June 2007

I was having problems with Vox this morning and last night, so I’ve put my updates on Xanga. www.xanga.com/AuntAgnes.

Put your comments here, if you don’t have a Xanga account, and I’ll let everyone know you said hey.

We arrived in Lakeshore, Mississippi at 7:30 a.m. CST. After a 19 hour bus ride, we were happy to be standing on solid ground. So far, all the team is doing fairly well. It was 76 degrees this morning at 7:30, and it’s very humid, but we’re thankful for air-conditioned sleeping rooms.

My initial assessment to what I’m seeing is - I cannot believe it. I’m a perfectionist by nature. I know Mike would disagree, but I am a perfectionist. And the perfectionist in me, when confronted with what seems like an insurmountable task, throws my hands in the air and wants to walk away. There is so much to do around here. Everywhere I look there’s a need, and it seems almost impossible to accomplish anything.

The ministry focus Don and his team have is amazing. They know what needs to be done in the moment. I’m sure they look down the road and have a vision, but the immediate needs are great, and the needs seem to change often. Each day brings them closer to completing part of the big dream. So, unlike me, they keep their eyes set on what today’s goals are, they don’t seem to be looking at what’s impossible, and they have a positive and faith-full attitude.

We’re down here with a group from Jacksonville, North Carolina, and Ann Arbor, Michigan. Between the three groups, we have about 120 people total.

The teens worked on some of the housing today as well as sorting out a supply tent. Most of the donated supplies were being stored at the local elementary school gym, but the school district is beginning construction, so the gym had to be emptied. While the supply tent isn’t the most glamorous job, it’s what’s needed. I’ve seen several people respond with the type of attitude that Mike’s been talking about in his messages in Philippians recently. We’re servants, and we’re here to serve - in whatever way we need to.

The group took it a bit easy this afternoon, as most of us weren’t really prepared for the heat. They’ll make up for it tomorrow.

I’m so proud of our group. Some of the teams are helping finish housing for an elderly man in the community, and others are digging holes for posts (I don’t know what they supposed to be called, but they’re the “stilts” a new house will be built on). The kids are trying hard.

If you’re a parent, feel free to leave a comment for your kids. I’ll give them the message, and who knows, they might answer!

You have to give him credit.  He’s a passionate man.  But Michael Moore isn’t going to change the world.  At least not from my point of view.  He’s lacking in diplomacy.  He may be right in some areas, but his approach is a turn off to many, lessening his ability to impact.

I find him to be rude, sometimes dishonest, and in his attempt to help the common man, a bit disingenuous.

But that’s just me.

Sitting in Dean and Tina’s living room, listening to four or more conversations.  Dean’s talking about DMX and technology, Mike is talking to Stacie Joy about Kenya, someone else talking about organic milk.

And I’m recording it all on the internet.

Trip to California is almost over.  We leave tomorrow afternoon.  I’ll be glad to get home, but wish I could live in this moment just a bit longer.

Peace out.

I often wonder about the labels we apply to people based on their ethnicity, background, preferences, or social class.  A few years ago, we had a family attending our church who lived in the “rich” neighborhood near us.  He was a financial planner and she was an attorney.  They had memberships at swanky tennis club and golf clubs.  They lived on a lake in a big house.  She had the degree from law school. 

She had asked me if we could get together, and all I could think about was the huge disparity in our backgrounds.  She had it all together.  What could I possibly offer her?  I was intimidated by the thought of a relationship with someone whose life experience was so different from mine.  So, I kept my distance.  For a variety of reasons, they didn’t stay at our church. 

Fast forward to last weekend.  I had the experience of interacting for several hours (at my home) with people who grew up in Detroit.  This, too, intimidated me, but in a different way.  After the event, I received a phone call thanking me.  In the conversation, I was told that one of the family members was nervous about being around “white people.”  They thought we’d think they were “thugs” because they were African American.  I laughed and told her that I was afraid they would think ill of me because I was white. 

I guess I typed all that to think aloud about the labels we wear and the labels we put on other people.  Will we ever get to the point where we’re ready to shed them and just look at the person for who they are and who God intends them to be?