Battle of the Big Ten

We just finished our second week of participants and are enjoying a weekend of relaxation. This week brought groups from Michigan, Indiana, ILlinois and Tennesee. Before the trip even began, one of the adult leaders made it known that Michigan was the best team in the Big Ten and little did he know that he had opened quite the can of worms! Numerous comments were made throughout the week about who had the best football team in the big ten (obviously Wisconsin!).

So many amazing things happened this week....
Our kids club really grew and we had about 30 kids each day come and play games and do art projects. There were moments where the teenagers were frustrated because the kids seemed to be "out of control" and disrespectful, but it was such a good lesson in the patience that we need to have with children. By the end of the week they loved the kids!

We also went to some nursing homes and some of the teenagers really found their calling. A couple of the younger middle school girls spent full days with a couple of elderly women and were in tears about leaving them. They got their address and plan on writing them!

Two of the groups worked on a woman's house that was covered in vines and very overgrown. She suffered from a mental disability, but was living an independent and pretty high functioning life, but spent the majority of time in her house. No sunlight was getting to her house because the trees were so overgrown. Her neighbor told us he didn't even know anyone lived in the house. The groups pulled weeds and took all the vines off her house. Now sunlight is able to come in, which is a great thing. At the end of the week we have a community cookout, and she came and spent time with us. That's really what its all about....sure we improved her house, but its so much better to build a relationship with her!

As much as I love to do the actual service, I'm really taking a lot of joy in watching others participate and grow. Before the summer started, I questioned why I was going to work with a mostly white, middle to upper class population and wondered what more they really needed. But I'm learning that a person's happiness or contentment with their life cannot be judged from skin color or social status. Jesus looked at the hearts of people and we should do the same. Its great to see some of the teenagers really find their niche and to begin to grow in faith.

The end of the week is always hard because you've built such close relationships. When the groups first arrive, I always wonder how I'm going to get to know them. But 4 days later, everyone has become kind of like a family no matter what church they are from. While I may stay in touch with some people, that is not the case for the majority. In a lot of cases, these people come as strangers and may leave with me not knowing what the rest of their life will be like. Its a difficult concept to understand.

My faith in God has grown so much stronger this summer. Its an amazing thing to be able to start with God each day and then to be able to intentionally see God working. He has blessed our summer so much already!