at least once a week if I get a chance to do so more often I will. Also the mailing address that I have given out is the one to the mission. The kids that are in this neighborhood are bad about stealing things so if you are going to mail me something I can give you a new address or my mom has them as well. I just didn’t want to post them for security reasons. Thanks

Where has the time gone. I have already been in Colorado 2 weeks. It has been amazing and I have already been through many challenges and adventures. Let me get you caught up.

June 2nd
Last Wednesday we started Kids Club and we had 30 kids on the first day. We just played some games with the kids to try to get to know them and allow them to open up to us. After we were done for the day we went home for a short break and then went bowling as a team. I think this maybe a regular thing. Wednesday night is cheap bowling night here.

June 3rd
Thursday is our mission day. We got a new shipment of food in today so we had to restock the food pantry. I sorted through thing and organized it all by the type of food. When I came on this trip I didn't know I was going to be elected to be the cook for the summer. However I am not too worried about it. I am a person of many skills. I actually love to cook and after I had been in the food pantry Chris asked me to find something to make for dinner. The only thing I could really find that would feed enough people was some hamburger helper. A fact most people know about me is I HATE cheese. Most hamburger helper has cheese in it and this one did. Knowing this was the case I didn't try the meal and I was actually a little worried that I didn't fix it right...but after I put it on the table it didn't last very long. The dishes came back to me pretty clean.

June 4th
Kids Club was again today and we started with our theme of survival today. We made dirt cups with the kids as our activity. (chocolate pudding with gummy worms and crushed up Oreo cookies) I think the crushing up of the cookies was the kids favorite part well besides eating it.

June 5th
We got up early this morning because we had to drive to Longmont. There is another mission in longmont called the Good News Center and they were having a fundraiser at the applebees there so we went to help them out. I don't know if you have ever been apart of a Saturday morning at applebees but its super fun. As a fundraiser you have to presale tickets to get people to come eat a pancake breakfast at Applebees. Then you have to have people come in to help serve as the "employees" you need some waiters, waitress, and hostess. The four people on my team got to be the waiters and waitress. It was sooo much fun. I have never worked at a restaurant before and never been behind the scenes at applebees either. We got to take orders, go to the back and place orders, make drinks, take orders out to customers, get refills, take plates back to kitchen and where they belong, and then clean the tables and start over. When we got done and we were getting ready to leave I was talking to the manager for a second and he asked me if I had ever waited on tables before and I told him I hadn't and he asked if I wanted a part time job. Haha I had to tell him I was only there for the summer and I was doing missions. It was a really neat experience and a great way to make money. After we left applebees we went to horsetooth falls. This was a beautiful hike. When we got to the top there was running water. We spent some time just relaxing and taking in the beauty. On the way back down, well parts of it were up too, I decided I wanted to try to get some running in. After I was done and back to the car I was worn out and done for the day. Waiting tables and then hiking the mountains and running that's a lot.
I napped on the way home and then we all went to pastor Frank's house for dinner. He did some barbecuing on the grill for us. While we were waiting we played washers. Lee and I won! We both even got a ringer.

June 6th
Sunday is our church day. We went to West Greeley Baptist Church. Pastor Frank had us all do some introductions for the church telling where we were from and what school we attend. Surprisingly there were a couple people that had heard of Salado and even Nacogdoches. It really is a small world. My Sunday school teacher told me he had family in Lufkin and Diboll (Diboll is where Andrew's family is from) and after church there was a lady that told me here and her husband lived in Georgetown for 7 years til his job moved him to Greeley. The lady that played piano asked which church I went to in Nacogdoches because her husband had been talking to a pastor of a church and was trying to get a music ministry job there. I didn't get to finish talking to her because she had to go find her husband but I am almost positive it was the church in Nacogdoches I went to for 2 years.

June 7th
After Kids Club everyone came over to my house and again I cooked dinner. Lee cooked the steaks and hamburgers on the grill and I made the rice-a-roni (that charles wanted), french fries, and baked a confetti cake (our favorite).

June 8th
Today was our free day so we went in to Denver and went down to 16th street mall. We rode the bus down the strip a couple of times and then got our exercise walking back. This evening my team wanted to watch the big basketball game so I took kermie by myself, without the rearview mirror still, to Windsor, CO. for a bonfire. I got to see some of my fellow texans. Jarred and Amber :D and makes some smores.

June 9
Kids Club today was amazing I lead the bible study and we talked about the Great Commission. We read from Mark 16:15. “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” After we discussed how important it was for us to go and share the gospel with our family and friends, I taught the kids how to make a salvation bracelet and how to use it to share the good news with others. The kids were more attentive then I expected them to be. All of the children were able to make two necklaces or bracelets so they could keep one and then share the other with someone else. After we all had lunch it was time to start the lesson with the older kids, we did the same lesson with the older kids. This time Charles led the Bible study and then I walked the youth through the salvation bracelets as well except with the older kids I taught them how to make a square knot with hemp string. They did an awesome job and were very attentive as well. I know God is really at work in the lives of the children and I can see this more so in some children than others.

Ok so there is usually something bad that happened sometime through out the day and today Lee’s iPod got stolen. He left it out on the table and then we were all outside with the children and there was no one supervising the mission when two boys walked in and after they walked out they went straight home. Lee went to look for the iPod and it was gone. We are pretty positive that we know who it was since there were only the two boys. Lee has taken this pretty hard. Please pray that he doesn’t let this hurt his ministry in worrying about the iPod.

Usually kids club is over about 2:30 but today since the kids were enjoying the bracelet making we didn’t leave the mission until closer to 4. Tiffany and I went back to my house and crashed. The kids wore us out.

At 5:45 we went and picked up Jonathon and Caleb (Chris’ kids) and took them to get some dinner at McDonalds before heading up to the bowling alley for bowling night. There were about 15 people there all together so this made it fun. We had children everywhere. After I left the bowling alley I went home and packed my stuff and was able to move into my new home for the summer. :D Praise the Lord for the wonderful opportunity.

June 10
Today was a chill day we didn’t have to be at the mission until 4 to help prepare food boxes and clean up the clothing closet. I met Jane today she is a teacher in Greeley. Well she actually just lost her job this year because they were cutting back on teachers. She felt like she needed to do some missions work and she had been asking around for a place to do so. She came up the mission today and Chris sent her to work in the food pantry with me. Since it was just the two of us, I really got to talk to her and get to know her a little bit. She was telling me since she didn’t have a job she wanted to try to a little missions work because it helped her to keep it off her mind and she felt like that was something God had been laying on her heart. This was a blessing for us because we can always use volunteers at the mission especially on the days when we have kids club and my team has to lead the kids program outside so that leaves the inside work to be done by volunteers. If there are none then one of us has to go work inside. Jane said she would love to come in again on Friday (tomorrow) and she might even try to get her daughter to come help too.

June 11
This morning when I got to the mission Jane came to help again. She even stayed and joined us during the youth time. Today for the youth time we had the biggest group we have had during that time yet this summer. The Kids even stayed after and just shared a little of their lives with us. After we left the mission we had to go up to West Greeley Baptist Church to help set up the garage sale for tomorrow. We are having a Summer Sizzlin' Festival with activities for the children and families as well as a garage sale. This is the kickoff party for VBS that starts this next week.

Prayer request
-Veronica 13 yr old girl
-Kayli and her interest to ask questions and know more about God
-Pray for Jane and that she will find a job and/or continue to help out at the mission
-Lee’s Ipod that was stolen
-Communication between the group

Praise
-Housing
-Veronica for continuing to come to kids club and then staying for the youth time