The North Carolina (NC) team had a great first full-day down here in Asheville. We began with a tasty breakfast followed by a time of worship led by the organization we partner with, Recreation Experiences. It helped set the tone for the day and energized us to begin our first day at our main work-site for the week. Following worship, the team loaded up and drove to their painting site which they learned is a 71 year old church in downtown Asheville, NC. Upon arrival, Pastor Scott Burgess greeted the team with excitement and thanksgiving. He has served as the lead pastor for the past two years and wants to see the church begin to grow again. He gave the team a tour of the church, told them all about what God was doing in the community, and prayed for the day. The entire group was impressed by the faith of the Pastor and his excitement about the future. God was clearly at work in Pastor Burgess's life and it gave the team extra inspiration as they began to prime the entire outside of the church.
After the tour, work began on the church. The team split into groups of 3 or 4 in order to tackle separate spots on the church. It truly was an amazing sight to watch 65 teenagers selflessly work on the church. God was clearly working in and through each kid as the team painted throughout the day. During lunch Pastor Burgess surprised the team by bringing ice cream sandwiches to say thank you for everything they had already done. Our team was impressed to see how thoughtful the Pastor's actions were towards them. Great progress was made on the church and the team looks forward to continuing there work on the church tomorrow.
After finishing work for the day, the NC team headed back to their housing site to clean up and eat dinner. Following dinner the team had some free time to enjoy one another's company after a day of meaningful work. To finish out the evening the group came together for their nightly "Porch Time" gathering. Porch Time is an intentional time for everyone to begin processing their experience on the trip. They begin by sharing funny stories from the day, followed by sharing places where individuals saw Jesus at work. Then the team sings a few worship songs and listens to a staff member or leader give a talk about a bible lesson pertaining to the experience on the trip. Tonight, Luke used the story of Jesus sending the seventy-two out on mission trips in Luke 10 to answer the question, Why do we come on this trip? Luke shared about the fact that God has actually called each person specifically to be on this trip and that God is challenging each person on the team to "Leave Behind" some of the worries and distractions that often get in the way of our relationship with God. After the talk, the team split into small groups for further discussion about the things they have experienced and the truths Luke showed them from the Bible. It has been a great day filled with moments where God was seen in and through the North Carolina team.
Also just a reminder that there will be a prayer time for friends and family to join together at 7pm in the SM Worship Room at the Chapel to pray for both the Philly and North Carolina teams. Jeff and Kelley Clark will be leading the time of prayer.
Check back again tomorrow for more details from our trip!
