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The Grand Finale
5
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7/10/2008
By: Kortney Jones, Project Leader
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The group left Wedesday morning. We had a great few days to minister and listen to the voice of God as He directed our ministry in the city of New Orleans.
We were able to build relationships through many means of ministry in the area: VBS, prayer walking, park cleanup, cutting grass, passing out watermelons, feeding at Tent City, and passing out buckets of cleaning and hygenial supplies.
The Lord blessed as the group encountered many individuals and showed the love of God by becoming the hands and feet of Christ in this community.
We have come to realize that ministry is not only the doing of ministry, but maintaining an attitude and focus of seeing God's kingdom work coming to pass. We have also realized that to have some hear the words of Christ they must see the hands of Christ in action through meeting physical needs in various ways.
The groups were sent off with a Commissioning Prayer to develop a heart of ministry in their hometown that became so visible here in the New Orleans area for the past few days.
All praise to Jesus for the seeds of grace planted in the hearts of those in New Orleans!
Kortney
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Door to Door? What?!
4
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7/9/2008
By: Frank Smith, Adult Participant
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Chicago Group
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I was not exactly sure of the purpose that God had when pushing me to go on this trip, but God used it to show me his power. God truly showed that he was in control, and he waited for us to realize it before allowing us to proceed in finding a place to serve. Once he did so, he revealed places he wanted us to do his work for the entire trip. I am not comfortable with going door to door, but in doing so God blessed us with an amazing opportunity. He gave us a chance to help an elderly couple who recently suffered a stroke and the flu. We did some landscaping, and had a chance to hear their story. This led to another opportunity to help with some cleanup in the house of their sister, who lived across the street. God showed he was watching out for us the whole time. While clearing a yard full of weeds, we were running into major equipment troubles, yet God held off the rain until right after we finished. God has shown me that no situation is too big for him to handle, if we are willing to completely place our trust in him.
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Melons, Gumbo, & Blessings
3
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7/9/2008
By: Emily DeVos, Adult Participant
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Chicago Group
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Coming into this New Orleans trip, I really had no expectations of what I wanted to come away with. Now, as I look back at the experiences I had and the people I encountered, God has reminded me in a very vivid way of what it means to be open to the Spirit and dependant on God through the discipline of prayer. I was put out of my comfort zone through prayer walks in the neighborhoods, passing out watermelon to people on their porch, interacting with people at tent city, and even being invited to a family gathering over seafood gumbo by a lady we met in one particular neighborhood. I come away blessed by the people I met and also how God met me where I am at through this experience in New Orleans. I am grateful.
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Faith of a Child
2
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7/9/2008
By: Amy, Adult Leader
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Thomasville UMC
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Growing up in church, my children have always heard how blessed they are and how we as Christians, are called to help those who are less fortunate. We wanted to bring them on a family mission trip for them to actually see and participate how this can work. It was a wonderful experience to watch them learn how God can use children to help others. It was even more amazing to see their hearts as they grew in their faith in Him through this experience. There is nothing like watching God use the faith of your child to strengthen your own faith and love for Him.
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The Groups Have Arrived
1
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7/6/2008
By: Kortney Jones, Project Leader
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The family and adult groups have arrived in New Orleans. Members of this trip are from California, Chicago, Georgia, and Kansas.
Upon arrival, the groups settled into the Firehouse Ministries facility. This week, as we lean on the direction of our Sovereign Lord, we look forward to opportunities to instill hope into the lives of the New Orleans people through work projects, VBS, prayer walks, feeding programs, and other relational ministry.
Kortney
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