November 2nd, 2010 - journal entry day 7

Bill, the bus driver, and his wife

Me and Sierra at the airport...it's been awesome traveling with her! ♥

I woke up at 5:30 this morning, finished packing and had breakfast at 6am. Charlie was so kind as to make breakfast earlier than usual :-)  It took about 2hrs to get to the airport. Right now I'm in a plane descending into Detroit, Michigan...
   Something I forgot about yesterday was that Bill's (the bus driver) dad isn't doing well. He's about to pass away. He lives in Nevada and Bill and his wife doesn't really have the funds to go... So, our team decided to send them!  We all pitched in and paid their way (i hope it was enough.) I need to remember to pray for Bill and his family...

Now, I'm waiting to depart from Detroit to Louisville! I just talked to my parents and remembered we're going to the Creation Museum in the morning....It's gonna be a long, tiring day for me! I'll get a good night of sleep tomorrow night, that's for sure! haha.
I land at 8:45 tonight, get home about 9:30 hopefully, then I'm gonna eat! haha. It still feels like 4pm to me -_-

I can't believe the trip is over so soon, and yet, it feels like I've been there for a month! Even Diana said it felt that way. We did SO much! I think we're all exhausted. Diana told us about the National Missionary Convention every year, and this years' is in Lexington, KY, in just a few weeks! I really hope I can go.

I'm beginning to get sad about leaving. I already miss the people at ARM, the mountains, the work, the weather, the beautiful kids and the feeling of doing God's work where it's highly needed.
I'm hoping/planning/praying to go back (soon?). They need staff and I need them. I feel like I've left a part of my heart there. Maybe I can take Andrew with me next time. He'd be good with the work and kids.

Ahhhh.....I'm home! My mom picked me and Sierra up around 9:30 from the airport. We took her home. It was sad to say goodbye to our team. We've all become attached and feel like family...along with the ARM staff and Apache people. Though, don't get me wrong, it's awesome and exciting to be back with MY family! I got home and it softened my heart so much to find out Andrew and Jeffrey stayed up just to see me! :)  I did miss them even though I really wanted to stay in Arizona...but I guess I'll just have to go back!!
All the way home I couldn't quit talking. Telling my mom all about the Natives and the staff and the whole trip in general. God worked in (and hopefully through) me so much this past week. I feel the call to be a missionary even more now...

It's 11:00pm now, and yes, it feels like 8pm. lol. But, hopefully I adjust easier than usual, this time...

November 1st - journal entry, day 6

Finished house. The Tapia family moved in just this week (11/24/10)

Me and Rae-Rae ♥

Our flower

We got up early again, went to breakfast, which was omelets. Charlie told us a new way to cook them... put all the ingredients (eggs, bacon, cheese, etc) in a plastic bag and then put the bag(s) in a pot of boiling water....boil them til they're done. It's a good way to cook for a large group. Pretty neat, if you ask me, I'll have to try it sometime :-)

At the worksite today we saw a jackrabbit, which was pretty cool. I had never seen one before. Also, while Sierra, Katelyn, and I were cleaning up the yard in front of the house I stepped on a thorn (the thorns there are like 2 inches long! More like sticks if you ask me.) it went through my shoe and everything! Then, only about 10 minutes later we saw a scorpion...then another one. We all had work gloves on so we weren't really worried, but of course, as soon as I said that I went to pick something up and it stung me!! It hurt a lot like a bee sting and then my finger went numb all day...and then just hurt again. lol. Diana said it'll probably hurt for 24hrs or so...and yes, it still does -_-
We barely got the house finished in time! We started the house blessings at noon (had lunch with the 2 familes plus their friends and family, turned the keys over to the families, etc). Charlie brought lunch out to the houses and we ate in the front field.  At 2pm we packed all the chairs, tables, food, etc, up and headed back to help unload.  We got about a 10min break and then headed to do Bus in a different neighborhood.
There were a TON of kids this time, it was awesome!  A little 4yr old girl named Rae Rae attached to me instantly, and I to her. She is sooo adorable! I wish I could stay forever just to play with her!
After we said bye to the kids and dropped them back to their houses, we went back to the church.

We all got showers and then sat around until dinner time..... I fell asleep. haha. I could have very easily slept through dinner!  During dinner everyone was making fun of each other (in a nice way) and just having a good time. Sierra hadn't finished her cake and so Charlie picked her plate up and shoved the cake in her face! Then Sierra threw it back at him....It was hilarious! They both got iced. haha.
Our team drew a flower on Charile's kitchen wall to add to his "garden" (each team that comes in draws a flower.)

It's our last night here and everyone else is already asleep. It's about 10pm, I think. We stayed in the kitchen forever it seems and then had to pack. We have to leave for the airport by 6:30 in the morning, so I'm going to sleep now!  I'm so exhausted, It's so hard to stay awake throughout the days.

October 31st - journal entry, day 5

Painting...probably the 3rd coat by this time. lol.

Sierra got a hold of my camera during one of my 10min naps throughout the week lol. The back of a van can be quite comfy if you're tired enough :-)

Kadance and her three cousins...it was so much fun playing with them :)

Me and Mr. Kitty  ♥

Instead of going to church, we went to finish up the two houses, since tomorrow we're handing the keys over and we're not anywhere close to being finished!  We painted the baseboards and touched up the walls, we cleaned out the refrigerators, installed toilets, bathtubs, etc. We have done so many coats of paint between the two houses that even I'm beginning to get burned out (i love painting)!ILL have stuff to do!  Every chance I get, I fall asleep. lol. I've taken so many 10 minute naps throughout the week that I'm afraid it'll become a habit for when I'm back home. lol.  We played with the Tapia's(the fam getting 1 of the houses) daughter and nieces again today. Mrs. Tapia even made our team lunch! First time having Fry-bread...very good :-)  I also played with Mr. Kitty again today...I really wish I could take him home =( 
When we finished and came back, the other group was already gone. We can finally shower...and sleep! haha. One thing that the Yuma(where that group was from..) group taught me though, was how most of the Natives feel living with so many people in a confined space...makes me want to help even more!

October 30th - journal entry, day 4

Playing with Kadence :)

sitting in the attack holding stuff on the ceiling....not sure how I ended up doing that job lol but it was warm up there nonetheless ;)

Sierra and Mr. Kitty. By the end of the week Mr Kitty had a white tail...

Me and my new friend, Frances :) We both look completely exhausted! haha

So I ended up falling asleep and then woken up by the girls last night lol. Three, 16yr old girls got put in our room and, Oh. My. Goodness! They are so loud and hyper! And it's insane trying to get in the shower...or even go to the bathroom! lol. After breakfast we all went off to the worksite. The other group went to the house that we had been working on the previous days, and we went to two different house, that are next door to each other. They're almost finished. We have to have them finished by Monday, so the families can move in...we'll get to participate in the 'house blessing' for two families. (we'll dedicate the houses to the families and give them the keys and then have lunch together).
While working today, we got to meet the family moving into one of the houses! I played with the couple's little 14 month old girl, Kadence. She is SO adorable!! I also played with the family's 3 nieces. It was a lot fun and really cool to meet and get to know the family we're helping. (apparently, 99% of the work teams that come in, never even know who the house is for).  I didn't get put in a closet in this house, at least! Instead, they put me in the attack.... haha. (think they were trying to get me outta the way? ;) )  There was this cat that constantly came into whichever house we were in at the time and would climb all over us, just wanting to be pet! We named him Mr. Kitty (original, I know) lol. I wanna bring him home with me sooo badly! He's so sweet!
We got finished about 5:30pm and went 'home' to get cleaned up in time for dinner. Amazingly, we beat the other group back, with just enough time for the 5 of us girls to get showers! haha. I met a girl named Frances at dinner, she's really nice...hope to get better acquainted with her through facebook, hopefully, since she's leaving tomorrow.  After dinner I basically crashed. The other group had a church service and we just went back to our rooms and talked, which was really cool. Katelyn, Sierra, Judy, and I talked for a long time about mission trips, college, home schooling (which was more a debate). But nonetheless, was a great conversation!

October 29th - journal entry, day 3

Today we worked in the house ALL day! I did a 2nd coat of mudding in the closet, that I had started yesterday. Sierra and I helped Macaiah finish building a window-sill and then had us do one just the two of us, and then one by myself...that was fun...and interesting lol. I'm SO sore now! :) haha.

I called my mom after work and apparently she got Jadyn to talk about her life as an orphan. She (Jadyn) said she slept in a crib, was hit with a hangar if she did something wrong, watched someone get hit/killed by a car....I mean, I'm here in AZ, hearing all sorts of sad stories about kids/adults, and my own sister has experienced some of the same things. It makes all this so much more realistic when it comes to your own family. My mom videoed most of Jadyn telling the stories of her past - I can't wait to watch them when I get back. 

I'm lying in bed now, (8:30pm), Sierra and Katelyn are already asleep, I think. There's another group coming in, in about an hour, so I figure I'll stay awake since I'll probably be woken up anyway. It's a group of 16, and 11 of them are girls! So there'll be a LOT of girls sharing 3 showers this whole weekend and It'll be a bit cramped probably, but it'll be cool, hopefully...

October 28th - journal entry, day 2

Me in the closet I was put it for the week... lol

Judy, Linda, and Curt - the clowns

People don't lie - the desert is COLD at night!! I was so cold and woke up a lot being pretty uncomfortable, but it was alright, for the most part.  I woke up at 4:30 this morning and was wide awake. I didn't sleep much as it was, so I don't know why I woke up so early, other the coldness and I guess time change.  We had breakfast at 7am.  My voice still sounds completely terrible (if you can hear me at all.), but it's better than yesterday, I think.  After breakfast we made sandwiches for dinner tonight.  Then we went on a prayer journey. Diana took us to 5 different Native neighborhoods, explaining about each of the different gangs, cults, tribes, schools, housing (which was sad to see) and we prayed over all of them.  The stories she told us about the drugs and alcohol and how because of things like that, people commit suicide.  And she told us other stories along the same lines -- 6 months ago a young man was killed by a gang... A mother, that was drunk, took her son up on a hill and stabbed him to death, in front of a lot of people. A 13yr old girl was about to be raped by her father (he got her drunk so it'd be easier) but because the girls mom walked in and told her to run to the 'Church Bus', that happened to be in her neighborhood that day, she was left untouched by her drugged/drunken father (she did, however, come to the Bus drunk. But she was safe, nonetheless) .....I could go on forever, the stories Diana told us were just heartbreaking!  The houses - 25 or more people would live in a one-bedroom, TINY house...and people, like my own family, thinks 9 people, in a BIG house is hard?!   After the prayer journey we went to the house that's under construction. It's built up to the point of drywall and mudding.   
My job was mudding a closet... it only took an hour or so for me to learn how to correctly do it...haha. A guy named Larry showed me how, but then Macaiah (A 19yr old Apache, who became a Christian through the Bus ministry and then joined the ARM staff last year) would come over and tell me how to do it differently...it got rather confusing. lol.  So, my entire job was sanding already done walls, and mudding/taping creases in a closet.... Your arms get really tired/sore after awhile of holding the thing of mud. It was kind of funny, cause I kept trying to go faster so the container would get emptier/not as heavy, but then, Macaiah would come over to make sure I was doing it right and would go fill up my container each time!  Guess it was a nice workout, if nothing else. haha.
Charlie, our host/cook, brought lunch out to the worksite for us. Then we all came back to our rooms around 3pm, to get shower and clean up and go to the bathroom! There isn't a bathroom anywhere within 20 miles of the worksite, so we all had to go pretty badly lol.
Then at 4:30 we all went to a carnival (we took the church bus). We had a beanbag toss with 3 of our team members as clowns (Judy, Linda, & Curt), Sierra and Katelyn did a game to win suckers.  We had popcorn, coloring pages, spin-art, etc...My designated job for this entire evening was photographer! It was pretty cool to be 'told' to take a billion pictures ;-)
There were hundreds of people crowded in the streets. Towards the end of the night I sat on the Bus talking to kids and taking pics and eating my dinner (we ate in shifts) and I caught several boys in the act of stealing things from the bus...they continually kept coming back to see if I was gone yet, so they could go through with it. One little boy, Candance, actually told me I should go outside, so I couldn't see them! Lol!
Overall, the Carnival seemed to have gone quite smoothly and was a lot of fun...but tiring!

October 27th - journal entry, day 1

the mountains were breathtaking! 

This girl broke my heart after asking if I'd come back to play with her.

Jane and I went to Ihop for breakfast at 5:00 this morning and then she came to watch me leave (it was hard to leave, esp. seeing the look on her face. we're like sisters.)

Everything's going pretty smoothly so far, though, I barely have a voice this morning -_-
I am currently sitting 3,000 something feet in the air, with Sierra next to me, on (her 1st flight!) the first leg of our journey! We're headed to Memphis, Tennessee right now.  The look on Sierra's face as we took off was pure excitement!  This is gonna be an awesome week...

We made it to Phoenix, Arizona with only a 20min delay. Mr. Wilkinson got a taxi to go get the van, while the rest of us waited.  We stopped for lunch, then we stopped at Walmart for last minute things and candy for the kids at the Carnival this week.

The drive to Globe was breathtaking!  It was about an hour and a half drive through miles and miles of beautiful mountains and just amazing scenery!
Since we ran so late, the SECOND we got to the church we're staying at, we jumped out of the van and immediately got in the 'Church Bus', for the children's bus ministry.  It was amazing to drive through the Reservation - over 2 million acres of it!  When we got to the neighborhood, the bus driver, Bill, honked the horn while driving around, and the kids seemed to come out of the woodwork!  They were precious.  We did a puppet show, which was the Bible lesson, and then we all split up and played random games with the kids.  A little girl, I forget her name, attached to me - we roller-bladed together basically the whole hour.  She asked if I'll be there next next week and it was so sad to watch her little face go from a bright, excited smile to such a sad look of distress when I told her I will be on my way back to Indiana on Tuesday - It broke my heart!

After Bus, we went back to the church, had a wonderful dinner, cleaned up, and then we were all exhausted and ready for bed, but, Diana, the lady running ARM (Arizona Reservation Ministries), asked if it was okay to go ahead and have orientation, even though it was so late and we were all exhausted, that way, we'd be on track in the morning and could get right to the construction site.  So, at 8pm we all went to the sanctuary for the meeting.  'Orientation' was a...game?! None of us wanted to do it because we could barely think straight, we were so tired! But, we did it anyway...  We were all handed a piece of paper with the 'rules & goal' on it. 5 of us, including myself, read our paper, while the other 2ppl in the group went to a different room, with different rules/goals.  My groups goal was to build a tower (out of legos). We were playing as Native Americans, that only spoke the "eblog" language. The other 2ppl came in, their goal was to evangelize and destroy our tower that we're building for our Chief/god person...after the game/skit, we all sat back down and were then told the point of the game -- how would you like it if foreigners (and/or Christians) came into your land and tried to destroy your 'tower/faith' or told you that you're doing everything 'wrong'?  You wouldn't want to listen or have anything to do with them, would you? We discussed our goal here on the Reservation. You shouldn't preach, clean up trash (you'd be saying they're not responsible - imagine your mother-in-law cleaning your house - that's like how they'd feel. Or, that you're better than them.) you don't treat them differently, you just love, befriend, and PRAY for them.
So after we all talked about the Apache culture and such, we went to bed! (around 11pm - which was 2AM back home!)

Arizona bound!

I'm headed out on my first mission trip bright and early tomorrow morning!!! and I can't wait to see what all God uses me for and what he plans on teaching me through this experience!  I'd like to ask all of you to please join with me in prayer as I go on this wild journey for Christ!  Pray I'll overcome every obstacle that's laid before me, with God on my side!  Pray for not only mine, but my teams safety, health!, travels, and that God will prepare not only our own hearts, but the hearts of the unreached...that they are willing to receive the Good News with open hearts and minds!

t-minus 10 days!

I'm going on my first mission trip in TEN days!!! I'll be doing house construction, a bus ministry, and a fall festival on an Apache Reservation, just outside of Globe, Arizona. I am sooo excited! I can't wait to see what all God has in store for me and the other 6 team members (my friend Sierra is going, too)! :)
I'm trying to stay focused on God and in prayer daily, hoping to be as prepared as I can be, and be willing to let God work in and through me as He pleases while I'm there....and here!

"Trust in the Lord with ALL your heart. . .He will direct your paths." - Proverbs 3:5-6

"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" - Luke 12:25

Worrying - This is one of the hardest things for me to conquer.  I've always been the worrying type.  I worry about so many things and honestly I don't even know why anymore!  I know God's always here and in control.  Though, I still lie awake at night worrying/thinking about things.  It's frustrating.   I read the question in the verse above, so often, even knowing the answer, and yet I still struggle with it more often than not.

"Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you." - 1 Peter 5:7

This verse means so much to me these days.  The past few months I've been so ridiculously anxious.  The Lord keeps raising my hopes and dreams SO high and then it seems as though He shatters my everything.

"Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer." - Romans 12:12

There has been verse after verse jumping out to me this past month about patience, hope, and prayer.  But I love this verse because it's all of these things combined!  I've always felt like I was a pretty patient person, but as God throws detours in my life, in front of things I know He has called me do and given me such a passion for, I've shamefully struggled with trusting and waiting on His timing.

As I laid awake last night praying, not for God to change things, but for Him to simply give me peace about His plans/timing, I put my Bible down and turned the radio on, hoping to distract my mind long enough to fall asleep, and the song, "While I'm Waiting" by John Waller, came on. . .I had forgotten all about that song!  Once again, everything made sense.  While I'm waiting on what I know I will one day do, I will continue to serve the Lord with my all!  It's such a simple concept and yet we all struggle with it more than we are willing to admit.  I'm writing this to not only share my own heart, struggles, and thoughts but I think everyone needs the simple reminder that "For everything there is a season" and I want to encourage everyone to lay your lives down, trust and serve the Lord with your whole being.  Our challenge in life, for myself included, is to give God our lives!. . .besides, we're His anyway, so why not? :)