July 28

July 20

Today we went white water rafting. The water was super cold but the trip was really fun. We had a time when we had to go up on high side. This means everyone in the boat has to go to one side and then from there all 7 of us had to move to the front of the boat. I thought for sure the boat was going to flip. We made it all 12 miles without losing anyone. We went through more than one level 4 rapids. When I get my pictures I will have to upload some so be looking for them.

July 21

This morning we had Kids club and then during youth I showed them another Louie Giglio movie. The Kids learned a lot from the movie but actually didn't respond very much.

July 22

Today I finally got a chance to sleep in for a little bit then I hung out with Barbara and then she took me to the mission to help put boxes together. When we got there is started pouring down rain. Of course this would be the day that everyone decides to come get food boxes. Made for a busy and hot afternoon. Later after we closed up we cooked some dinner and had bible study at the mission.

July 23

Today we had 3 new girls for Kids Club. Tiffany recapped the lessons from earlier in the week and I made salvation bracelets with them. After lunch arrived we fed the children and then started to pack the vehicles so we could head out for our camping trip with the youth. We went down to Red Feather for a weekend of fun. When we first arrived we set up camp and then we did a scavenger hunt with the kids. Boys vs. Girls. Guess who won. :) the GIRLS!! Since the girls won the boys had to roast the girls hot dogs for them on the fire, for dinner. Since today was Chuys birthday we made him a cookie cake for dessert.

July 24

Last night was sooo cold. I had to share a sleeping bag with a girl so we put our mats on the ground and spread the sleeping bag out on top of us. The place we took the kids camping was literally in the middle of the mountains away from everything. We would take the kids in to a restroom twice a day other than that they were in the woods. Most of the children had never done any kind of camping before so there was lots of whining. Today we did a lot of hiking. One group went to the top of a mountain in the woods and then the group I went with went to the lake and we walked around the lake. Mariyah and I took a detour on to another trail and found another lake. We saw all sorts of beautiful views of Gods wonderful masterpiece. One of my favorite places was up on some rocks. As leaders we were all assigned 2-3 kids to keep accountable for the weekend. I had Kailey, Mariyah, and Alyssa. These girls loved climbing on these rocks behind our campground. The first day we discovered them we sat on top for about 20 minutes. At one point Mikey and Tiffany joined us as well. Tiffany and I got to talk to Mikey and Kailey. We ended up getting into a discussion about what would happen when we die and if we were afraid to die. Then we also talked about how awesome it was that looking from the top of the mountains that God could create all of that in just 7 days. Overall today was a wonderful day.

My girls and I up on top of our rocks

From top: Kailey, Mya, Me, and Alyssa

July 25

Last night I FROZE. It was definately colder than the night before. The girls kept me up most of the night and then I couldn't sleep because I got so cold. We woke up at about 8:30 when the sun came up and warmed us up. We all got up by about 9 and started taking down camp. Our next stop was to get something to eat and then go down to Loveland lake to go swimming. When we got to Wendy's we all ordered and then as the kids were finishing up I did the morning devotion with them. The kids have really impressed me in how much they have been learning and really listening to us when we speak to them. After we were done we went to loveland lake where the kids went swimming at the beach, and others played football at the park. We got the kids home in time for us to start cooking dinner for evening church. As soon as we were done we stayed at the church for a little while planning for tomorrow and chatting with Chris. Then Tiffany and I were ready to get home and shower. This weekend definatley made me become more thankful for indoor plumbing. aka: showers and toilets (that flush)

July 26

Today we had Kids Club and youth and then I went home and showered so that I could drive to Loveland to meet the Perkins for dinner in loveland. This is a couple that used to live in Salado but then moved away. I was really excited to hear that they were up in Estes and that I would get to see them while I was in Colorado.

Bill and Sue Perkins

July 27
This morning we got up early and drove to the mountains. We went to Sky Corral and went horseback riding. We went down to the barn, put some boots on and got saddled up. It was beautiful to be riding on the back of a horse and look out over a city in Colorado on one side and the state of Wyoming on the other side. When we got done horseback riding we went up to the main building and most of us took a nap then a little while later had lunch. After lunch we went back out to the pond and went fishing. I didn’t catch anything but it was my first time in a LONG time and we only stayed there for an hour. Next we hiked up the hill to the archery range. As we were walking it started to rain. I am not sure what it is with raining on us on our day off but it rained on us while we were rafting last Tuesday as well. The archery was a lot of fun. This was my first time to shoot a bow and arrow. I wouldn’t say I was a pro by any means but it was still fun. We had to leave after an hour of archery because we needed to get back on the road to make it in time for the Colorado Rockies baseball game. The Rockies lost but it was still fun to go to a game. I hadn’t been since I was a little girl.

Me on Cuervo out at Sky Corral

July 28
This morning we had Kids Club and I got to teach the kids. We talked about the lost scroll that was found in the temple. So for snack/Craft we made edible scrolls. Take a tortilla, jelly and pretzels and put the jelly on the end and then put the pretzels in it and roll up both ends. Well that is how we taught we would make them. The jelly we had was bad so we had to use marshmallow cream instead and then let the kids use sprinkles to use as the words. We were prepared to do youth today as well but the only youth that showed up came for lunch and left before we started anything. This evening I went to dinner with Elsa.

Prayer Request:

I just found out this week that the girl I was gonna live with will not be returning to SFA until the spring semester so now I am not sure where I am going to live this next semester. Please pray that this situation will work out with the least amount of problems this has been a long road dealing with housing.

We also are leaving in a week and a half. Please pray that the mission will continue on strong even after we leave. That God will provide people to help Charlie and Sue. (The couple that is going to try to help keep it running)

July 19

July 3
Every year the Greeley Stampede is held in Greeley, Colorado. This is the worlds largest Rodeo and Carnival. Today my team had an extra free day so we decide to go to the Rodeo. It was a big outdoor rodeo. There were lots of Cowboys there from TEXAS! The Rodeo was very good we did however experience an accident. When the big preifert horses were putting on there show, they started to make a turn and start running and as the made the turn they flipped their trailer that they were pulling. The driver and the helper both went flying off and into the concrete wall. The driver jumped up and ran to stop the horses. The other guy however never got up. The ambulance had to come pick him up. I hope that everything is ok with him. The last thing we heard was that he was finally responding. After we left from the Rodeo, Tiffany and Lee left to go pick up their new mission team that was coming in from North Carolina for the following week. I went to pick up Deya and then we went back up the the fair grounds for the evening. We bought a arm band and rode all the rides at least once and some of them more.

Deya and I on the Ferris Wheel

July 4
This morning I went to the Cowboy church again at the Greeley Stampede this time with Deya. We got to listen to Sandra Dee and The Caballeros play/sing. Then after that Deya and I left in time to get back to West Greeley Baptist because she had nursery duty. The other person that was supposed to help her never came so I went and joined her in the nursery. This was really fun and made me missed working in the nursery. After Church the Hernandez family invited a group of us to come over for lunch. Then Charles and I had to hurry home, pack our bags and get on the road to travel to Estes Park for the week.

When we got to Estes we had to help set up the snow cone machine and bounce house because Estes Park Baptist Church (EPBC) was were we were helping for the week and this was just an opportunity to get to feed and meet some people in the community. They had a pig roast for dinner and then some people stuck around to watch the fireworks from the church. We had a perfect view of the lake were they were being shot off from. If you have never experienced fireworks in the mountains it is beautiful. It sounds a lot like thunder. The noise just rolls of the mountains.

The pig for the Pig Roast

July 5
This morning I got to wake up to a wonderful view of the mountains just right outside my window. The couples’ house I stayed at was up in the mountains and was just gorgeous. Some of Pastor Paul’s grandkids were staying with us for the week to attend VBS, Holden and Gabby. Today we didn’t have anything planned so Charles and I took the kids down town to just walk the downtown strip.

This was my view from the porch.

July 6
Today was supposed to be our busiest day of the week. We got up early to meet at the church with a group to be in the Estes Park Parade and pass out flyers for our VBS. This was the only publication we really had. When we got to the church that morning Charles and I were in for a great surprise, we did not know that we would be seeing our other Colorado missionaries from Texas. After the parade we went back to the church to eat lunch. While we were eating the secretary came out and told us she had received her first phone call from a family to enroll their three children in VBS. Another family just walked straight in to the church where we were and asked where they could sign their son up. This was such an encouraging thing. This church that we were helping has no children in the church and is very small to start with because not many people live in Estes. Most people just have summer homes here. This afternoon we were able to spend some time with our other missionary friends.

July 7
Today we started VBS and God blessed us with 53 kids. I was in charge of leading the Crafts.

July 8
This morning we continued VBS. In the evening, a couple from the church took Charles and I to dinner. The people at this church were all so sweet and very welcoming.

July 9
We had VBS this morning and then in the evening was family night. We had about 100 people. We had a cookout and the children showed their parents some of the songs as well as cowboy Nick came out and brought his horses and shared some stories and talked with the kids and their parents. This evening I stayed up late with some of the other people that were staying at the church to help us with VBS. They taught me how to play cribbage.

Nick preaching to the familes

July 10
Today was our last day of VBS. We finished the day by having a picnic and bringing out the bounce house and snow cone machine.

July 11
Church, I taught the K, 1st and 2nd grade class, and Pastor Paul finished up VBS during the sermon. This evening we got the opportunity to listen to a missionary from Southeast Asia. We even got to be the models for them. They are serving in an area where we can not say but I will ask that you will pray for their ministry.

July 12
Today was an extra day in Estes we hadn’t originally planned on staying through today but Pastor Paul was going to Shampoo the carpet at the church and asked us to stay and help so we did. Charles helped him while I entertained his grandson, Holden. For lunch today I finally my first chicken fried steak since I have been here. It is nothing like Texas but it was still very good. We took the boys back to the church so they could work a little while longer and then we went home and packed a picnic and stuff for a cookout. We drove up Falls River Road in the mountains and then on our way down we stopped and cooked some hamburgers for dinner in the mountains and made smores.

July 13
Finally made it back to Greeley today, it has really been a wonderful week in Estes. I enjoyed my time there and honestly wasn’t ready to leave. This evening when Charles and I got back we met up with the Colorado Christian Challenge group and rode with them to Denver to eat dinner at Casa Bonita. This was an interesting experience. The food is not all that great however you are really paying for the entertainment.

July 14
Started back at Kids Club. We did not have very many children there. There was lots of youth however. This is because we are taking them camping the weekend of the 23rd. The incentive is that they have to be at youth time for two weeks. Today was a record breaking day for the youth because of this incentive. There were 16 youth total.

July 15
This evening we met at the mission to help with the boxes and clothing again and then Bible study afterwards. We heard today that Charlie and his wife sue will be taking the position of helping to keep the mission open after Chris leaves for California. Chris and his wife have actually been in California for the past 3 days trying to find a house in California. I believe they have found one now and shall be back in Greeley tomorrow.

July 16
Today we had the regular kids club and I taught the children a lesson on Adam and Eve. After youth, Tiffany got a chance to talk with Veronica and she accepted Christ. This was definitely the highlight of our day.

July 17
Today was a long and eventful day. Josue took Mrs. Linda and I to Denver. We got to go to the zoo and then to the capitol. We got to see a month old seal and a baby giraffe. I love going to the zoo however today had to of been the hottest day since I have been in Colorado. Yes it reached 102 degrees today. This evening when I got back was a little rough. I ended up moving once again. This time I moved in with the Hernandez family and here is where I will stay til August 7 when I fly home. I have loved this family and they have taken care of me.

July 18
This morning we finally made it back to church at West Greeley Baptist and afterwards Mrs. Helen had us over for lunch. This lady LOVES the Atlanta Braves. She set up the tables with a blue tablecloth, red plates, there were foam baseballs for coasters, trading cards as decorations, and then she even had our names placed on baseball stickers that were on a toothpick stuck in side of a reese's peanut butter cup.

July 19
This morning we had kids club and none of the younger children showed up. There were about 5 youth so we did the lesson with them anyway because unlike the rest of the time we planned two different lessons for today. With the youth we showed them the Indescribable video by Louis Giglio. If you have never seen this movie it really is amazing. It makes us feel very, very small and shows us how BIG our creator God is. Earlier in the week Deya and I had decided to start a work out since we would have more time together. So when I got home it was Zumba time.

Prayer Request and Praise
-Veronica’s Salvation
-Our Camping trip this coming weekend
-Southeast Asia missionaries
-For me to finish Strong with my mission…only 3 weeks left

July 2

June 23
Our theme for the week at kids club has been hope. For our craft we made mosaic crosses with seeds and beans that we had at the mission. The kids are very creative. Since its Wednesday we went bowling again. This time it was our team and Josue and his aunt Nancy joined us.

June 24
Today Charles and I meet Chris at the food bank at 2 and helped him pick up some food to take back over to the mission. We loaded up food on carts and in grocery baskets from the warehouse and then took it all out to the van to fill up the back and the bed of the truck. Once we got it all back to the mission we unloaded it and I started sorting through everything and placing it where it belongs in the food pantry. As I was still putting stuff away we had to open the mission to start putting food boxes together to hand out to families as they came. We then had bible study at 7.

June 25
Today for Kids Club to continue the theme of hope I taught the kids about being a light of the world. Since this is something I had been studying for quite some time and even doing myself this summer. I challenged the children to find ways that they could be a light for others or even bigger to share with their family and friends about the hope that we can have in Christ. Matthew 5:14-16; Luke 11:33-36
When the food was brought for lunch the iPod issue was brought up again and Mikey started cussing and even threatened to hurt his little sister. Tiffany and Lee walked her home and Lee eventually talked to Mikey about the situation. After we got lunch served and the problems all handled. We started the youth bible study. We started by playing Mafia. The children really enjoyed this game. After all of this was done and I got home, I crashed. I was sooo tired I slept for about an hr and a half then had to get up to get back to the mission.

This evening we took about 5 youth to a place called Higher Grounds. This is a place designed for teenagers to hangout. Kind of like a bar or club setting. There was a pool table and, booths, bar to order drinks (non-alcoholic), and even a designated smoking area outside. There is a skate park connected on to the building as well. Two of our guys went and rode their skateboards while the rest of us all sat around talking. I was able to spend lots of time with Veronica. We had some good talks and she shared a little about her home life and her father. After a while Veronica and I were bout ready to go so we went to find Tiffany. Tiffany was sitting in a booth with two boys talking about a gang that they are in. She introduced us and we sat down and joined in on the conversation. The stepbrother of one of the boys came over and really started pouring out his entire life with everything he knew and had experienced with gangs and being in one. This kid was only 17 years old and from California. He has been in fights many times, shot at and even shot twice. Just as I assumed he told us that the kids in Greeley are really sheltered when it comes to gangs because the town has lots of police and is well monitored. I was really amazed how much this kid opened up to us.

After we left we went to McDonalds to eat before taking the kids home. While we were eating the fireworks started going off over at the Greeley Stampede. This was the kick off night.

June 26
Today we had nothing planned and I didn’t want to stay in the house all day so I decided to try to find some time to hang out with some of my new friends from Greeley. Barbara is actually leaving the end of August to go to Bulgaria on a mission trip for 4 months to test the waters and see if she is really called to Missions. Elsa is my friend that has just accepted Christ this summer :D. I plan to try to meet with both of these girls at least once a week if possible. To help with my relationship with these girls and our relationships with Christ I feel like this is something I am supposed to make time for as part of my mission here in Greeley.

Barb and 2 of her friends were going to see Knight & Day right after lunch so I joined them and then afterwards we went to TCBY to have some ice cream and talk for a little while . Elsa has been taking classes this summer and our schedules don’t always match up so I told her to call me when she had a free day. Today was that free day for her so finally we were both able to hangout. I had her meet me for dinner and we had a good long talk as well just about things going on in her life and how to handle some sticky situations. We finished and neither of us ready to go home yet so then we went to Starbucks to just enjoy each others company a while longer.

June 27
This is the day of Worshiping. Today really was a wonderful day of spending time listening to all kinds of different worship music. Since the Greeley Stampede started this past Friday we thought we would go to the Cowboy church on the fairgrounds this morning. We went to the free pancake breakfast first and then went outside to find a seat in the HOT sun. Gospel Trail opened in music for about an hour and then Pastor Shorty Huffman preached for a little while followed by the famous Michael Martin Murphey. This man can sing. It was an awesome morning of worship. To follow up on the amazing morning we Charles, Colleen and I went to dinner and then spent the evening in Loveland at Praise in the Park. This is a Concert that is put on by a church called resurrection fellowship. I love being able to be outdoors, listening to praise music (LOUD), and seeing large numbers of people just singing and praising the One true God. There will be another gathering this summer….and I will be there.

June 28
Today has been a busy, some what hectic, but very good and accomplishing day. We have a team in from Missouri helping us for a couple of days. They brought in a team to cut down our trees and repaint the building it looks wonderful they did a good job. The sign that was hiding before and no one could see has been repainted and the tree is gone. There was one team inside with me making food boxes and sorting through clothes hanging the summer stuff up and putting away winter clothing. The other team was running the kids club and entertaining the children. At one point in time I just sat back and watched all the teams and seeing all of these people taking care of the building. I noticed some of the children through out the day picking up trash and two of the boys picked up the mat at the front door and took it to shake out the dirt. It was like there was something in the air, the children all had a little pride and wanted to take part in cleaning when they saw so many other people doing so. After we served lunch at 1:30 we loaded up all the kids and took them over to some apartments where there is an indoor pool. Chris told me I had to make sure none of the children died on my watch. Let me tell you I am glad there were other adults there watching cause when I looked in the pool there were at least 30 kids in there with me. We took the children home after a couple hours and then the team all went back to the apartment complex for a cookout. Tiffany, Tamika and I walked around the neighborhood to see who we could find to invite to the cookout. Many families were sitting outside watching their kids play. We invited everyone we saw and hoped they would come and boy did they. As soon as we got back to the tent there were people coming from all over. As soon as people started getting food more and more just keep coming.

The best thing about today: there are two younger guys that came with the group from Missouri. One named Omar and the other James. James is the one that repainted the sign for us. Omar went out on the canvassing walk through the trailer park. He shared the gospel with any one he met. The biggest difference that he had then the rest of our team was that he was Hispanic and he knew Spanish. Omar was able to spend lots of time talking with people he even led Grandma to Christ. Grandma is the lady that has 20 people leaving in her house. She had taken in many of her children and grandchildren. When Maryiah came to tell me that a man came into her home and talked with her mom and grandma she was excited and not until later did I realize why. She didn’t tell me that her grandmother accepted Christ.

June 29
This morning I had to get up to take Elthea and her husband to Loveland so they could try to find a home that they can afford. Since I didn’t have to be at the mission til 3:30 and Loveland was about a 30 minute drive I stayed there and went shopping and ate Chick-fil-a for lunch. This is the closest one to me. Then after I got back to Greeley and finished running some errands I went out to the mission for the carnival. We set up our block party trailer and did another cook out with the help from our friends from Missouri. We had the Bounce house up and going, Snow cones, Popcorn, Music playing, Carnival games, and then after a little while cooked some hot dogs and hamburgers.

June 30
Today has been a slower day but an extremely hot day. I do not sweat hardly ever. This summer I have probably done so more than I ever have. Today I was dripping in sweat. All of this to say as soon as kids club was over I was at home taking a shower and enjoying the privilege of having air conditioning.
We had a total of 5 kids for kids club this morning. We did our lesson and games inside and then for the youth today was Alyssa’s birthday so we had some cupcakes for a snack. Charles spent a lot of the afternoon with Mikey. This was really cool because Mikey was asking lots of questions about God and Christians.

July 1
Since Thursday is kind of like a chill day for us I was at home all morning and then left about 12:30. I joined Mrs. Linda and Deya for an afternoon of fun. I then had to be at the mission for the evening to open and then have bible study. As soon as bible study was over I went home to check on pooch. Pooch, is Ms. Judy's dog (the lady I am now staying with). Judy left earlier today for a couple days to go to her family reunion and left me in charge of pooch. After I let pooch in the house I went back to rescue Deya from being by herself. We ended up stayin up super late and watching movies at the house.

July 2
This morning we met Chris at IHOP for our weekly meeting. For Kids Club we had yet again low numbers but God is still working in the lives of the students through us. Since the 4th of July is this weekend we did a lesson today on having Freedom in Christ. One of the Girls, Faith, was asking lots of questions about eternity and heaven and hell. She wanted to make sure she was going to heaven. We explained to her and she said that she has accepted Christ into her life but she doesn't have a personal relationship with him. She was also worried about her aunt who is an atheist and asked if she would go to heaven? Which of course if she doesn't have a relationship with Christ and doesn't accept him into her life then she will not be in heaven. This led to having a wonderful conversation with the few girls that were there. This afternoon I met up with Barb at Starbucks to just chat about what has been going on about plans for the future. It really is awesome to be able to just share and listen to another Christian. Especially in the time of doing lots of ministry. It is very important to make sure that we are not only pouring out all the time but that we are being poured into as well. When the cup is empty there is nothing left to pour out.


Prayer Request:
Mikey-He knows he is doing wrong, just for a desire in his heart to want to change
Grandma-God is really working in the house of this woman.
Elsa-Relationship with Christ, continue the eagerness to want to learn and know more
This next week Charles and I will be staying in Estes Park to help with their VBS.
Faith-Her christian faith to become stronger and for her to have a better understanding our role as Christians.