Tuesday: Bridge Route and Bluff

On the last day I think everyone was more aquatinted with the rejection of prayer but even though some people didn't want it they were still grateful for the lunches. Only going on 3 routes it seemed like we did this for a lot longer and most of the people loved talking about what they went through but still loved our hospitality. One guy even said he didn’t want a lunch because he had had fish earlier because he had saved money for food and not cocaine which the sermon the night before showed. Pastor 7 said that good attracts good and that bad attracts more and more evil. The people that live here at the Garden may have less when it comes to wealth but they are smarter and have that immense gratitude for having a God that brought them out of the slums.

~ Trevor Gordon

Today was our last route. We went under some bridges and we went to the Bluff for a little bit. The first bridge we went to was on the edge of a very busy road and we had to walk on this very steep and slick slope to get around and get people lunches and pray with them. When I went up to one man under this bridge to pray with him the smell just hit me all at once and it was aweful and the rest of the route that day I kept thinking about how aweful it must be to have to live in that smell and not be able to get out of it. This really made me realize how blessed I am with simply a shower and clean clothes.

~ Aidan Balint

Today we went on our last route. Personally it was a really eye-opening experience because we really went to what looked like the worst parts of this city.it was also really sad to say goodbye to the children that we really got to know well during the past few days. Throughout this trip I am really finding out how good I have it by just having a home to go to every night and food to eat. Then later tonight we went on a little field trip to the smallest McDonald’s in the world and got McFlurries. So all in all it was a pretty great day.

~ Robert Fellerer

Our last route was a very memorable time. Our team started off by going under a bridge, which had a lot of people living under it. It was very cool to see how almost everyone that we asked to pray with, actually wanted us to. After we left the bridge we went to another bridge, which we had gone to yesterday. There were so many people living under this bridge (or series of bridges), that each of us took three lunches to each side. There were probably around 20 tents total. We put a lunch in each tent and prayed over it, and again most everyone was so happy to receive prayer from us. It was very eye opening, first of all how many people actually lived in this kind of poverty, and second, how happy the people were that we prayed with them and just how thankful they were for the lunches but more so the ministry.

~ Sam Hendrikse

As we wrap up our trip, we ended on a high note. We started off our day making 150 lunches for our routes. Today we did the Bridge route which was a different experience than the Bluff. As we went under our first bridge, it was heartbreaking. The smell and the area that these people have to live in is unimaginable. I have learned so much on this trip. It was so eye opening to see what these people have to go through every day. I love seeing how God speaks to them in such a short prayer and how most of them really wanted the prayer. Some of them even prayed for us which was really powerful. I have had an amazing experience on this trip and God has really opened my eyes to see how truly blessed I am!

~ Grace Van Ess

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Making lunches New Year's Day

Under the Bridge

Tents under the Bridge

After visiting some bridges and a few other stops we ended our route in the Bluff

Kim and I and Nick. Nick has become a good friend over the years and we consider each other family.  We are thankful for  his friendship, for the truth he has shared with our students and his willingness to talk about lessons he has learned from his past. Always hard to say good-bye.

Isaiah 58:6-8, 

“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:

to loose the chains of injustice
    and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
    and break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
    and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
    and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
    and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness[a] will go before you,
    and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.

Amen

Monday: Working at the Garden / Night Route

Today is a day that will be remembered. Today we went on a night route, which is something that the groups from our school have never done. It was a pretty different experience than the Saturday route for a couple reasons. First it was just our group that went and not also people from the community. Second, we went to places that we needed to seek out the people rather than them come to us. The people that we met on this route were some amazing people. They had great stories to share, but also some were heartbreaking. One person specifically was a man named Abraham. He is going through a great deal right now by not being about to get a job or stay in any shelters due to a problem with his arm. This is weighing him down greatly, but he asked for help from the Ministry Ministry. This was the first time we saw this and it was pretty incredible. A little later some girls and I prayed with a man named Bob and his wife Barb. They also asked the ministry for help. Both of these two experiences were very encouraging that the people we are talking to on our routes can find hope and get out of there situations if the seek God. This was truly and experience that will never be forgotten by any of us.
~ Maddie Zylstra

During some of our down time this afternoon we all went outside to play with the kids. Outside 7 Bridges there is a basketball hoop and then a hill with different play structures on the top. Towards the beginning of our time outside everyone was just playing lightning and trying to “move the puddles.” Since I wasn’t very fond of playing lightning or horse, I took one of three siblings, Faith up the hill to play on the structures. Then we came across a huge stick that she seem infatuated with and which she dragged across the hill - so much joy in such a young little girl. Then her brothers came up the hill along with a few others from our group. Jonathan who is maybe a year or two older than her insisted on playing “polar express.” So all of us lined up and walked up and down the hill collecting more people to add unto the train. (Including Mr. Hendrikse) I think that it is so amazing how God can use children to bring happiness to so many people. After that we went on a night route, which really opened my eyeballs to how blessed we are and how inappropriate it is to complain about small little problems in our lives. The people we passed out food to and prayed for barely have anything and have to live 24/7 on the streets in those conditions. We thankfully have warm houses, live in safe neighborhoods and enough money to buy food.

~ Emilie Ackley


Today we had the first night route our group has ever done, we had to pack lunches for the bridge route. Sam and I started by grabbing the drinks and getting some of the prep work done. We packed snacks and drinks first and we made bologna sandwiches and even though Grace hated bologna the people on the streets enjoyed it. We had to do some clean up work before that and it wasn't as bad as at home cause we did it for others and with some dandy people.

~ Jonathan DuMez

Today was a good day for our group.  You can get a glimpse of what it was like by reading the posts above and checking out our pics, but I just wanted to add a couple comments about our night.  I know some of us were a little nervous to go on the night route, but it was such a blessing to see how everyone responded to the different people we met along the route.  We saw people living in some pretty tough circumstances.  Under one of the bridges there was little tent city and the stench of urine was incredibly strong.  We all came back sharing names of individuals we prayed with along with stories we heard.  Definitely gives us a greater appreciation for what we have and how blessed we are to live where we live and be a part of the Christian community.  We had a little downtime to play games and hang out after dinner.  We joined all the men in the ministry and all the women who live here for a New Year's Eve service at 11:00 pm. Pastor 7 talked about leaving the past behind, giving it to God and moving forward making God the lord of our lives as we enter the new year.  A new year and a new beginning!  Everyone came forward after writing down something that was standing between them and God, a sin or a struggle.  Everything written down was nailed to the cross in front and then the cross was taken outside and we all took one of the papers off the cross and threw it in the fire.  We brought in the new year while on our knees in prayer.

Happy New Year!

~ Mr. Hendrikse

Stayed at The Garden this morning and helped with some chores

Digging a ditch for some drain tile

The front of the church

Helpin' out the guys

Starting to count and sort snacks for lunches

Bologna sandwiches...

Putting lunches together

A little journal time

David leads the Bible study before lunch

Jocelyn and Faith

This train stayed together quite a long time as Jonathan (red jacket) directed the Polar Express to the North Pole

Maddie and Gabriel

Adriana and Sabrina

Hang out time before leaving for route

Loading up after prayer for Night Route 

The "Bridge to Nowhere"

Joe was adamant we look up when we offered prayer, because "Nothing is down there but dirt and mud."

A group shot with our leaders before heading back

Got back around 7:30 and supper was waiting for our group

A little game time

Jocelyn and Rocky (Raquell)

Pastor 7 led the New Year's Eve service, bringing us into the new year

A pic with Nick and Jess:)