I think there is a need to write about this week in multiple parts. There is already a lot to say so I will talk about the last past five days now.
Saturday’s outreach was awesome again! We got to go back and work with the Bread of Life group giving out food, clothing, and Bibles to the homeless of Chicago. I am so encouraged by the adults who regularly serve with this ministry. After we had finished passing out everything a few of us talked to one of the men in charge. He encouraged us students to keep pursuing God, to never give up, to keep caring about other people. I think it’s amazing to hear adults outside of the Crusade world who have this genuine love for the Lord that radiates in their actions. This man we talked to has such a heart for the homeless that he drives a van downtown every Sunday to pick up these men and drive them to the church. It was awesome to be able to talk to him.
When we got back the girls had Princess Night. I know that women tend to rag on traditional women’s times because we are constantly hearing the same message and don’t feel like we get a whole lot out of it sometimes. This was so different. When we came down into the lobby, the guys were all dressed up and waiting for us. They escorted us to a table where there was cheesecake and apple pie. Then we went upstairs to one of the apartments where one of the girls, Katie, read to us letters that a few of the guys had anonymously written to us. It was the men telling us how much they value us as sisters, how much they love us, etc. They were so sweet and genuine. It was a really, really great night!
Molly, Emily F, Jess, Francesca, Katie, and Amber
On Sunday, I went with a few friends to the church at Moody Bible Institute. It was an absolutely beautiful church with great music and an awesome message. Afterwards I got to spend some great time with my friend Scarlett. It was a great Sunday.
For project fun we had a talent show. There was some guitar playing, singing, dancing, and a light saber demonstration. It was a great way to end Sunday Project Fun nights.
Monday and Wednesday were the last meetings I had to plan for project. I loved my job and the people that I got to work with. I was happy to have been able to plan a pre-meeting pizza party on Monday night for everyone. One of my favorite parts of every meeting is getting to hear peoples’ life stories. Tonight one of the girls made an excellent point. She talked about how we are all from different places, have had different struggles, and have been through different things. What binds all of our stories together is that they are all about our God. One God who has in one way or another redeemed us all and brought us all to this place, Chicago, at this very point to be here together and to do ministry together.
On Tuesday night, the men of project made the ladies dinner. We all dressed up and they served us. It was awesome. The food was great! It was something that they wanted to do for us. It always makes me feel loved when people remember that I cannot eat cheese. Does that sound funny? Like on this night when I was given the garlic bread that didn’t have any on it. Needless to say, it was a great night!
David, Molly, Quinn, Kathryn, and Jeremy
One Wednesday I went on campus with Mike and Jeremy. We first headed over to the Art Institute where we got to share and talk with two students. It was a pretty good conversation. Something I love about AI is that we have made friends with these three students: Wes, Christina, and George. They have been coming to our reLate meetings and the last few weeks we have been running into them on campus and being able to just ask them how they are doing and what’s going on in their lives. I have really enjoyed building relationships with them.
So that is the recap of the last few days. There is another aspect of project that I really want to touch on in this post. This project is such a special place, and the people here are very special people. There have been many moments on this project where I have been blown away by how much people care or how people have such a servant’s heart. In nine weeks, not everything has been perfect. There have been low points, bad days, frusterations, etc. I have not been able to be sad, mad, or upset for much more than an hour here. There has always been someone to talk to, someone to cry to, someone to speak Truth to me. By no means am I saying this is not my life back at school, in fact I would say that this is exactly what I do have at school as well.
The point that I am trying to make is that I am not running away from it. I am allowing people to be there for me, to help me. I am allowing myself to be vulnerable and not fight it. This is one of the areas I have seen a lot of growth in my life this summer. I am letting others into my life voluntarily. I am not waiting until my breaking point to let someone know that something is wrong. God has used these people to really show me more and more of what His love looks like. This is something that I really want to be able to take back to Oxford and continue living this way. I don’t think that I can just use words to express this idea. It’s been a really sweet lesson though.
These last four days here are going to be filled with a ton of laughs, great times, and I am sure a lot of tears. Our farewell banquet is just two days away. I am looking forward to spending as much time with everyone as possible and just enjoying what the Lord has done here.
Jumping into the Love Sacks - just a fun picture
