Center Baptist Church Christ is the center of all we do. Col 1:18

Friday – Home Again!

Friday-HOME AGAIN!!!

Hey everyone, it’s Autumn again today. WE’RE HOME!!! We were up bright and early this morning. We left at 6:06 (only 6 minutes late!) We drove for a couple hours before stopping at a Burger King for some breakfast. Then, we drove some more and stopped at McDonalds outside of Memphis for lunch. After driving some more, we had a nice picnic dinner in Mammoth Springs, AR by a river. We rolled into the church parking lot at about 8:30. The drive was fairly easy, and I’m thankful for all of our great drivers. I think that most of us took at least a short nap, so that was nice. God has been very good to our group this week. We couldn’t have asked for a kinder, more hospitable family. The hard work and sweat were well worth watching Robin, Karen, and Louis’s (Karen’s dad) faces when they saw everything that had been done. Your prayers made the difference this week. It was God who brought us together with this wonderful family and God who protected us while we worked. We were truly blessed. Once again, thank you for all your prayers, and be sure to continue to pray for Robin and Karen and all of the people in New Orleans. Recovering from this will be no small task. Most of the people feel like they have been forgotten, since there’s hardly anymore news coverage about New Orleans. So be sure and remember them in your prayers, because that makes a huge difference. Everyone we encountered this week in New Orleans was incredibly appreciative of our group being there. They didn’t care that we weren’t working on their house, they were just glad that we came. I could talk all night, but I’m tired, so I’m going to sign off. God is good!!!

Autumn and the New Orleans mission team

Thursday

Hello everybody! This is Autumn updating today, in for my dad. We finished up the house today! The entire house, save one bathroom, is gutted!! We also cleared out the back yard, which had a fallen tree and some overgrowth, and three sheds. It was very hard work and I can’t believe that the week is over. Today, I was looking at the house and yard and felt very proud of our group and all we have accomplished. The feeling I got looking at the work we have done is too great for me to put in words (and for those of you who know me, you know this is rare!) Also, I was so blessed by Robin and Karen and their generosity. They have been absolutely amazing. Please be sure to remember them in your prayers and they continue to recover. Right now, we’re showering and relaxing before heading out for supper. Tomorrow morning, we’re leaving bright and early and heading back home. I have had an amazing week, but look forward to being back in my own bed!! Thank you for all your prayers and support for our team this week!! I think that our group has represented Center Baptist Church very well.

Autumn and the gang in New Orleans

Wednesday

Well, it is hard to believe we only have one more day of work, but as it is on every trip, the week goes by fast and then we have to go home.

Today started the same. We headed to our home around 7:30, and started to dig in. We have all but completed one side, and the other will be done tomorrow. We had a huge pile of debris in the front yard and a private contractor came by to clean it up. The up side was that we now have room to pile what is left, but the down side is that while they were working, we could not take any trash out of the home. We did make a lot of progress and Karen, the owner, made some shrimp salad for lunch from the left over shrimp. That is just one more example of Robin and Karen’s hospitatality.

We had planned on taking some time off this afternoon to give the group a break, and to show them some of the fun areas of New Orleans. We went to the French Quarter and walked around Jackson Square, and then drove to the Garden District, the Warehouse District, and a few more areas of local interest. We have had a great tour of the city and everyone on the trip now has a much greater knowledge and appreciation for New Orleans.

Tomorrow, we will finish our project, take our tools back to Celebration Church, and then start thinking about heading home. Just for information sake, we are wanting to head out about 6:00 AM on Friday. The trip down took about fourteen hours, so we are hoping to get home around 8:00PM. These times are not set in stone, so when we get closer I will have the youth call for their rides.

Everyone one is still doing well and feeling good, so continue your prayers and we will see you in a few days.

Mitch and the gang from New Orleans

One more thing: I am very proud of our group and honored to be with them this week in New Orleans. I could not be more proud!

Tuesday

We have completed most of another day, and the only word that fits is amazing! We started at 8:00 am and started in again on gutting the home. It was warmer today, so the sweating started from the begining. The progress on the house is going well. It is a big job, but we will be done by the end of the week. The real story for today is the family, Robin and Karen. They are incredible and so very gracious and thankful. They have been such good hosts, and I cannot think of better people to help out, and more importantly, to have as new friends. To show their gratitude, they went out and bought 4 dozen crab, 20 pounds of boiled shrimp, with some corn and boiled potatos. We followed them to a park by Lake Poncetrain. OK, so I am not looking at the map to see how to spell, but it is the big lake by New Orleans. At the park we ate crab and shrimp, with corn, potatos, summer sausage and boiled turkey necks. It was a blast to see everyone standing around the table pealing crab and shrimp and eating the fixings. The good news is that we had not cleaned up yet, which was great, because we were a mess. We cleaned up our area and Robin showed us more damage. This was the area along Lake P. and it too was overwhelming. Boats everywhere, homes and docks completely destroyed, and buildings moved off their foundations. It seems like we are not doing nearly enough, but if we can encourage this family and make a difference for them, then it will have been a successful trip. I must say, however, that I feel Robin and Karen have been sent to us. We have been the recipients of their hospitality and kindness. To have 24 people show up at your door and say we want to gut your home is no small thing. They are great people and have given us much more than we have given them.

Well, this entry is different than the other days for two reasons. First, I have only had to do it once. YEA Second, it is only 6:24 pm and I can still make some sense. I am tired and dirty, but this is done. Another YEA

It looks like the shower is open, so I am closing for now.

One more thing: Everyone is healthy, working hard, and and accident free.

Third and final YEA

Keep the prayers coming and we will see you in a few days.

Mitch and the gang from New Orleans

Monday

Well, it has been a great day of sweat, dirt, and an eye opening tour. We started with an orientation, then went to the home, met the family, and went to work. We are gutting a house to to studs, to prepare it for rebuilding. It is hot dirty work, but our group did great. The owners of the home are very nice. They bought some ice cream bars for our group, and then took us on a tour of the hardest hit area. WOW! It is incredible. Mile after mile of totaly demolished homes and buildings that can never be re-built. There are hundreds of cars that have been completly ruined, and that does not even touch the lives that have been changed forever. Please pray for them and us, as we try to make a difference. Tomorrow, we will again be gutting the house and I think we should be done by the end of the week.

Again, thanks for the prayers and suport. Our group is representing Center fantastically, and you would be proud of each missionary.

Mitch and the gang from New Orleans