Yesterday, the thunderstorm had finally passed and only clouds were left in the sky hiding the morning sun behind it. But you could see a full circle behind the clouds. It wasn't bright enough to look like the sun, but it was daytime and it couldn't be the moon, right? Kent said, "Mommy, the moon is in the sun!" I thought that was quite the compromise.
So last Monday, a group of 4 college girls from a Christian college joined us for a wonderful week! They arrived Monday evening in time for supper. We threw on the dog for them after their hard day of travel - Strawberry Stuffed French Toast with strawberry sauce and sausage. Mmmmmmmmmm. Then we let them unpack, gave them a tour of our house and orientation (like this sink clogs, hold the shower nozzle like this, hold this handle like this so it doesn't fall off, stuff like that), and sicked the kids on them for the rest of the evening. They naturally fell in love with all of the girls and didn't give them another relaxing moment. We knew the ladies were tired from their travels, so we let them have the following morning pretty much "off".
The rest of Tuesday we spent putting together Sunday School materials, Jr. Church, and the 2 evening services. They also helped me cook, clean, and keep the kids entertained. At 3:30, 2 of the ladies went on visitation with Doug. When they returned at 6, Doug swept me off my feet, and took me out for a round of mini golf (leaving the kids behind, of course). We then had a liesurely dinner - one without shoving food in kids mouths, picking up fallen crumbs, or cleaning spilled milk. It was wonderful to sit back and relax and enjoy one another's company without interruption. The food and dining experience were exceptional as well. He then had one more "surprise" for me - a gorgeous B&B downtown in the Gold area. It was a house built in the late 1800s featuring 10,000 sq ft. We stayed in the Fireside room. Other than forgetting my change of clothes for the follwing day (and our shampoo and conditioner), we had a wonderful, relaxing 16 or so hours all by our lonesome.
On Wednesday, the dream came to an end and we returned home around 10:30 to find the kids dressed and fed, the house clean, and the ladies working on their projects. That afternoon 4 of us went visiting while 2 stayed with the kids. It was the first time Doug & I were able to go door-to-door inviting folks to church since we started the church in September (dragging the kids along isn't conducive to bringing folks in). It was a blessing beyond words to have these young ladies helping us!! 2 of the girls were across the street knocking on doors while Doug and I paired up (making a mean team, I might add). At our last door, a lady told us she had been searching for truth and we were able to show her how she could know for certain that she was going to heaven when she died. She gladly received Christ and is planning to visit the church along with her husband! I visited with her again Monday night, and we had a long question and answer period. It was a blessing! Praise the Lord for his goodness! After dinner that night, we bathed the kids and stuck them in bed. We then whipped out a laptop with DVD capabilities, stuck in one of my 3 chick flicks, and we made cream cheese mints for the wedding of one of our couples (who are getting married tomorrow) while we watched our movie.
Wednesday night, Doug spent most of the night dealing with an upset stomach and then spent most of the day catching up and recovering, so the girls and I ran some errands, cooked some food, worked on more projects, and practiced some music. We had church that evening and one of the ladies gave their testimony while all 4 of them sang a special for us and then watched our kids in the nursery so I could enjoy my husband's preaching for a change.
On Friday, 2 of the girls travelled with Doug and I to a preaching meeting where we enjoyed an afternoon and evening of preaching, food, and fellowship with other Midwest pastors. It was a small crowd this month, but the preaching was great as was the fellowship. The 2 young ladies that travelled with us sang in the service. The other 2 stayed behind and took care of our children (a tall order). It was the first time I have been able to attend one of the monthly preachign meetings in a long time as the time frame conflicts with both nap and bedtime for our kids. Kent is getting to an age where he would tolerate not having a nap once in a while, but Arielle would be falling to pieces by late afternoon, so I am not able to attend unless we have a babysitter. I thoroughly enjoyed myself!!!!
We returned home late Friday night, took a quick nap, and got up early Saturday morning to head a new church that was having their first service Sunday, and we travelled the 2-hour drive to help them pass out invitations one last time before their inaugural service. The ladies that went with us watched 6 children while the rest of us (including the new pastor and his wife) were able to make some much needed visits. It was my first time meeting the pastor his wife, so it was wonderful to meet and fellowship with another new pastor and his family. We learned on Sunday that they had 25 folks from the community visit them on Sunday morning and 15 in the evening service! What a wonderful first service and we praise the Lord we were able to take part in this new work.
We got back home on Saturday in time to make dinner, give baths, and get ready for Sunday. However, we did fit in a mean game of Balderdash before midnight :) We didn't realize what liars we were hosting for the week. They showed their true colors during the game. We're composing a letter to the college and their pastors regarding their behavior.
Sunday, of course, was very busy. The ladies taught S.S., sang a few songs, gave testimonies, taught Jr. Church, and somehow kept our kids under good control! We had our high day of 18 that morning in service and were thrilled to have some visitors with us, too. In the evening service, we had more visitors, more special music and testimonies. It was a terrific day.
Monday morning was very sad for us. I even had to choke back some tears when we said goodbye to these wonderful young women who gave up their entire summer to help new and young ministries such as ours. I don't know if they have any idea what a blessing they were to me personally, not to mention our family and church family. Thank you Nikki, Joy, Melissa, and Sarah!!! You are in our prayers as you continue to travle and you're welcome back when you decide you're moving in with us :)
I'm in full swing with garage sale, so more posting later. I'll upload pix shortly of the Pioneer week.
