| Cary Serve 2009 |
| Update #8 With God's care and blessing, we made it back to Luverne a little after 4 PM on Saturday. We give thanks for traveling mercies! We appreciate your interest in the 2009 Cary Serve trip, and especially your prayers. We were blessed with a wonderful week of VBS, and opportunities to serve. The new picture (above) shows the combined groups from Luverne and Pella. When I have a chance I'll post a few more pictures, so be sure to check back later. To God be the glory! Update #7 It is Friday evening. The closing program for VBS went well. We were happy that, compared to the last few years, more parents came to the program. After that we said "goodbye" to the kids, and went back to the dorm to pack for today's journey. We give thanks that we all made it safely to our hotel here in Boonville, MO. The kids have headed down to the pool to burn off some energy. The drivers (myself included) are tired, but glad that we're more than halfway home. Hopefully my next update will be from Luverne, as we trust that God will continue to provide for us along the way. Update #6 By now it's late Thursday afternoon. For the most part, VBS is complete. All that remains is the VBS program, at 7 PM this evening. We hope lots of kids come, and that some parents, grandparents, etc., come to get a taste of what we've been doing all week. I think all the teachers would agree that we had an excellent week. Attendance remained strong -- about 60 kids. We will all have stories to tell of moments when it was clear that the children learned some of the points of our lessons. It will be a busy evening, since we are supposed to pack most of our things and load them on the truck, in preparation for leaving at an early hour tomorrow morning. Most of us have held up pretty well on worksites, in spite of the heat. We painted two houses, painted lines on a parking lot, did some remodeling, and took care of some smaller projects at Cary Christian Center. Now we pray that the Gospel seed we've planted will take root and grow in hearts, for the glory of God. Pastor Sparks Update #5 Hello again. It's Tuesday evening. Another hot day here in Mississippi. We had another good day of VBS. A few of the children we had yesterday were missing today, but we had a few new ones too, so our total was probably about the same -- about 50 kids! We give thanks for each of them, including the ones who are extra lively and who make things "interesting" for the teachers and helpers. We continue to share with the children the truth of God's commandments -- we're focusing on the first 5 of the 10 commandments. The work sites are keeping us busy in the afternoons. A group finished painting a house that we started on yesterday. I went with a few of the teens to paint stripes on the parking lot of one of the thrift stores. That was hot work! Thankfully a bank of clouds built up, and cooled things off by a few degrees. There are a couple of remodeling projects going on too. It will be interesting to see if we can complete them in just two more days of work. Though the dorm area is crowded, we are enjoying our time with the group from Pella. Once again, thank you for your prayers! Update #4 Tuesday morning. All went well with the first full day of VBS. We had excellent attendance for the first full day -- 50 children! Give thanks for each of them and pray God's blessing for us as we work with them and others who come throughout the week. As far as I can tell, everyone seems to be healthy and in good spirits. The heat yesterday afternoon was extreme, so those of us who had outside jobs had to keep drinking lots of fluids. Update #3 It is Sunday afternoon. Everyone arrived safely. We attended the Mt. Herald Baptist Church in Rolling Fork, where we will conduct the VBS. It's really hot, so the VBS kickoff will be a bit challenging, since it will be outdoors and in the sun. When I have a better internet connection I will upload some pictures of the group and from the trip down, etc. Please pray for the children and youth who will attend VBS this coming week. Update #2 It is Friday evening, June 19. I just texted Nathan, who said that the trip went okay today. Food was good at Lambert's restaurant -- too good in fact! Too easy to overeat those warm, melt in your mouth, rolls, slathered with butter! Nathan said it's hot where they're staying in Arkansas this evening. I checked the long term forecast for Cary, MS, and the next 5 days the high temp is predicted to be 95 degrees F. I'm to fly to Jackson, MS, tomorrow evening. Hopefully someone from the group will meet me at the airport! Pastor Sparks Update #1 Hello. It's Thursday evening, June 18. I checked Facebook and saw a note from Laura Timmer that the group arrived safely at Grain Valley, MO. Give thanks for safe travel today. |
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| 2009 Luverne Cary Serve Team |
| For more pictures, Click here |