bodies as a living sacrifice...

On August 12, I was perusing the world wide web in an attempt to find out more options for purchasing high-quality, ethically-made clothing. (For what it's worth, this perusing has happened many times and I end up confused and overwhelmed and quit).

In my hunt, I came across a company called Tracksmith, which makes athletic clothing (specifically for running). I didn't buy any clothing from them, but I ran across this little book on their site.

It is called "To Boston with Love" and is the story of the first woman to run the Boston Marathon, Bobbi Gibb. (Spoiler alert: she had to sneak into the race dressed as a man because they wouldn't allow women to enter).

 It's a short little book, but it was beautifully done and I will treasure it always. (I put it on this easel in my entryway to take the photo several weeks ago, but decided to leave it on display there.)

Look at that typography. So cool. And the story is inspiring. And what an amazing woman she is...literally changing the world for women runners.

By the way, it wasn't until I revisited their site later that I realized that this company is actually IN Boston. Go figure.

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. - Romans 12:1

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Prayer Prompt:
Pray for healthy bodies... for those that care for their bodies, that they be protected. For those that do not care for their bodies, that they feel compelled to start treating it like the temple and gift that it is. And for those of us that are stuck somewhere in the middle, pray for both.

the Lord is not slow...

i've been back from boston for two weeks now.

the first week was weird but things are feeling back to normal again now.

with this being my first mission trip, i wasn't expecting that time of adjustment afterwards.    

after seven straight days of focused intentionality, it just felt odd to return to normal life.

every day began with personal devotion time. we met as a group and had a short discussion about the day ahead with some scripture and prayer. we spent our days serving and prayer was constantly laced through our activity. in the evenings, we gathered together with worship music followed by a lesson about living life on mission.

and then i came home.

on top of that, i spent every waking moment for seven days with the same 16 people (and particularly the three other people in my room). this was not nearly as hard as i expected it was going to be.

and then i came home.

and i kind of missed them.

and i still do.

this trip was amazing. everything i expected and so much more. i've been a little overwhelmed about how i want to document it. i chicken scratched some notes and such right away...things i want to make sure i don't forget...because my memory is just down right horrible.

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any of us should perish, but that all should reach repentance.
- 2 Peter 3:9

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Prayer Prompt:

A few of the students are headed off to college this week...pray that they have a smooth transition, that they lean in to God if they get lonely or overwhelmed, and that they be a light on their campus.

Count others as more significant...

Not long after returning from Boston, I was working from home one day. There was a knock at the door. A neighbor from down the street that I knew but she had never been to my home.

Her and her husband are former Bostonians. Knowing that we had some Red Sox fans in the house, she dropped off this awesome print of Fenway. It's even signed by the artist. So incredibly sweet and thoughtful.

Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus. Philippians 2:3-5

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Prayer Prompt:
Pray for my sweet neighbors and their health and hearts. Pray that more people could be so thoughtful and kind. Maybe even pray that you will more easily think of others (I know I personally need this prayer).

let your light shine...

day two of trip one.
wednesday.

we spent the first six nights of our trip at a best western in dartmouth. the girls slept four to a room and i'm not gonna lie...i was a teensy bit worried about that. but...(spoiler alert)...it was fine. and dare i say, i actually enjoyed it???

our youth pastor and fearless leader, david bennett, had put together devotional booklets for all of us to use during the trip. i love this. we went through the book of philippians. our mornings had later starts, allowing for breakfast, workouts, bible study, etc.

I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.  - Philippians 1:12-14

this morning i prayed that our group would have a manner of life worthy of the gospel of Christ (Phil 1:27)

we began our day together as a group with a meeting at the Hartis home. this was our more official introduction to Chad, Jodi and Brayden. they were such gracious hosts and welcomed us into their home multiple times throughout the week. 

Chad was captivating. as he poured out his heart to us, it was so obvious that he has a sincere love for the Lord and a willingness to follow. he gave us an introduction to the area and how they ended up there.

they saw that the new england area had some of the lowest percentages of evangelical christians. 3% in that region versus the 27% in NC where they are from. 

they also had a heart for college ministry which pushed them to the town of dartmouth because of UMass Dartmouth. the town has 35K people and 3 evangelical churches. 300 people on any given sunday attend those.

the Hartis family has been in dartmouth for a couple of years...they moved when their son, brayden, was a baby. in september of 2015 they officially launched South Coast Community Church. their desire is to be a church that plants other churches; that raises up leaders and sends them.

Chad's words were so encouraging, especially to someone like me that had never been on any type of mission trip. he affirmed that we were there to just be a light in a dark community.

You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a blanket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. -Matthew 5:14-16

he reassured us that people in that area are curious and hungry and eager to learn...but slow to respond. many have never heard the gospel. ever.

horribly awkward selfie of me that i only share because alex & lexi were complete awesome sauce. 

after lunch, we split into groups and headed out on our first real "assignment." we were dropped off in neighborhoods - chaperones paired with students - and we hand delivered flyers about the family fun night that south coast would be hosting that saturday. 

my job, as a chaperone, was to set a good example of how to do this and then let the students really "own it". this is one of those moments when i'm like "so, this seemed like a good idea when i signed up but not so much. i'm out. peace." but i didn't bail. and not only did i survive...but it was fun. what? what? 

My word of the year is JOY...and I live near CHARLOTTE. cool, right? 

here's a little secret...the people of Boston are not "obnoxious yankees". they are actually really nice people. yeah, we met some resistant folks...but mostly they were just good ole fashioned nice peeps. 

and the students? oh man. these kids are amazing. the leaders lead humbly. the quiet ones talked. the shy ones stepped out in faith. the talkative ones listened. y'all...these kids. i can't even. 

Josh, Katie & Alexus

it was a long day (or um...maybe half day). it was hot. really hot. but there may have been drinks from target as a little reward.

and there was dinner. i'm going to be honest. i've never traveled on a "church budget" before. this was new to me...and ended up being so adorably awesome. we had a full-on fajita bar...in the breakfast room of the hotel. it was pretty cool. i'd love to say i cooked, but let's be real people. i scavenged their stock room for the right containers and i chopped. stick with your gifts, right?

chef cavin

after dinner, we had an evening meeting back at the Hartis home...with worship music. be still my heart. josh played the guitar. david played some instrument he sits on (sorry, i sincerely don't know what this thing is called). and we all sang, praising the Lord and his awesomeness.

we debriefed from our day and talked about living life on mission...not on a mission trip, but daily life on mission. we are to present ourselves as a living sacrifice, in light of what Christ has done for us. look at life through a "gospel lens" and take advantage of the opportunities that God gives you.

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. -Romans 12:1

Everyone we meet is someone that God loves dearly. #truthbomb 

and then we went back to the hotel and...the vibe changed. matthew taught us a game called silent football...this ended up being "the thing" for the week...it was intense. and hilarious. and totally too complicated to explain here. but the look on matthew's face in the photo below pretty much nails it. 

i don't remember what time i went to bed that night...but i know it was with a smile on my face and a full heart....

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Prayer Request:
Pray that our group would continue to stand firm in one Spirit, side-by-side, for the gospel.

Soundtrack: 
when i study The Word, music often comes to mind where scripture is included. on this morning, i made a note while diving into Philippians 1 --- Passion's "Let It Be Jesus".

Let It Be Jesus - Passion

give glory to your Father....

Day one was awesome and all of our prayers were straight up answered.

For today...

Prayer requests:
(1) that these students will feel the passion and devotion of the Hartis family and it will propel them to live on mission (they are amazing!)

(2) After lunch we are heading out for several hours of flyer distribution. Pray for physical endurance in the heat, spiritual guidance and wisdom as we speak to people in the community and for God to soften the hearts of the folks we meet.

The scripture is the same as my last post because when Chad Hartis spoke to us this morning he referenced this passage...same one I put on the goodie bags I made for the girls on our trip.

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”  - Matthew‬ ‭5:14-16‬ ‭ESV‬‬

now they went...

day one 

(does anyone else launch into singing "it's day one of the rest of my life, it's day one of the best of my life" in their head anytime someone says "day one"??? no? just me? oh well. - if you don't know what i'm talking about, give it a listen here.)

anyway...day one...and it's a long one.

i woke at my normal time (5 a.m.) and did the last day of our pre-trip devotional, aptly titled "the Gospel sends". after dropping my son off at his summer camp, i went and picked up one of the students, Alexus. she is the only student that i knew before signing up for this trip.

we headed to my sister's house who drove us to the airport. our flight wasn't until 11:30. students were supposed to be at the airport by 9:00 and the chaperones by 8:30. Alexus and I were early and the first ones there...possibly the earliest i've ever been to an airport for a flight.

everyone gradually arrived and it was time for a group picture. and a group selfie. when "the other holly" busted out her selfie stick, i was pretty sure we'd be getting along just fine.

we made it easily through security and plenty of time to grab "lunch" before our flight. except that it was still pretty much breakfast time. the group of girls i was wandering with...we got sushi. for breakfast. the first of many firsts on this trip. i may have followed it up with a cinnamon bun. but there's no proof.

during our airport wandering, we came across a circular area and I said "hey we should all get in the floor in a circle and take a picture." and they did...with no hesitation. i knew it was going to be a good week. and it was slight affirmation of what i already knew - i have a inner teenager that just won't grow up (which is why i have gone through a hannah montana phase as a full grown adult).

we eventually loaded on to the plane where our seats were all grouped together. i was a little worried for the sanity of the other folks on the flight, but really our group was pretty well-behaved.

 It was an easy flight - under two hours. This was my first time flying JetBlue and it was a great experience. Uneventful flight...just the way I like them. The employees in the airport were very friendly, as was the on-flight crew (as evidenced by the the pretty hilarious photobomb courtesy of a flight attendant). The best part? I got WINGS. Two thumbs up JetBlue. 

when we arrived, we had some down time because two of the male chaperones had to go pick up our mode of transportation for the week - a 15 passenger van and a Ford Escape. i may have eaten a burrito the size of my head that was labeled "small" on the menu.

my geographical knowledge of boston is limited so pardon my poor descriptions of where we were in some cases (actually, this is true for anything relating to geography and/or directions, not just boston).

we wandered through an area that i believe is known as the financial district and hung out in a quaint little park with a foundation while we waited on the Hartis family.

according to instagram, these photos were taken in Post Office Square

then we met the Hartis family - Chad, Jodi & Brayden. i felt like i was meeting rock stars. after reading about them, praying for them, hearing updates, for over a year...it was super cool to finally meet them face to face.

we walked to Quincy Market and were given some freedom to roam and find some food (keep in mind how much i've eaten already...i opted for a smoothie). apparently we only saw a portion of this (the food part) and there is a lot more to it.

while i "ate" my lunch, i talked to Jodi...it's weird to look back at the first "get to know you" conversation and then just seven short days later, i shed tears as we walked away from their apartment.

anywho...

next up, we took the T to Fenway Park (the T is basically their subway system). i knew this was going to be a long day and wondered how my energy level would be. i despise public transportation because of its lack of efficiency, but appreciate it for the experience. the long-ish T ride gave me an opportunity to sit by myself in the "quiet" while most of the girls were standing up in the back.

i guess i should point this out for anyone reading that might live under a rock... Fenway Park is the baseball field where the Boston Red Sox play. it is iconic and one of the oldest surviving stadiums in the country.

it didn't take long for Brayden to start winning over the hearts of the students.
the "boys" carried him all through the streets of boston. 

as we approached Fenway, i started to get giddy and then there was a turn of events...

of the 20 tickets that we had for the game, about 5 of them did not scan - including mine. it's a long story, but in summary... the majority of the group went into the game. five of us stayed out. it took us a long while to get in the game. it involved a lot of walking. a lot of standing in line. and a lot of stress for our fearless leader. BUT...we got in.

everything that Spencer (my stepson) had told me about the ballpark suddenly made sense. i was in awe of my surroundings. so much history. so much character.

we played the detroit tigers and lost by one run. this is supposed to be the last season for david ortiz (big papi) and he homered...so that was awesome (i even made spencer a little jealous with that!). jackie bradley jr is my favorite player, due to him being a gamecock, and he also homered - just for me, i know it!

see that white dot??? that's JBJ. 

there were a few moments during the game that were just surreal. i was watching the sunset over fenway park. what? and i stopped to think about all of the immense talent that was in that stadium right now. with me. at that moment. craziness. i got to sing sweet caroline in fenway. what???

look it's me. and fenway. we're BFFs. 

the Hartis family

our row of peeps - way up in the right field bleachers

two of our chaperones left the game early and grabbed our vehicles so we did not have to take the T all the way back to the cars. so we had a little time to kill after the game...so i took pictures.

me and wally

we had about an hour and a half drive down to Dartmouth, which is where we'd actually be spending the week. all of our luggage was crammed into the Escape so all of the people were crammed into the van like sardines. i vaguely remember some incident of abby's phone getting lost, then josh & alex carefully planning a well-thought out rescue mission.

by the time we got to the hotel, checked in and settled down for the night...it was 2:30 a.m. i was proud of myself for being an old lady that hung from 5 to 2:30. go me.

one of the things that really stood out to me about day one is that i felt so welcomed and accepted by a group of teens that didn't know me at all. we immediately started meshing and it was the beginning of a beautiful week.

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." - Matthew 28: 16-20

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Praise:
That morning, as part of my written prayer, I asked "Let this be so much more than just a trip."
He answered.

Prayer Prompt:
That all of us would have a disciple's heart in our daily lives...no trips necessary.

let your light shine...

It's time.

It seems like it took forever to get here. And it feels like it totally snuck up on me.

I'm excited and nervous like before the first day of school.

I don't know what I will post here during the actual trip. I will do most of my documentation on Instagram (which feeds to my Facebook). This will be a good place to put longer stories, if needed.

For now, here are some specific Boston prayer requests:

(1) Safe travels. And just safety in general. This world we live in is getting scarier by the day. Praying for God's protection over our team

(2) Energy and patience for all of us. Tomorrow is going to be a LONG day. Everyone will be at the airport between 8:30 and 9:00 am. We will not get to our hotel until well after midnight.

(3) Good weather. As of right now, Saturday has the highest chance of rain and that's the day of South Coast's free family night - NOT the day we want rain. Good weather that day will help us to better spread the gospel.

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”   Matthew‬ ‭5:14-16‬ ‭ESV‬‬