Taking Care of The Earth, by becoming one with it!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Friday, August 08, 2008
Mission Revisited...
Last April, our family went on a Mission Trip to Cherokee Retreat Center. At the end of July - just a few weeks ago - we went back.
I wasn't sure what to expect. Would the floor still be shiny and new? Would the flower beds need weeding? Had Andy remembered to water everything? How was the kitchen paint holding up? Had the new cabinets arrived yet?
Our family of five rode north on I-75 spontaneously bursting out in excitement every couple of miles...
"I can't wait to see the white kitchen walls!" said Lily-Kate (our 9 year old daughter who had spent a whole.lot.of.time in the kitchen during our FPC Mission to Cherokee Retreat Center).
"I can't wait to see the floor!" said Trevor (my husband who spent hours and hours upon his knees installing the new floor).
I couldn't wait to see it all - the flower beds, the painted walls, the new rug and the bright trim. I just kept looking out the window and thinking about the week that we'd spent there. How exhausted, how frustrated, how much paint (!!!).
"I can't wait to see my friends!" burst Joe (our teen age son who'd spent most of his time doing anything he was asked to do during our mission trip... and perfecting his lip synching techniques for the talent show night).
In a matter of a second, Joe had put things to right about the whole project. Yes, we'd worked, sweat, hammered, gardened, painted, painted and painted but in the end, what we'd done - what we remembered - was the time that we'd spent with friends.
A sense of thankfulness came over me. Joe had reminded me (as I sat in my typical task oriented - list management - Martha, Martha, Martha mode) about the real blessings from our Spring Break mission trip at Cherokee Retreat Center.
It's a truth you can count on, friends: when you let God stretch you to do His work - no matter how frustrating or unplanned the work may be - one of the real blessings that He showers upon you are friendships: the ones that He strengthens, the ones that He renews and the ones that come into your life that weren't there before.
Suddenly, we could not get there fast enough.
Just to see our friends.
I wasn't sure what to expect. Would the floor still be shiny and new? Would the flower beds need weeding? Had Andy remembered to water everything? How was the kitchen paint holding up? Had the new cabinets arrived yet?
Our family of five rode north on I-75 spontaneously bursting out in excitement every couple of miles...
"I can't wait to see the white kitchen walls!" said Lily-Kate (our 9 year old daughter who had spent a whole.lot.of.time in the kitchen during our FPC Mission to Cherokee Retreat Center).
"I can't wait to see the floor!" said Trevor (my husband who spent hours and hours upon his knees installing the new floor).
I couldn't wait to see it all - the flower beds, the painted walls, the new rug and the bright trim. I just kept looking out the window and thinking about the week that we'd spent there. How exhausted, how frustrated, how much paint (!!!).
"I can't wait to see my friends!" burst Joe (our teen age son who'd spent most of his time doing anything he was asked to do during our mission trip... and perfecting his lip synching techniques for the talent show night).
In a matter of a second, Joe had put things to right about the whole project. Yes, we'd worked, sweat, hammered, gardened, painted, painted and painted but in the end, what we'd done - what we remembered - was the time that we'd spent with friends.
A sense of thankfulness came over me. Joe had reminded me (as I sat in my typical task oriented - list management - Martha, Martha, Martha mode) about the real blessings from our Spring Break mission trip at Cherokee Retreat Center.
It's a truth you can count on, friends: when you let God stretch you to do His work - no matter how frustrating or unplanned the work may be - one of the real blessings that He showers upon you are friendships: the ones that He strengthens, the ones that He renews and the ones that come into your life that weren't there before.
Suddenly, we could not get there fast enough.
Just to see our friends.
Wednesday, August 06, 2008
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