Monday, July 23

Most of us woke up around 6AM to get dressed, gather up supplies, have our breakfast, then pack our own lunches, with the items that Carmen and others bought last night.  Then we packed our 2 rental vans and rental pickup, and said a quick group prayer.  I was surprised by how nice the temperature felt so early in the morning.  Then we headed off to our destination, a house in the town of Refugio, which is close to an hour Northeast of the big city of Corpus Christi, which we drove thru (thank God for GPS instructions!)  I enjoyed seeing the sun low in the sky above the water, and the nearby Aircraft Carrier Lexington (on public display) in the bay beyond the tall bridge we drove across.  I rode in the front passenger seat, with Bill once again doing the driving.  Sitting in the seat behind me was …Annie who wanted me to capture the beautiful scene on her camera phone, which I was more than obliged to do.  Once we arrived at the house, which was…  replacing the one destroyed in winds from Hurricane Harvey, we broke up into two teams.  Carmen Greg, Bob, and Elvis started work on the inside flooring, Tori also worked inside, while the rest of us dug trenches for the septic pipes, then we kept busy cleaning up the yard by trimming trees.  Bill and Val also used a weed wacker Bill and Val also used a weed wacker to trim the tall grass that had come to overtake parts of the yard.

    Once the call for lunch was announced we were anxious to eat our food, and a special bonus was being able to do it in AC!  The local Refugio Presbyterian Church was gracious enough to invite us to use their nice and cool dining area in which to have lunch.  Reverend Peter was sure to use that example to say that likewise, should a disaster strike our area, then we should be more than happy to open our hearts and sanctuaries to accommodate others that might come to help us.

      Like I said, the morn was not too bad.  There was plenty of shade behind the house where we were working, and a nice breeze there too.  But soon those working on the east side digging another trench were soon suffering from the hot sunny conditions there, and less of a breeze.  By the afternoon even the shadows behind the house shrank to almost nothing, and the breeze lessened too, just as the temps rose thru the 90’s.  It eventually reached 108, with a heat index of 117.  Kudos to Katie for her inspirational resolve to continue to work despite the extreme heat and humidity.  She definitely outlasted me!  Our water girls did a great job making sure we took our mandatory water breaks every 20 minutes, though by afternoon some of us even opted for more frequent water breaks.  In the afternoon some of the young girls started to paint the boards used for trim out in the hot sun.  Then before I knew it, a pink portable canopy appeared that helped to shade those hard workers.  They know the value of doing an outstanding job, since we are here to represent Christ Jesus, and we are doing this job not for money or glory, but simply because we love our neighbor.  As Pastor Doug highlighted last night in devotions, when we step into someone’s house, we are supposed to consider it “Holy Ground.”  So of course high quality work should be a top priority, no matter how young and inexperienced you think you are.

   Donna and Greg helped to saw the boards that were used for the window sills.  In the mid- afternoon Bill and daughter Emma worked together to trim the wild looking trees in the backyard.  I was once again reminded of our true purpose here when, after we had done the cleanup of the front yard: weedwacking and raking and brushing away the dust, a sidewalk was revealed in front of the house that contained the names in the concrete of those who lived there, and were anxiously waiting for a family house that was livable again.

   Once 2:30 rolled around we were ready to leave, but then leftover scrap lumber and insulation had to be loaded onto a trailer to be used for another project.  Still I can’t believe we had the energy left for that final task (so of course God must have helped us!)  After another long ride thru open country past fields and swamps, we hit the big city.  Once we safely made it back “home” to our hosts Park Presbyterian Church, most of us were anxious to take off our wet, smelly clothes and take showers.  Then was some free time for talking and playing pool, and maybe even a nap.  For dinner our kitchen helpers Carmen, Shari, Val, and Tori came up with two delicious choices involving French fries and tater tots.  I only got to lick the spoon used to serve the 2^nd pan, so great job cooks!

   After the dinner Pastor Doug once again led our devotions, this time letting the groups talk about the motivation and passions behind the success of an Olympic athlete, the selflessness of Mother Teresa, and the forgiving power of love of a missionary’s wife.  And then how these might relate to our personal lives.  With more free time this evening some watched TV, read books, or took a walk to the beach on this warm eve.  We can’t wait to see what tomorrow God has planned for us.  Prayer concerns today:  Taylor’s Dad has a foot problem, and Kelli (friend of Tori) had a death in the family.