Posted by: Mrs. Poole
Since tonight's last game of Manhunt is currently occupying our normal bloggers, I get to represent the sophomores tonight! We had a much easier day of work today, beginning with the best sausage-and-egg biscuits on the planet and a quiet time on Ephesians 6. While most of the team traveled to Mountainview Ministries, 5 girls stayed back with Mrs. Poole to paint the lines on the basketball court in preparation for the summer camps at Long View. 5 rolls of masking tape and 2 coats of paint later, the job was finished, and since there were a few hours left in the afternoon, the girls successfully tackled the most dirty job on campus - cleaning the guy's bathroom.
Meanwhile, the rest of the team went to Mountain View, where the guys helped with maintenance around the property and the girls sorted a small warehouse filled with clothes. Although the work was not difficult, the team kept a positive attitude and did their best to bless the brothers and sisters in Christ who spread God's love to the poor and disadvantaged living in the mountains. Even though the students might have been tempted to have a bad attitude or question the tasks they were asked to do, they lived out a verse they had just read this morning in Ephesians 6 - "Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does..." (v. 7-8)
Upon the group's return, the whole class participated in the Trust Fall, which involved falling backwards off of the edge of a 4-foot platform, into the arms of one's classmates. Mr. Widmaier led us through several preparatory exercises before we attempted the big challenge - sending every single student safely off of the edge of the platform. As a teacher who went on the H.E.A.R.T. Institute trip with this same class last year (and watched them all scale the 15-ft wall), I already knew how strong of a bond these students have with each other, what amazing leaders are among them, and how willing and excited they are to support and encourage one another. I was not surprised when every single one of them did the trust fall, with hardly a wince or hesitation. It was a great experience!After dinner (which included the famous potato chip-topped cheesy potatoes), the class successfully recited Ephesians 1-4 from memory!!! With each student assigned a passage of 2-3 verses, this has been a project we've been working on all week, and it was so exciting to see these students (and chaperones) step up to the plate and all work together to accomplish the goal! We're really looking forward to reciting at least part of it for chapel on Friday. (By the way, we hope you come! Missions chapel is at 11:30!) Then, we broke up into groups and came up with titles for each of the six chapters. Everyone shared their ideas with the rest of the class, and after MUCH deliberation and heated discussion (we have a bunch of future lawyers in this group), we all voted for the best title for each chapter. We followed the same process to find a title for the entire book of Ephesians, which was finally decided upon: "Living our lives according to God's grace." It was a great feeling of accomplishment to have studied a book so thoroughly! My prayer is that the students will take what they have learned about inductive Bible study, and continue developing their relationship with God by spending daily time in His Word.
Tomorrow begins the journey home. Thank you for your continued prayers for our safety, encouragement, and spiritual growth!
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