Mission New Orleans: Day 1
Greetings from New Orleans.
Each day upon returning to the hotel I hope to have a couple of thoughts, journals, or blogs from some of our entourage. A summation, if you will, of thoughts and feelings and emotions as we work alongside one another to make a bit of difference in the lives of people we do not know. Simply because that is what Jesus told us to do. Just to have the opportunity is amazing…to be carrying it out…even more so. Getting to do it with friends and family…priceless. Please check back often as we log our efforts for you.
P.S. There will be pictures too.
CT
I’m not sure how I had tied construction with gumbo or singing on the Mississippi. I suppose New Orleans was the melody that tied those notes together and I know the latter is to come. I look forward to it. But today wasn’t like that. Hammering fingers almost as often as nails, sawdust sticking to sweat and sunscreen, measuring siding, roasting like sun dried tomatoes on the roof while hammering loose shingles are some things that better describe today. Even though a sixteen-hour road trip, humidity, hammering and sawing, climbing, pain killers and picking dirt from fingernails aren’t things that would typically be considered inherently joyful, somehow I was that: joyful.
I feel like service, especially the less glamorous it is, is what rings true to our spirits. There is nothing inherently good about hammering for Habitat for Humanity. But something about our hearts—even though not always overtly expressed—and how they are carried out through our works is so good. What good is our faith without works? I’m loving being an instrument in the Creator’s orchestra; one that is playing a song that sings restoration (in more than one sense of the word) and a traveling back to Genesis chapter one.
Keisha
As I sit here, completely drained and absolutely no energy left from the past few days, I somehow feel full. I learned so much from working on our assigned house and come out with a lot more than just being sore and dirty. When I woke up this morning, I was SO exhausted from yesterday’s travels… and I definitely didn’t feel ready to go work on houses! I had no idea what condition we were going to be working in and if our group would be split up. When we arrived at our worksite at 7:45am, there were several groups and many unfinished houses (some not even started). There were 6 different groups. Each one of them had to work with another except for ours! It feels so awesome to be apart of such a large group of young individuals who want to serve Christ! When we found out which house we were on, everyone immediately started looking for something to do. There were people on the roof putting up shingles, some were working on siding and others were inside taking care of boards and straps. I know that everyone was exhausted, but we pulled through and didn’t let it slow us down.
In the morning, I worked on siding. At first it seemed like there were too many people and not enough equipment. But I noticed that we were only working on two sides, so I started working on the third side. Not a whole minute had passed before people came over to help me, because I really had no idea what I was doing! We worked together and everyone had a job to do. I learned how to side a house, but I also learned patience, and kindness. You can’t do a job with other people and expect it to work unless you have those things. At one point, our group was irritated and started to fall apart, and that’s when I noticed that less work got done. I stepped away for prayer and came back totally rejuvenated! It’s tough working in the hot sun all day but it’s amazing what God can accomplish through us when we work together in His name. After having my blood sugar drop to just about nothing, getting sunscreen in my eyes and getting sunburned, I can say that I can’t wait to do it again tomorrow! God has put the joy in my heart and in the hearts of my fellow rhythmers! As I said in the beginning… I am totally wiped out, but extremely excited for what He is going to do through us the rest of this week!
Click here to view pictures from today!
Ariel
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