CCM Diamond Willow Trip

07/24/2017

We are just being back home. Exhausted doesn't begin to describe how some of us are feeling tonight. This was written the first time CCM sent a group to Diamond Willow. It's long, but I hope you will take a moment to read it because it is still true.

What do we do with this love God gave us for these children? What do we do with the compassion that has grown in our hearts? What do we do with the fear we have for what they went home to?

We pray and we trust God!

El Roi-God Sees

God sees into these childrens' homes. God sees if they went home to a mom and dad and a homecooked meal. God sees if they were dropped off and then had to figure out where they were sleeping for the night and had to fend for themselves to eat any food. God ;sees every moment of their lives

Jehovah Shammah-The Lord is There

We have to trust that our Almighty God is there with those children tonight and every night. He never leaves them alone. Sin and darkness is all around us. God has given us free will and that means we are allowed to fall into sin and cause pain. We have to remember and trust that God will never leave these children from this week alone. He will be there to comfort them and love them in every moment.

Jehovah Rapha-The Lord That Heals

God has the power to heal any hurt and pain that our children may go through. God has the power to heal any hurt and pain that the families are feeling or have perpetrated. God has the power to heal ALL. We can never forget His healing power in the darkest of circumstances.

Jehovah Jireh- The Lord Will Provide

God will provide for these children's needs. Their greatest need is His saving grace. We can be thankful that He allowed us to be used this week to show his love. We can be thankful that there is a ministry like Diamond Willow to continue to show Christ to these children and the community through all their programs.

Jehovah Raah- The Lord My Shepherd

God loves these children. We may have gotten close to them and God allowed us to give and receive love to and from them this week. No matter how much love we think we have, it cannot come close to the love that Christ has for every one of these precious children. He is their Shepherd and He will watch over them.

He knows what they are going through. He knows what happens in the dark of night. He loves them, he sees them, He never leaves them, and He will heal them. We have a responsibility to trust God with the lives of these children. He did not send us here to with the expectation that we will leave with anxiety or fear. “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear...” (1 John 4:18) He sent us here to because He trusted us to show His love. Now, we have a responsibility to trust in that love that He has for them.

07/23/2017

Trying to cool down with the girls on one of our camp days.

07/21/2017

~The LORD is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.~ Deuteronomy 31:8

I was able to find about a dozen verses speaking of God, or the Holy Spirit, going out before His people. Preparing things in advance.

It's easy to feel like WE are doing something wonderful here. That WE are bringing the gospel to these children. We have done nothing of the sort.

~In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God~John 1:1

We have not brought the Word. The Word had always been here, since the beginning, we are merely facilitators of that Word.

Their eternal salvation does not depend on us. His majesty and His glory are seen and proclaimed with every sunrise and every sunset.

~The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.~ (Psalm 19:1-4).

He's been rising and setting the sun on the Reservation long before we came and needs no man's help with his creation.

God does not NEED us, but He allows us the privilege to use what He had already put in place long ago to show what His love, His mercy, and His grace look like. What an honor. What a responsibility. Please continue to pray that our team honors Him with our words and deeds.

07/20/2017

What a fantastic first day of VBS! Our theme is "love" this week and we studied Matthew 19: 13-15 today. We asked the girls, "If Jesus was here to spend the day with you right now, what would you want to do with him?" One answered she'd like to take picture with him. One said she'd take him to the park and another wanted to bring him to a bouncy house. 🙂

One of the highlights of the day for the kids is always going to the lake. Unfortunately, the biting flies were horrible down there today and we couldn't go. With temps at 105, Diamond Willow improvised. We had multiple sprinklers and a makeshift slip-n-slide. Everyone cooled down and had a wonderful time.

In the evening, our teens made us all proud. DW had to dig up a septic pipe in this rock hard ground. When volunteers from the terms were requested, Joe Munro was one of the first to go, while many others went swimming. We thought Katie McGinnis was hanging out with the teen girls but she had decided to take advantage of the quiet cabin and do her devotions. She worked on them for over an hour. We told her that was serious quality time with God. CCM should be proud of our kids we sent to Diamond Willow.

Tomorrow we are hoping even more girls come and we can continue to teach them and show them the love of Christ.

~Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters~ Colossians 3:23

Please continue to pray for the girls we are serving, the ministry, and our team.

07/18/2017

Made it to Diamond Willow and enjoying our first night. Reconnecting with old friends and getting to know new ones. Weather was HOT when we arrived (104 at one point) but cooled down in the evening after a storm. Getting ready for a good night's sleep tonight and a busy day tomorrow.

~The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.~Psalm 19:1

07/17/2017

We are so thankful for the hospitality of our friends in Fertile, IA. Great fellowship last night and a wonderful light breakfast before heading out this morning. They don't send you of with prayer at any hotel. Rob and Karen Perry, see you in a week on our way back. ❤️

07/17/2017

Made it to our stop for the night. Spending time with our friends from the Church of Christ in Fertile, Iowa. What a fun time we've had on the drive so far. Switching cars to spend time with each other, lots of laughing at our meals, and bonding as a group. Very thankful for great weather and great friends who have opened their home for all of us.

~Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.~ 1 Thessalonians 5:11

07/16/2017

And so this adventure begins! We are all excited to share the Word and love of Christ with the children on the Crow Creek Reservation.

07/12/2017

For the history buffs. Some information on the Crow Creek Reservation.

~In 1959 the Army Corps of Engineers began work on the Big Bend Dam in South Dakota. The project was located on lands belonging to the Crow Creek Sioux and the Lower Brule Sioux and would take 21,026 acres of Sioux land........Former Commissioner of Indian Affairs Philleo Nash would later say that Pick-Sloan “caused more damage to Indian land than any other PUBLIC works project in America.” ~

Click on the link below for information on the Pick-Sloan Plan. It includes some details of the Big Bend Dam (pictured) which severely impacted the Sioux Tribe and the Crow Creek Reservation. A bit long, but well worth the read.

07/10/2017

We are down to the wire for getting ourselves ready to go back to Diamond Willow next week. All of us have been busy with family and church obligations these past couple of weeks and continue to be as we are all involved in VBS. Please be in prayer for our team this week. Pray we prepare with anticipation and excitement. Pray that we stay healthy and our bodies stay strong.

05/21/2017

Thank you to everyone who attended or helped with our Spaghetti Lunch & Silent Auction. It was a huge success!