Cedar Rapids, Iowa

So I have been back from Cedar Rapids, Iowa for almost two weeks now and I still can't quite describe the experience. For those of you who don't know June 13th, 2008 Cedar Rapids, Iowa experienced what is called a 500 year flood. That means that the flood waters reach levels so high that it is predicted that a flood of this magnitude will only happen once every 500 years! The flood waters crested in Cedar Rapids at 31 feet! Homes and businesses were destroyed, communities and families uprooted.

I was given the amazing oppourtunity to serve through the CRWRC with 15 other people, ages ranging from 18-79! That's 7 generations of believers traveling together and serving communities together to further his kingdom by loving on people! The week started out with some trim work. I conquered the top of the ladder and managed to swing a hammer without falling off!!!! Ross and Joleen were awesome teachers and they are such a wonderful example of a strong christian marriage:) Days 2-5 were spent doing various painting jobs. I am now confident in my ability to to paint and repaint trim lol. I was kinda bummed because it was almost the end of the week and I still hadn't really interacted with any home owners. I hadn't heard any stories and that is one of the things that I look forward to most. So wouldn't you know at the end of day 5 God provided! Jenni, Nancy R. and I were sent to a house on 8th St. The home owners were already moved back into their home. And not only were they home when we arrived but they had rescue dogs!!!! I got to talk to them for about a half hour about their dogs, their neighbors, and their experience with the flood. It was the perfect way to end the day! That night we shared our favorite verses with each other and I LOVE that activity:) Verses that others chose that really spoke to me include the following; "We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully. Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality." Romans 12:6-13 I just love these verses and I think that they speak so much truth. Everyone has their own gifts and talents suited to their personality types and all of that was hand picked by the God of the universe! BUt on top of that he is telling us that we must use these gifts to love others. Not surface level or superficial love either but genuine love. Love that costs us something. Love that leaves us different than when we started. So I had been thinking a lot about these verses when we went ot the work site the last day. It wasa slow morning and there was not enough work for all of us so about six people had things to do and the rest of us were just kind of standing around looking for things to do. The passage in Romans hit me and I remembered that the lady had cats (we met them the first day) and her cats were very hairy. So I said to myself "God has given us each unique gifts, I love animals and most of the time they love me, her cats are hairy and I could brush them for her." So with that I knocked on the door and it was one of the best decisions that I ever made. First of all I got my fury fix. Boot a tempermental torti was interesting and I met their 14 year old black cat! Which is awesome! I LOVE meeting old cats:) We talked for a long time. I listened to her tell me all about the flood and how it had impacted every aspect of her life. I was able to share my passion for rescue animals and giving back. She shared and I shared and it was wonderful.

God knew exactly what he was doing long before I did. He knew that the week would start off slow and that I would be bummed about not interacting with people as much. He knew that I would need to paint a lot so that I could get asigned a new task. He knew that this new task would take me to the first home. He knew the first home would have a story, a story I had been praying to hear. And on top of all that he knew that the home would have animals. Then he used one of my best friends to show me the Romans passage, so that I would meet another home owner and hear another story the next day. God is good all the time. His plan is perfect and he really does have our best interests at heart. This is why I am always so sad to come back to "real life". When you go on a mission trip life is good, it's simple and it's full of God. You get up every morning, you eat, you go to the work site and you serve people, meeting needs all day long. You come back shower, eat dinner, and do devotionals. Then the next day you do it all over again. It's awesome!!! So I always find myself asking, "how can I live for God and in God every day once I get home? How can I serve people and meet specific needs everyday back home? and finally how have I changed throughout this expeirince and how does that change affect the way I am going to live my life?" So far I've come up with a few things. 1. Love to serve and serve to love 2. Choose People over things 3. Pray for more of Him and less of you 4. Be devoted and live for Him and Him alone. And with that I say Praise God for Peace, Love and Grace.