“When you are saved yourself, publish the good news to others.” Charles Spurgeon
I cannot believe our trip is almost over! The time has absolutely flown by!! Today we were able to sleep in an hour later so our devotions led by Jewel were at seven this morning. She shared with us from 2 Kings 7:3 about the lepers who were sitting outside the city starving to death. They had to make a decision to either enter the city and risk losing their lives or stay outside the city and be certain of death by way of starvation. It was a powerful reminder to remember that no one who refuses Christ escapes death. Our call to publish the good news does not cease until we are with Him!
After our devotions we had small rolls with either chicken salad, crab salad, or tuna salad. For those who did not want to try what we would consider lunch for breakfast, there was peanut butter and jelly to make sandwiches as well. There were also kiwis and fruit juice. Today was our serious hiking day on the East end of the island. Prior to the main hike, we went to see the coast at Playa Ganga. This is rough coast area with a tiny beach where locals like to surf. Only one surfer was out on the water and the stop along the coast was quite brief. From there we took Sem to school for his quarterly exams and picked Noa up because she had finished hers (Luca’s and Esther’s two older kids). Next, it was off to the aloe farm to see how aloe is farmed, processed, and then used for many different products. Curaloe sells their skincare and beauty products on the grounds and we gave them a lot of business!
Aloe purchases tucked away in the van it was time to go to Caracasbaai to hike. The initial climb up Kabrietenberg (Mountain of the Goats” was easy walking along the mangroves with great views of the bay. Then we began a steep, rugged ascent up the backside of the mountain. It was not a beginner’s hike and was quite challenging for several of the kids. However, everyone made it to the top where they were rewarded with spectacular views of the Spanish Waters they had passed through on the Mermaid on Wednesday. The hike down was much easier and not so steep. From there we took a trail to look across the bay at the Sandals resort and golf course. This was another thing we had viewed from the water on Wednesday but not from the land. We followed a trail around part of the bay until we arrived at the large historic, “Quarantine House”, where slaves were kept who were suspected of carrying diseases. It is a very beautiful old building but its history sobering.
Since we worked up an appetite from the long hike, it was time to head to Brgr Haus for lunch, shade, and a time to fellowship. The food was beyond spectacular and made us all feel better! Everyone took a quick swim in the bay at Caracasbaai Beach after lunch before we headed back to the Youth Center to get showered and prepare for our leading Youth Xplore.
We ate tacos for dinner with all of the youth and then headed into the main sanctuary for the evening. Stella started us off with prayer and then Bryan and Brodi led our two icebreaker games of Rock, Paper, Scissors, Snake, and Four Corners. The winners of each of the games were able to pick from the different Arizona shirts we brought and they were super excited! Everyone then had to pair up with someone and answer some quick questions in order to get to know new people. Ethan, Kali, Katie, Jewel, and Claire did an outstanding job leading worship with the keyboardist Jerome and drummer Danny. Ethan and Peyton both shared their testimonies and did an amazing job as well. Following the testimonies, Zoey introduced our, “Spicy Topic” for the night which was Social Media. She then helped the small groups get started with guided questions the team had prepared beforehand. Lucas presented a video done by Right Now Media about Social Media called, “Conform or Transform”. This then led to a natural transition to our more personal “Spicy Topic” questions which our team had created and then led discussions in small groups. Lucas then put Ethan, Peyton, and Sam in the, “Hot Seat”, and the youth were able to ask them questions which they had to answer openly, honestly, and truthfully. True to form they were able to answer all the questions asked of them and were very well spoken. Maggie closed us out with prayer and the our worship crew led everyone in one last song.
Bill and I are so proud of the whole team for hitting it out of the park tonight! They have worked so well together all week and tonight was no exception! You can be really proud of your kids!! Speaking of them, they were all out like a light tonight. I think the boys fell asleep within five minutes of entering the room!
Muy buenas noches,
Lisa
I cannot believe our trip is almost over! The time has absolutely flown by!! Today we were able to sleep in an hour later so our devotions led by Jewel were at seven this morning. She shared with us from 2 Kings 7:3 about the lepers who were sitting outside the city starving to death. They had to make a decision to either enter the city and risk losing their lives or stay outside the city and be certain of death by way of starvation. It was a powerful reminder to remember that no one who refuses Christ escapes death. Our call to publish the good news does not cease until we are with Him!
After our devotions we had small rolls with either chicken salad, crab salad, or tuna salad. For those who did not want to try what we would consider lunch for breakfast, there was peanut butter and jelly to make sandwiches as well. There were also kiwis and fruit juice. Today was our serious hiking day on the East end of the island. Prior to the main hike, we went to see the coast at Playa Ganga. This is rough coast area with a tiny beach where locals like to surf. Only one surfer was out on the water and the stop along the coast was quite brief. From there we took Sem to school for his quarterly exams and picked Noa up because she had finished hers (Luca’s and Esther’s two older kids). Next, it was off to the aloe farm to see how aloe is farmed, processed, and then used for many different products. Curaloe sells their skincare and beauty products on the grounds and we gave them a lot of business!
Aloe purchases tucked away in the van it was time to go to Caracasbaai to hike. The initial climb up Kabrietenberg (Mountain of the Goats” was easy walking along the mangroves with great views of the bay. Then we began a steep, rugged ascent up the backside of the mountain. It was not a beginner’s hike and was quite challenging for several of the kids. However, everyone made it to the top where they were rewarded with spectacular views of the Spanish Waters they had passed through on the Mermaid on Wednesday. The hike down was much easier and not so steep. From there we took a trail to look across the bay at the Sandals resort and golf course. This was another thing we had viewed from the water on Wednesday but not from the land. We followed a trail around part of the bay until we arrived at the large historic, “Quarantine House”, where slaves were kept who were suspected of carrying diseases. It is a very beautiful old building but its history sobering.
Since we worked up an appetite from the long hike, it was time to head to Brgr Haus for lunch, shade, and a time to fellowship. The food was beyond spectacular and made us all feel better! Everyone took a quick swim in the bay at Caracasbaai Beach after lunch before we headed back to the Youth Center to get showered and prepare for our leading Youth Xplore.
We ate tacos for dinner with all of the youth and then headed into the main sanctuary for the evening. Stella started us off with prayer and then Bryan and Brodi led our two icebreaker games of Rock, Paper, Scissors, Snake, and Four Corners. The winners of each of the games were able to pick from the different Arizona shirts we brought and they were super excited! Everyone then had to pair up with someone and answer some quick questions in order to get to know new people. Ethan, Kali, Katie, Jewel, and Claire did an outstanding job leading worship with the keyboardist Jerome and drummer Danny. Ethan and Peyton both shared their testimonies and did an amazing job as well. Following the testimonies, Zoey introduced our, “Spicy Topic” for the night which was Social Media. She then helped the small groups get started with guided questions the team had prepared beforehand. Lucas presented a video done by Right Now Media about Social Media called, “Conform or Transform”. This then led to a natural transition to our more personal “Spicy Topic” questions which our team had created and then led discussions in small groups. Lucas then put Ethan, Peyton, and Sam in the, “Hot Seat”, and the youth were able to ask them questions which they had to answer openly, honestly, and truthfully. True to form they were able to answer all the questions asked of them and were very well spoken. Maggie closed us out with prayer and the our worship crew led everyone in one last song.
Bill and I are so proud of the whole team for hitting it out of the park tonight! They have worked so well together all week and tonight was no exception! You can be really proud of your kids!! Speaking of them, they were all out like a light tonight. I think the boys fell asleep within five minutes of entering the room!
Muy buenas noches,
Lisa