Bye, Bye Summer Vacation

Wednesday, August 14th was the last day before school started on Thursday and I got to have all the kids that day.  We really needed an outing.  The weather was beautiful, we had been stuck inside the past two days and Ritter Springs Park was calling us.........

 It was such a great day.  We took a picnic lunch and ate in the park, then walked on the trail and played in the creek and looked at turtles and played on the playground.  So much fun.  Glad to have that time with them!

Love them all,

Mema

Week 3 - Denver

Global Encounter Ministries organizes mission trips for youth groups in three inner cities in the U.S. - St. Louis/East St. Louis; Kansas City in Missouri and Denver, Colorado.  We provide a lodging site (the floor of a church with meals and showers) and a ministry site (church, park, apartment complex).  We also provide training the first weekend and great speakers and worship band for the week.

Many groups have partnered with us year after year.  Some go back to the same ministry site and develop a relationship with that church or people in the area.  We are so thankful for these youth pastors and students who pour into the children and adults they are in contact with that week.

I am privileged to get to talk to these youth leaders as they plan their mission week and try to answer their questions in the months leading up to their week.  Every year we get to meet new youth groups and be reunited with familiar ones.

My weekend is usually very busy with registration and other duties and I don't get to sit in on much of the training sessions, but when I do get to hear the speakers later in the week, I am always encouraged and blessed.

Our band this year was amazing.  Tyler Skrobonja's Band is a group of college students from First Baptist Church Arnold.  We have  used this group in the past at Arnold for a service occasionally and have watched these young people grow into outstanding musicians with a heart to lead true worship.  Actually four of them were interns with us for the summer.  But when we were in each city, all six went out on the field with the youth groups every day.  We always assign a couple of interns to each ministry site to help and these band members had such servant hearts  that they wanted not only to lead worship each evening, but serve alongside the students at their VBS.


I also have to say we had an outstanding group of interns, as well.  They start working with Brad Russell the first of June each summer and work through the end of the last project.....some work a week or so .  They have so many duties and the list is pretty overwhelming at the beginning of summer:   journals, t-shirts, ministry sites, directions, showers, lodging...the list goes on and on.  But they are so creative  and always get the job done with excellence.

Speaking of Brad Russell, I really don't know what we would do without him.  He is the college pastor at FBCA and has such an impact on those college students as well as our interns that he leads for 9-10 weeks every summer.  Brad's love for the Lord and passion for serving Him makes him an incredible asset for Bob Caldwell and Global Encounter Ministries.

FBCA, St. Louis, MO

FBCA, St. Louis, MO

Northgate, Kansas City, MO

Northgate, Kansas City, MO

Aurora FBC,  CO

Aurora FBC, CO

15

VBS Prep, Aurora FBC, CO

 I am so thankful to the Lord for giving Bob Caldwell this vision so many years ago and he and Joy have stayed true to the Lord's purpose and leading to build His Kingdom.  I am also thankful that in April, 2000 they let me join them in this journey.

Just a few stats from  this summer's mission trips:  

27 church youth groups plus other churches involved for a total of 40 churches total in the three cities.

537 missionaries on the field in the three cities.

1500 + enrolled in the VBS's in the three cities.

1200+ ministered to on one day in the three cities

At least 104 came to know Christ during those three weeks.

Praise to the Father!!


Memo to self:  thicker air bed next year......

Next Stop - Kansas City, Missouri

Bailey spent the night and we got up early Friday morning to head to Kansas City.  Heather and the kids traveled with us and stayed until Monday to help me with registration and weekend duties. This year we had three lodging sites in Kansas City.  Our numbers were bigger there than the other two cities  so we needed more than one place to put the 222 missionaries.  Registration was at Northgate Baptist Church,  so that's where we headed to welcome the 11 youth groups who would be there between 1-4 pm. Three groups stayed at Northland Baptist Church and two groups stayed at Grace Community.  The other six stayed at Northgate. Everyone ate and worshipped at Northgate, and it worked out really well.  This is Bailey demonstrating our room a.b. (before airbeds).

Since Heather and the kids were leaving on Monday, we all went to Crown Center on Sunday after church for lunch.  Noah was with Bob in KC, so he got to go with us.  We loved eating at Fritz's.

You order your food through an intercom by your table.  Then a little train travels on the rail above the tables and delivers your food.  Pretty fun!

Bailey kept her cousins occupied while Heather and I registered the youth.

Sunday morning before services at Northgate, Heather and I went to Beverly Hills Baptist Church to see Brian and Sarah Grout.  Brian was called there as pastor a few months ago.  Beverly Hills will be a ministry site for a couple of our youth groups.  While we were visiting with Brian and Sarah, Evelyn Evans walked in.  We were so surprised to see her and she was so glad to see us....especially Bailey!

  

For our Tuesday afternoon off, Bailey chose hands down to go shopping at the Plaza.  I don't know how many times I called her Wendy when she was trying clothes on.  It just took me back a few years.

We also went to see Andy and Mindy Ward at their house which was really close to the Plaza.It was a really great day!  We had so much fun!  I really needed that time with Bailey.  She is growing up so fast and I just don't get to spend enough time with her.  What a beautiful young lady, inside and out!

Once again, I had to leave on Wednesday.  This time to take Bailey back to Doug and Wendy.  They were bringing a group to Lambert's in Ozark on Wednesday afternoon, so we got back in time to meet them there....then say our good-byes. 

I got to wash my clothes and see Gary again before I left for Denver, Colorado early Thursday morning.

Two weeks down...............

First Stop - St. Louis, Missouri

My employment with Global Encounter Ministries allows me the opportunity to experience missions in two inner cities in Missouri and this year in Denver, Colorado again.  

Last year, Gavin went with me to St. Louis, so this year I asked Jadon if he would like to go for the week.  He said yes, so on Friday, July 12 we headed for First Baptist Church, Arnold where we would be staying for the week.  Registration begins at 1:00 pm so we got there in time to set up our room and get our table set up to welcome the 8 churches that would be checking in.

Love those airbeds......not!   I always set up an "office" in my room so Jadon decided to try my job for a while.

Our room was next to the Carson's room, so Jadon got to know Micah Carson and they had so much fun playing together.  Micah helped him to not miss Jude as much.  They are modeling the mustaches we had on our merchandise table.

 We had a great training weekend to prepare these 162 missionaries for their St. Louis area mission field, great speakers, and a great worship band.  

After the training weekend and the first day of ministry, everyone has Tuesday afternoon off.  They do their VBS in the morning, then they have the afternoon and evening free.  Lots of stuff to do in St. Louis.  Jadon chose Six Flags.  He couldn't wait to ride Batman, Mr. Freeze, Boomerang and all those other scary roller coasters.  Only one problem....mema doesn't do roller coasters.  I'll do the Log Flume and the Scooby Doo ride and watch all the shows but I just can't turn upside down in an open metal seat at the speed of light. No way, no how.  So we had to find someone to go with us.  Thank you to Joy and Noah Caldwell for going with us and riding all those things with Jadon.  You saved the day for me....and Jadon!

What do you think of the Boomerang, boys?

BATMAN....THE RIDE!

It was so fun to have Jadon with me for the week.  It's a special one-on-one time to spend together.  He was so well-behaved and participated in worship and Bible study.

So we left on Wednesday around 1:00 pm and came home for a couple of nights.  I took Jadon home that evening and slept in my own bed, did my laundry Thursday, went to the post office, met Doug and Wendy on South Campbell St., to pick up Bailey so she could go to Kansas City with me.  Doug brought his youth from Houston's First Baptist Church to Branson again this summer for Rush Week and he and Wendy drove up a day early to prepare for the students who were coming the next day.

Week one down.......



To be continued.....

Father's Day, 2013

Before I proceed with the rest of July, I want to post some pictures of Father's Day.  We went to lunch at Little Tokyo with the Matt Wallace family and the Todd Wallace family.  Just needed the Bischoff family there to be complete.

But it was a great time with this bunch.  We love them so.  Is this a good-lookin' group of men or what?

Happy Father's Day to these fathers and future fathers!

Love you all!