Starting Off the Week

We had a good day on Sunday in the church service at Sharps Corner with Pastor Brennan and the local congregation and then passing out fliers in Sharps Corner, Evergreen, and Manderson in the afternoon. We have four 5 Day Club teams with the addition of the team from Hope Bible Church in O'Fallon, so Pastor Brennan encouraged us to look into having a club in Manderson (a town about 15 minutes from Sharps Corner). For the past couple of years I've been intrigued about possibility of reaching out into Manderson in addition to Sharps Corner, but the opportunity wasn't there. This year as Pastor Brennan has been involved at Sharps Corner, he is also hoping that another couple interested in serving on the reservation will take on a church plant in Manderson. We have the opportunity to help plant seeds for this church plant that will begin in the near future, as God leads. We went on a little bit of a wild goose chase trying to find the guy that runs the youth center in Manderson where we were hoping to hold the club, but we were able to find him and use the facility this week.

All of our clubs began yesterday, and while attendance was a little down the first day, we had a great kick-off. Old friendships were rekindled, and new relationships are beginning to form. Clubs started off with a lot of energy and enthusiasm; each went very well, and even though we have a large number of first-time students this year, they all did great with their assignments and with the kids. We had to mow the volleyball court and fix the basketball goal again this year in the Sharps Corner housing, but our work paid off with over 40 people coming out from the Sharps Corner community to play basketball and volleyball and hang out last night.

As we continue the week, please pray for a few requests:

1. Energy and rest; we've settled into our schedule for the week, and it can be draining.

2. Opportunities for spiritual conversations; our theme verse is 1 Thess. 2:8, and we pray for opportunities to share our lives with the kids in ways that will open doors for spiritual discussions centering around the gospel.

3. Repair on the Hope Bible Church van; their van had a flat about an hour and a half away from Sharps Corner on our way in; pray that the working out the logistics with the rental company will go smoothly.

4. Two kids (10 and 12) committed suicide over the weekend, and at least one is a relative of a couple of the kids attending. There's also a sundance taking place this week, which is a traditional ceremony steeped in spirit worship. Pray that these potential distractions will turn into opportunities for the gospel.

I'll post pics soon!