Safely Home

Wow! What a week! We want to praise God for all of the opportunities we experienced this week. It was truly a transformational trip in many aspects. God's hands truly guided the team on this journey and it was very apparent that He was in charge. He poured out blessings of safe travels, new friendships, delightful hospitality, and growth. We were blessed to experience new opportunities and to take on new challenges. Please continue to pray for everyone we encountered; pray that they realize it was truly God's hand that served them this week. Pray also for all of us; pray that we are able to realize where God may be leading us--and that we are strong enough to "step out of the boat" like Peter did.

I challenged the volunteers on the trip with the following question. Because you traveled with us this week, I also ask you to meditate over it: Are you doing what God really wants you to be doing? As you seek that answer, we will pray that your life is also open to a transformation by our Great God.

Thank you all for your prayers. We were blessed to have the Holy Spirit leading us on this journey!

We may post some more pictures later; however, for now, we are going to spend some time reuniting with our families.

From the entire leadership team at Servants (Kim, Paul, Barry, Trent, and Todd),
Shalom

Pictures!!

Good Friday

Wow! We can't believe that our work week of helping others has come to an end. Some examples of our accomplishments for the week were finishing the landscaping and shrubbery trimming, installing a new mailbox, repainting, new flooring, re-installing various fixtures, repairing the roof, and doing yard clean-up for 5 houses.

We experienced God's presence through random acts of kindness this week. An example is one of the homeowners stopped in during breakfast this morning and personally thanked us for the work we have done. He later showed his gratitude by buying pizzas for the team for lunch which we enjoyed in the park by the Tennessee River. The youth explored some of Chattanooga after eating on this warm day, and even walked over the footpath bridge.

The church is providing a picnic for us tonight in their yard and the COP group will perform for the community members.

Pouring it out for Jesus

With our busy schedule, shower time is at a premium; therefore in the spirit of teamwork, some of the volunteers thought they'd help Dave with some creative shower techniques. This technique appeared to work, as it was well within the 2 minute allotment for showers. Dave is now back on schedule.

Thursday's work

Today was another great day on the job site. Not only were we very productive, but the weather was beautiful and sunny! The team continued the work from yesterday and some people went to a second location and did yard work for a needy widow. We did lots of painting, repaired a ridge vent and soffit, planted flowers and trees, and installed a new front step.

We got the opportunity to join the church members for dinner tonight and attend the Maundy Thursday service. The COP singers participated in the service and sounded marvelous again!

Here are some pictures from the day:

Garden work and sanding the kitchen ceiling


Repairing the bathroom floor and yard work


New landscaping and the painted master bedroom


Installing the mailbox and Paul (one of the leaders from Servants) splitting brick for the front steps


Our shoes neatly lined up outside the church


And for those of you who don't know what the Servants' leader and co-leader look like, here is a mirror self-portrait of Todd and me, Kim

God's plan

After a long day and a short night on Tuesday, the "M & M" crew got a rain delay. God decided we needed some extended R & R. This allowed the work crew to be very productive on Wednesday. Some of the tasks we completed were sanding of walls, painting walls, lots of yard work and landscaping, new flooring in the bathroom, and some attic work.

We also got a visit from our homeowner's mother, son and son's friend today. It was very nice to get the chance to meet them and show them what we've accomplished with the house.

In the evening, the SUMC group was able to visit Mustard Tree Mission, learn about the organization, and perform some songs.

Below are some pictures from the day:

Nashville stars

What an amazing Tuesday!! The "M & M" team accomplished many things today. Not only did they get a chance to work on the homeowner's house, but the team traveled to Nashville to record some songs and sing before the Grand Ole Opry. The members of COP can even now say that they sang on the Grand Ole Opry stage!



Proudly wearing safely gear while sanding the walls and ceiling in the master bedroom.






Yard clean-up and the finished front yard. The team did a great job in a short amount of time!










Beaming after recording the songs and the whole group from SUMC on the Grand Ole Opry stage.










Stars performing in front of the entrance to the Grand Ole Opry. Parents be proud - they did an amazing job!!

Hello Chattanooga!

It's a beautiful sunny 72 degree day in Chattanooga, TN. The leadership team was able to get started at one of the family's homes today. The leadership team removed kitchen cabinets, moldy drywall in the ceiling, rotten floors in the bathrooms, and did a lot of prep work for the big team that will start tomorrow. The team of 44 from SUMC arrived around 6pm. The journey went well with the exception of the blown tire and missing fender on the equipment trailer. We were treated to typical "Southern hospitality" from Mandy and her team who are members of Red Bank UMC, where we are staying for the week. We look forward to our busiest day of the week tomorrow.

Here are some pictures from the day:

The before and after pictures of the kitchen work
An outside shot of the house
The "Music and Muscle" team in line for supper

Music & Muscle Transformation Trip

Here we come Chattanooga TN! It is amazing how God has brought this trip together! It is purely by His hand that these energetic youth will be serving our Brothers & Sisters in Chattanooga next week. God is amazing! There will be about 35 students, accompanied by 18 adults, that are going to use their musical gifts to spread the gospel message in TN. By day, they will be construction workers restoring peoples lives by doing home maintenance and repair for needy citizens of Chattanooga. By night, they will be using their musical talents to worship our great God while, at the same time, providing opportunities for others to hear His message. Tuesday will be a special day as the students will have an opportunity to record a song in a professional studio. They will also perform outside the Grand Ole Opry, in Nashville, while the attendees for Tuesday's show file in. Please pray for the team this week. Pray for safe travels. Pray for transformation in the lives of the volunteers, the homeowners, and people we meet on the journey. Pray that we are able to glorify God in all we do. Pray that the team is unified in the awesome challenge of showing others the love of Christ by being His "hands and feet" in the community!