A Trip to the Lake; Being the Hands and Feet

For a few weeks now, the weekly Bible study that meets at our place has been planning on doing some sort of outreach. Yesterday we finally got to put that plan into action. It was simple really; go out to White Rock Lake with ninety cold water bottles and eighty hot dogs. Beth, Stephen, Benjamin, Kelli, Kyle, Abbey, and myself set up at a picnic table along the road. It was great to see everyone being the body and bringing their gifts and talents into the mix. Beth, Kelli, and Benjamin had made signs which we put up to let people know about the free water and hot dogs. No Jesus loves you poster (although He does), no preaching at people, just loving people. Of course it is our goal to demonstrate Christ's love for these people and not to deny our faith. Our thinking was we want to get to engage with people and show them our love for the Lord through our actions and love, and not because we wrote it on a piece of poster board. It was interesting because one of the first people to come by was a jogger named Patrick. We said hello, and he replied with, "Greetings brothers in sisters in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ." It was pretty cool. No posters, no t-shirts, no starting the conversation with, "Hey you need Jesus", but he knew what we were about. He stopped and prayed with us which was great.

We got to meet lots of interesting people. Whites, blacks, Hispanics, Indians, homosexuals, old people, young people. We like White Rock Lake and the diverse group of people that are there. It's interesting to see and know that regardless, we all need Christ. I believe the only reason that this outing was so successful was because of the prayer that went into it. We are not out there earning brownie points. We are not the focus. God gave Himself the glory, and I thank Him for that.

One thing that sticks out in my mind is how the Spirit moved and had total strangers opening up their hearts to us. I think it shows a lot about mankind these days. How they are hurting, lost, and wanting answers. How they long for fellowship, but need it with the Father to be truly satisfied. We got to pray with one couple who just moved here from Tennessee. She shared with us how her daughter may be pregnant, her son being blind in one eye, and her now being cancer free. Many wanted to know if we would be back next week. I really hope so. It would be great to make this a regular thing at a particular place and time. I think it would really help us build a relationship with people, who often come on a regular basis themselves. Thanks to everyone who has been praying for us. We love you.

"And Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.'" John 6:35

The Great Smoky....Hills

Sigh. Get excited. Here are the pictures from our trip.
ARKANSAS

We stopped at the Welcome Center in almost every state we visited. In Arkansas, we found a brochure for a flea market called Carrie's. It sounded cool so we went to Little Rock to find it. It wasn't cool. But...I did pick up this creepy doll form that makes Alex squirm. It is currently being used as a hat rack.

TENNESSEE

Nuff said! On our first day, we drove straight through to Nashville. The TN coupon book directed us to a Days Inn. Aside from the stains on the sheets and the hair in the bathtub, the smoke detector decided to tell us it needed a battery change at 2:30am. Here's a sleepy Alex trying to take the battery out.
I finally decided to call the front desk. Usually there are buttons that say "Front Desk" on the phone, right? Well, not here!
KENTUCKYThe next day we headed up the Kentucky to go to Mammoth Cave National Park. We got sidetracked at this cool little place called Lost River Cave. It was beautiful and we had a cave boat tour. Cool!
Lost River Cave was used as a night club during Prohibition and it's still functional. There was a bar and a bandstand. Pretty sweet! Legend has it that Jesse James also hid out here after one of his most famous heists.

After Lost River Cave, we went to Mammoth Cave National Park. This is one of the longest caves in the US.
We did a (really cheap) 3 hour/3 mile tour carrying lanterns. Our guide showed us Indian artifacts from thousands of years ago and grafitti from a couple hundred years. It was really neat. We wanted to do a crawling or kayaking tour but there wasn't enuogh time.
After Mammoth Cave, we decided to drive straight to Knoxville to spend the night. I decided that we should take a scenic route (while Alex slept). It was the most beautiful drive I have ever done. These pictures can't even capture it but it was breathtaking and I'm not even a person who really likes scenery. TENNESSEE AGAIN!

After Knoxville, we drove to Gatlinburg, TN AKA The Gateway to the Smokies. We got our campsite and then took a short hike.
We swing on vines.
Alex drank water out of a waterfall (but no worries, he has a water bottle that filters water).

We saw coyotes, deer, salamanders, and frogs....and sharks.
(Just kidding) Gatlinburg has an unbelievable aquarium (go figure!). It was one of our fun things to do in the city.
We went to this goofy "House of Illusions". The Genie in a Bottle trick was the only mildly cool thing there but we still had fun.
They had one of those machines where you can try out different haircuts. Here's the new Alex!
Our second day there, we did an 8 mile round trip hike up to Ramsey's Cascades. Let's just say it was pretty miserable. It was essentially 4 miles uphill with endless switchbacks. You kept thinking you would get there and then you would round the corner and see more trail. The scenery was pretty and some people ahead of us saw a bear, so that was cool.

Once we finally got there, we had enough time to sit down and eat one handful of trailmix before it started raining. Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, we did not have panchos so the way down was wet and slippery. When we finally made it, I determined that we needed to take showers. The National Park didn't have them, so we had to drive around to RV Parks until we found one that would let us pay $3 to bathe. Definitely worth the $3 though.
When we got back, Alex started the fire. He made some delicious steaks.

I slept.

LOUISIANA

Because we were flying by the seat of our pants, we made changes to our plans. After spending a night in Alabama with Alex's Great aunt and uncle, we decided to head to New Orleans. I had never been there and Alex's family said it was really fun. We stayed IN the French Quarter on a Saturday night, so let's just say it's not our scene. We spent way too much money on dinner; I got beer spilled on me; and the jazz club we wanted to go to had a $10 cover in cash, which we didn't have. We retired early and watched some TV.

Here's Alex performing for me. :)
This was a fabulous jazz band that was in a bar off Bourbon Street. We would have gone in to listen but we weren't sure of proper bar etiquette, so we just stood outside.

I was expecting to see alot of devastation from Katrina but we really didn't see that much (and we even got lost and drove around in neighborhoods). After New Orleans, we drove straight through to Houston and stayed with my grandparents. We were very glad to be back in Texas.

This was a really good trip for us. It was just the break Alex needed from work and we had alot of fun together. See! I told you I would get them up!

Right the Wrong

So, for those of you that don't know me, justice is my schtick. It's the burden that God has given me. Alex loves Truth and I love God's justice (In fact, we almost named our dog TJ for Truth and Justice but we decided that sounded like a superhero name).

Tonight, Alex and I had the NBC news on while we were doing chores and such, and I happened to catch a story covering a peace organization in Israel that had given 100 Palestinians video cameras. They showed some of the footage that had been captured. The most upsetting was a scene where two elderly Palestinians were planting seeds in their field when four masked Israeli settlers with clubs approached. I looked away as they began to beat the old people with their clubs. My heart ached so much that I had a physical reaction.

Probably the most memorable moment of my trip to Syria is the walk-through that we did of the Palestinian neighborhood in Damascus. I was struck by the sense of injustice that had pushed these people out of their homes. I left remembering that whatever the Western media said needed to be taken with a grain of salt because there was a side of the story that was being ignored. An upsetting part of the news broadcast tonight was the reminder that it seems the world is against these people. They are the underdogs.

I don't know what God has planned for Alex and I but He has given me a burden for these people. I don't know how to help them but I know that He has called me to it. My prayers are with them.


Seek justice
Encourage the oppressed.
Defend the cause of the fatherless,
Plead the case of the widow.

Isaiah 1:17

Gracie's Bad Day

Despite my desperate attempts to NOT become a creepy dog person, I recently took the plunge and began searching for a dog dress. Project Runway Season 5 starts on Wednesday and Gracie needs to be dressed properly. I found myself traipsing about all over town looking for the perfect dress (mostly the right size). Yesterday, I took her to PetCo and while I was trying clothes on, I realized that I had been talking to myself and giggling about how cute she was while mere feet away were two stockers (not stalkers) who probably felt sorry for the poor dog lady. At this point, I stopped, put down the clothes and walked away. I was in desperate need of dog clothes rehab. Well, I found a dress today at Target that I am satisfied with. I raced home to try it on the dog, only to find that the carpet on our stairs has been ripped off by the world's cutest dog.

You'll have to excuse her body language in the picture, as she's just gotten in trouble for making a very costly mistake. She also pooped on the floor this morning, so really it's just been a rotten day for her. What better way to end it than to wear a dress lovingly picked out by your obsessive owner?

Hopefully, this will satisfy my need to clothe my canine. Alex and I want to buy a house and we're saving for that all-important down payment, so dog clothing isn't really in the budget. I'm going to start pawning my stuff on ebay this afternoon.

We got our 35mm pictures back from Tennessee, so you can be expecting an exciting photo diary coming soon.

Our 2000 mile roadtrip

Are gas prices high? Oh, we didn't notice. We just got back from a road trip across the South and it was really fun. Once our pictures are developed, I will post them. We went through Memphis, Nashville, up to Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, down to the Smoky Mountains, through Alabama, Mississippi, to New Orleans, to Houston, and over the forest and through the woods. If it sounds exhausting, it kind of was. Pictures later. I know you're holding your breath.

ALSO, I have applied for a job at IRC (International Refugee Committee) in Dallas. Basically, I would be a case manager for new refugees during their resettlement process. It would be an amazing opportunity to show God's love to people who really need it. I'll keep you posted if I hear anything about it. Please be praying that His will would be done. Let us know how you are doing! alex.and.beth@gmail.com