On the third day...

Well, we are three days in and I have a second to get something out to you guys. First, the kids have all seen your blog comments are very appreciative of them and know that everyone back home is proud of them and thinking of them. Secondly, I can assure you that you all ought to be proud of them because they are really working hard while dealing with heat thats in the upper 90's every day and matching humidity.

The jobs have changed every day for the past two days but on Wednesday, the group did some yard cleanup for a gentleman in his 80's and got some of the overgrowth that came from the winds of the hurricane and let me tell you that his yard looks completely different from when we first showed up.

Yesterday, we were able to split into three groups: one to finished up the work from the previous day, one team went to drywall, and the third team helped a family clean up their flood damaged house (standing water throughout the house up to a foot) and helped them get ready to have it gutted and redone.

Today, a group is staying behind in the church so we can clean a little bit while the majority of the group went back to continue the drywalling from yesterday.

I'm sure that they will all have some interesting stories to tell as we all will but once again, I'm so very proud of the work that they are doing considering the conditions that we are working in.

Tommorrow is our free day and we will head into New Orleans for a walking tour of the French Quarter and then lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe on Bourbon Street. I imagine I will be dragged shopping like last year but I hope they at least let me look at some boy stuff for a minute or two (they let me buy a hat last year)

Keep the blog comments coming and allow me to leave you with this devotional that Robin gave us last night that the kids really loved:

The top 10 things I learned at the job site:

10. You don't have to feel the love to show the love.
9. If Jesus is the vine, let me be tangled up in Him.
8. Allowing my life to get a little out of control may result in a jungle that may seem impossible to salvage.
7. What I want may not be what you need.
6. I want to be so rooted in God's love that no hatchett wielding passerby can seperate us.
5. If you keep looking for the sidewalk you just might find the right path.
4. Having no hot water for a shower is an okay thing on a 100 degree day.
3. Just because you find a boogie board doesn't mean life is like a day at the beach.
2. A cup of cold water dumped on my head can still be done in Jesus' name.

and last but not least:

1. There's no place like home.

Blessings and peace

Mike