We were told the first week of Bible school that we were going somewhere for orientation. We weren't told where we were going but we knew it would overnight and that it would be fun. We found out on Wednesday that we were going to the Adventure Bible School (ABS) Lodge just about 20 mins away.
Here's a picture of the lodge and the view you get from where we started our hike. It was so nice out. I can't believe it's winter here. It feels more like awesome fall weather. The weather is really spuratic though. If you're out in the sun it's nice and warm but as soon as the sun goes behind a cloud it gets cold.
We got there in the afternoon on Thursday and got going right away. First thing on the list was a hike to a waterfall nearby. We were told we'd get wet so it would be smart to bring 2 pairs of shoes and sure enough my boots were soaked by the end of it. We got muddy and our feet got wet because we had to walk through ice cold streams to get there. It was so much fun!
At one part we had to cross over water (not really deep at all) by going one at a time over this log. It was intense but once you crossed it, you kind of look back and think "why was I scarred of that?" I'm the second one crossing in the picture.
Once we got to the waterfall we took lots of pictures and sang a worship song. There's something different and special about singing songs about God's amazing creation while standing in the middle of it. Peter Thomas (our principal) prayed and then we headed back. As we went along we stayed with our family groups which was nice. I was just talking to Michelle today about how crazy it is that we've only known each other for a couple weeks because it feels like we've known each other for years. I really appreciate the support God has put around me here because homesickness set in a bit this week.
Here's a picture of me and Leah on a rock by the waterfall. She's from Florida but grew up in Jordan and Ethiopia because her parents are missionaries. She is so funny and always getting people to do crazy stuff. When she was back home she was a cheerleader so one the things we do in our spare time is learn how to stunt from her. It's absolutely hysterical, especially when some of the skinny guys want to do them.
Once we got back to the lodge we had some devotion time where one of the teachers shared a Bible verse and their thoughts on it. We're memorizing Ephesians 2:1-10 and it's also our semester verses so that's the passage in the Bible they spoke on. I was talking to some people in the van on the way to the lodge and was telling them verses that might help them with what they are going through. It made me really thankful that my Bible study back home memorized verses. It's not only nice to encourage others with it but it's also nice to recite them to yourself when you need to be reminded of how awesome God is. I think God has a plan for me to be able to disciple some girls here and I'm really excited about it. They are so eager to learn and grow and crack me up.
The second day at the lodge we broke up into family groups and each planned an obstacle course type thing. Then each family had to go through all the courses and see who could score the most points at each one. Our group did really well and actually won! It was a lot of fun and most of the courses had to do with team work so I feel like our family group is getting closer each week. After lunch we planned soccer for a little bit and then headed back to school. I really like playing soccer. This past week I went Monday and Wednesday night to play. People load up into vans and go to a local school's gym where we play on teams of about 4. It's a lot of running around and I haven't quite gotten use to the indoor playing but it's fun.
Thanks for all your prayers! I really appreciate them and this week I've missed home the most. Next week we start into our bible study assignments and stuff which will be good but a lot of work. The first one we're working on is 1 Timothy 2:1-7.
Prayer Request:
- Praise for God opening up doors to help mentor some girls
- Praise for the quickness of close community thats happened
- Prayer for our car. It's not the nicest thing in the world so just that it would run and that the Warranty of Fitness wouldn't be a lot of money.
- Prayer for continued safety and wellness as I go on another hike tomorrow to a different waterfall and some people are sick.
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