Today was our team's day off from the work project and so we had the opportunity to experience a couple different parts of the area down here in North Carolina. First, we visited a local health and rehab center called the Brian Center where our students got the opportunity to meet and build relationships with elderly men and women that have injuries or diseases that require medical help. Everyone split into five groups and spread out around the center. Each group took a different wing of the building and spent time visiting each of the patients in the rooms. Some patients wanted to go outside in their wheelchairs, others wanted to hear our kids sing, and still others just wanted to sit and talk. A group of 8th graders got the opportunity to visit with alzheimers patients where many of the patients would forget your name five minutes after you told it to them. They took a guitar and sang lots of songs as well as just spent time being a friend and showing Christ's love to these sometimes forgotten and lonely people. Near the end of our time at the Brian Center we were able to participate in a mini church service with some of the residents. We began the service by joining together as a youth choir to sing three worship songs for the residents and then were followed by a sermon by Pastor Wes. Pastor Wes is a 90 year old man that has been serving in ministry for 65 years. He repeatedly said how much joy and inspiration he found from seeing a group of middle school students coming to serve! It was a really awesome and God-filled service to get to be a part of.
After eating lunch at the Brian Center, we left for an afternoon of experiencing the natural beauty of God's creation. Our first stop was sliding rock where we all got to slide down a 50ft. natural rock slide. Although the water was a little chilly, it was a fun time trying to make the longest chain down the rock slide. Next, we headed to Looking Glass Falls where everyone got to swim underneath the cascading water. We finished the afternoon by heading to a beautiful lookout area on the Blue Ridge Parkway where we ate our dinner and had our evening porch time.
Morgan gave a powerful testimony about a question that challenges all of us, "Are you really ready to see Jesus?" She talked about the discipline of having eyes to see and ears to hear Jesus in our daily lives as well as on this mission trip. She used examples from her own life about how she has seen God orchestrate experiences in her own life. Finally, we ended our porch time out on the beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway and headed back to home base for some relaxation and a good night's sleep. We head back to our work site tomorrow so check back in tomorrow night for another update on our digging progress. Goodnight and God bless!
