After all the summer project posting we want to give you one easy way to access the stories you are looking for about our Summer Project in Branson. Just click on what you would like to read more about!!
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Summer Project in Branson- Check it out!
Saying Goodbye
How do say goodbye to people that you have shared life with, nonstop, for the past 9 weeks? The Lord really blessed us with an amazing group of people this summer, and we could not have been more thankful. After we handed over the project to our students, it was really exciting, but we new that our time together was drawing to a close. As a way to close our time together, the students hosted a Staff Banquet to honor the staff as we were leaving. This was a really significant night because the students got a chance to share things the Lord had taught them, and how God had used the staff to impact their life this summer. It was a really emotional night of saying our goodbyes. After the banquet was over my girls from my growth team and I went to Wendy’s and shared fries and Frosty’s. We were all talking and laughing and remembering all the sweet moments from the weeks we just spent together. We headed back to the Honey and prayed together in a huddle for a long while, crying and knowing how much we were going to miss each other, but excited for what was still to come for the students who were going to stay for 4 more weeks. Saying goodbye was so hard! We already had the car loaded, and so at 5 the next morning we gave our final hugs and started the trek home. Which was really sad, and we were really tired, but it was worth every minute.
Vince and I at the Banquet
Autumn’s Growth Team, together one last night!!
Vince’s growth team guys honoring him during the Banquet.
And thats it guys! That was our summer project in a really long nutshell! Hope you enjoyed hearing about it as much as we enjoyed being part of what God was doing with students from around the country in Branson, MO.
We love you OLSP!!!
Monday, August 23, 2010
Turning the project over
When the time came for us staff to leave we had a lot of hard decisions to make. All of the roles that they staff were overseeing had to be filled.
There was the project director, asst director, mens and womens leader, and leaders for each growth team, and servant team. For staff we shared the responsibilities, but before we left we had to carefully appoint students to take over these roles.
This was a multi week process we went over as staff, but in the end we were extremely pleased with the students we left in charge.
The night we turn over the project, and hand the keys over to the students (literally) was a very special night. We had been training these students all summer, and it was time for the to step in and step up.
We had a really cool ceremony at night out by the picnic tables. There were a few tiki torches lit, and us staff stood in front of the students holding flags that represented the things they had been learning. Dan, our director called up and introduced the students director, asst director, and their two assistants. We then prayed over them and immediately left to go get ice cream, and the new director announced the new students leaders we picked out for the rest of the project.
It was a powerful night, and a challenging and scary night for some of the students. The project went very smoothly after we left, and it felt great to see the training we gave pay off.
Men’s Retreat
On the same weekend the women had their shindig, us men retreated to eastern Arkansas to do manly things, and bond with each other under the Lord.
The first greatness of this retreat was the location. We stayed in a giant house/cabin that held almost all our guys, about 50 yards from the water where the White River, and the Norfork River combine. Aka one of the best Rainbow trout fishing that can be had. Also, from sun down to a few hours after sun up, there was an awesome mist on the water which made it easily 20 degrees cooler.
The man things we did included alot of fishing. We caught, cleaned, and fried over 100 fish on Saturday. We had arm wrestling, and jalapeño eating contests. There were random other wrestling occurrences. A few guys opted to sleep outside for the heck of it. We built a fire and covered ourselves in mud.
There were alot of fun things, but what happened that was most important was that the guys were connected to the Lord. They each made commitments that we take very seriously, about a lifestyle that the Lord has called us to now, and in the future. It was a really cool man scene that night with fire and everything when the guys made these commitments.
Us as staff also took the opportunity to serve the guys in our growth teams by mimicking an example Jesus gave, as we washed their feet. As we washed their feet was affirmed them in who they are in Christ, and what kind of men they are. It was an amazing scene.
The weekend also included a number of other sessions about mentors, and some other stuff, but the weekend was a great time, and one of the best men’s retreat that i have ever been a part of.
Women’s Retreat
What a fun way to spend a long weekend! We took off for a Friday-through-Sunday chocolate-eating, late-night-pajama-parting, painting-fingernails, and all-things-girly celebration! Oh, and getting to hear more about how God created us as women as a unique part of His creation, and how He designed with specific personalities that we can use for His glory! These great women talked about friendship!
They have a long long and sweet friendship and it is neat to see how God has taught them things along the way, and that they can entrust that to us!
There were pedicures,
and a dance party,
and a little shopping,
Time together learning about how God created us and gave us different personalities. Which really helped me sooo much, and I highly recommend.
And we got a chance to publically honor all the girls in our growth team in front of the rest of the girls. This was such a special time of realizing the way God made each one of us special and for a purpose!
It was a fantastic weekend with the Lord, and with the girls! I loved it!
Growth Teams and Discipleship
Every week we got the privilege of meeting with our growth teams, which was a small group of 4-5 students. In addition to investing in them in the small group setting, we also met individually with the students in our growth team weekly. This was hands down my favorite part of the entire summer, and we had a GREAT summer. The girls I got to meet with were fantastic, FANTASTIC! From the beginning with our Soul to Souls, these girls stole my heart with their vulnerability, openness, teachability, and their desire to walk with the Lord. I wish you could know these girls. Every week for growth team time we went back to the Chateau at the Lake and got to sit in squishy chairs and spend time in the Word and in prayer. Then throughout the week I got to sit down with the girls one on one, and it was so awesome to get to know specifically what they were experiencing, and to challenge them to grow in their faith. There is something unique and special about sitting down with a person, and finding out where they are spiritually, and challenging them to take their walk with Christ to a deeper level. I saw girls who were hungry for the Word, who wrote verses on their arm so they could memorize it at work, and kept little memory verses in their pocket, who desired to have God honoring relationships, to help their friends back home to know Christ, to step out in boldness and actually share the gospel. The list could go on and on because these girls really grasped what it looked like to follow Jesus. Were they perfect? Of course not! But they chose to dig in and invest in Jesus, and to seek the eternal. It was a blessing to invest in them!
Monday Night Live!
Monday Night Live was said for some people to be their favorite time of the week. Monday Night Live, or MNL, was our weekly meeting for the summer.
The purpose of MNL was to kick the week off right, with Christ, and His mission on our minds. MNL was also a form of evangelism because it was a place where our students could invite their co-workers, and the people the met during outreach to hear more about how they can have a relationship with Christ, and grow in their faith.
The whole night was run by our students, except for the staff doing the talks, but after we left our students leadership picked up right where we left off. We had a student led worship team who did and excellent job.
We had students handling the sounds and audio. And a team of students who handled the theme of the night, and who did a great job of welcoming people.
Then afterwards we’d basically all take over Steak and Shake.
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