The Last Two Weeks

Two weeks ago today, the Rescue Ops focus left the TC for Ozark, Arkansas. Along the way we saw the hand of God and learned about His provision firsthand. Shortly after we started our journey the power steering fluid began to leak. By the time we were in Lebanon, Missouri the van would not hold any fluid. So there we are, twenty-seven students and staff hanging out on the side of the road wondering what we are going to do. It is a Sunday and way past closing time for anything that would have been open. Not even ten minutes later, a man, Bud, and his wife pulled into the gas station parking lot. Bud had just finished a men's retreat with his church and was on his way home with his wife when he felt the Lord tell him to pull into this gas station. He asked the question we all ask: Why God? Then he saw us and understood. We spent the night at a huge, beautiful church. We woke up the next morning and they provided coffee (we already had food) and a place to worship and plan. Later that day, we got in the van (not the one that was broken down) and headed to the camping site. We arrived around one in the morning and went straight to bed. The next morning our team was reunited, as we had had to split up in order to make it to the camp site, and we began to meet the YWAM Ozark team. Just to clarify, when I say "we" I mean everybody else, I hung back like I frightened doe. Our days were spent outdoors, obviously, and were filled to the brim. We had breakfast, quiet time, teaching, lunch, stations/day hikes, maybe some free time, dinner and then class and worship. By that time it was dark and some of us would go to bed (like me). Thursday they sent us on an overnight hike with the teams that had previously been set up. My team was to hike a creek bed, a dry creek bed, then pick up a trail and end up back at Base 2. (Base 2 was where we were dropped off.) The dry creek bed was the hardest part. These were not just rocks, these were boulders, covered in moss and leaves and getting more in more wet as the rain kept coming. We made it through with no serious injuries and began to look for camp as we knew there was no way we could find the trail that night, as the sun was setting. We had a window of about thirty minutes when it was not raining. We split up, looking for dry wood, (Jesus, please! Was our cry) setting up a tarp tent, etc. No joke, after we got both the fire started and the tent set up, it began to rain again. My team and I decided to do a HUGE no-no and put the tarp over the fire. We were warmer than we would have been throughout the night had we not done that. The next morning we woke, were able to find the trail, and what had taken us four hours the previous afternoon, took only two. We were the first team in and we were freezing and very proud of ourselves. We went back to Base 1 and waited for the other three teams to come in. They had two hours or they failed. Team 1 came in 15-20 minutes behind us and the other two teams came in after the time limit. We took about an hour then packed into our vehicles and went to the Ozark's base. We spent Saturday relaxing and spending time with each other. By this time I was seeking out others to converse with. On Sunday, we left the Ozark base at 4:30 am and began our drive to Cincinnati, OH for YWAM Finish the Task conference. Here we met up with the rest of our base and a few other DTSs from around the States. By Wednesday, I was spent. I wanted to go home and sleep in my own bed and know where everything was and know what the rules were and... I began to seek out time with just me&God more aggressively and with friends who would encourage me&&remind me that it was almost over. We were going home soon. We left Thursday night, and while I was excited I did not want to leave my Ozark friends. We traveled throughout the night and arrived home at 6:30 Friday morning. I went to sleep and woke thirty minutes before a dear friend left to go home. He had told me earlier that week that he was going home. Then, Thursday morning, he told me he was not coming back to the TC. I was sad to see him go, but I understood how this was a better thing for him. He needs this time to be at home, and we will support him here at the base. So much more to say and post, but they are not well-thought thoughts. My thinker is shutting down. Talk to you soon.