Catching Up..

Last week a group from The Chapel and Olive Branch were here, and we all had a great time! The Chapel group was led by Zac Hill, youth pastor of the church, and was mainly 12 and 13 year olds. Although it was quiet the first day or two as everyone was getting acclimated to the changes, by Wednesday the camp was lively with games of succotash and basketball!
Jim, Ada-Marie, Bailey, and Evan Miller from Woodburn Missionary were also here, so it was great to catch up with old friends! Josh, Shaina, Bailey, and I went to the Gulf Islands water park Sunday after church, thanks to the Inland Hills Church group that was here, who bought the three of us (not bailey) season passes so that we can go and get a little relief from the hot Mississippi sun whenever we want!

This week, a high school group of around 30 people are here from Emmanuel Community Church, so the heart has been full, and the camp has again been lively and fun! Last night we had a fire on the beach; a great time of worship and sharing, but almost too hot outside to sit around a big fire. We also have several more friends from Woodburn Missionary here this week: Karen Hahn, Tricia Kever, Michelle Rowland, and Rachel Wallace, that got to join in on the fun last night, and New Orleans today.

Ok, I have to give a shout out tonight to my Dad. Today was his (shhh don't tell him I told!) 42nd (WOW) birthday! The cooks made a chocolate cake garnished with strawberries and all 30 of them piled into our little show home to sing! It was crowded, but so much fun! I took some pictures and videotaped the singing, so maybe I'll get them up on the Hope City webpage at facebook sometime soon.

Well, I am off to bed; tomorrow I have school to finish and packing to do, because Josh and I are heading back to Indiana for CDYC next week! We are so excited, and thankful to Todd Rupp and the Emmanuel group for letting us hitch a ride with them!

Love and sun from Mississippi!

Sunny California

This week we have a team of fifteen from Chino Hills, California here in camp. They are a lot farther away from home than our usual teams, that's for sure!

Dwight White, one of our homeowners, has made lunch for the group working on his house twice this week! Monday for Memorial Day, they had barbecue, then yesterday they had shrimp, potatoes, and corn. MMMM I wish I was working there!

Bob and Betty Polardy, January volunteers from Delaware, were in Waveland this week, so they came to visit yesterday. Even if only for a short time, it was great to see more familiar faces.

Tonight we went gigging with Ira Rowell's granddaughter Kacie went gigging with us, but we didn't catch anything but two crabs because the tide was in. It was still fun to walk around in the water though!

Well, another great group of people are going home this Saturday, definitely a sad time for all of us here at Hope City. Please pray that their plane ride is not delayed and that everything goes smoothly. A big group must be hard to get on a plane without any problems, but with God all things are possible; even a smooth plane trip!

Thanks again for everyone's support, whether through prayer, financial help, or volunteering. You are all such a vital part of this ministry; there's no way it could happen without you! We love you all!

This week Steve Binkley and the Fellowship crew is here again! Ashley Labie, one of the girls that came last summer, is back again so we went for a walk on the beach last night and shopping at the Surf Shop tonight.

Today I took my road test for the second time and passed! I am now a licensed driver in the state of Mississippi! I don't know how long it will be until I actually get to use it, because the parents don't want me to grow up, but I will have to eventually! I'm guessing pretty soon I'll be running errands for both Mom and Dad! haha

Richard and Linda Morse came for supper tonight, and although we aren't working on their home this week, it was great for them to be able to be here an fellowship with Fellowship!

Well, it's getting late so I better sign off for now...
Love from Mississippi!
Sam


Romans 15:5-6
5May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, 6so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Ohhhh Bethel!!!

Another great week has flown by, taking another great group home. I miss them already! We had so much fun walking the beach, watching the sunrise and gorgeous dolphins, our first gigging adventure of the year, going to Waveland on the bus for sightseeing, among other things.

Last night when we went gigging, several people speared crabs, but nobody found a flounder; which is nothing new, since we have never found one! The weather this week was great, although a little humid...

Yesterday, for our "last supper" we went out to eat, then went sightseeing. After we got back to Hope City, several of us went "gigging" or flounder fishing for those of you who haven't had that privilege yet! When we came back, we sat and talked for a while. None of us wanted the night to end, because we knew that morning would come, and with it, the time to leave for Indiana.

I keep finding my world growing smaller and smaller with the people I meet down here that are friends of my friends. One amazing example is Beda from Bethel knows Pronoy Sarkar, and old family friend all the way from India! What are the chances of us knowing the same person that lives on the other side of the world? It was definitely a God moment!

I hope everyone has a great week; I am going to go to bed! Goodnight!
Love from Mississippi

Hmmmm....

Today was a beautiful spring day in Mississippi! Yesterday, the groups stayed at camp and fixed things up. The heart has a fresh coat of paint, the yard was mowed and the weeds, ummmm eated? A couple people insulated the pantry, so now it's a lot cooler, and we're hoping that it will help the ice machine keep up this summer.

Tonight we just hung out; several of us played catch a phrase and had a great time doing it! That is one of the best games....we also attempted to play volleyball, but it is a little difficult to do with no net, and a half-deflated ball! Usually, I don't get to know the volunteers until Wednesday, which is usually the night that everyone opens up (share time)because I lack the courage to just go up to someone and start talking; so I'm glad I got a head start!

Well, that's about it for now, Jed said that he saw some people out gigging the other night, so we want to start doing that again, and we thought this might be a good week to start, so maybe I'll have some gigging stories to share tomorrow or the night after....


Philippians 4:4-7
4Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

So Much News!

Well, it looks like I didn't keep my promise of writing more often, but I thought of a way to keep y'all updated on the work we're doing here. If anyone would like to write a post, please email me, facebook me, or if you don't have either of those, leave a comment, and I'll add you as a temporary poster! It would help me as well as getting a few more different perspectives on the "experience" of Hope City.

Last week we had no volunteers,so Josh and I worked on getting our learners permits. It was really fun to be able to do it together, although I had the advantage because I have had one before, but now I am an official driver in Mississippi!

This week is two groups of men, so we girls are a little outnumbered again! They are working on pouring cement among other things. We have had a rough start trying to get back into a "normal" group week (like we ever have those!) but we're getting there...

Gary Richhart has been with us for several weeks again, and, as he reminded me tonight, (ugh) only "four more sleeps" until he goes back to Indiana! Oh, we're going to miss him soooo much! We have been trying to talk he and Linda into moving down here with us permanently, but I don't know...I think it will take a couple more trips to get them convinced!

Another Favorite verse:

Philippians 2:5-8

"Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross!"

Love From Mississippi! Sam

I Made My Own Day!

SO today started out a little rough; as do most Mondays, with getting the teams accustomed to what a day in Hope City is like; but it all turned out fine, as it usually does!

OK, now to the title. This afternoon after school, I was kind of just wandering around, not doing much, and I reached into my back jeans pocket because I felt what I thought was an empty gift card or something like that, but when I pulled it out, there was a wad of folded up one dollar bills in my hand! I got so excited over the fact that I found money, I immediately told Josh, "Josh, I just made my day!" It turned out that it was only seven dollars, but for a girl who has no job at the moment, it's a lot! Then I got to thinking how, when God gives us something, no matter how small, how often do we stop and thank Him for it? What about the beautiful sunrise that we see in the morning? Or the pretty flowers alongside the road (AKA weeds!)? It's so awesome how we see God's handiwork, made for our enjoyment, in everything! I wish we would take time to get excited about "the little things" more often than we do. For example, I don't think I tell God how much I love this weather that He gives the "sunny south", or the fact that I get to live right across from the beach! I'm going to try to do that more often....