Wednesday was interesting, typically speaking it was back to the normal programming, with Thrive running in the afternoon and evenings, So I went to children's ministries program and took the prayer station, where they were praying things in their life they wanted God to help with. There was an eclectic group of prayers, from asking for help with hay-fever, to help to become a marine biologist, noting these are children aged 4-8. Never the less I had a great time praying with them, and they seemed to enjoy chatting about what was going on in their wee worlds. For their activity we took them to the big boy and girl playground, and then I was drafted in by the kids to play hide and seek. I tell you it's harder than you think to find someone hiding out in the open.
Evening came and I started work with the youth. The group I was helping take was ripe with difficulties from the get go, many of them were moody and didn't really want to participate in the quick bible study, which eventually lead to one lass walking out after two minutes. and then another cussing another kid out during the activity, ultimate Frisbee. Never the less, even though I felt rubbish by it all, I talked through things with my boss and realised these kids are just different to the ones I would have been in youth groups with before, they have a completely different set of ticks and responses.
So Thursday me and Pedro started getting all the stuff together for family camp-out and the house paint, from marshmallows to paint buckets. We also stopped in at guitar store to pick up some strings for a guitar Pedro had been given, and in a complete impulse buy, I bought a guitar. It is a beautiful Martin backpackers guitar, perfect to take home, and to university. I spent the night playing it, and just loving the feel of it. Then late on, me and Samantha an Keria went to iHop, an all hours pancake and waffle bar.
Friday I was in work from two to help set up the camp ground for the camp out that night. We brought the marshmallow guns and hovercraft out, and we were set. Camp outs over here are huge, we had four camp fire pits, a BBQ food truck and an ice cream truck, along with face painting and balloon art. Also note that food truck food here, is good tasting food. So Pedro and I took the children around on the hovercraft and then set up for marshmallow wars, where kids go running around with plumbing pipe guns, shooting marshmallows at each other, while trying to capture the other teams pumpkin/flag. That night we had to stay up all night to make sure everyone was safe, and that nobody wandered to far, and into an alarmed section of the building. This night shift lead to a midnight drive to Wendy's, as Pedro wanted to get yet more food, I however did not fall to the temptation. So morning came and I woke the camp up with a glorious trumpet call.
Well after no sleep Pedro and I got ready to take our youth group to paint a house in East Winter Garden. The painting was between our youth and a youth group from the EWG community. It started of well, the youth groups mixed well, we all were having a laugh. When we started painting the house, we were painting the walls white, and the trim blue. after nearly completing the house by mid day, we were told that the colours were meant to be inverted... Somewhere the communication lines had been crossed. So we ate lunch together and then started at the house again. The fact we had to start again wasn't helped by the fact the other youth needed to leave before two. So we worked on and got the majority of the house done by our deadline of three thirty. Not going to lie, it could have been better, but we tried!
That night Pedro, myself, and some of the college students, went to City Walk, and Universal, in the intention of going to a film, but due to traffic, and some of them getting incredibly lost, we just had coffee and Chinese, and then explored the area.
Sunday was the typical routine, church then youth, and in youth we did a pumpkin scavenger hunt. we got home at nine to leave immediately for our retreat to Georgia (with a lay over in Jacksonville),
Epworth was just so beautiful, the sun was shining, the grass was green, and the birds singing (and mosquitoes were biting). I also got to meet the rest of the YAMM's, They are a great group of people, so full of energy and spirit for what they are doing.
So Monday we arrived and had a lovely lunch in St Simon's, and were then given free ice cream by a gentleman we got speaking to in a vintage second hand store, who turned out to own the local ice cream shop. I have found that people that you get talking to about what we are doing, are generally very generous in giving you free stuff, mostly food, and when you are living off around $250 a month, that is much appreciated.
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So during the retreat we had a number of small group reflections, and sessions. This included an exercise to work out your key personality traits, I scored very highly on the leader side of things, with a strong enthusiast wing, Basically this means I have a strong, loud personality, and I like to be in control. It also says that under stress, I start to become an "investigator", I look into things, I research things, although this may not be totally focused research. I can completely relate to this trait, haven seen me go through it with my exams in may-june. It also stated when I was well situated into an area or program, I become a "helper" (another trait I scored highly in). I like to think that when I am pointed in the right direction I am a help, but you'd have to ask my co-workers and bosses. I believe that the enneagram did capture a bit of my personality, however I do hope I am not like the people it linked me to (examples being Stalin, and Putin.)
We also took part in a ropes course, not going to lie the first few high steps where hard but after that it was great, would thoroughly recommend it to any one looking for a team bonding activity.
The Tuesday evening we gathered round a fire that I prepared and they cooked smores, and I just play with the flames. It was great fellowship, and fun.
So that is my third week done. It was long but still had a great time!
Forty-Four games that I thought would end up with a child in hospital, but somehow didn't….
#3 Pumpkin scavenger hunt.
Basically hide a number of pumpkins around a large campus with numbers on them, give groups of children a list with clues on where to find said pumpkins, with room for them to record which pumpkin was at which spot. To make it interesting set an obstacle course at some of the pumpkin areas, including a hovercraft race, a wheelbarrow relay (best done with one with a flat tyre and a dodgy axil), and pumpkin gutting (where you take out the insides of a rotten pumpkin).
Please I ask for your continued prayers for those mentioned in the past posts, also for those YAMM's I met this week that they would continue you to feel the lords presence.
So Thursday me and Pedro started getting all the stuff together for family camp-out and the house paint, from marshmallows to paint buckets. We also stopped in at guitar store to pick up some strings for a guitar Pedro had been given, and in a complete impulse buy, I bought a guitar. It is a beautiful Martin backpackers guitar, perfect to take home, and to university. I spent the night playing it, and just loving the feel of it. Then late on, me and Samantha an Keria went to iHop, an all hours pancake and waffle bar.
Friday I was in work from two to help set up the camp ground for the camp out that night. We brought the marshmallow guns and hovercraft out, and we were set. Camp outs over here are huge, we had four camp fire pits, a BBQ food truck and an ice cream truck, along with face painting and balloon art. Also note that food truck food here, is good tasting food. So Pedro and I took the children around on the hovercraft and then set up for marshmallow wars, where kids go running around with plumbing pipe guns, shooting marshmallows at each other, while trying to capture the other teams pumpkin/flag. That night we had to stay up all night to make sure everyone was safe, and that nobody wandered to far, and into an alarmed section of the building. This night shift lead to a midnight drive to Wendy's, as Pedro wanted to get yet more food, I however did not fall to the temptation. So morning came and I woke the camp up with a glorious trumpet call.
Well after no sleep Pedro and I got ready to take our youth group to paint a house in East Winter Garden. The painting was between our youth and a youth group from the EWG community. It started of well, the youth groups mixed well, we all were having a laugh. When we started painting the house, we were painting the walls white, and the trim blue. after nearly completing the house by mid day, we were told that the colours were meant to be inverted... Somewhere the communication lines had been crossed. So we ate lunch together and then started at the house again. The fact we had to start again wasn't helped by the fact the other youth needed to leave before two. So we worked on and got the majority of the house done by our deadline of three thirty. Not going to lie, it could have been better, but we tried!
That night Pedro, myself, and some of the college students, went to City Walk, and Universal, in the intention of going to a film, but due to traffic, and some of them getting incredibly lost, we just had coffee and Chinese, and then explored the area.
Sunday was the typical routine, church then youth, and in youth we did a pumpkin scavenger hunt. we got home at nine to leave immediately for our retreat to Georgia (with a lay over in Jacksonville),
Epworth was just so beautiful, the sun was shining, the grass was green, and the birds singing (and mosquitoes were biting). I also got to meet the rest of the YAMM's, They are a great group of people, so full of energy and spirit for what they are doing.
We also took part in a ropes course, not going to lie the first few high steps where hard but after that it was great, would thoroughly recommend it to any one looking for a team bonding activity.
The Tuesday evening we gathered round a fire that I prepared and they cooked smores, and I just play with the flames. It was great fellowship, and fun.
So that is my third week done. It was long but still had a great time!
Forty-Four games that I thought would end up with a child in hospital, but somehow didn't….
#3 Pumpkin scavenger hunt.
Basically hide a number of pumpkins around a large campus with numbers on them, give groups of children a list with clues on where to find said pumpkins, with room for them to record which pumpkin was at which spot. To make it interesting set an obstacle course at some of the pumpkin areas, including a hovercraft race, a wheelbarrow relay (best done with one with a flat tyre and a dodgy axil), and pumpkin gutting (where you take out the insides of a rotten pumpkin).
Please I ask for your continued prayers for those mentioned in the past posts, also for those YAMM's I met this week that they would continue you to feel the lords presence.
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