So Long... Farewell... In the morning we will fly!!

And so it ends, after seven weeks with our family in Canada we get to wake up bright eyed and bushy tailed at 4am to head back to Dixie. So much has happend that I can't even begin to tell the story!! This week was our VBS "Big Apple Adventure". I spent all week playing games with the kids in recreation while the girls taught their own classes. Almost every night this week we were saying good bye to some one. Tuesday we had dinner and movie night with Jonathan (our pastor) and his family at the Mitras (the girls host family) it was an incredible time to spend with everyone. Afterwards we had the chance to out for bubble tea (a whole new experience) and say farewell to Matt (a counselor from SYC). Then last night we took the opportunity to cook dinner for out host families and spend the evening together. Tonight unfortunately was our last night with the church and we celebrated with a potluck dinner. It was a bitter sweet time as we said goodbye to people when it feels like we just got here yesterday. Their continued to be so gracious and hospitable and gave each of us gifts as we left. There were some hard goodbyes, one of which being the Mitra's daughter Rachel, who latched on to me half way through dinner and screamed "MINE!!" anytime some one would come speak to me. It will be exciting to return home and see old friends and family but pieces of our hearts will always be here in Edmonton with Japer Place and the incredible people here.

Its the final count down

After six weeks its weird to finally see the finish line. It will be hard for all of us to leave Canada and the amazing people we have met here. This week we were able to recover a bit from two weeks of camp, and put the final touches on our Vbs decorations. We have transformed the sanctuary  into New York city for our "Big Apple Adventure".  Next week we are hosting Vbs from 1 to 4, I will be leading recreation for the kids and the girls will both be leading separate classes.
This week we have been able to experience many different sides of Edmonton. One of our first nights back from SYC some of the staff took us out to Hot Pot to try real Chineses food. We ate thousand year egg, tripe, and a lot of other things for the first time. It was an adventure to say the least but we had a great time hanging out with the people form SYC before the left for China on missions. One of the highlights of the week was when a family in Canada cooked "Chikfila" for us. Then last night we visited the Taste of Edmonton, a festival where all the restaurants in the city set up booths for people to try samples.
Our vbs classes start next week as we finish up our time in Canada. The church is throwing us a going away dinner on thursday night before we all fly out Friday morning. These weeks have gone by way to fast for us to be leaving already.

120 kids,5 and a half days, Zero hospital visits.... WIN!

Whoa! What an awesome week at camp, God did incredible things through out the week and we had 21 youth come to Christ!!!!!!! We spent this week at SYC junior high camp, wich was a much different experience that Senior high camp..... Luckily God held off the rain wich cut down the mosquitos and hospital visits all week. We were blessed with two incredible speakers to share Gods word this week and it was amazing to see the youth respond to Jesus as the week progressed! At first the kids were shy and slow to respond but Gods word was so overwhelming through out the week that they were eager to worship Him in chapel. On our final night of worship Nate (our speaker) gave a call to come forward and worship God, slowly but surely kids made their way to the front. The night ended with all of camp praising God with the arms raised all joining hands in front of the stage. It was one of the most powerful works of the Holy Spirit I have ever seen, and it was incredible to see God' presence so strong in such young kids.
        This week I continued my chatroom on "Living for Jesus" I was joined by two other missionaries from separate churches, Brian and Kyle, who both happend to be from the south so we were obviously best friends. We turned our chatroom into a game show in which kids discussed in there teams how they could live for Jesus. One of the highlights of the week was the friday night dodge ball tournament. All of the summer missionaries who were form the South made up "The Good Ole' Boys of Hazard County Team".
The last two weeks of camp will be an experience to remember, the time went by so fast but it was awesome to see how quickly we bonded with everyone there. Leaving today I couldnt believe i had only  known some of these people for two weeks when it seemed like a lifetime.

The mosquitos are here and they're organized....

This past week has been a blast, we have spent the last six days at SYC(summer youth celebration) with youth from all over Canada. It was amazing to see how many of these youth were touched by God and how strongly He moved in their lives. Many of them had their first chance of hearing the gospel and even more came to know Christ. Throughout the week the kids played rec games, participated in bible studies, chat rooms, workshops, and worship. Each of us had the opportunity to lead both a workshop and chatroom for the kids. We were also able to host the opening and closing gatherings curing the week to play games with kids and have impacts on their lives. 

The week started of wet and more but it didn't stop the kids form having fun and praising God! Luckily the sun came out so we weren't mud covered the whole time and to drive off some of the mosquitos that could almost be mistaken as clouds. We had amazing opportunities to teach youth about the love story of the gospel through chatrooms and prayer after our worship services. Luckily I was asked by the worship leader  to do a piece of art during our worship service so that he could use it to emphasize a point he made during the sermon. it was incredible to see how the students responded to artwork and how it placed God on their heart. 

In a day and a half we get to go back and enjoy the same experience with the junior high youth, be praying that God will prepare their heart and present us with opportunities to minister to them.

Things Ive learned in Canada:

-Rock Paper Scissors in not the same here.....

-The State Dance of South Carolina isn't dancing at all in Canada

-Apparently God hates raison cookies... but seriously Hosea Chapter 3 look it up

Over the hills and through the woods to summer camp we go!@

Waterfall on "End of Your World" Trail at Jasper

 After three weeks in Canada its finally here! We leave tonight for SYC summer camp with the church youth group for two weeks (senior high and then junior high). Our team has spent the last week preparing for the church's VBS that is just under a month away. We have been busy making decoration, designing and distributing fliers, and most importantly we have been able to all this while getting to know the youth of the church. I continue to be amazed by the generosity of the church and how gracious the families are in providing for us. Yesterday we had the opportunity to go to Jasper for our day off and spend our day hiking through the mountains and soaking in hot springs! This week at camp we will each be leading a "Chatroom" or bible study along with a workshop during the day. We will also be leading the opening and closing night gatherings! Pray for all the kids coming to camp and how we may show the love of Jesus Christ to all the lives we have the opportunity to minister to this week.

Sooo we've been in Canada over a week and it still hasn't snowed....

Our first week in Canada has been incredible to say the least! I have finally started to find my way around the city after my first attempt to drive on my own took a detour and a couple of dirt roads plus a moose crossing later I found my way back. The families here has ben so gracious in providing for us and cooking us meals. It has only been a week and we already feel like a part of the church family.We spent our first weekend serving the community at a local safety fair by grilling out and serving hotdogs. It was a great time to get to know the community and to be able to ministers to people who may not regularly come to church. We finally were able to meet the entire congregation for the first time on sunday and had the opportunity to spend even more time with the church family at the annual picnic after church. It was incredible to see how quickly the kids responded to us and how excited they were to participate in our games. This week we have painted a few things around the church and today had the opportunity to help a family who is going through a hard time move. A woman had come to the church yesterday after she had no where else to turn after being evicted form her apartment. Her family of three had enough money for the down payment but not enough to cover the next months rent on a new place to live. Unfortunately the church was unable to financially help her but they were able to provide groceries and today we along with our minister and other members of the church were able to move them into their new apartment for free. Thankfully because of our help and the financial aid of a close family member they were able to pay their rent for the first month in their new apartment. It has been amazing to see God's plan unfold in everything He has for us this summer and its inspiring to see the potential this summer has!

Things I've learned in Canada part two:

-Canadian Mountain Dew does not have caffeine....

-They need to re-read the rule book on football and what you can and cant do.

- A "BBQ" rarely involves any sort of bbq sauce or pulled pork/ribs

I've brushed my teeth, combed my hair, and yes mom I've changed my underwear (First day in Canada)

My journey started at 4:29 yesterday and was suppose to end around 10:30 Edmonton time (12:30 Eastern) last night, a change in flight plans, overweight bag, and several delays later I arrived in Canada at 2:00 AM and finally got to the host home by 3, or 5:00 Am according to my internal clock. We have been blessed with a generous church family and multiple host families we had the opportunity to meet today. They spent the day introducing us to Canadian culture and telling us the needs of the church. It is amazing to see the passion the Canadian church has for God on such a dark spiritual place, to witness their boldness and eagerness to share the gospel has been a true inspiration and encouragement for our team as we prepare to serve the church and the Lord this summer.

Things I learned in Canada (Day 1):
-French frys come with gravy, not ketchup.
-Ma'am can actually be considered an insult.....
-Esso is actually a gas station