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We have the van and jeep packed and its 8:30 AM.

The GPS unit is indicating we will get back to the Church early…its says 3pm right now, but I am sure that will change.

I will post updates if I can….if not we will keep notes and I will update this later tonight.

Updates once home…

We crossed into the US around 9:45 with a 20 minute delay crossing mainly from the traffic backup going through customs.  We rally had no problems at all.

We mad a pit stop around 10:30 at a McDonalds in New York.

We stoppped South of Syracuse for lunch around 12:30.

We made 2 more stops….one at a place before the Turnpike that was very dirty…so we stopped at a Krispy Kreme right before getting on the Turnpike.

We got to the Church around 4:45, met by a group of family members of the kids and leaders.

We formed a circle and had a final prayer of thanksgiving together for safe travels, and the privilege of having served Christ in Canada.

Today was another rainy day, which meant the mega-relay was cancelled, and the events for Saturday were compressed into the end of today, which means there is nothing but breakfast on Saturday.

Updates…

Emily
- talked with residents - and a Mom and kids.
- there wasn’t much work to do today
- got a necklace from the family she was talking to
- plyed soccer

Melissa H
- not alot of work today either.
- played soccer

Chelsea
- Interesting day
- got alot of paint on themselves - more than the walls
- took down more wall and ceiling covering

Matt D
- went to a mall to talk to people and hand out flyers
- liked the pet store
- nursing home - poems, skit, singing
- also got popsicles at the home

Mark
- called it a role reversal for this week…he used a circular saw to cut lattice work
- took pictures of most of our kids on their sites working
- saw many in action and was proud of them
- liked seeing everyone working

Alicia
- mall - didn’t talk with too many people
- nursing home - talke to some of the people

Lauren
- handed out flyers…actually got directly rejected twice…but thats ok since she still tried
- talked to people at nursing home

Melissa D
- more building fences
- like working with Mark.

Laura
- finished fences with Miss Jenny
- everyone else playing soccer
- there was a mud fight of some sort

Matt R
- while driving stakes, hit Hunter in the head with a sledge hammer
- he is just fine…he eventually went to the hospital as a precaution, and there is not injury really
- put up a bunch of fences
- drove many other stakes without hitting anyone with the sledge hammer

John
- ripped don more walls and ceiling material at the church
- other work at the church
- there was a paint war where more paint got on the kids than on the walls

Jeremy
- played with kids at the site…with an inflatable shark and with a kid named Noah
- the shark wound up popped from hitting each other so hard with it
- played soccer against the girls “and let them win”…NOT!

Diane
- community center - many more people there today
- talked with a lady who was stuck in Denmark during WWII
- cleared a park dressed in trash bags for rain gear
- 2 of the kids wouldn’t get off the bus to help, so she was asked to “sternly prompt them”
- people on the site thought they were all from the same church

Rob
- Bible school complete!
- last day was Noah’s Ark which included using some Beanie Babies prvided to us by Esther Bookheimer
- it was very moving to see all the kids we worked with all week in front of the church and their parents singing the songs and doing the motions we had all had a part in teaching them
- some of the parents thought we were at a conference for ALL the Christians in the US…meaning that the 300 they knew about were ALL the Christians
- we cleaned up the entire church after the end of VBS
- we also went to a ladies house on the way back to campus who is turning her house into a place for people to hold bible studies, and as a religious retreat
- it was a very long day…we didnt get back to campus until after dinner started

Nicki
- was at the YMCA again
- she had some of the beanie babies also
- wrote “Jesus Loves You” on the tags and handed them out
- the person there went to each kid and cut the tags off
- this was a YMCA in a church…and they were not allowed to talk about God.

The end of the day was very encouraging.  A woman and her family that Mark had talked to came to our worship service.  She wound up with Mark and Nicki and accepted Christ.  She actually had no basis for what that meant since she never had sunday school, VBS, etc to get a basic acquaintance with God.  Nicki talked with her for over an hour while mant of the FBC kids watched and entertained her kids.  Nicki and I headed out to McDonalds and got her and them food…it was nearly midnight when she left.  Praise God that we actually saw one person saved!

We ended the say in Jeremy and Matts room with Mark going around the room talking about his impressions of each kid and leader, and the week they had.  We also appreciate Mark for all of the energy he puts into everything he does with the Youth here at FBC.

Bed was very welcome today, although it was pretty late with all the activities of the day, and packing suitcases.

Today was a bit compressed since the late afternoon/early evening was free time.

Updates by person…

Rob
- Day three of VBS done…theme was Zacheus
- It was a pouring rain day, so the games part was held in a local school in the gym
- we used the rental van to take the kids back and forth all day, and they were really wired since it was raining
- some of the parents were much nicer today
- Noah’s Ark is tomorrow

Diane
- Odd day…thought it was a fair day…on bus ride had a talk with Shawn that upgraded it to good
- Diane decided she had an attitude problem
- She upgraded it to good after realizing some of what they were doing was for future users of the areas she was working
- Went to a community center with 24 people from m-fuge…there were only 3 people there
- washed the doors and walls of all the rooms on the 4th floor of the campus dorms
- cleaned up parks…including instruction on dealing with needles if found

Alicia
- Mall peformance got cancelled
- their leader had them go around just talking to people in the mall
- this was hard to do
- went to a senior center later in the day

Lauren
- same group as Alicia
- there is a choir here participating that is also on a tour, so they handed out flyers inviting people to a performance on Thursday night
- sang “Holy is the Lord” and did sign-language at the senior center
- like talking to Ada

Melissa D
- built fences
- favorite was when the rain stopped

Matt D
- same as Lauren and Alicia
- also enjoyed talking to Ada

John
- finished clearing old materials from Walls and ceilings…like panelling
- cleared all scraps from the area and put in dumpster
- liked discussing life stories of all the kids with the leaders

Jeremy
- worked in rain building fences
- after lunch drilled in spikes for fences
- liked using sledge hammers for the spikes

Matt R
- tough day due to rain
- it slowed their progress, but did not stop it
- drove in steel spikes with sledge hammers
- liked working and talking with Al, a carpenter

Melissa
- Thought it was cool that rain didn’t stop them
- liked the bus ride for an unspecified reason

Emily
- actually thought it was fun to work in the rain
- cleared more brush…which caused a mudslide and several people to get washed down a hill including Melissa
- also mentioned bus ride as being fun
- liked meeting people from Monroe
- Worship was fun for her…kids from her site were there that she is helping to witness to
- 2 of the kids are catholic and the other completely unchurched.  She is going to talk to them more on Friday

Chelsea
- same group as John
- cleanup and painting
- stained a bench
- like encouraging Freddy STERNLY to paint better

Nicki
- was inside with kids today
- a little discouraging
- trying to help Marion, but they aren’t having the impact Nicki would like to see
- kids attention span very short
- she loved one boy who was very happy to get attention in reading and playing

Laura
- built fences
- thought they were wrong
- took apart
- re-built…determining she was right in first place
- also mentioned the bus ride
- likes working with Ginny - one of the adults who is really good with power tools

Mark
- it was wet
- a bit frustrating due to lack of tools for the large group they have to work
- they had 5 sledge hammers but only 2 levels…meaning 3 are useless
- so…30 people with 2 sets of tools
- also, hammered in a stake for a fench and saw it being pulled out later in the day

So, the rain did make it challenging here today, and there was a bit of frustration coming through in most of the reports.

We went out to dinner at an East Side Marios here, then went downtown for a bit of shopping.  After doing a drive-by of Fort Henry, we headed back to campus and into Worship.

Tonight was interesting as we had 3 guests sitting with our church group.  There is a sailing competition here and there are sailors from all over the world staying here.  Some of the girls had been talking to some of them, so they knew them.  Its a long story, but they wound up coming to Worship tonight, and since they knew some of our girls, they sat with us.

It was hard since they have most likely never been in a church service before, so they had no idea how to “conduct themselves” properly…but that is just our own predjudice shining through I guess.  As Mark indicated…these are just the people that need to be in church…the ones you look at in the service and say “what are they doing here”.  Anyway, we got through it, and they got through it, and all everyone here can hope is that something got through the laughing and talking.

Friday is the last day on site…actually in a couple of hours since I waited until today to do this update.  Please pray for us as we spend the last day with our Ministry teams, and transition into a going home mode.  Also please pray for the sailors that God would have spoken to them, even just a small whisper last night.

Peace.

Today was the second full day at our ministry sites.  The format of the day was the same as yesterday, so I will dive right into the updates by person.

Jeremy
- Today they actually did P, C, and Y!
- Started out painting until Lunchtime.
- Moved on to building fences
- His favorite part was using a drill to drive nails into the boards for the fence he was building

Matt R
- Painted steps
- Met Al, a carpenter
- There was a guy they call “Crazy Mike” who found a wooden club on their site
- Matt enjoyed watching Brian work…he was very fast at building the fences

John
- Worked at a homeless shelter for 16-24 year olds
- cleaned and scraped walls that had arounf 9 coats of paint on them
- used a liquid stripper, which had to be used carefully
- one of his friends got it on his arm, and it wasn’t as bad as they worried, but they got it off right away

Emily
- Painted rails on a deck while others painted the deck
- met more new people
- was involved in witnessing to a neighborhood person with Mark and others
- wound up in an ad-hoc prayer group…around a sink…in a bathroom…while cleaning paint brushes.  Was strange at first, but became a favorite memory for her
- cleared brush from a hill

Melissa
- worked with Emily
- getting to know more people in her group
- She really enjoyed the worship service tonight as it was much different than she ever saw before

Chelsea
- Did alot of paint scraping
- enjoyed talking to people in her group

Laura
- worked on building fences
- she also liked watching the Brian guy work
- some kind of water fight or at least dumping cups of water on people was her favorite today

Alicia
- went to a park and sang worship songs
- then went to a nursing home to sing and also for an Ice Cream social

Melissa D
- Did painting
- watched the fences being built

Lauren
- Same group as Alicia
- after singing in the park, people kinda ran away, which was strange
- Talked to people in the nursing home…some more than once who chastised her for saying hi twice

Matt D
- same as Lauren and Alicia
- Met a guy at the nursing home called Rev. Bruce
- He has been married 44 years and his birthday is tomorrow

Mark
- was an interesting day since Mark gets focused on jobs like this and can be almost a workaholic
- there were not enough paint brushes…so Mark wound up cleaning up paint spills and drips
- Got to talk to homeowners
- wound up talking for over an hour to a 16 year old kid on a bike that didn’t just ride away.  Emily was involved also, and a lady from another church.  They are the folks that wound up praying while washing paint brushes.
- felt God telling him to “Just do it” and started talking to people, like the kid on the bike, about God.

Nicki
- There was a change in plans that threw her out of the comfort zone…they wound up in a park instead of a daycare
- Leader said to go into the park and just start talking to people…which she doesn’t normally do
- wound up recruiting alot of kids into a kickball (soccer baseball here…) game
- she is amazed by the amount of need there is here….she witnessed a couple that shocked her…a 10 year old boy and a 7 year old girl seriously acting like a teenage girlfriend/boyfriend
- thought worship tonight was awesome

Diane
- worked at GoodWill today
- sorting everything…clothing…underwear…blankets
- she just “loved” needing to give things the “smell test”
- they wound up with 13 bags of trash just in their first sort
- they unloaded a tractor trailer of donated material and put the trash stuff in the trailer in its place
- amazed at how people from all over the US can get together and work so well as a team in so short a time.

Rob
- Day 2 of VBS done
- some of the kids were more comfortable with us today, so they started showing their real personalities…like one kid that kept hauling off and punching kids right in the head for no reason
- I too see the effects of non-christian homes and potentially single parent homes…these kids are starved form affection
- I have a picture of two blonde twins that were very cute.  I tried to tell their mom how beautiful and nice her kids are, and she sort of grabbed them…shoved them in the car…and sped away
- not all the parents are like this, which is encouraging…we try to meet them as they pick up their kids Worship tonight was a very moving experience.  We were challenged and convicted to try and recognize the “garbage” in our lives.

God is moving through our own kids as we continue to do our work here.  There was an invitation time, and kids going up to the stage to kneel for prayer that some of our kids participated in.

The devotional times have included caring for people at home while we are here, and also when we go home.  During our devotional time as a church tonight, some members of the team shared specific people they knew who are physically or spiritually ill.  Please pray for these people as unspoken and unknown to you, that God would heal them either physically or spiritually.

Tomorrow is about the same as other days, except we have free time from 4 - 9, so we are planning to go into downtown Kingston, and out to dinner.

Wishing God’s peace to all who read this.

Today and tomorrow are the same format.

7 - Breakfast
8:15 - Quiet time and Bible Study
9:30 - Ministry Track Planning
10:30 - Send-off (informal worship)
11 - off to sites
4:15 - back at campus
5 - Dinner
7 - Worship
8:30 - Church Devotions
9:45 - Night Life (fun and games)
11:15 - bed

Todays bible study and devotions were from Ephesians 1:3-14

Evening message was around Barabbas, and how he was the first person Jesus saved but it was physically not spritually.  *** Very simplified explanation!!! ***

Updates by Person…

Chelsea
- Small Church that had mFuge last year
- prepared for paining including Power Washing (indoors!)
- Power Washing was her favorite thing

Melissa (Emily’s friend)
- Did painting
- Liked looking at the what was done after they finished

Emily
- Worked on Townhomes painting steps
- Liked meeting new people and also the Charter Bus that one of the groups used to get here that her ministry group is using

Matt R
- In Emily’s group
- Also enjoyed meeting new people
- Liked it when some local kids joined in with them painting

John
- In Chelsea’s group
- Took wood off ceiling and removed nails from the ceiling and the wood
- prepared walls for power washing
- liked the free ice cream his team got

Jeremy
- In group with Matt R
- Did painting and priming
- Like feeding ducks lunch leftovers and playing with an old lady’s cat

Matt D
- Went to a park and played games with a parachute
- Went to a nursing home and sang and did a skit
- Met a kid who knew some tricks

Lauren
- In same group as Matt D
- liked performing in the skit

Alicia
- met 10 year old (same guy as Matt D) who travels alot and is a circus performer
- he said he reads a spanish bible

Laura
- Her group did paining on a deck
- Deck wound up half white and half yellow - railings too
- they fixed it all up
- enjoyed meeting new people

Mark
- Worked with Emily, and two from other churches named Anthony and Jeff
- houses were on the St. Lawrence river which was nice since Mark has done some reading about that river
- Liked meeting the residents of the homes he was working in….and some were not the friendliest people

Nicki
- Worked at a YMCA in a Church…and couldn’t talk about God since it is a YMCA although its in a church
- Played with 2-6 year old kids all day
- Entire day was her highlight

Diane
- Worked in Social Track for Salvation Army
- cooked meals for soup kitchen - Lasagna and Shepherds pie.  Others in group made 1000 meatballs.
- wound up going door to door putting flyers inviting people to use the services of the salvation army.  Got doors slammed in face and everything!
- Like watching the kids deal with handing out the flyers and both the acceptance and non-acceptance.

Rob
- First day of VBS done!  Today’s subject was the Good Samaritan
- Its a LONG way from VBS at home - no music…props…program…etc….but still almost 60 kids
- tomorrow is probably loaves and fishes
- liked spending time in the “Games and Rec” station with the little kids on the playground

Please continue to pray for our team here, and for the other over 300 people here trying to make an impact on this area.

Keep on Rockin…Peace! (as Mark would say!)

Today was a pretty full day.

We met around 8:15 and loaded the Jeep with all the suitcases.  We then went to a nearby breakfast buffet restaurant that appeared to be a really good deal…$6.99…all-you-can-eat.  Well…the food was ok, but their catch was the beverages…Orange Juice…$2.75….Chalk one up to staying in a tourist area!

We then headed back to the hotel and down to the falls for a “Journey Behind the Falls”.  This was an elevator and tunnel that got you right next to the bottom of the Canadian Falls.  There was also a patio/deck area to go out and be right where the falls hit bottom.  It was awsome to see and feel Gods splendor at the base of the falls.

We headed back to the Hotel for the last time…to check out and head to the other side of Lake Ontario.  We left the falls area around 11:30.

We had a 4 hour drive, lunch, pitstops and fuel stops…and we needed to be there before 4.

We stopped for lunch just past Toronto, and got gas then also.

We barely made it to Kinston by 4 (actually got to the college at like 4:15…but they didn’t turn us away!).  Was a little interesting finding where on campus we needed to be, but we eventually did and got the kids registered.

Each of them picks from a group of ministry tracks…PCY - (Painting/Construction/Yardwork), Creative (Drama, singing, etc), Childrens (working with kids in some way), Social (Volunteer type ministry), Games and Rec (ministry through playing team sports at public playgrounds, etc).

Here is a breakdown of what each of us got…

Mark - PCY
Nicki - Children’s
Diane - Social
Rob - Children’s
Laura - PCY
Chelsea - PCY
Emily - PCY
Melissa (Emily’s Friend) - PCY
Lauren - Creative
Alicia - Creative
Melissa - PCY
John - PCY
Jeremy - PCY
Matt R. - PCY
Matt D. - Creative

The PCY crews were told they are doing alot of painting.  Mark and some of the boys (Matt R, Jeremy) are on the same team and will be building a fence.  John said his group would be demolishing and rebuilding some steps.

Lauren, Alicia, and Matt D are in the same group and will be going to a park tomorrow.

Nicki heard she will be at a YMCA with 2 - 12 year old children.

Daine will be at a salvation army.

Rob’s team will be leading bible school at a local church that has never had it before for 50 kids.

We all had dinner, a time of celebration…which is more of an informal worship time…met with our groups, then had a time of worship and then bible study with our church group.

Its lights out at 11 - over an hour ago - then breakfast tomorrow at 7…meeting with groups for planning and off to our sites by around 11 tmorrow morning…so please be thinking about us around that time as we start to reach out to the people here in Canada.

One startling fact we heard today is that 95% of Canadiens are un-churched/non-believing.  Please pray that as we are here, we can touch a few lives.

If you are interested in parent devotionals while we are here…you can find them here http://www.lifeway.com/fuge/downloads/2007_cfugemfuge_parentdevos.pdf

Talk to you tomorrow, eh!

Today we all met at the church at 7am, and loaded the vehicles and gathered all the papers needed to get us out of, and back into, the country.

The Jeep was quite full of suitcases, but everything fit, and we set off around 8am.

We made a pit stop after the end of the PA Turnpike, and got gas off Route 17 in New York (actually back just inside the PA border).

Lunch was above Corning NY at around 1pm.   We got going again around 1:45.

We got on 90 near Rochester and then went thru Buffalo on the way to Canada.

For the future use of all reading this, the Whirlpool Bridge is closed, so you need to use the Rainbow Bridge.  Unfortunately, we didn’t find that out until we tried to get to the closed bridge.

We wound our way back to the Rainbow bridge and crossed over to Canada around 3:30.  The crossing took a little bit of time, but it was really just around 15 minutes.

Rob (I) unfortunately entered the wrong address into a GPS we were using, so it quite efficiently led us to the wrong Hotel.  We figured out the correct address, and checked in around 4…and got to the rooms finally around 4:30.

We set off to see the falls, and took a ride on the Maid of the Mist.  We walked around a bit, took pictures, shopped, and had Dinner at a local Wendy’s.

We headed back to the hotel, many of the kids had a quick swim, then we headed back to the falls area to watch Fireworks.

We got back to the Hotel and had devotions on Psalm 46, and then headed off to bed.

We will be gathering at 8:15 tomorrow for breakfast, then a bit more sight-seeing, then off to Kingston.

God Bless all…we will update this as we can.