Oklahoma! Day 5: Last Day of Work...

Well per the title, today was our last day of work.

We got our day off started as usual with a devotional led by myself regarding service and being willing to get our hands dirty in the process if necessary.  And this we did.

Today was probably the best day of work because we finally got to visit the place we came to help.  The Hope Harbor Thrift Store named "Thrift Harbor" (Sign pictured above).  We stopped there to assemble some shoe racks and move out an old one.  Pictured below is a picture from inside the thrift store and us working on assembling the new shoe racks.  Additionally though, we loaded up the almighty Budget truck that in some ways has become our best friend in our workdays to bring some stuff back to the storage unit and to the tractor trailer that gets sent out.  I once again had the privilege of riding with Shane and we were joking around once again about different stuff.  For lunch we got to eat back at the Hope Harbor main facility and spend some additional time with the kids here.

After lunch we briefly headed back to the thrift store and we also picked up some more clothes out of the donation bin at the Blue Starr Church of Christ.  We then came back and off loaded some of it into the storage facility and also into the tractor trailer here on campus.  The day was physically demanding but it was productive.

As far as the rest of the night, at the writing of this blog, the group is going out to have dinner and we will be assembling with the Blue Starr congregation for the last time for Bible Study tonight.  Tomorrow I am heading to Tulsa, Oklahoma for a few days on personal business and returning back home to Denver on Monday.  

Later in the week I will be posting some concluding thoughts about this unique and wonderful campaign for BVBID.

Until then, this is David Malley signing off for the last time from a cottage at Hope Harbor Children's Home in Claremore, Oklahoma.    

Oklahoma! Day 4: Work, Fun, and 25 stops...

What can I say?  Tuesday was a long but awesome day.

On this day, we got our day started with breakfast as usual at our respective cottages and then the group began working.  There are six of us so we were split into two groups of three.  The first group stayed behind and sorted out things at our local warehouse.  The other three, myself, Jack and Tony all went with Shane to make 25 stops.

Per the title, it is true we had to make 25 stops but not here in Claremore.  We had to run to a little town called Bartlesville which is about 45 minutes or so away from Claremore.  When we got there we stopped at the Adams Boulevard Church of Christ where we picked up a few items.  Little did we know that with that being the first of 25 stops, we would fill up the entire 16 feet of the trailer we loading up.  Below you will see the progression of how the truck got filled.  The stops were pretty time consuming so it made for a longer day than usual.  We were originally scheduled to be done by 4 PM but we did not get done and back to our evening dinner and devotional until about 6 PM.  The other group finished about 3 PM with their job. As far as the workday goes, that day has affectionately become known as "25 Stops."  I enjoyed it none the less because I got to ride with Shane in between destinations and I discovered he is a riot to be around because he and I kept cracking jokes about stuff that happened and stuff we saw along the way.

Dinner and devotional was fun.  Jack led a devotional on the fact that Jesus came not to be served but to serve.  We had dinner and devotional at the girls cottage this time and it was awesome to see how into singing praises to God they were.  Chelsea and I made the observation that the girls were more interested in singing than the boys were the night before.  One observation I made while we were singing is how one girl Shelby seemed to be putting her whole heart into praising God.  She is pictured below with her hands raised and her eyes shut in the background of the picture.  Another thing we realized prior to leaving was how attached these kids had gotten to us as a group because they were mentioning they did not want us to leave and they gave us big hugs prior to leaving for the night.  This all made me realize that we had really accomplished serving Hope Harbor not only through manual labor but also through serving the children we have come into contact with while we have been here. 

That is all for day 4.  Wednesday would be one of our more physically demanding jobs but that is described in the next blog.  

This is David Malley, signing off from a cottage at Hope Harbor Children's Home. 

THANKS FOR READING! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!

Oklahoma! Day 3: The Work Begins...

Going clockwise from bottom right on the couch:  David Malley (Me), Tony Johnson, Ray Birchett, Austin, Gannon, Jeffrey (All three are residents at the home), Nathan and Jessica Mcveigh, Jack Dodgen, and Chelsea (Daughter of house parents Joy and Bill).  

Today was anything but relaxing, we really got worked today but it was worth every minute.  Our day got started with breakfast with the people we are staying with.  After that we headed off to the main facility of the children's home where we had a brief devotional given by Ray Birchett about service.  Following that, we met up with Chris Brill and he gave us a tour of the main facility where we got to see where the kids take classes as well as other parts of the facility (All pictured below).

                                    

                 Pantry at Hope Harbor                                                 Classroom for the kids education

The facilities pictured above are not where we worked.  Pictured below you will find where our primary work center was.  The storage space we worked at was so full and disorganized, it was a wonder we got through it as quickly as we did.  The key was teamwork.  The guy Shane (pictured below) that we worked with divided up the labor very effectively and we got the job done in an efficient manner.  Some of us sorted and bagged clothes while others helped load and unload trailers for the thrift store where all this stuff will be going.  

Shane

 

                      Before                                                                                                       After

So after all was said and done, we all headed back to our hosts' homes and took a much needed shower and then the rest of the evening was both relaxing and fun. Joy cooked up some awesome chili for the group as we all gathered at Joy and Bill's for dinner and devotional.  I had the privilege of leading the devotional emphasizing the thought that in order to be first we must be last and serve based on Mark 9:33-37.  One practical way we can do that is by welcoming children into our lives and serve them by spending some time with them.  Our service here at Hope Harbor is not just the manual labor but it is also spending some time with the children we have met while here.  We have a couple of more days here but I already know it is going to be hard to leave especially with the unexpected friendships that I have formed.  I am going to make every effort to make the most of the time I have left with these people as I serve the Lord by serving them.     

Anyhow, all in all today was a great day and a great night.  I can't wait to see what is in store tomorrow as the work will continue and I look forward to the time I will have to spend with the friends that I have made in this short period of time.  I hope you have enjoyed learning about the 2011 BVBID Fall 2011 Campaign in Oklahoma thus far. 

More to come tomorrow night! 

Until then, this is David Malley signing off from a cottage at Hope Harbor Children's Home!

THANKS FOR READING! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS! 

Oklahoma! Day 2: WFR

So here I am at the end of another long but great day.  Before I begin telling you about why it was such a great day, I will clarify what WFR means.  I titled today's blog WFR because WFR is an acronym for Worship, Fellowship, and Relaxation and that is primarily what today consisted of.

Today (Sunday) as we know was the Lord's day so almost immediately after breakfast we all headed out to the Blue Starr Church of Christ (logo pictured below) which is on Blue Starr Road in Claremore.  The lesson in the morning Bible class was on 1 Peter 4 where we talked about suffering for doing what is right and/or for doing what God would have us to do.  It was a pretty good and practical lesson.  Ray, Nathan, Jessica and I were in this particular class while Tony and "the nameless one" were in the adult class in the auditorium.  The sermon at worship this morning was on service based on Mark 9:33-37.  I found it kind of funny that this was the sermon topic because as I mentioned last night, this year's campaign is all about service.  The key was Mark 9:35 which says "If anyone wants to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all."  I am actually going to be doing my devotional tomorrow night (Monday night) on this very passage so I am glad it will be fresh on all of our minds.

Following morning services we all went back to our prospective cottages and had some lunch followed by a relaxing Sunday afternoon.  Today me and Ray had the opportunity to meet the third boy from our cottage, Jeffrey.  He had been out for the weekend with his family celebrating his birthday.  I found Jeffrey to be more of a quiet spirit but still a very polite young boy of only 14.  Ray, Gannon, and Austin spent the first part of the afternoon playing fooseball and all this was followed by some quiet time.  During this time, we all relaxed in our bedrooms.  Not long before Ray and I had to leave again, a former resident, Tyler came for a visit with his girlfriend.  It was encouraging to see that former residents still keep in contact with the people here.  This speaks a lot about this place in that the people here try to make sure people leave here on a positive note.  There is much to say about how the system works here but time does not allow for that at the moment.  

As I mentioned, me and Ray got ready to leave again at this point.  We were picked up by Nathan and Jessica to head out to evening services at the Owasso Church of Christ (building pictured below).  Little did I know that evening services at Owasso would kick start an evening full of great fellowship.  The sermon at Owasso tonight dealt with sexual immorality through the lens of 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8.  The lesson was very relevant to today's culture and what we as Christians can do to overcome it.  Following evening services though, the Owasso congregation was kind enough to provide dinner for us.  On a side note, Owasso is where the Brills normally attend and it is also the home congregation of BVBID's own Charles and Tammy King.  We also saw some Bear Valley signs in the hallway.  Back on point though, the Owasso congregation fed us a great dinner.  Also though one of the members asked Ray, the nameless one and myself to lead some songs which was followed by a devotional on how sin can stain our lives but how through the blood of Christ we can get rid of those stains.  After all this we headed back to Hope Harbor.

The story does not quite end there.  After we got back and settled in, I played another round of ping pong with Jeffrey.  I am finding that much of our service work here involves simply spending time with the kids as they need that positive influence in their lives. After playing with Jeffrey, I got to spend some additional time with Joy and Bill along with their daughter Chelsea who I briefly met before services this morning.  Oh and not to mention her dog Miles who was loving the attention he was getting.  Chelsea is only a few years younger than I am and will be turning 23 tomorrow.  It was nice getting to talk to someone within my age bracket and to know someone else at my age is looking to make a difference in kids lives.  Chelsea is a school teacher of 2nd grade.  She and I both agreed that a lot of the difference that can be made in children's lives can be made in the classroom.  She shared some of her encouraging moments with her 2nd graders such as when one of them brings God and/or the Bible up in class and this within a public school setting.  My prayer is that God blesses her efforts and that a seed gets planted in these children so that they may later commit their lives to following Christ.  

In conclusion, some personal thoughts.  While today was an awesome day of WFR (Worship, Fellowship, and Relaxation), I found myself getting kind of antsy.  I am anxious to put my hand to the plow tomorrow and get to work.  I have already been on two campaigns and one thing I have found is that they make for great bonding experiences with the students and the people we are working with in doing the Lord's work through acts of service.  I can't wait to see what tomorrow has in store and to see God's hand working through it all.  I simply love how God chooses to use us as His tools to carry out His purpose.  I will inform about what all happens tomorrow night. 

Until tomorrow night, this is David Malley signing off from a cottage at Hope Harbor Children's Home in Claremore, Oklahoma! 

THANKS FOR READING! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!   

    

Oklahoma! Day 1: Traveling and Arrival

This campaign got off to a pretty smooth start. We hit the road from rainy and slightly snowy Denver, Colorado dark and early around 6:00 AM. Our destination? Claremore, Oklahoma.

The drive to Claremore is about 10-12 hours. The team? Those going on this campaign are Nathan and Jessica Mcveigh, Ray Birchett, One who desires to remain nameless (for good reason ;) ), our student campaign director Tony Johnson and myself David Malley. We stopped in Salina Kansas for a burger at Freddy's Steakburgers. Good stuff :-). It rained most of the way but by journey's end the weather began to clear up and we had some sunshine. We had to leave as early as we did so that we could arrive in Claremore by 6:00 PM where we would meet and have dinner with the people we will be working with in the coming days.  However, we did not arrive until closer to 7 PM. While in Claremore, we will be working at the Hope Harbor Children's Home alongside BVBID class of 2011 graduates Chris and Shirley Brill as well as other staff members of the facility.

At dinner, we had sandwiches and had the opportunity to chat with the staff and different kids which are mostly teenagers.  Following dinner, Nathan led an awesome devotional based on Philippians 2:5-11 in which we were reminded that humility is the key to service and how in Christianity "the only way up is down, down on our knees in prayer and down in our hearts in humility and service."  Service is what this campaign is going to be all about.    

The team is staying in different areas.  Tony and the nameless person are staying with Chris and Shirley.  Nathan and Jessica are staying with a couple in one of the cottages here on the Hope Harbor campus.  Ray and I are also staying in one of the cottages with Bill and Joy Hartsock along with three of the boys that live here on the campus.  Ray and I had the privilege of spending some time with one of the boys Gannon.  He is a really outgoing boy.  We got to play fooseball, pool and a couple of rounds of ping pong with him.  I look forward to getting to know Gannon and the other two boys Jeffrey and Austin along with the other kids that live here at the home.  The cottages are really nice.  I am fortunate enough to even have my own room and bathroom while I am here.

Tomorrow (Sunday) should be a pretty relaxing day as we will be attending worship with the congregation that oversees the work here at Hope Harbor.  We will take the afternoon off and attend evening services either in Claremore or with the Brills in Owasso, Oklahoma.  Monday is when we will begin our actual work.  It appears we will be working with the Hope Harbor Thrift Store with various projects throughout the week.

The Oklahoma campaign is looking more and more like it is going to be super productive and super fun.  I am looking forward to working alongside the staff here at Hope Harbor and I especially look forward to working alongside the BVBID team that I came out here with.  My initial impression and experience on this first day has by far been a great one.  The kids and the staff alike here are very polite and seem as eager to get to know us as we are to get to know them.   I look forward to serving alongside the brethren here as we seek to let the light of Christ shine through our acts of service.

Thanks for taking time to read about what a small group of preaching students are doing to advance the Lord's Kingdom at the Hope Harbor Children's Home with the help of the other brethren that serve here full time.  I will do my best to keep everyone updated on a daily basis until we leave on Thursday October 13th. I simply ask that you keep us all in your prayers as we serve the Lord by serving others over the next several days.

Until tomorrow, this is David Malley signing off from a cottage in Claremore, Oklahoma.

THANKS FOR READING! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!