It was a great week and a half trip and the Lord certainly used it in many different ways. I was personally very blessed and encouraged by the Florida team that we were able to serve alongside of and can confidently say I learned some new things about my role as a believer during my time working with them. It was also really nice to just get out of the office for a while, get to know my co-workers a bit better, and to see GRN materials really being put to use! Those things are powerful!
The team from Florida that we were working with were from Calvary Chapel St. Petersburg (and a few from Orlando), and are a joyful, encouraging and courageous group of young evangelistic believers. From them I learned what it looks like to always be prepared and willing to share one's faith:
1 Peter 3:15:
"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,"
As I was reflecting on what I had learned from this trip, I began to see some overlap with what I learned from my trip to Morocco in 2010. The concept in 1 Corinthians 12:20-27 is what specifically came to mind. It says:
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This passage stood out to me because the teams on these short term trips always seem to be made up of a very diverse group of people with varying skill sets. God showed us how valuable each and every person's skills were to the overall big picture. One example of this was the Florida team and their excitement to street-witness to the people of DC. That's never been my cup of tea, but we were able to provide many recorded materials for them to use during their witnessing, which often made a big impact on the people being spoken to (especially when they didn't speak much english).
All in all it was a great trip... very hot and humid, but a great trip nonetheless.
And now, a few pictures for you all!
Most of these are of the sightseeing I did while I was there. Enjoy!
The GRN booth
Backside of the booth with the Capitol in the background
Me at the Capitol. We thought this was the front side at first, but then realized that the statue was facing the wrong direction for that to be right.
American Art Museum. The Smithsonian museums were our refuge from the hot, hot heat
Me at the Lincoln Memorial
Another shot of the Lincoln Memorial
Martin Luther King Jr. gave his "I Have A Dream" speech here
Represent Oregonians
Washington Monument on the fourth of July
Me at the front of the Capitol building
The National Archives building and the Fourth of July parade
National Archives building. We got to see the Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights and Constitution later on after the fourth of July crowds had died down.
40 foot doors at the National Archives building
La Casa Blanca (aka, the White House)
The Smithsonian Castle
It was really cool to get to see Ford's Theatre! We didn't get to go inside, but it was still exciting.
Ford's Theatre
I'm not 100% positive this is the original one, but the American Art Museum had some incredible paintings, including the Van Gogh self portrait
The Old Post Office
It was hot, and humid, and there were some really awesome lightning/thunder storms. There was even a warning call while we were in the National Archives, telling us to stay inside during the thunderstorms. Naturally, we went outside to check it out :)
I tried to get a shot of the lightning. This was the best I could do on my phone.
