Thursday, July 24, 2014
Wednesday - Fun Day in Chicago
We had a wonderful day of respite in Chicago yesterday! We were able to get a taste of many local favors during our fun day! Some toured Wrigley Field while others visited the Cloud Gate in Millennium Park! We then all had some free time to stroll down the Magnificent Mile. Following lunch our entire group headed to Shedd Aquarium and enjoyed viewing beautiful fish and hanging out on the patio by the Lakefront! Our final stop of the day was at Navy Pier. We took a tour of the Lakefront by Seadog Speedboat and then had dinner at the iconic Harry Carry Tavern! It was a wonderful day of fellowship and rest but we are excited to continue of week of service today in Milwaukee!
Wednesday, July 23, 2014
Tuesday Recap
During morning glow, Sam and Gray challenged us to be difference makers. We went to two new work sites today, the Hunger Task Force Stockboxes and Grow MKE. The Stockboxes provide food for senior citizens and Grow Milwaukee is a vision to fill a vacant lot, in the Washington Park neighborhood, with a sustainable community garden. Our work today was challenging but also fulfilling.
In addition to these new sites, the raised beds were finished at the UM Children's Services, as well as staining porches and weeding.
The Stockbox group continued on to the HTF Farm this afternoon for planting and riding on a tractor! A novel experience for most of us, minus Ginger.
Of course we are in Milwaukee on the hottest day of the year so far! Man, did those showers get a work out this afternoon.
After dining at Kopp's, a local favorite, we were off to the Major League Baseball game. The highlight was back-to-back homers by the Brewers which meant their mascot slid down the slide out in left field. And Luuuuuuu went yard in the 6th. To capture the game, the Brewers hit a walk-off home run! Our group is convinced they are the good luck charms.
We completed our day with devotions. It was a late night out on the town, but we know it's still important to reflect on the day and dig deeper in our faith. We began by debriefing with our work teams as Luke asked us a series of questions about our day. Becky then shared an "AHA!" moment she experienced as she watched Stuart Scott's acceptance speech at the ESPYs last week. As a group, we watched the powerful and moving speech and then tied his message into our theme this week - Looking at things Different! We read Psalm 119:105, "Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path." As Catherine prompted our journaling, we began listening to the song Learning to be the Light . We wrote about three things Stuart Scott mentioned he found important as he faced the challenges of cancer. We were able to reflect on how we live by being the light for others. We then journaled why we live by discussing what we thought our purpose was in life and then we wrote about the manner in which we live. It's easier for us to live this way up here because we have less distractions, but this journaling challenged us to find ways we could apply this to our life back home in Gastonia. The last question we pondered was what does a brighter world, living in His world, look like? We found that the good news is that this bright world already exists because He is the truth, we just need to follow his light & share it with others so that we may illuminate the world!
It's been a very long day but also extremely rewarding. We are looking forward to a day of respite tomorrow as we venture into Chicago for our fun day!
In addition to these new sites, the raised beds were finished at the UM Children's Services, as well as staining porches and weeding.
The Stockbox group continued on to the HTF Farm this afternoon for planting and riding on a tractor! A novel experience for most of us, minus Ginger.
Of course we are in Milwaukee on the hottest day of the year so far! Man, did those showers get a work out this afternoon.
After dining at Kopp's, a local favorite, we were off to the Major League Baseball game. The highlight was back-to-back homers by the Brewers which meant their mascot slid down the slide out in left field. And Luuuuuuu went yard in the 6th. To capture the game, the Brewers hit a walk-off home run! Our group is convinced they are the good luck charms.
We completed our day with devotions. It was a late night out on the town, but we know it's still important to reflect on the day and dig deeper in our faith. We began by debriefing with our work teams as Luke asked us a series of questions about our day. Becky then shared an "AHA!" moment she experienced as she watched Stuart Scott's acceptance speech at the ESPYs last week. As a group, we watched the powerful and moving speech and then tied his message into our theme this week - Looking at things Different! We read Psalm 119:105, "Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path." As Catherine prompted our journaling, we began listening to the song Learning to be the Light . We wrote about three things Stuart Scott mentioned he found important as he faced the challenges of cancer. We were able to reflect on how we live by being the light for others. We then journaled why we live by discussing what we thought our purpose was in life and then we wrote about the manner in which we live. It's easier for us to live this way up here because we have less distractions, but this journaling challenged us to find ways we could apply this to our life back home in Gastonia. The last question we pondered was what does a brighter world, living in His world, look like? We found that the good news is that this bright world already exists because He is the truth, we just need to follow his light & share it with others so that we may illuminate the world!
It's been a very long day but also extremely rewarding. We are looking forward to a day of respite tomorrow as we venture into Chicago for our fun day!
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Monday Reflections
Jesus is GREAT!
"In God we LIVE and MOVE and have our being." Acts 17:28
We began the day with Maggie Christy and Jake Rowe's Morning Glow. This consisted of a "get-to-know you" game where you answered questions after catching a ball. After a completion percentage of 64%, we stopped the game. After they challenged us to live and move through the game, they shared with us the verse above from Acts. We left with a wristband, which included our scripture, to remind us of the mandate throughout the work day.
Following Morning Glow, we set out to our work sites which included UMC Children's Services, where we pulled weeds, stained porches, and built elevated gardens. The interactions with the locals were organic and friendly. One of the young boys helped us stain a house and in return we helped fix his broken bike. It's surprising how friendly people are when you sit down and relate to them.
One group went to Hunger Task Force Farm, where they picked up rocks so they would not destroy the machinery used to harvest crops. Sounded awesome and super entertaining. Jacob claimed, "It was a great time and was a lot more fun than it sounds." They also dug up weeds in the cabbage and cauliflower gardens to help the plants live. After much thought, Joseph Buckner remarked, "It gave me great joy to know that I was preparing a field to plant food for the hungry."
The last group went to an art gallery to work with Muneer, an aspiring local artist. They created three tiles, one for themselves, one for the UMC Children's Services, and one for our church. One of the exercises involved a journaling project which represents the hopes and visions for the communities. These tiles will be placed on peace posts in each of these communities and it is our hope that they bring joy to all who encounter them. Graham Hunter stated, "Ummmm, it was amazing. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the project and thought the pop-up garden near the gallery was fantabulous." The pop-up garden was created to orchestrate peace. The vision in this neighborhood is that it will grow and be beautified to create a sense of harmony & peace.
After a great workday and showers, we ate at local legend Culver's, which had some awesome cheeseburgers and chicken, not to mention the insane custard. Not only was the food amazing, it was neat to learn that Mr. Culver is United Methodist and gives generously to the United Methodist Children's Services.
After getting back to the church, we played taps (which got a little intense) and began a devotion. We first began with an icebreaker and then divided into our work teams. In our teams we shared our joys, anxious feelings and grateful times throughout the day. We then shared with the group so that they could have a better understanding of what we did and what they will do in future days. Following this activity, we broke into our work teams for tomorrow and discussed how we should look at things differently in our work settings tomorrow. Then, to set the tone for our devotion, Luke led us in a dance party to the song "Happy"! This was hilarious and challenged us to listen to the lyrics differently. The verse that stood out the most was "Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth!" Our verse tonight was John 14:6 "Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. Nobody comes to Father except through me." Becky talked about how God is moving in our lives. There is a difference between A TRUTH (which is a temporary situation based on condition) and THE TRUTH (which is that God has a plan that is eternal).
Our journaling tonight was various questions. One of our youth wrote it in a poem form and would like to share.
"God is moving in my life.
I feel him with me.
Cheering me on, telling me to do the impossible.
God is moving in my life.
I know he's calling me.
Telling me me to go for what I love.
He knows the things in my heart before I do.
God is moving in my life.
I hear him telling me to change.
Pointing me in the direction that will make me who I am.
He knows what and who I should be.
God is moving in my life."
-Camille Young
Goodnight! Sleeptight!
Blogging done by: Jacob Hord, Drew Jurs and Camille Young.
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