Salkehatchie Series
The Business of Bridge Building
On June 17, 2015, I was participating in a Salkehatchie mission camp in South Carolina. That ministry is run by the South Carolina UMC. There are 46 camps and over 2,000 campers who participate throughout the summer all over the state. Salkehatchie is faith in action. Youth and adult volunteers head out to rural, low-income … Continue reading
Warriors Among Us
Wednesday night, we held our breath as Hurricane Michael headed our way. It had already decimated everything in its path in Florida and Georgia was next. We had seen alerts most of the day and were under a tornado watch until the wee hours of the morning. I had felt uneasy all day long. The … Continue reading
Faith Family Reflections
Last October Hurricane Matthew hit the United States. South Carolina incurred a lot of damage. I remember being incredibly worried about my friends there, or as they say, friends who have become family. My daughter attended a Salkehatchie mission trip in South Carolina four years ago. The following year, she wasn’t going to attend. There … Continue reading
Eliminating Srongholds
On a recent Salkehatchie mission trip I attended, we encountered lots of wasps and found many wasp nests. When we eventually removed the nests, the wasps moved on too. I felt prompted to take a picture of one of those many nests. I wasn’t sure why at the time, but I’ve learned to follow those … Continue reading
The Enormity of Grace
On the final night of our Salkehatchie mission trip, we all participated in communion. We do that every year and it’s always a meaningful service. But, this year, was a communion service like I had never participated in before. We were all called to kneel at the alter. As we waited for the pastor to … Continue reading
Removing the Bad
On a recent mission trip that I attended, I was throwing old shingles into a dumpster. When we began our work, the dumpster was completely empty. But, after we had been at work on the home for a few days, I noticed that the dumpster was getting full. We had to tear off all of … Continue reading
Trusting God
On a recent mission trip my family took to South Carolina, we were planning on working on two houses on two different work sites. Both sites required new roofs which is not unusual for Salkehatchie mission houses. What was unsettling was that the weather report called for 80% chance of rain on Monday and 100% … Continue reading
Inspiring Through Action
On a recent Salkehatchie mission trip to South Carolina, my group was working on a roof. If you don’t know anything about roofing, you first have to remove all the old shingles and every single nail. Then you have to replace any boards that have rotted underneath those old shingles. It takes a while and … Continue reading
A Reminder to Pray
On a recent mission trip that my family attended, I found myself sidelined with an injury. As I sat down, annoyed at my misfortune, I was reminded that I had also been sidelined with an injury, on my very first day, on my very first trip, three years before. I had been picking up shingles … Continue reading
Seeing Beyond the Surface
On my family’s recent mission trip to South Carolina, my hubby and son were assigned to Site 2 to work on. The home had been recommended to our team and required a massive amount of work. It needed a roof. The bathroom floor had soft spots and holes in it. You could literally see the … Continue reading