Prep week in the ATL!

This week was probably the toughest week we will have as a staff team. There were pages and pages of check lists for each one of us to accomplish by this weekend. Thankfully our team is one of the few that gets a second prep week, because we are definitely not finished with everything that needs to be done... One of the things that I am responsible for is going to service sites and confirming that we are able to volunteer there for the summer. We have some pretty awesome sites! The first site I visited was the Frazer Center - a day center for kids and adults with disabilities. This place is in the middle of a forest which holds the rich houses in Atlanta. It is a crazy beautiful neighborhood. My partner, Dominic was laughing at me because the whole time we were driving through the neighborhood I was staring out the window exclaiming, "look at this! look at that!" There is a beautiful garden near the center as well. We took a few pictures there as a staff.

The other places are the City of Refuge Inc. which is in a really rough neighborhood, but I think this is a fabulous place to serve and get a taste of what poverty looks like. We will be serving there as a staff on the 14th before any youth come so we can see what it is like. I am really pumped!

There is also a furniture bank (like a food bank except it is furniture), which is really cool! All in all we are collaborating with around 16 different organizations... Some of them are geared towards the elderly, some towards the homeless, some towards those with disabilities and some simply for those who need a little bit of help. This will definitely be an amazing summer regardless of the challenges (like no air conditioning).

A verse that struck me today was 1 Corinthians 5:58 "Therefore my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." At times this week I was really frustrated by the amount of work that had to be done in the 90 degree building, dripping with sweat constantly. I got even more frustrated seeing some of my teammates being reluctant to work and being fussy while I tried my hardest to maintain a positive attitude towards everything. But it felt so good to be reassured that what I am doing here is not for myself. Every moment I spend swimming in my own sweat, cleaning and typing up directions and meeting service partners is for God's glory because He has a bigger plan this summer. One that I can't even fathom. So, it is with that reminder that I will press on to another two weeks of work before I meet any of the youth for the summer in Atlanta.

Tomorrow I leave for Chattanooga to do an early-bird week with my area sites (birmingham, chattanooga and atlanta are area 10). There will be youth there, but it is mainly chattanooga's responsibility to lead the week - we are just there as back-ups.

Prayer Requests:

• Patience
• The strength and dignity of the proverbs 31 woman. 
• Energy!

some photos of our shenanigans:

My room :)