Thursday

This will be a fast post because we are all trying to pack to get an early start in the morning. Summation of the day:

• Raking and general brush cleanup (see Natalie's pictures)
  
• Campus projects all completed except fence staining (see picture)
• Kitchen cabinets, painting, bathroom, soffit, concrete, railings all completed at Delph and Reda's house. Jan Klyn is a cleaning and disinfecting FORCE. No kidding--it's like a superpower.
  
• We had a final "family time" where we answered the question: What will we take home from this trip? Some responses:
• The committment of the "sold-out" missionaries we heard from here
• Carrying the cross up the hill
• Overwhelming sense of need in the area
• Mud
• Playing with the kids
• Prayer partners and letters
• Seeing young kids work and serve
  

Thanks for following the trip!

Responses to "What will we take home" activity

Our to-do list on campus. "Staining" is not checked but we got a lot of it done too!

Sad Natalie--look at this sad little bush and the leaves around it...

Happy Natalie--the little bush and surrounding area are clean

Christine showing our kids the horses

"Before" picture of Reda's kitchen

New cabinets in, range moved, walls being prepared for paint

Zach finishing the painting in the kichen

Wednesday

Our Wednesday started like the other days with breakfast and prayer partner letters.  THANK YOU prayer partners for your cool letters of encouragment and for your prayers.  I wish you could see the faces of the kids as the wait for me to deliver their letters.  We have all been blessed by your encouragment!

Our work day started much the same as the other days as the group split and worked in different areas.  The group that went out to Delph and Reda's house was able to pour a 2nd concrete landing area at the bottom of the ramp leading to their front porch.  They also hung the new upper cabinets, fixed some miscellaneous problems with the cabinet doors and drawers, trimmed out the new floor in the living room, started painting the bathroom, removed wallpaper in the kitchen to prepare for paint, and finished the soffit.

The group that stayed on campus was able to build and install the new cross (more on that later), apply a new coat of stain to the docks at the pond, fix a roof, fix and trim doors, and rake.  The groups came back together as usual for dinner.  As an alternative to the dining hall food, Natalie and her mom made spaghetti for supper.  Yummy.

We built the cross first thing in the morning from 6x6 treated timbers.  Our original plan was to use a tractor or utility vehicle to carry the cross up to top of the hill to install.  But the hill was still wet enough from the recent rains for the driver to decline the trip up the hill.  Jim had the cool idea of having the group (mainly the kids) carry the 200 pound cross up the hill for installation.  With our trip taking place during Lent and with Easter approaching, this act took on additional significance as we were able to remember Christ carrying his cross up the hill to his crucifixion.  The kids commented on how light the cross seemed with everybody helping to carry it, and the group had a neat discussion during their ascent about carrying burdens together to lighten the load.  It reminded me of the time Eric had the kids all lift the cross during a children's sermon!

After dinner, we enjoyed a fire (thanks Mark!) and were able to hear Christie Schumacher talk a little about the horse ministry she and her husband lead on the campus of JCM.  They minister mainly to the boys of the Barnabas house (a home at JCM for boys who are wards of the state), using horse behavior and training to introduce kids to Jesus.

Three days of hard work is taking a toll on the group--lots of sore muscles and tired people.  Pray for refreshment for our group members as we strive to finish strong tomorrow!

Kids in leaves

Staining the dock

Evan and Lori on top of the hill

Peach pop from Kentucky--when in Rome...

Silly group photo

Walking through campus with the cross

Up the hill...

The old cross, which will be relocated

Setting braces and getting everything lined up

A view from the campfire of the new cross (still braced while the concrete cures)

Tuesday

My name is Zachary Krueger. I am a junior at Iowa State University. I go to a lot of different churches, so I have been to Bridgeway services a few times, and I went on the Spring Break trip to Kentucky last year after I worked at Camp JCM for a summer and heard about Bridgeway's missions to it through a friend of mine. So now you understand who this stranger is writing on your blog. Nice to meet you.

Despite how deceptively close Kentucky might appear to Iowa on a map, it's actually in another time zone, which is a little interesting for a number of us, especially compounded by the recent change of daylight savings time. Or maybe it's all in our heads, and we (the college men at least- Mark, Evan, and I) are just not used to waking up before 7am for breakfast- or for anything else except maybe a fire alarm. Nevertheless, basically everyone in the group is doing fine handling his or her own early-morning grogginess, and by the time letters from our prayer partners are distributed at breakfast, people seem to be generally aware of what's going on around them, and a high percentage of adults seem miraculously alert.

I don't know about anyone else's letters, but mine always begin with a Bible verse, and I think that's wonderful. Today's Bible verse was actually John 3:16, which struck at first as being an easy choice, but now it is resonating with me WHY. John 3:16 has a message, The Message, and if I could be so blessed as to be able to keep that verse and everything it means in my mind and my heart all day, I would have the energy for a million mission trips. My thanks go out to all the letter writers for building us up, and feeding us with the Bread of Life.

Having packed my lunch today, I went out with the group of people working on the off-campus site: a house north of McKee (McKee is the main city of the county we are in right now), which is getting pretty heavily remodeled. Floors, roofing, walls getting painted, cement being poured, literally top to bottom we are working on this house for a couple, the McKinneys. The wife has had a few falls and now has some trouble getting around. She walks slowly and talks quietly, but is very willing to chat with you and share a smile and exchange stories. I want to be able to do more, because some of the materials that we work with are not the greatest, but considering the very large number of projects on Frank Van Hoeve's (the housing ministry coordinator's) to-do list, and the average cost of things we take for granted, like cabinets, I give thanks to God that so much can be done in the first place. And the fact that we provide lots of semi-skilled labor reminds me also that the point is not to swoop in and to take all the problems away. The point is to offer what we can, and the idea that I can offer perfection or should be able to offer perfection suggests that I can find or should be able to find perfection in myself, which is arrogant to say the least. So I'm not the epic hero in the lives of the people that I am serving. So they are not going to be sitting in elegance years down the line clinking champagne glasses together and reminiscing about the time that delightful young man Zach Krueger and his band of volunteers came in and rescued them from the realm of poverty. That is thoroughly not the point. The point is that we, a team, a brotherhood (and sisterhood), are all doing something good for someone else and for God, and even if we as individuals are all forgotten by the time we reach Ames, the people that we help are still going to be living in a home that has been changed, and those changes were fueled by divine love, and that when they see the new countertop or the small cement extension on their patio, then sometimes they will remember the power and the glory of God. And even when they do not remember, they still have a countertop and patio, and just that is progress.

As a status update, the living room floor is done, the cement extension (one of two) should be dry by the time we return tomorrow so we can work on the other one, the roofing (at this point we are working on the trimming) is coming along nicely, and the lower cabinets with the kitchen sink --yes, we really are doing everything, aren't we? even the kitchen sink-- are basically installed, even though the cabinet drawers will still need to be fiddled with a little. The painting in the bathroom and the rest of the cabinetry installation should happen Wednesday. People are finding their niches and capitalizing on their skills and teamwork, and by and large people are keeping busy with smiling faces and singing hearts. The Book of Ecclesiastes, in the midst of all its lamentations, does not that finding satisfaction in one's work is "from the hand of God." This is most certainly true, and is making itself evident to us. Our sore muscles are no match for our soaring souls. We are in fellowship with God, with each other, and with nature. Kentucky is a beautiful place to get in touch with nature. The sun was shining and the breeze was light during our work today, which for me was mostly outside where I could enjoy the weather.

Those people who remained at Camp JCM today also had another small project (in addition to the work being done on general campsite improvements), acting out the story of St. Patrick for the kids who go to school here. To sum up: Patrick was in England when he was captured by Irish slave traders and made to be a shepherd. He spent his days in the field diving headlong into prayer, and by the time he escaped capture (God spoke to him to tell him the night to flee), he was a very devout and bold Christian. He spoke the word in northern mainland Europe, and eventually in England again, but he is mainly famous for eventually answering the call to return to Ireland and massively increasing the spread of Christianity through the largely druidic paganistic country after winning the hearts and allegiances of several Irish rulers.

Since I worked at this camp before, I split off from the rest of the group for supper today in order to meet up with people who were counselors with me who live right across the street, but I cam back in time for the final event of the day. Denny Peyman (Peyman rhymes with Simon), who is the youth minister who does most of the outreach and social-services-type work here, came to talk to us about his work here and little bit of background about other ministry he has been apart of before answering the call to come live in Kentucky. Despite the difficulty reaching out to a very depressed and often hope-lacking community, his faith in God and the courage and resilience with which he does his work for him is immense and admirable. His testimony was a blessing to us all.

A good night's sleep is also a blessing, so I think I am going to let the person who actually owns this computer have it back now so he can upload what I have written and partake in that particular blessing. Thanks for reading. G'night and God bless you all. -ZK

Everybody works when Marcy is in charge!

The kids with a load of raked leaves

Fragile load

The skit (the upside-down Christmas tree holder is a crown)

Beware leaves!

Monday

[Thanks to Jim Ryken for writing tonight's blog entry!]

After a late night, our group padded out of bed around 7am and went for breakfast and prepared for the day of work. Twelve of our group headed to Reda's house, where we gave her a new laminate floor, new kitchen cabinets, and painted her window frames. We all worked elbow to elbow due to the rain that made a muddy mess of her yard. It was extreme home makeover Kentucky style.

Meanwhile, back on campus the team unloaded the trailer of donated items at the trade store. They also unboxed and organized goods there, mostly toys and clothes. They also painted baseboard for Reda's house and replaced some siding on the cabins. This last task involved tromping through 4 inches of mud; using a saw to cross cut the bottom 6 inches off; applying various tools and lots of brute to extricate the rotten pieces; and finally nailing a new board in place. All this was done in soaked through clothes from the rain. Hearing the story of this project, reminded me that I am in the presence of true servants.

At 5pm our group reunited for dinner. We have to eat early because the kids from the boys home eat after us. Following dinner, Lori and the kids prepared to lead the Christian school's devotions for tomorrow. Then we had some group time and listened to Jake, the camp director, tell us more about life in Jackson County. Jackson County is the second poorest congressional district in the nation and has the lowest life expectancy. God has really blessed the holistic ministry here and it was amazing to hear a few of those success stories.

The skies cleared as the sun went down. Tomorrow's weather looks dry and we are excited to head back outside and continue to see how God will use each of us.

New floor going in over the old floorEvan posing with the old kitchen cabinet

Lori with the kids preparing a skit for chapel tomorrow

Who wouldn't go to work with this guy?

Abby & Grace hard at work

DeSean & Jared on a break

Taylor cleaning the new floor

Sunday

Our day started with breakfast in the basement of Annville Reformed Church, where we enjoyed pancakes (with real blueberries), scrambled eggs, and sausage. We then headed upstairs for church led by the Northwestern College group who stayed in the dorms with us last night. There were 25 of us from Bridgeway, about 25 from Northwestern, and the "regulars" who were in the minority with about 15-20 people.

We were served lunch (chicken, potatoes, green beans, and biscuits) by a nice little lady who has been working the kitchen at Jackson County Ministries for 10 years. When asked for her name, she said, "Everybody calls me Granny". I'll try and get a picture posted one of these days.

After lunch, we decided to skip our plans to visit an area waterfall. It has been snowing/raining around here for a few days and everything is very muddy. We also thought about visiting Cumberland Falls, but decided that the 1+ hour trip (one-way) was a little too much, especially since we are all exhausted.

Some of us stayed in the dorm to try and catch up some sleep, and another group went on a walk around Annville. That group ended their walk at the pond on campus here and we were able to coax a few small bass onto our hooks. Luke caught the "biggest" one on a Texas-rigged red shad senko worm. After fishing awhile we headed over the gym and played several games of dodgeball and a little kickball.

Frank Van Hoeve,who leads the housing and volunteer ministry at JCM, met with our group following supper and laid out some of the projects we will be working on. A group of us will be going to a site where there is a lot of work to be done on an existing work site: finish a roofing project (soffit, fascia, gutters), some flooring work, and potentially a kitchen remodel. Another group will stay on campus and work on the camp site (roofing and doors), stain the decks at the pond, stain a new fence, rake, and paint. We are going to wait a day or two before working on the cross project to let the site dry out a little first!

Dave Dirks led a group devotional from John 6:1-14 (feeding of the 5000). We talked about the importance of bringing our gifts to Jesus, no matter how small. We also talked a little about the attitude we bring when we serve others.

Overall it was a great day and night as we recovered a little from our late night and prepared for the work tomorrow. Pray for a good night's sleep for everyone as we move into the "meat" of the week!

Eat your heart out Iowa--we found some flowers!

We also found a rope hanging from a tree...

Born to fish

Here's the big one!

All arrived safely

The Dirks arrived around 10:30, and at 11:56pm local time, the Ryken caravan pulled in.  Lori's comment was, "Look at what we all fit into one day!"  So we are all here, in various states of exhaustion and anticipation, and we're heading to bed.

--Mike

P.S. The wireless works great here, so I'm looking forward to posting all week.

Home for the Week

So far the Haverdinks and the Trowbridges (Natalie's parents) have arrived, and the others are getting closer.  The Bridgeway group has to fit on the 2nd floor tonight because the previous group of volunteers from Northwestern College are spending one more night on the 1st floor.  Should be cozy!

We made up the beds in anticipation of the arrival of the others and Noah took some pictures of our new digs.

Typical room

Another view

2nd Floor Lounge

A trailer. Finally!

Trailer donated by Home Realty, Pella IA. Thank you!

Quilts!

100 quilts donated by the ladies in Altoona that will be loaded up and delivered in Kentucky!

Daily Schedule

Here is a rough daily schedule of our week in Kentucky.  You can see the schedule better if you open the image by clicking on it!

Welcome

Hello!  This is a blog about the 2009 Bridgeway missions trip to Jackson County, Kentucky.  We are going to try and post pictures and blog content daily on the trip, depending of course on internet availability on campus at Jackson County Ministries, where we are staying.

Mike & Jared Haverdink