Tuesday, June 17, 2014

A typical morning at St. John's; up at 7am, breakfast, chores, and worship then off to Rosebud. The trip up to Church of Jesus this morning however was a little more interesting as a heavy fog had set in. Visibility was about 100 yards for most of the way. The threat of rain hovered over us and we expected the day to be a bit of a letdown after yesterday's experience. Were we wrong, not only didn't it rain, but we had a larger turnout and even welcomed some youth from Indianapolis who were in the area to work on a Habitat for Humanity house to be part of our team. Shawna and Olivia were awesome and fit in as if they had always been part of our team.

After we arrived, it was set up and service project time. We made some real headway on the basement cleaning and some of our team enjoyed swing a sledge hammer as we took down some old drywall. Each time a section came down, they cheered one another. The rest of the work was not as enjoyable, more sweeping, more moving, and pulling nails from stud walls. However, it all came together and we should have no problem completing what we have been asked to do. About 11:30 Fr. Tom and a couple of our team members headed out to pick up the kids. As they hopped off the bus, they were hugs and hellos and high fives as the friendships renewed yesterday were again renewed today.

When we sat down to lunch we were blessed with something very special. A man walked up and began asking about where we were from, what we were doing, and how we came to be on the Rosebud. With his questions answered he looked into Clark Hall to check things out and found himself invited in for lunch. Some of our team had a wonderful visit with him and when asked at the end of the day where team members saw God, several of them talked about their visit with Ted. A wandering soul stops by giving us a glimpse of God, and what do we offer, a modest plate of food and our time. We count ourselves blessed to have met him.

Vacation Bible school was great. As is our custom, our opening worship included a skit, some prayer, and some singing. Everyone got into the music and the motions as our youth team led us with the help of several of our guests (or do we say hosts). Many in our group have gone to Fr. Tom and said they finally understood what he meant when, before the trip he told them, how they were not bringing Christ to a place or people, but coming to meet Christ who is already here. It is no wonder many who come on this trip say they go away having received so much and energized by the experience.

Back in St. John's it was off to the pool and showers. Afterwards we enjoyed dinner and some free time. It always amazes me how much candy and snack food kids can still eat after saying they are full from dinner. We gathered in the parish hall for our evening Bible Study and daily recap. The parable we studied was the Good Samaritan and we tried to see what connection it had with the parable we studied yesterday. Don't let anyone tell you our youth are not aware of the message of Scripture. They may not always be able to quote chapter and verse, but they do know how the story of love translates into action in their lives.

We finished up the day with another team leading us in Compline. What a great way to bring the day into perspective and to give thanks for our blessings. One blessing worth noting, the building was still within 10 minutes of lights out. Tired and blessed should make for a peaceful night's rest.

-- Pictures Day 3

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

This was a typical Wednesday morning on mission. After three days of go, go, go, it was a morning of oh no, no, no. Our teams did not leap out of bed and fewer members were up before the morning wakeup. The energy we have seen the past few morning was just not there; at least until after breakfast. It was like someone turned on a light switch, when it came time for chores, the teams went busily about their business and before we knew it, we were ready to head out to Clark Hall.

It was a warmer and muggier morning and about half way to our destination, we encountered fog and a light mist. It seemed like the day was getting off to a slow start too. The forecast was to have it all clear by 10am, but it was well past noon before the sun finally broke through. Funny thing, this was right about the time that Greg and Melissa Burke joined us and when youth began showing up. Despite the weather, we had a really good turn out today and we even welcomed some new faces to the party. After lunch, we normally walk over to the church and have worship, prayer, and song. Not today. We were waiting for the bishop to arrive and he was running a little behind. Since the weather had cleared considerably, we did our outdoor activities first and after the bishop arrived we headed over to Church of Jesus. We had another visitor today we were really glad to see, Don Eagle. Don, along with his granddaughter Taylor, has been part of our team for the past three summers and were glad to have him join us for one more.

Another great skit; our teams are constantly trying to do better each day and today's story had kids laughing and engaged. Our story today was about the Good Samaritan and with the help of woodland animals, the VBS team told it in a way we could all relate. By the time we moved into song, the crowd was rested from their outdoor activities and ready to go. Again we enjoyed youth from the local community as they helped us lead some of what had become familiar songs. This of course pushed our worship team to even try harder to be uplifting and they had the church rock'in. Even Bishop Barker got into the act and was singing and motioning right alongside the others.

Moving back over to Clark Hall, we began the next part of VBS, our crafts. From all accounts, each of the crafts had their own allure. The favorite seemed to be the sand art. One little girl was so excited about her ornament she designed, she was running around showing it to every adult and many of the kids. One thing that was different today was the number of kids wanting horseback rides. Each of the kids had their favorite horse, but the most popular was Mike Gearhart. He had several little girls and boys wanting him to give them a ride (which he graciously provided).

Our service project team made real headway in the church basement and even got the handicap ramp sealed and stained. All in all a really wonderful day. We think we will easily finish it up tomorrow morning and be ready to put a fresh coat of paint on the railings. On the way back to Valentine, we stopped at the Habitat for Humanity office to drop off a 27inch television that was donated and 13 laptops a company in Bellevue gave Church of the Holy Spirit to distribute on the reservation. Unfortunately the middle school principal was unable to meet with us, but she did promise to send a few pictures of the kids who will receive the gift that was generously given.

Back at St. John's, there was a mad dash for the showers. With the cooler temperature, nobody really felt like swimming, but the showers felt great, especially as declared by those had been working in the dust of the basement. Everyone got ready for worship. Tonight, members of the parish joined us for Eucharist and then a spaghetti dinner. They loved to hear the stories of the kids and were so impressed by how many on our team had grown into fine young adults. Once dinner was over, the kitchen was cleaned, our youth had a little free time before beginning our last bible study of the trip; the Parable of the Rich man and Lazarus. Like last night, they were on top of the connections this parable had with others we studied, and how it relates to the work we were doing.

Oh well, as with all good things, this day comes to an end. A day that looked dismal and uneventful turned out to be anything but. When we asked the question "Where did you see God today?" everyone had an answer. What a blessed thing to have happen before heading off to bed. It got quiet even quicker tonight after lights out, as all remembered today in their own way and crashed from exhaustion. Thank you Bishop Barked for your visit, your support, and being one of the people a youth member said they saw God in.

-- Pictures Day 4