El Salvador

Leaving for El Salvador in less than 24 hours!!!!! The excitement is in the air....Thanksgiving feast is complete...it's just time to wait until we fly! I'm looking forward to seeing the kids at the Children's Home and Pastor Ben and his wife Daisy.

The team has taken the last three days to rest, unwind, and get some packing in order. It has been very good for us since we haven't had many days off in the last 3 or 4 months. We have traveled from church to church to church. to church.

We've been to
Berrien Center, MI
Flushing, MI
Wabash, IN
Poplar Bluff, MO
Marion, IL
Olive Branch, MS
Slidell, LA
Rome, GA
Milton, FL

9 different churches that we were able to serve in from September to November. We literally go from church to church. It is a crazy life when I really think about it. In the last 3 and 1/2 years the longest I've been in one location was 10 weeks and that was this past summer. I never would have told you that this is what I would be doing. :) I love teaching the kids. Also being the lead Base Camp teacher it's been fun to be able to help our new Base Camp teacher how to improve in his lessons. The main thing I've continually tried to remind him was to make the lessons his own and not to try to copy what someone else does. He's done a great job and has improved by leaps and bounds since our first two churches. I am blessing with the co-teachers I have this year.

After El Salvador I'll be waiting in the airport for about 12 hours until my flight home for December. YES! I'm going home for December and am really excited about it. I haven't seen my family since December last year. Although Kira (my big sister) won't be there I'm hoping to see her during our spring break. We will be heading out west and I'm going to look into plane tickets or train tickets to get there. It would be really neat to see her. I haven't seen her since our first year on the road.

Well...I need to get going for now. Please pray for me as I'm in El Salvador. Oh yeah. I'll be teaching through an interpreter on Sunday and at the Children's Home sometime next week. Please, please pray!

Shawntay

Chapel

Elementary Chapel! In Brownsburg, IN our team of Children's Ministers (9 of us) we able to lead chapel for the school connected with the Church. I was able to narrate a skit and Emily applied it at the end. We also taught them two songs. Below is a picture of all of us leading the kids with the motions.

This morning a girl in Base Camp shared that she was almost done looking up each one of our rules in a concordance. Our rules that we explain is Obedience, Respect, Determination, Encouragement, and Reflection. She said that there were 50 some verses on Respect...and explained how she realized that if there were that many verses on respect....God most think it's very important.

It was so encouraging to me to hear her say that.

Update from Marion, IL

I thought I'd mention that I got a new phone number and my e-mail address is back up and running. Praise the Lord. And I'm still alive (I really don't like when my electronics give me problems)....actually I just celebrated my 28th birthday!!!! Can't believe it....also can't believe that in 2 years I'll also be 30! Such a crazy thought. Thank God for all the days I live. :)

I hope all is well with everyone but I know that's not always the case. I just found out a lady I know from Wisconsin is in the hospital. I'm praying for her. And if there is anything else going on with anyone please let me know so that I can be praying for you.

BTW I'm in Marion, IL till Monday and then will be heading to Olive Branch, MS and the week after that I'll be in Slidell, LA.

Here's a picture that was taken in Wabash, IN when Mountain Man Jack and Mollie were waiting to do a skit.

Technology Failures

So when it rains it pours right....Just wanted to let everyone know that this past week my cellphone stopped working and I may be losing my cell number. I'll keep you posted about that when I figure everything out. Also....my hotmail account got locked up so I have not been able to log into it. So sad since I just sent an email update through it and now will not be able to respond to any of the emails that I sent. So if you are reading this and got my email through my hotmail address please e-mail me at my gmail address which is the same as the hotmail one except it's @gmail.com

To be honest I got very frustrated today trying to get everything back and running. But it didn't work. So alas, I just have to be patient and wait through this whole thing.

Shawntay

Base Camp @ Berrien Center Bible Church

Berrien Center Bible Church

Berrien Center Bible Church is our location for the next 4 days. This is the first THIRST Conference of the 2011-2012 travel season. I'm staying with a family with 3 kids---a 3 year old, 1 year old and a 3 month old (nice to be with kids again). My roommate for the week is Anna Bommel whose from Jefferson City, Missouri--my team held a conference at her church in April 2010. Getting to know her has been fun...she plays the ukulele so of course I loved that.

We are hoping to have around 43 kids in Base Camp tomorrow. A few weeks ago all 3 team's Children's Ministers were there for a 3-day Vacation Bible School....we are looking forward to seeing them again. This week we are teaching lessons on Obedience, Sin, Pride & Humility, Prayer, and God's Word. And of course we have our mountain climbing theme so Mountain Man Jack and Molly will be doing skits all week too.

I am hoping to remember to take pictures so I can post them for everyone to see.