High School Mission Trip Blog

Posted by: Norah Note from Mrs. Barnhill: for some reason we were unable to post this last night, but here it is:
Hi, it’s been a busy couple of days without a chance to blog, so I’ll try to catch you up on what’s been going on. Monday the boys and a few girls got up at 5:30 and rode the bus to My Father’s House in Phoenix to help the disciples feed the homeless. The boys heard some testimonies and thoroughly enjoyed themselves. The girls had a little more time to sleep in (7:00). They helped the women disciples make bracelets. These bracelets will serve as visual aids for the disciples to lead others to Christ that they may see the colors and remember what they each represent. There were also a few homeless women at this event.
After a busy morning we packed up said sad good byes to our Dream Center friends and went to Sedona. We arrived in Sedona and had a delicious lunch. After a hearty meal most of the junior class was ready to take on Cathedral Rock. It took a lot of team work but they made it work. Those who did not go hiking went shopping in the various shops.
Although hiking took most of our energy, we had one last important thing, a snowball fight. It started out as Floridians losing their minds in a white abyss, but shifted to something much dramatic. It became an all out girls versus boys match. Looking at just numbers one would assume that the girls, 12, would easily beat the boys, 6. But reality has a way of doing its own thing. The boys forced the girls into a pitiful retreat. The girls hid anywhere they could behind trees, cars and yes, teachers.
The boys shared a victory dinner together; the girls, however, left the loss behind and were enjoying other things. After diner the boys and girls separated for devotions. These devotions were the highlight of every girl’s trip. We shared our stories, our pains and our tears. Even if every girl had a slightly different struggle in their life we knew that the love of God and the sisterly love we had for each other would pull us through, as 1 Peter 4:8 states : Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.
Today we enjoyed the scenic views of the Grand Canyon on the South Rim. If ever there was a time when God shined through His creation it would have been then. We saw beautiful rock formations, no two quite the same. This and many other natural beauties make it plain to see a designer as the feasible means of this earth and its existence.
We are now coming to a close and will arrive home, God willing, at around 11 pm. Your prayers thus far have been greatly appreciated and we ask that they keep coming in we make our way home. This trip has impacted all of us in ways we never thought possible. We hope to take all we have learned and put into practice, using it to help further our relationship with Christ.

Posted by: Mrs. Barnhill Here are a few pictures from yesterday and today. It's after midnight and technical difficulties are preventing us from completing this post today, so tune in tomorrow for a more complete update! All is well and we've had a great trip!

Posted by: Norah
Last night and a good part of the early morning we spent ministering to girls caught in sex trafficking. These girls have been told lies. Such as they are beautiful and everyone needs to experience their beauty, or they were promised jobs. Nevertheless, they were caught up in sex-trafficking and most of the girls went out to help them. All those who went out and helped the working girls, were very nervous on their fist time out. But everyone agreed that seeing those girls’ faces brighten up amidst all their darkness because of a simple rose, made all the disquiet worthwhile. The boys and some girls stood out side picketing. They stood outside in the cold and stood up for what they believed in, literally.
Today we arose to a frigid morning and a good sermon. We attended a morning service at the Dream Center for Church on the Street. Pastor Walt spoke on how without faith it is impossible to please God. We cannot truly count on God until we have complete faith in God. When that happens we will draw close to God and him to us.
After the morning service, we had lunch at the Dream Center with all those who attended the church service.
We then went to Chicken Park and did a family outreach. We painted children’s faces and did crafts with them. Our worship team also led those present in a few songs. We met a drunk who decided that today was the day he wanted to take a step towards Christ. He is now going through the processes necessary to be admitted into the Dream Center.
Afterwards, we went hiking at South Mountain Park. Unfortunately, it was silent Sunday and we could not drive to the top of the mountain. But that did not stop us Blazers. We climbed up another trail and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.
We then went and had dinner at Popo’s, an authentic Mexican eatery. We all enjoyed the company of those at our table and the food.
Lastly, we had devotions and went over all the various activities we have done so far. The overwhelming consensus is that these past few days have been very helpful. These days have opened our eyes to see how good we have it and how we sometimes take it for granted.
After devotions we shared many great laughs. Casey and Mrs. Barnhill sung a spellbinding round of “There’s a Hole in the Bucket” and “What a Friend in Jesus”. The other girls and boys also had fun. Over all, we had a great time in Phoenix.

Posted by: Norah
Traveling to an area known for its aridity, precipitation was the least of our worries. Unfortunately, today we beat the odds and had uncanny amounts of rain, sleet and hail. The precipitation was tolerable; however, the bitter cold was not.
This morning, we went to many neighborhoods inviting them to the Easter services at Phoenix First Assembly of God. As we canvassed the neighborhoods, we prayed that the church will reap the benefits of our labor.
Afterwards, we had lunch at the Dream Center. We then had much needed time to rest and prepare ourselves for our upcoming adventures.
After our 4 pm dinner, we left for a children’s outreach. They were teaching the children about the Ten Commandments. Sadly, after only 25 minutes we were rained out. The children ran to cover when the rain, sleet and a little hail scared them away.
Soon we will all take part in the Rescue Project, an outreach to girls caught in the sex trafficking industry. We are anxious to see how God will use us tonight! We’ll let you know tomorrow. . .

Posted by: Mrs. Barnhill Our day started early with an outreach to the homeless, serving breakfast, distributing clothes, and leading in praise and worship. Everyone met interesting people with a variety of stories. One of the Dream Center disciples ministered to our girls with special words of encouragement. Back at the Center, the girls attended a women's Bible study while the boys attended a time of worship with the men. The afternoon was spent at the St. Mary's food bank, the first food bank ever established! We were all impressed with the efficiency and scope of the operation. Some students worked with the client check-in process, some filled food boxes, and others helped carry food to people's cars. We were all blessed by this ministry. After dinner (which is at 4 pm!) we did a small outreach right across the street from the Dream Center, during which our girls led in praise and worship and performed a skit called "The Orpah Show." We ended the day at the "Family Fun Night" here at the center, during which we were blessed by the musical gifts of 2 Christian rappers and one other gentleman who sang for us and shared a small part of his testimony. We closed our time with group devotions in which we shared about the impact the day had on us. It has been a blessing to see everyone working hard and stretching out of their comfort zones. Our disciple leader, Ben, whose testimony some of the seniors may remember, complimented our students on their unity as they worked together. Good night!

Posted by: Norah
We arrived in Arizona! The desert air is crisp and dry but the blue skies and sunshine are a nice reminder of home. The Dream Center staff workers welcomed us with open arms. We had a little down time that we used to settle in our rooms and get acquainted with Phoenix.
We then enjoyed lunch with one of the disciples. He told us his riveting story. He was on the straight and narrow. But after being beaten, he began to hate life and subsequently joined a gang. He got involved in the usual activities associated with being in a gang. This left him face to face with the barrel of a gun one night. The disciple was shot twice in the back, and stabbed multiple times. He, by the grace of God recovered, and gave his life over to God. The disciple later developed a lump in his throat. His sister, a doctor, took a needle to try and extract the lump from his throat. She found the lump to be very hard in nature, unlike most other lumps. She used the needle to extract the lump, which turned out to be a bullet! The disciple was very much affected by this; in fact, to this day he carries around the bullet in his pocket.
After hearing his story, we decided to unwind at Papago Park and climb vast amounts of rock. Although these Floridians have not seen anything higher than Mt. Trashmore, they stepped up to the challenge. Some groups even climbed 2 of the highest mountains.
We ended our day on a positive note with devotion from 1 Peter chapter 1. One of the verses that impacted us was verse 22. It spoke of the purification process that comes with obeying the truth. What better place to see this, than at the Dream Center? We learned that God takes us all from different places. He heals us all in different ways; however, through His Son, Jesus Christ, we all are brothers and sisters.


PS: Casey says hi.

Posted by: Mrs. Barnhill and Amber We arrived safely at the Dream Center and are settling in to our rooms. Everything has gone very smoothly so far, praise the Lord. After lunch we willhead to Popago Park for a hike, and hopefully we will be involved in ministry this evening. Amber says: "Hi! This place is way better than I thought!" We're praying for the other teams and hope everyone is doing great!