WoW

So far this week has been pretty cool. I have to tell you about this thing at the San Fran Food Bank that happened yesterday, but first: the back story... My first time at the Food Bank, my group and I were in the break room taking well a break, and we saw some guys eating cupcakes, so we asked them who's birthday it was. They told us it was Andy's birthday (our project coordinator). So when he came back into the room to check on us we asked him and wished him a happy birthday. His face turned really red and he looked at us and said, "it's not my birthday" and left the room. But the guys in the break room told us that he's just shy and that it really was his birthday, and that we should sing to him when he came back into the room to get us. So as soon as he came in we started singing to him and once again, his face turned really red, and the guys who gave us this information were dying laughing. Before he took us back into the project room I asked the guys what was so funny and it turns out it really wasn't his birthday, but all the guys in the warehouse have this ongoing joke where they try to embarrass each other by telling groups of volunteers it's different guy's birthday. So, now every time I go there with a group I ask the guys who's birthday it is.


Flash forward to Monday: I asked the guys who's birthday it was today, and they told me it was Joel's birthday at that it would be great if we could get the whole room to sing to him. There were probably about 30 or so volunteers in all, so I snuck to each table and told them that we were going to sing happy birthday to Joel. So we turned off the background music, and all started busting into happy birthday. His face turned so red and you could tell he was extremely embarrassed by the whole thing. One of the guys even took video of the whole ordeal on his phone. It was so much fun, and in a way I enjoy being a part of this silly little community of the people who work at the food bank- even if it is to give each other a hard time.


But isn't that in some ways what community is all about? Romans 12:15-16 says:


"Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited."


I've really come to live this verse out over the past few weeks. I've shed some tears over the death of grandparents. I've laughed with a group of guys who mess with each other at the food bank. I've shared meals with homeless, some of which didn't even share a common language with me. So why am I here? I've had to ask myself that a few times over the past few weeks. What good am I doing? There are over five to ten thousand homeless sleeping on the street every night- I can't house them. I can't feed them. I have nothing to offer them. And yet, I do. The stereotype of homeless is dirty, disgusting, ungrateful, grumpy, beggars. Maybe you agree or don't. But I'll be the first to admit that those are some of the things I thought about the homeless. Then I see a woman holding a sign that says "Anything you can do to help. Even a big smile." So I smile at her, and she smiles back. She didn't bang on the window, she didn't hold out her hand, she just smiled back. It felt genuine. Then there's the guy I encountered Sunday night during our little incident during the prayer tour. He admittedly told me that he was crazy, dropped a few expletives, and broke through the threshold of personal space by getting extremely close to me. But he warned me about all the people who were supposedly helping us with the information about the hit and run driver. He warned us to get out of this neighborhood, because the only reason those people were helping us was because they thought we'd give them money or in some way help to support their habit. And in some ways he was right. A woman no more than gave us information then held out her hand and asked for money for beer. Now I have to give her credit that she was honest- and I do understand that she has needs too. I won't touch the subject regarding her request because I just won't, but needless to say, it bummed one of my group members out because he thought the people who were surrounding the car with information genuinely saw him in need and wanted to help him, but instead they hoped to gain something from it. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to judge their hearts, or make it sound like I know everything- just write this off as the ramblings of a person with a computer and the ability to type.


But isn't that so like us a humans? What's in it for me? I'll help you out, but I'm going to need something in return. I'll scratch your back if you scratch mine. What happened to community, to rejoicing with a person just because they have something to rejoice about, or mourning with someone because their heart is broken? What happened to the Acts 2 church? Selling all our possessions, giving to the poor and helping each other out? Some say this isn't realistic. That's old school. It can't be done. I say why not? I don't know how it would look... I really have no other dream than I want to see it lived out, but I don't know how to get there or anything. But it's such a big burden, and it won't go away. One thing that I've learned over the course of this California adventure is that it doesn't take much for most people to let you in. I spend about 5-6 days on average with a group, and before it's over we've shared heartfelt parts of our lives together. I watched a group of 7th and 8th graders sit around a man in the civic center park and just talk and laugh together. He was just as excited about them being around him as he was to have someone to joke and laugh and listen to him.


"Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn..."

"They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."

Seriously...?!?!!?

So, yesterday we said goodbye to our junior high friends and I welcomed another group. I did however have time to do laundry in between, but that's about it. I like staying busy, but I miss the ability to just sit and be, and not have to "be" the host. It's okay though, I love my job and I really enjoy this work and the cool people I've had the opportunity to meet and hang out with. But the truth is, this job isn't meant to be a lifetime position. I can't make relationships within my community or at a church, because my only free time is Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings. I've enjoyed my time, and I'm really looking forward to what the next two weeks bring me. Today I get a bit of a break during the afternoon so I'm really looking forward to that "me time".

Yesterday, being the first day with my new group meant "Prayer Tour". This will be my 5th prayer tour, so for the most part I feel like I've got it pretty well under control, until.................................................................

I had to do a "walkie-talkie" prayer tour, as the college group I'm working with has two vehicles. So, we're towards the end of the prayer tour when I hear screeching tires and a crash. We look behind us only to see that the car that was following us had been rear-ended: and the guy who hit them was driving away. We immediately took down the license plate number and went into action to call the police and make sure everyone in the car was okay. The accident took place in the Tenderloin, which is not the safest place in SF to be, especially at night. Almost immediately the car is surrounded by people who were on the street who had witnessed the accident. They were all very nice and polite, and gave us all the information needed regarding the accident, then began begging for money to compensate for their resources. We then drove to the police station to file a report, and spent at least 45 minutes in there filling out paperwork and getting all the necessary information to the officer.

Needless to say, this kind of put an end to the PT, so we drove home and the leader led the debrief session.

Never a dull moment...

Long Week

So let me just say that this had been a really long week, but an awesome week. I said good by to my college group on Friday afternoon and met a group of energetic junior highers for the weekend. It's been a pretty non-stop weekend too. I had a little bit of a break during a city search that my group did yesterday. Another one of the city hosts also had a city search so she and I walked around the civic center and went to the mall to look around. I stopped by Hot Topic, but was a good girl and didn't buy anything. It just isn't the same unless I'm hanging out at the HT in Indy with my friends there.

A Flashback:
Sending last week's group off was really hard. It was amazing to me how quickly I formed bonds with that group. It was only a week, but they were a lot of fun and in some ways it was more like hanging out with friends than being at work. Thursday we went to the St. Vincent de Paul Dining Room to serve lunch for a few hours. We served over 800 meals. There were several people who went through the line multiple times, but overall we were able to serve quite a few people. We had a 15 minute break to eat our lunch and hang out with some of the people who were eating in the dining area. We left there and drove around for a bit looking for a place for some downtime between ministry sites. We found our way to the Palace of Fine Arts and walked around the pond, found a model, blah blah blah... =) It was a lot of fun roaming around the city (in a van) for about an hour with no real place to go.

Friday was their last day here, but they still had an activity in the morning. We did Meet a Need in the "Haight-Ashbury" district and they wanted me to go with them. Normally this would be some free time for me, but like I said, they wanted me to go, and being their last day, I wanted to hang out with them some more, so I did. We met some awesome people- including "Scottage Cheese" who told me about how he is homeless by choice, but that life on the streets is more about community and family than about being poor or destitute. It was a great experience, and I'm really glad I was able to be a part of it.

Sorry it took me so long to post again- I'm now back at my "normal" "temporary, permanent" housing so I'll have internet access and hopefully earlier nights than I did last week. Thanks again for all of your prayers and thoughts for me this week and always. For those of you who know about the decision I had to make last week, I accepted the position. There are still some unanswered questions, but I serve a God who provides and I know that this will be no exception.

Okay So Here It Is

Now that I have access to a real computer and am no longer in need of typing this on my phone I'll give you the whole skinny on this week. Like I said before, the group I'm currently working with arrived on Sunday. Now in order for me to explain what was last said regarding Satan, I'll start here: the group arrived 30 minutes early. Now, not that it and of itself is not Satan at work, but stick with me. The group pulled into the parking lot of the housing site before we did, which meant we didn't have time to get settled into our new location (I'm staying at Harbor House for the week, so I basically had to move out of my other site so I would have all I needed for this week). This kind of started things off on a stressful note. Then on top of that there was an issue with keys and getting into the building. Then one of my supervisors accidentally drove off with my keys. Then on the second night some random people were seen wandering around the building and apparently let themselves in downstairs (all this was caught by the leader of the group, at 11:30 at night)... none of these things alone are huge things, or even anything too bad, but it was a culmination of things combined with the frustrating week that I had just come off of; plus that's no way to start with a new group... but what it did remind me is that Satan is alive and well, and he doesn't always use huge things like drugs, sex and alcohol to cause us to stumble. Sometimes he uses a culmination of little things to push us to a point of allowing ourselves to lose control. Anyway:

My week has been amazing. And despite the fact that Satan is trying to announce his presence once again my God is bigger and in so much more control. He has helped me maintain my sanity, and helped me to tell Satan to shove off and that he's not wanted here. As I also stated before, this is a college group, which to be honest kind of scared me. I mean, yeah, I graduated from college almost 4 years ago (really, it's been that long, are you kidding me), but it really isn't that long, and I've never really worked with college students so I didn't know what I was to expect. But they're awesome. They are all here by choice, and each of them has a heart to serve... and they do. They kind of make a game out of it. When I ask someone to do something like clean up, or take out the trash, 3 or 4 people will volunteer, and then the others seem disappointed when I choose someone else. They've even said things like, "gee thanks, you just took away my opportunity to serve", and although it's said in a jovial manner, they never hesitate to serve. They never complain, they always build each other up... it's awesome. They're an inspiration to me.

Okay, so about our week... on Monday, we went to the San Fran Food Bank, and took 20lb bags of pasta, and made them into 1lb bags. I always love working at the food bank, because the work keeps us busy enough that time just flies, but at the same time, it is easy enough that we are able to talk and get to know each other. I bounced around from table to table, and job to job and it gave me the opportunity to talk with several of the members of my group. In the afternoon, the group had a City Search, which was awesome because it allowed me the opportunity to kind of have the afternoon off. The way City Search works is that the group splits into two smaller groups, and they each play a role (one group was a group of teen runaways, and the other group was an immigrant family) they then go out into an area of the Tenderloin, and talk to people, asking them some questions that have been provided for them. They are each given $2.00 for lunch, and they are encouraged to not only feed themselves lunch, but share with someone they meet. Half of the group pooled their money and bought fixings for sandwiches, and they opted to give all the food away, and not eat lunch at all. The other half of the group also bought stuff for sandwiches, but found other creative ways to use their money- like buying socks for a guy who needed them. The best part of this day for me, was hearing about their experiences. They talked about it with such joy and enthusiasm that I was kind of jealous I didn't get to be a part of it. But God knew that I could use a break, and laying on the grass at Golden Gate Park was awesome in its own way too.

Tuesday we went to Medshare, and this was the really mundane work I was telling you about. We literally took boxes of 50 gloves, opened the boxes, then took the gloves out of their plastic wrapping. It had to do with the fact that these gloves had expiration dates, but the truth is, they don't really expire, they just have to have a date because of US law. So anyway, we took them out of the wrappers and boxed them back up into 200s and they would be shipped off to developing countries who need gloves for exams and basic needs. It's really cool to see how Medshare is meeting a need that most people don't even realize exists. Then in the afternoon we went to the Bay Area Rescue Mission and played with kids- this place is always such a joy. To know that we are making a difference in the lives of children all by having fun and playing with them is awesome, and helps to prove that ministry doesn't have to be boring- it is what you make it.

To keep this from being any longer than it already is, I'm going to hold off on telling you about Wednesday and combine it with Thursday's activities. Thank you so much for all of your prayer and support. I love you all very much!

Phone Bloggin- Part 2

So, I realize it's been a few days since my last post- sorry about that. I'm having so much fun. It's been such a great week. The group I've been working with since Sunday afternoon is amazing. They are a college group who have surrendered their spring break to serve in San Fran. This has been very evident in their attitudes and behaviors regarding service, especially to each other. It's one thing to go on a mission trip knowing that you're going to serve, but more often than not you don't take into consideration serving those you go on the trip with. They joke, have fun, but also know when to be more solemn and serious. No matter the location we're serving at they keep a posiive, upbeat attitude. Even the must mundane task like unwrapping gloves turned into something fun- even broke into song at one point.

They have been very accepting of me in the group, even making fun of me because of my squeaky, pre-pubescent sounding voice. Oh yeah, I lost my voice. =) Let's just say this was a much needed group after some of my difficulties. I have also been reminded that Satan is alive and well. But more on that later... Don't you love the suspense?

New Experiences

So today was just chock full of new experiences for me. We have practically the whole weekend off. We said goodbye to our newest friends early on Friday morning and are free until tomorrow (Sunday) afternoon, when we prepare for our next bundles of joy. We got a new roommate who will be joining us for the next two weeks to help us with our overflow of groups. This upcoming week will be a very full week with very limited access to much of anything. I will be staying at Harbor House (which is the site that doesn't have Internet- or our own living space or showers) which means next week will be very interesting blogging wise. That being said, the girls decided that it was time for me to try sushi- apparently it's just something that you have to do- like a rite of passage for California (or growing up), so anyway I did it. And the truth is, I didn't hate it, but everything was very slimy. I tried wasabi, 6 different kinds of sushi, and miso soup. Needless to say, that's an awful lot of "new" for one day.

Tomorrow we will be attending a different church (one that our associate director attends) so I look forward to this new experience.

There was something that just really stuck with me last week that I failed to share with my friends so I'd like to take the opportunity to do that now. At our last ministry site of the week we helped to clean up a construction site for a Christian school that is one of the many ministries that the rescue mission provides. This is an especially interesting project because it has been ongoing for about two years now- I don't know all the details of why it has taken so long, but that's what I was told. Anyway, we were on the third floor picking up scraps of material and sweeping up when I noticed some writing on the wooden beams framing the walls and ceiling. As I got closer I realized that someone or someones had written Bible verses on them. Things like Jeremiah 29:11- "for I know the plans I have for you... plans to give you a hope and a future..." or Proverbs 3:5- "trust in the Lord with all your heart...", but aside from the fact that verses were written people had also included names of what I can only assume are children or faculty of the school. "Maria, trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding". "Jacob, I know that plans I have for you, declares the Lord..." What an amazing testimony to Deuteronomy 6:9- "Write them on the door frames of your house..." They may not necessarily be written in plain sight, but to know that they are taking God's word and His promises to heart by claiming them as a foundation of this school that will be "training up children in the way they should go". So I would like to close my blog tonight in the same way:

"And we know, Bruce, that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."

"Julie, train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it."

"In everything, John, set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us."

"Amy, the king is enthralled by your beauty..."

"Mandie, I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing."

"insert name here, those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

I may or may not have said this before, but I've been really convicted lately about claiming the promises of God. But the truth is, the promises of God are just like a lost winning lottery ticket... unless you know them, where they are, and claim them, they are useless. Why do men and women wear wedding rings, why did God write the ten commandments on tablets and give them to Moses, why bother writing down the word of God at all? They serve as symbols, reminders of the promises we make to each other, and that God made to us.

I'm Back...

It's been a few days since my last post, so let me catch you up to date:

Wednesday we went and worked at a site called "MedShare". They package up extra medical supplies from hospitals and clinics and put them into boxes for doctors in developing countries to "order". Then they get donations from churches or other hospitals to cover the costs of the freight to ship the supplies. On this particular day we worked on separating different brands of sutures. From there we did an even more refined separating into expired/short dated/still good for awhile. Once they had been put into those three categories we separated them by size. Once they were organized by size we boxed them up; some boxes were assorted sizes, others were just one size. The group did a really good job of staying on task and getting things done efficiently and quickly. From MedShare we went to a beautiful park and had about an hour and a half to just relax, run around, play games, and eat our lunches. This also gave me the opportunity to take some time away from the group and sit by the water and enjoy God's beautiful creation.

Once we left the park we went to one of my favorite locations, the Bay Area Rescue Mission. I don't remember exactly what I told you about this site previously, but I love coming here because it is a very positive environment for kids to come and hang out after school. It's completely voluntary, but once you come you are expected to work on homework (or practice worksheets, if you don't have homework) and you are expected to attend Bible Study. This particular day the kids we worked with were especially rambunctious so it required a little more patience- when God wants to test patience, He sure does test the patience... =) But overall it was a great time, I got to work on homework with my little buddy from my last visit and even got to play some video games with him and his brother during free time. You can just see in these kids eyes that they are looking to be loved and wanted, and there at "BARM" they are; they're just like a little family.

Thursday (yesterday) we went to the San Francisco Rescue Mission- please note that this is completely different from the Bay Area Rescue Mission. The SF Rescue Mission was overall a different experience- positive in some ways, but negative in others. Long story short: we went to the wrong entrance and ended up doing construction work for about an hour before one of the pastors came and found our group and asked part of them to lead worship for a breakfast. I stayed with a couple of the students working in the construction area while the other part of the group lead the worship and one of the students even gave a message. From there my group ended up joining the rest to help clean up the area and set up for the afternoon Bible study- we ate our lunch in the area and then headed back over to the construction side to help them out more and also help the kitchen staff with dinner. Once we finished there, the group went back to the worship area to practice for worship before dinner. They ended up leading worship then the man who was scheduled to talk preached an awkward, uncomfortable, inappropriate sermon. After the inappropriate sermon we helped serve dinner and clean up- then we headed to eat dinner ourselves.

On the way to dinner I started a dialogue with the students about the sermon we had heard. Most of them felt like most of what he had to say wasn't necessarily wrong, but that it was completely inappropriate for the group of people he was talking to. The men and women in the service needed to hear about a loving God who will always take care of them, and that they have a hope and a future as promised by this same loving God. Instead they heard a soapbox speech from a man who had too much to say which included a misrepresentation of God's word. It was heartbreaking, and even the students felt frustrated by some of his content. I'm glad that out of this uncomfortable moment the students and I were able to bond over like-mindedness and understanding that what people really need to hear is about the love of God. Yes, that other stuff is important to know, but just like you don't try to teach a kindergartner trigonometry, you don't speak to baby Christians or lost people about things they won't understand until they understand the heart of God.

We saw our groups off early this morning (or not so early for my Indiana friends) and despite all of my frustrations and my broken spirit moments from the week- I grew to love and respect the students I had the privilege to lead. They are great young men and women who are going to go on to do great things for the kingdom. And I guess I look at it like this: if you don't care about something you aren't likely to get frustrated over things- my frustration was a sign that I care about these students and only want the best experience for them.

And now I'm going back to sleep- good night my friends. Love you all.

*Sigh*

Today was not without its frustrations- as with most ministries (at least the ones dealing with people). If all my prayer warriors out there could pray for my heart and my attitude. It's easy to get caught up in the negatives and the frustrations of any and everything, but the truth is when it comes down to it, I want to be doing ministry and I can't imagine myself anywhere else right now. I love you all and thank you for your prayers. Good night.

...All The Time

So now we're finally getting into more of the swing of things... we welcomed our second group on Sunday afternoon and so far it has been a blast. We did the Prayer Tour on Sunday night (my second one to lead) and it was a success. If I haven't said it enough my prayer warriors rock!!!! This group is large enough that we split it into three groups, so each of the city hosts have their own group. We start each day together with breakfast, then the group does devotions together while the city hosts prepare for their day. Then we each depart into the worlds of San Fran and "Oaktown", depending on where our schedule has us serving. Today we went to a day care facility for children of working (or school attending) parents. The kids were so much fun to play with and you could tell that they really craved love and attention. This is one of the harder locations to really see how it fits into "urban ministry" because almost all of the kids are dressed to the nines and the school location is beautiful. But this is one of those "don't judge a book by its cover moments" as many of these children suffer from lack of attention from parents and love is purchased in a pair of Nike shoes or Baby Phat clothing. The parents buy their guilt away by providing things for their kids, when you can tell that they really just want to be wanted and want to know that someone has taken an interest in them.

After we left the day care site we found this beautiful park that sat on part of the bay looking into San Francisco. It was beautiful. It was peaceful. It was just what we needed to relax from the crazy, awesome chaos that was hanging out with the children. We just hung out on the picnic tables eating our lunch in a solemn quiet that was just the reprieve that we needed. From there we went to Project Open Hand and delivered hot meals, only this time the leader I was with suggested that we pray for each site as we left it. It really helped add something to the experience. What a concept, eh... making prayer a part of our experience and allowing God to be a part of what we are doing.

You know, I grew up in church and always knew the basics of being a Christian- the Sunday School answers of "pray, read your Bible, fellowship with other Christians", but if I learn nothing else from this trip (which I will, and already have) I've learned that we don't give God, or prayer enough credit. I know that there are many of you out there who are praying for me like crazy. I know that I haven't been forgotten because I can feel God wrapping his arms around me during the most opportune times and I know that it is a result of prayer. I've had several people tell me if I ever need something specific to be prayed for to let them know immediately- so I did. This morning I woke up and did not feel well at all, but I knew that with each of us city hosts having our own groups and each group having their own separate schedule that "calling in sick" was not a viable option. That, and I'm an adult, so I just had to suck it up and be involved anyway. So my immediate response was to contact several people who I knew would pray like crazy for me. And they did... I know they did because the message was no more than sent then I began to feel better and as the day progressed I felt more myself and was able to lead the group without focusing on what ailed me.

God is good...

Oh Sweet Release

Today we bid farewell to our new friends. We saw them off early early this morning, and had the rest of the day off. I took this opportunity to catch up on much of the sleep that I didn't receive during their stay with us. Naps rock the house (in case you didn't know)!!! This day off also allowed me to catch up on some blogging as well as do some laundry... didn't really get to be a tourist this weekend, just a normal 25 year old. But that's okay, being a tourist gets old after awhile =). Tomorrow I have the morning off, will attend church and then prepare myself for the next group which is set to arrive some time tomorrow afternoon/evening- and so the cycle begins again. This will be my first full week group, so for as tired as I was today it will be twice as bad because they are staying a full week as opposed to a half a week. So, prayer warriors, your new mission... Mandie needs good rest for the little sleep I will likely receive as well as the energy and stamina necessary to keep up my Mandie-esque-ness (haha, my new favorite word... how self-centered am I) =)

I would also like to take this moment to say a huge thank you to all of you who are making this journey with me via this blog, I guess you could say that this is my way of debriefing my day/week, so I appreciate the fact that you have joined me in this endeavor. I also would like to say how grateful I am that you are praying for me and with me. I guarantee that without your support and love I would fail at this.

Friday-March 12th

Yesterday was another crazy yet awesome day. The group we led went to the San Fran Food Bank, and we took plastic bins with about 1450 pounds of oranges and boxed them up to send out to the over 400 non-profit organizations that the food bank works with. Their motto is "Feeding the programs that feed the people". What a cool motto. Though we didn't directly work with the faces that this ministry site provides for, it was great to know that we were a part of a bigger picture. And this place does their best not to waste anything. Any oranges that the skin had split or that they had maybe seen better days were sorted and put into their own container which was going to be shipped to a pig farmer. They also recycled the cardboard from boxes or other things that couldn't be used. Though this isn't necessarily a "Christian organization" they are doing the best they can to be good stewards of what they have been given.

From the food bank we did two other activities in the afternoon which included "Meet a Need" and visiting a site called Project Open Hand. The city hosts didn't actively participate in Meed a Need, because this is an opportunity for the students to directly interact with those people they come into contact with. The group was given $20.00 with the idea that they need to talk to people on the street who look like they are in need and "meet their need" with the money they are given. This isn't necessarily food, it could be a blanket, or umbrella, or a sweatshirt- anything that they need that you can do for them with the $20.00. One of the other city hosts and I sat in a coffee shop and just hung out during this time while the group made their way up and down the street finding as many people as they can to help. The group we hosted decided to split themselves and the resources in half to cover more ground, and to look a little less overwhelming to the people they might meet. Surprisingly enough it's a lot harder than you might think. One group had a terrible time trying to find someone to help. They encountered a few people- one of which took off before they could even ask him if he needed help, and another guy started yelling at them, using profanity telling them he didn't want their charity. While this may seem ridiculous and for the girls in this group it frustrated and angered them, you have to try to understand from his perspective that he's probably trying to hold onto any dignity he still has. Or maybe he really didn't have a need and was offended that they asked- who knows.

Project Open Hand is a ministry that delivers hot meals to the homes of people primarily suffering from HIV/AIDS. We had the opportunity as hosts during training to do one of the routes ourselves earlier in the week, so this time we were able to step back and allow the group we were hosting to do this while giving them good direction of what to do. There are some people who get special meals (for certain dietary needs) and other little nuances that go into making sure everything is done correctly; this time also included delivering two frozen meals to cover them for the weekend. This was also an eye opening experience for many of the students to see the living conditions many of these people live in. We don't go inside their living space, but when they open the door to receive their meals you are able to see in a little and it is just sad what they are forced to live in. Most of the places we deliver to are SRO (single room occupancy) hotels, or small one room apartments. Many of buildings look in bad shape and they have a distinct odor that is less than pleasant. It's heartbreaking to know that not only are these people living with an incurable disease but they are also forced to live in a space that isn't even fit for most animals, but it's all they can afford so they make due.

The day consisted of many contrasts between a food bank that has so much food and stuff, verses people who have nothing or almost nothing. We also had the experience of working directly with the people that ministries like Project Open Hand serves as well as working with a place that is a part of the bigger picture. To look at the sharp contrasts in the day was very eye opening and I believe made a lasting impact on the students (as well as myself, and the other city hosts).

Phone Blogging- Part One

Today was our first big day with the group. A big thanks to all my prayer warriors- Mandie's first prayer tour was given with great success!!! Today we went to our first ministry sites and we got there with little to no problems and arrived at sites on time! The first site was BACC (Bay Area Christian Connection) which is where my housing site is. We did some work on the basement which will serve as housing for our next group coming on Sunday. This project included cleaning the basement and clearing out the "junk" that the church has stored in the space. It was a huge lesson in need versus want and having an over abundance of stuff. And it wasn't all bad stuff to have, donated items including clothes, kitchen stuff, toys, decorations- but all it did was sit there, not in use, not being given away, just sitting. It really made me re-evaluate stuff. I moved to California for 5 weeks, and while I didn't bring everything I own (like my kitties), I brought what I needed- bare necessities. Outside of a few tokens like pictures and cards my life fit into two suitcases, so why do I still have an apartment full of stuff? Again, it's not all bad, I don't mean that at all, but it is worth thinking about.

After a morning of cleaning and packing, we ate a quick sack lunch by a fountain in a little area called, MOCHA, which is a museum of children's art. Then we headed to Bay Area Rescue Mission to volunteer with their after school kids program called "King's Club". I met a little boy named Elisha who was the most polite little boy I've ever met. He shook my hand, introduced himself to me and walked me through the video game he was playing. He sat next to me in Bible Study and talked to me through the whole thing. =) He made me miss all of the relationships I have back home, especially with my younger friends (like the Towne kids) but it also made me glad that God created me with a big enough heart to love them all.

We ate dinner at an Ethiopian restaurant and got to eat with our hands!!!! We ended the night at Fenton's Creamery and I had an ice cream sundae that was entirely too large. (PS- for those of you who have seen the movie "Up", Fenton's was the featured ice cream parlor that the little boy and old man sat in front of and ate ice cream and counted cars).

Yesterday, Today and Forever

Yesterday I had In-N-Out for lunch, but to be honest that was about the most exciting part of yesterday. So see, even here in California we have our blah days... =)

Today our first group arrives and the three of us will be "co-hosting". I am in charge of the prayer tour, so for those of my prayer warriors who might be reading this, please keep me in your prayers. The prayer tour helps to set the mood of the week and I want to make sure I do it justice and am able to give it with the boldness and power it deserves.

We had the morning off, so I went out walking with one of my roommates to see the sites of Oakland. There is a cute little outdoor mall where the number of food places far outweighs the amount of actual stores... what's that about? But getting out and walking around and enjoying the concrete jungle of Oakland was enjoyable. So far, today hasn't been anything too spectacular, but the excitement is to come tonight.

We don't have access to a computer at our housing spot through Saturday, but I may try to do some mini-blogging from my phone, we'll just have to see how that goes. Thank you all for your prayers and encouragement. I love you! Talk to you in a few.

What the Sun, Wind, and the Golden Gate Bridge taught me about God's Love

Today was a very busy day which was much more active than the past few days have been. We started our day with devotions then headed out to San Fran to practice more directions and visit a few more of our ministry sites. After touring the outside of these locations we did what is called the "Golden Gate Bridge Walk", which at it's most basic form is a silent prayer walk from one side of the GG Bridge to the other. Now during this walk I really felt like God revealed Himself in a few powerful ways:


The first was a reference to Genesis 1 when it refers to the Spirit of God hovering over the waters. It was a bright, beautiful, windy day as we crossed the bridge and you could see the formations of the clouds "hovering over the water" and I really felt the presence of God in that moment. I thought to myself, God doesn't only speak to us through His word, but through all nature and created things; we really do ourselves a disservice when we shut down to the possibility of learning more about the character of God through everyday life. But then I also thought to myself, if I hadn't spent time in the word and known about that particular verse in Genesis then I also would have missed out on a great opportunity to see my God in action. It's a delicate balance, and such an amazing representation of a glimpse of who God is and His presence everywhere... even here with me in San Francisco.


The other thought came from the Aesop's Fable (I think) about the wind and the sun. The Mandie-ized version of the story is that two kids were walking through a mountain pass and the wind looked over to the sun and bet him that he could make the kids take their coats off- I don't remember what was at stake, but it was a monumental bet to be sure. So the sun took the bet, and the wind blew and shook as hard as he could and the two kids just clung even tighter to their coats to keep warm. When it was the sun's turn he shone brightly and beamed until the two children got so warm that they took their coats off. Now, my thought here is how many times do we as Christians blow and huff and puff and attempt to stuff our beliefs and "religion" down the world's throat, but all that does is make them want to hold tighter to whatever it is they've been holding onto. We need to beam with and shine the love of Christ to warm them into the kingdom.

That seems really ill formed and kind of lame now, but I wanted to share it with whoever may be "listening" out in blogger world.

Church and Stuff

Today was quite an interesting day- I attended church at BACC (Bay Area Christian Connection), where we are currently housed. It was a very charismatic service and in many ways much different than what I'm used to. The scripture that the pastor spoke on was from Matthew 4:18-20:

¹⁸As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. ¹⁹"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." ²⁰At once they left their nets and followed him.

There were a couple of things that the pastor pointed out that really resonated with me so I'd like to share them with you. The first thing that really stood out is Peter and Andrew's response to Jesus- at once or as the New Living Translation puts it immediately... that was their response, they didn't ask where they were going, or even what they would be doing, and at this point they probably new a little about Jesus, but based on Matthew's account, he scoops up Peter and Andrew right after his temptation in the desert, so Jesus' ministry really hasn't begun at this point, but nevertheless, Peter and Andrew immediately left their nets and followed him. There are so many other points that can be made, like the idea that they left their well being behind, etc... but the thing that was really brought to my attention was this idea that their only response was to do. Not once in this account do they go, "so, yeah, ummm, Jesus, where are we going?" "do you know how long this is going to take?" "what do I need to pack?" Nothing- they just go... I can only imagine if they had asked Jesus, "where are we going". In all of his infinite wisdom and Jesus-ness I can imagine him saying, "why? would it matter?"
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Today was my first official day off since starting training on Wednesday and it was a lot of fun. I spent most of the day with one of my roommates, and we went to Chinatown. Such a beautiful place, a lot of culture built into the buildings and lampposts and decor of the area. Also, tons of little tourists, like myself, scooping up the bargains and memorabilia to help capture those things which only our mind's eye view can really justify. So many people in such a small space, all concerned with getting their things and being on their way... did we really see each other? When I think of all the things that break God's heart, I wonder if that isn't one of them. Did you know that San Fran is approximately 49 square miles (within the city limits) and Oakland is 78.2 square miles? Guess which one has the most people? San Fran has over 800,000 people, and Oakland has just under 400,000. San Fran is almost half the size of Oakland, but has over twice as many people living in it. Did you also know that there are 5-10 thousand homeless living in San Fran alone? This isn't meant to be preachy or soapboxy, but I just wonder how many times these people go unnoticed. Not even just the homeless, how many times do the people of the world brush shoulders, commute to work, walk the streets and go unnoticed by their fellow inhabitants of the world? Challenge: look around you, they don't have to be your best friend, you don't even have to talk to them, just notice the people around you, acknowledge that they are not just people taking up space in our cosmic little universe. They are children of God, just like you.

Out on the Town

Today was a little more active in the city and less of the sitting in the "apartment" listening to lectures. We were in charge of giving directions to the drivers (how proud are you of me, dad!?!?) and guiding them from ministry site to ministry site. Upon arrival at each of the sites we would be framed for what work each of the ministry sites performs.


Later on in the day we had lunch at the park by Lake Merritt on the steps of a gazebo, and there was an interesting encounter with a seagull, but more on that at another time. What really captivated me today was regarding our practice for something we do called, "The Prayer Tour". This consists of driving around downtown San Fran pointing out statistics or different facts about certain areas and streets to help bring some perspective on what goes on in the city; we also strongly encourage our groups to be in constant prayer for these different things. After this practice we were having our "debriefing" within the group where we process and internalize some of the things we saw and experienced during the day. The question was posed: What would you do if you found out you had to move here? How would this affect your future decisions, including raising a family here?


Now, at this time I must provide a little disclaimer. Those of you who know me, or are a part of my church family know that I came to California by choice. (those of you who don't know the story, hit me up later and I'll give you the rundown) But when faced with this idea of moving here, permanently, raising a family, etc... I had to be honest and say I wouldn't do it. There's part of me that knew if God was really calling me to it that I know in my heart He would give me the strength to overcome the fear, but all in all as my decision I would say no. That being said, my mind wandered to this idea of fear- what exactly am I afraid of... am I afraid of failing? Not really... am I afraid of my safety? Kind of, there are some kind of scary places, but when I look down to it, I'm afraid of the unknown... "well, if I had to move here, where would I live? what would I do for work, or income? I don't have any connections or friends or family here, I'd be all alone..." just a few of the many thoughts racing through my head in those moments. Then I just had to take a step back and go, you know what- God brought me here amidst several trials, and He worked it out in such a way that all of the pieces fell together perfectly. It may not make sense, and it may be mildly terrifying, but the truth is, I serve a God who is in control- not because He is a controlling God who rules me with an iron fist... no, He's in control because I let Him have control. That is what I have to stay focused on and keep reminding myself.

Training Training Training

So, in a lot of ways I feel like I'm back in college again- living in a "dorm-style" room with bunk beds and roommates, and yesterday I had the "pleasure" of sitting through several classes. It actually wasn't that bad. It was a lot more personal than college lecture classes, and obviously the class size was a lot smaller. I am currently in my living situation with two girls- and I'm the "old fart" of the group, by a whopping two years. The youngest is "R" at 19, and "A" is 23. They are a lot of fun, and in some ways we're similar and different (obviously- haha). We are all "introverts with extroverted tendencies", we all handle conflict in similar ways and we are all in a transition in our lives in which we are seeking God's will.

Yesterday was cool, because we did get a chance to get to know each other better. We talked about conflict resolution and how we deal with conflict, we also had the opportunity to share our stories and how we ended up here at CSM. Then last night I was a big girl and stayed up until 11:00PM, which was a big jump from 8:30 and 9:00 like the previous two nights. I'm still waking up at about 4AM, which is not fun, but I think I'm slowing transitioning to this Pacific Time.

Another experience that I was able to have yesterday was going to a farmer's market. An entire block was blocked off and various vendors set up tents and booths selling their different products. I bought a two pound bag of kiwi for a whopping $1.50!!!! Back home I'm lucky if I can get 4 kiwi for a dollar. (My mom would be so proud!) It was also really cool to see the different ethnic backgrounds of the vendors as displayed in their products. There was an Argentinian bakery, a Mexican booth selling tamales, and then tons of fresh produce stands including everything from Asian Yams to my awesome kiwi!

For the most part yesterday consisted of sitting and listening to the logistics of city hosting, but I ended my night hanging out with my cool new roommates putting out hits on one another and killing each others mobsters... all in all a great night.

Day 1.5

Hello, friends,

Here's my first attempt at blogging, so offer a little grace when reading this-

Today was my first official day of training, yesterday consisted of getting settled in my new digs, and getting a brief orientation to what exactly I'll be doing for the next 5 (or so) weeks. This morning consisted of logistical paperwork, then my two partners in ministry and I went out for a city expedition in which we took on the persona of a homeless immigrant family. We met a few interesting people, shared lunch with a new friend in the park, and "joined" a protest against bio-sludge in compost- it was quite the experience.

We ended our day with a prayer tour of downtown San Francisco- including Chinatown, Little Italy, the financial district and Coit Tower. The view from Coit Tower was amazing and a great reminder of how small I really am in this big city. Being from a "smaller" more suburban community it's easy to take for granted just how big the world can be- it was a nice friendly reminder that life really is just about more than me.

All in all it was a good experience, just hoping and praying that God will give me the strength I need to do His work in the cities of Oakland and San Fran.

Until we meet again...