we are home

for all those that were worried we wouldnt make it... we are home.... and so it comes time to post a few thoughts and trail a few credits and accolades....

(however do not stop reading... there is at least 5! yes 5 more posts coming your way just about mission trip.... and wait until we get into super summer and camp stuff... you might as well just get used to reading here and staying caught up!)

first of all i have to thank our entire team of students and adults... everyone really outperformed all expectations in service, attitude, and self-control... well done team... you have proven great wisdom and maturity and it was a pleasure to travel and serve alongside you

secondly the unsung heroes of our venture... the red and blue vans... for those that may not believe in the power of will or ford automotive believe in the divine intervention that occured in the last few days... vans well past their prime traveled cross country with no more needs than food and shelter... well done machines... well done

thirdly for our new friends and family north of the border (mettie jane, richard, ethan, mettie bell, joanie, glen, lee, byron, joyce, all the billets)... thank you... for everything... you turned a half-held half baked hope into a wonderful memorable learning experience that will shape us for the rest of our lives... and has already shaped some our immediate individual and collective destinies... we love you.. you have taught us the value of community, mission, generative friendship, and hospitality... all of which of Christ Virtures which bind us together and loosen us upon the broken world

fourthly for our family friends and church at home... your prayers, support, encouragement... testify to a commissioning vision for the children of God... we are not to remain dormant or silent or suspended but released into a watching world to emit light and unearth the broken people that lie in the dark soil of this world

finally for the renewed vision of love and repurposed testament offered to us freely and openly from the Spirit that desires to lead us all... we are to be a people about restoring the humanity that was lost, not a humanity of depravity but a humanity of beauty... it is possible... is is happening... are we of the work

dont leave us now friends we need you and you need us we have shared in this story together so now we are both accountable to it... and it does continue

"the future is not unknown, only uncharted... 

the fog does not replace what it holds only what it hides for a time...."

late night first night, drive back that is....

hey everyone trying to catch you up on some details

more interview videos hopefully up before we get home on WEDNESDAY! (but uh dont box us in to a time because we might disappoint... which would be opposite from this trip/excursion which has been joyful, educational, worshipful, and exceeding all of our expectations

below is the link to the wrap up "podcast" or audio file of karen and zac's wrapup for the trip

http://www.box.net/shared/iho0f00k1x

peace and love from the road

we miss it already.....

first round of student interviews

for your late night friday evening pleasures (more to come) students respond to the question what have you learned?

kyle bellah

herby bauer

sheldon kearby

day 3 too much to express and not enough time to rest

we are all getting very tired and we are all very thankful that tomorrow is our last hard work day... we have put down some intensive "triple shift days"  this morning we spent our time again at the mustard meeting new friends and building on exisiting relationships... we have been blessed to see many of the same faces for several meals in a row now and will miss them tomorrow when we say good bye... this afternoon at blitz (our afternoon sports/snack/Jesus excursions with the grade school kids) about 50 kids attended the various activities of soccer, karate, art, and disc golf... such a blessing to see so many kids (over 80% have never set foot inside the church before) listen to the story and be told and see the love of Christ... powerful moments, tired crew... couple of us are starting to feel sick... after traveling, jostling, running, sweating, praying, talking... our bodies are about out... please pray for renewed health for some and continued health for others... we miss you all very much...  we did get to see the city from a new angle today...

a bird's eye view atop the calgary tower... one of the highest landmarks above sea level

we have seen the streets but now we see the city and the mass of the million that live, move

work, and grow in this place that we have called home for a few days... 

couple pics to close this post out... we are hoping to get some interview time with mustard seed staff, blitz kids, our team, and a host of others (well anyone) to share in what has happened and what we hope continues to happen... love you all very very very very much!

canadian hello june 3

Day 1a Work Community Kitchen Blitz Mustard Seed

hey friends just an early morning post (well roll your clocks back an hour for full effect... we are in mountain time baby!)

we are starting this morning by helping out with the community kitchen... they are transitioning from spring to summer activities and need some manpower for the shift, and we are more than happy to help!

after lunch we will be launching our after school sports/education program... we are calling it blitz and our family and friends at CHBC have been more than gracious hosts to our endeavor 

and then tonight we will conclude our time by starting our community missionary training with the mustard seed a life and faith rehabilitive center for the impoverished and underprivileged... this organization is legit and a well oiled machine and we are excited to see their underworkings and help out in any way we can

missing home but not too much yet!

links:  http://www.communitykitchenprogram.com/

http://www.chbclive.ca/

http://www.theseed.ca/

Travel Day 3 Falls, Mountains, Customs, Canadians

wow so another late night posting by "mac light"  well it seems like several of you have found our spot!  not near as many miles today but we HAVE ARRIVED SAFELY! for all the parents grandparents and worried pastor and church family we are here and safe and sound in Calgary, Alberta, CA! oh and for our church family and staff... the vans have never run better (i think they just needed some mountain air) so we are in and ready to get to work tomorrow so less touristy pics and more of our missionaries at work... we love you all, stay up with us lots of goodies to come!

our first taste of the mountains and beauty that became our staple scenery, we are still in awe of the majesty.... 

mountains are so beautiful but so were the falls of the infamous great falls, MT if you are a lewis and clark fan then you know all about the ardor to explore the tricky falls

we are smiling because this was pre-customs adventure... in case you hadn't heard the customs regulations have become even more astringent for those traveling by car than ever before and on the inaugural customs restriction day they delayed our transit for 2 hours because of system errors and restarts, but  we were not hassled just held back but are still so excited to be in a brand new place

oh and one other fun pit stop came from vulcan, alberta... a small quaint town dedicated to star trek and trek culture... this replica hovers outside their museum which triples as their tourist/travel center and chamber of commerce what a wonderful place full of memorabilia, dedicated fans, and host to spock days (a annual conference that trekkies attend from around the country and US)... but one of the most interesting stories is linked here!  what a cool place to pit stop at...

Day 1 Travel 750 miles is a long way baby

DAY 1 MISSION TRIP TEAM TO CALGARY

well well friends i hope you are having a wonderful nights rest because we are in super late here in Fort Collins Colorado... which is pretty much wyoming... if you havent bookmarked us or added us to your RSS feed/News Reader do so now because we will have lots of media rich content coming your way detailing all of our travels and adventures... 

today we left the church at 5am and drove for over 12 hours and travel almost 800 miles we hit four states in what seemed like minutes... so far we have all been in really great spirits and the road has not worn us down even a little, most of the crew is resting right now but i am trying to piece our two worlds together, so if there is a message you want to send out to the team please comment here and we will pass it along... "redwing" and "blueflight" are holding up well in the road test and we are thankful to have sturdy beasts to tarry us there, this is by no means a short trip and will definitely test our willingness to travel and serve but are spirits are up to the task, thank you so much for all the prayers so far, we are blessed to have an excellent team and powerful support system.. love you all, thinking of you leave us comments below!

some pictures!

team at 5am  morning ready to leave and hit the road!

team at the western hemisphere's largest cross in groom texas (a spiritual wakening for the team)

some pics of the team taking a much needed stretch break at the garden of the gods in colorado springs co

late night video interview with kyle bellah about our travels so far....

hope this is as much for you as it is for us, stay with us as we post where we are and what we are doing more pics and video to come!