Dear Friends,
I write to you after a long, hot day in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. It was a day spent relaxing and floating in the river as we prepare for our arrival on the Navajo Reservation tomorrow for our week at Sierra Service Project.
For those youth new to SSP (this is my fifth time attending SSP), the questions about what to expect are flowing. They are curious about what will happen and what they will experience.
For those of us who have been before, we are wondering what other churches will be there, who will be in our work group, what kind of project will we be doing, and what will the spiritual program be. We are excited to be taking a week to repair homes, change lives and enjoy the fellowship of believers.
This is not much different than the questions and feelings that I am having for the day after this trip as I arrive for the first time at TFUMC as the new pastor. I wonder about who I will meet, what ministry I will be doing and how I will be witnessing lives changing before my very eyes.
I am looking with anticipation to the conversations I will be having with you, the wonderful meals we will be sharing, the time we will spend studying the Bible and discovering how it applies to our lives, and seeing how Christ is shining through your ministry.
For now, it is late and we have a very long drive tomorrow, but I look forward to the days, weeks and years that we have ahead of us. I will continue to pray for you and for this time of transition. Please pray that we have safe travels, God’s protection as we work, and a wonderful experience to change how these kids see themselves as Christ’s army of super heroes.
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Stacy