Serving and the Summit

Believe it or not, due to weather, Rehoboth Christian School was canceled for the second day. Our service involved half of us returning to the Church of the Nazarene in Gallup. They organized clothes and food to be distributed to people in poverty. They also went door to door at low income housing to distribute food and publicity materials for the church. Our other project was at Bethlehem CRC (about 25 minutes away) to help with cleaning projects at the church building and in the parsonage.

After lunch we visited the Perry Null Trading Post, a well-known and historic store in Gallup. Students enjoyed seeing (and buying) Native American jewelry and other items.

We then went a big hike up to Pyramid Mountain. For over 2 hours we enjoyed the wild west scenery and beautiful vistas.

Our devotions were led by Pastor Stanley Jim, a local Navajo pastor and CRC minister. He challenged us to be more committed to Jesus.

Being Flexible is Important

Rehoboth received about a 1/2 inch of snow. School was canceled. But the real reason for the cancellation was that the roads were icy and the area does not have salt trucks. Additionally, the school buses can drive up to 40 miles away to pick up students in rural areas. So we were flexible.

Instead of three groups, we had two. Thirteen students stayed at Rehoboth to do various projects: clean our dorm, clean out storage rooms and load the back of the pickup with trash for recycling and the dumpster. The rest of our group went into town to feed the homeless through the church of the Nazarene. After passing out food in the city to homeless people, they joined another church who was sponsoring an outdoor hot lunch for the homeless. Students served food, talked with those who came and even a few prayed with people. They returned with enthusiastic testimonies of God at work.

At 2:00pm we had a geology presentation by Mike DeJong. At 3:00 we went to visit Georga, who is a Navajo rug weaver. She demonstrated how to make wool into yarn and then how she makes tapestries.

After dinner we played a group game in the gym that was a version of kickball–great fun! Then we returned to our "living room" in the dorm for devotions. Again, a wonderful time of sharing, Scripture and prayer.

Zuni Indian Reservation

Breakfast was at 6:30, believe it or not. We then traveled to the Zuni Indian Reservation to serve in the Zuni Mission School. The distance was 42 miles, but the travel time was over 1 hour and 20 minutes. Once there, we led chapel. This chapel was like Tuesday's except the audience was kindergarten through 8th.

Students served in classrooms and the library, helping students one on one with a class project. It was  beautiful to see our students sitting all over the room paired up with Zuni students.

After lunch we learned more about Zuni culture in an old Catholic mission church. Once back at the school, Pastor Mike, who has ministered in Zuni for over 25 years (and whose wife is the sister to former TC teacher Mr. Engbers), debriefed our time in Zuni. His stories and insights touched us all.

At dinner, students were told to sit in alphabetical order according to last name. They were not thrilled with the idea. But it was so worth it. Within minutes active conversation (and some debates) were happening that would not have occurred without the special seating arrangement.

After dinner we went to Mrs. Tornow's sister's house for dessert and games. It was a great fellowship time with tasty treats and lots of games, including ping-pong, air hockey & pool.

Our devotional times have been a highlight. We sing, read God's Word, share as a whole group and in small groups. We pray. Tonight we formed a big circle (really an oval) and each person offered a prayer–a holy moment!

Chapel time

Our chaperones at work!

Former Catholic Mission

Game Night

Day of Service

Tuesday Serve groups

• Church of the Nazarene: cleaned and organized a food bank in Gallup that ministers to the homeless.
• Indian Hills Elementary School: students worked in classrooms tutoring students and helping teachers.
• Rehoboth group: We led the high school chapel. Ariana, Olivia and Steven led the singing. Mr. Wiener led a skit and then talked about Jesus calming the storm from Mark 4. We also did various projects from working in the preschool, helping the HS secretary, and cleaning out a room filled with decades worth of paperwork.

At 3:30 we hiked First Canyon along the Hogbacks (the small mountain/hill range behind Rehoboth). This hour hike surpassed expectations with unexpected beauty.

After a dinner of Navajo Tacos, we learned more about Native American culture through stories, music and Indian dance by a skillful 6th grader. Our devotions focused on service.

A Great First Day

We arrived around 3:20 just as the Rehoboth students were leaving on the buses. After settling into our rooms in the dorm, we took a walking tour of the campus. For dinner we had "green chili stew". It tasted better than it sounds. It was not green and was more like a very tasty soup with meat. Our devotions involved a name mixer game, singing, personal reading of Scripture (1 John 4:7-12), small group sharing, large group sharing and prayer. The focus was on living as a Christian community. We also had a meeting about our service projects tomorrow. Our group is bonding well and everyone has a great attitude. Thanks for your prayers!

Landed!

Everything went well at the airport (except two students losing their boarding passes; don't worry, they made it on the plane). Very smooth flight. A three hour flight was only 2 1/2 hours. Finishing lunch at Subway or Burger King and about to drive to Rehoboth!

Getting Ready for Rehoboth

PRE-TRIP INFORMATION: CLICK BELOW

• Rehoboth RENEW Pre-trip Meeting
• Packing List