All Aboard!!! (again?)

So, we’re on the third train of our adventure across our country.  I can’t even begin to explain the crazy things that have been happening to our team.  The Holy Spirit of God is ALL OVER this trip.  We have had the privilege over and over and over again to be the hands and feet of Christ to people.  In just the first few hours of this train ride I have seen the movement of God in my life and experiences with other people, and the rest of team as well.  I’m sitting here getting chill bumps thinking about it.  Thank you God so much.  I am so humbled!

A real quick shout out to the alumni who rode out to see us in Mineola.  They caught the Amtrak in Dallas and rode out to Mineola to surprise the team and send us on to our next piece of the trip, and also to return the cars.  Thanks so much!  I love you guys!

Below are a few pictures for you to enjoy.  Click a picture to see it enlarged.  It’s late, and I’m exhausted and need my sleep.  So, I love you all…and I’ll blog tomorrow.

-Sherman

Road Trip Alumni Heading to Mineola!

The EARLY Morning Caravan Heading East

Laying Sod at Habitat for Humanity in Tyler, TX

Habitat for Humanity in Tyler, TX

Sherman and his Mom and Dad and Aunt in Flint, TX

On the Train

St Louis Arch

Patrick Sharing With The Group in St Louis

Day 3 Posts

Ok, here are some of the teams posts from day 3.  I’ll upload a few pictures in the next blog or two.  Signal is very sketchy wherever we are when I have a chance to stop to blog.  But it’s AWESOME hearing from yall!  Please keep the comments coming!  I’m reading them to the kids!  I love you all!  By the way, the blog posts are from me, Sherman, unless otherwise stated.  Thought I’d clarify that to keep things simple because  I know Mike Monnig reads these.  :)

-Sherman

 

 

Day 3

Hey!! It’s Sam and I’m not allowed to tell you where we are, but I’m sitting here, reflecting on the past couple of days and see that this trip is about as crazy as anything you’d see in St. Louis. Yesterday we helped at the city’s Independence Day party thing… I don’t really know what to call it. All the kids played with little toddlers and babies and stuff. They were really cute. Things got really slow and we had like… 3 kids playing with about 15 of us so we were told we were allowed to go on the museum tour and go up the Gateway Arch. And so I did with Sierra, Devyn, Gracie, and Josie(:  Sherman surprised us after that and we all went to see the Cardinals game. I thought it would be boring, being that I’m not really a baseball fan, but it ended up being so much fun that I nearly lost my voice!! We were probably the most obnoxious people in the stadium, but we had fun, so it doesn’t matter:P Things got pretty serious when we got back to the church we stayed at (steeple status!!) Patrick, the man who helped us out at the church, told us his life story and, honestly, brought me to tears. He told about how he became a part of the church, and what he had to overcome.

Yesterday was simply amazing. And St. Louis smells like poop. And the Backstreet Boys are preforming here. Emily and I are going!!!:D    - Love, Sam:>  (Samantha Michaels)

What an early start once again. Overnight train rides can either be good or bad. The good part is you get to have fun with your friends and the bad part is sometimes you don’t get that much sleep. Seeing St. Louis was so amazing. The arch was so beautiful. You can see it in pictures every day, but once you see it in person, it just takes your breath away. Working the 4^th of July festival was so much fun; especially when I got to go up into the arch. After that, Sherman surprised us with tickets to the Cardinals game that night! I couldn’t believe I was going. When we got back to the church, Patrick told us his story and I started to tear up because I couldn’t believe what he had gone through and where he is today. Patrick also took us on a walk to see the fireworks that night over the arch. It was so beautiful. I wonder what place God has to send us next.   - Love, Josie(:   (Josie Pritchard)

Wow today has been interesting! After a partially good and bad overnight train ride, we went to our lodging for the night: an old Gothic church. It was so beautiful! Then we helped out with the Fourth of July celebrations by the arch. That was fun; there were too many volunteers, so we pretty much went to the arch museum and then helped out here and there. Then we went to a baseball game where the Cardinals beat the Reds, and followed by walking around the area and watched the fireworks show. That was the awesome part! The city was planning on having a show on July 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th, but the first two days were rained out, so we got to see three days’ worth of fireworks! So cool!   - Love, Anna  (Anna Cole)

The Arch and Fireworks…

We arrived in St. Louis an hour late on the Amtrak from Mineola after our stay in East Texas.  Yesterday was a VERY long day!  We arrived at our place of lodging, The Bridge, a ministry of the Centennary Methodist Church in downtown St Louis.  We had the luxury of mattresses on the 3rd floor of the church.  We learned about The Bridge homeless ministry and fell in love with it!  Here’s a shout out to Patrick, our host!  We love you Patrick!  Thanks Bethany for the hook up on a place to crash!

The majority of our day was spent at the St Louis 4th of July Fair.  The teens work in the Kidzone which is this huge area where kids could play.  I think our teens had as much fun as the kids did!  I like this project because we served the community in a different aspect.  It was fun work and we met a bunch of people and got a chance to tell the story of how and why we were there all the way from Texas to serve.

We then took the team to a Cardinals game.  It was great fun.  It was nice to chill at the game for awhile.  The teens earned a little fun time.  And then after the game, Patrick shared a lot of his personal story, and took us on an urban walk, and we were able to watch the fireworks show over the arch.

Below are a few posts from the teens from Day 2, and then I’ll put up another post with some from Day 3.

-Sherman

 

 

Day 2

Hey everybody!  Today has been amazing!  Last night we got 9 hours of sleep, and got to worship with the coolest people ever this morning.  This trip is truly inspiring in every single way. I cannot wait to see what the rest of trip has to offer. I love you mom! God Bless and PS Devyn has the hiccups, it’s driving me CRAZY and the train has a broken restroom, GRODY. (:        - Sierra Henry

Howdy Y’all Today has been super awesome I got to see to Sherman’s Family and I went to Wal-Mart. I already miss my new friends from Brookhaven but can’t wait to see what’s at the end of this crazy train. Most of my time I’ve spent on this crazy train has been with the girls because most of the guys are playing Magic… sucks for them this is my first time on a train and at one point we hit a bump and I jumped to a desk and held on for dear life. So I guess last but not least Colby stunk up the Train and I’m about to try to sleep…on a train. I also forgot how to open a pen…   - Kaylan Ramsey

Hey guys, Emily here. It’s been just an amazing day. We got NINE HOURS of sleep last night. Crazy right? It was awesome. Then we woke up and had breakfast and a sermon-type devo with the Brookhaven staff led by Yoshi, one of the guys there (that’s not his real name, it’s his nickname. Everyone there has their own nickname). I’m gonna really miss them. Then we went up to Sherman’s parent’s house. It was entertaining to hear Sherman, or should I say Angela, slip back into his British accent, especially when he said “Mum.” We had lunch there, along with some amazing cake. Thanks again to them [: Then the reveal of a train ride to our next destination. I was really excited, I love train rides, especially OVER NIGHT train rides. I’m Kaylan’s train buddy, too, which is awesome [: Well, I’m tired, and want to try and catch some shut eye, who knows what we’re doing tomorrow d:     - Love, Emily Atkeisson

At Mom and Dad’s

Yesterday we surprised the kids and stopped at my mom and dad’s house in Flint, just south of Tyler. My mom and dad have been supporters of Road Trip for many years, and I thought it would be cool to stop and let my parents see Road Trip first hand. So when we got to the house, I told the team to go in and sit in the living room in silence. I had asked my mom and dad, and my aunt Delia (my mom’s sister) and my brother Craig and his boys, Daniel and Hayden to wait in another room to call them out and surprise the kids. It was very nice revealing. My family was so proud to have us all there. The team did a GREAT job representing Road Trip, the Light, the Church, their own families, and most of all, Christ. The team loved being with my family. It was a great visit where we served my family, but I think we were served back even more. Thanks mom and dad, Delia, Craig, Daniel and Hayden for your hospitality and welcoming spirit. I love you all!

-Sherman

 

Brookhaven Camp and Those Crazy College Interns

We showed up at the Brookhaven Christian Camp on Saturday, like I told you earlier. I just want to give a shout out to the 11 college interns that are employed by the camp for the summer camps. Our act of service was to help them clean the camp facility after a session of summer camp just left. We did that, and as usual, the team did a great job, which surprised the interns. They thought, “Great, a bunch of teens ‘helping’ us.”.
But what happened was amazing. God did an awesome thing in the short time we were with those incredible young people. Deep loving relationships were made that I think could last a lifetime. They are amazing young adults who are on fire for the Lord. They fell in love with our team and we did with them.
To our new family at Brookhaven, I love you very much and thank you for the hospitality and love you showed me and my team. We look forward to seeing you soon. Carol, (the camp manager) thanks for making this happen. God bless you all!

-Sherman

 

From the Team…Day 1

Good Afternoon Everyone!  It’s still HOT!  Yesterday the team worked VERY hard with the Smith County Habitat for Humanity in Tyler laying 10 full pallets of sod and priming the entire interior of a new home.  We then drove up the road to Hawkins, TX and worked with the summer camp staff at the Brookhaven Christian Camp.  A great impact was made at both places.  Below are a few comments from the team from Day 1.   I hope you all are doing well.  I heard that Van did a great job this morning!  We miss you all and I love you all very much!

-Sherman

 

From the Team:

Today was a great day, I got to use a pick ax to tear apart a huge dirt/rock mound. It was so fun. Then I got covered in dirt and had to wash off, love you mama and daddy, and sissy and chance, and Keaton I guess.      – Colby Burke

Awesome day!!!  Working with the new owner of the house we were painting. She was so thankful for our help, this is what road trip is all about!!!!    – Bill Watson

Hey guys! This day has been nothing short but amazing. We put sod down in a habitat for humanity house in Tyler Texas. Then we drove to Hawkins Texas to help clean up a camp site. I am so stocked about the next adventures we take. I love you all sooo much! God Bless you all!   -  Devyn

No Signal

Ok, so as I type this out on my phone, I’m standing at the highest point at this camp where we styed last night here in East Texas. I’m hoping I have enough signal to get this on the blog. I will make a better entry later today. I just wanted to let everyone know that the team is very good. We had a great first day. I’ll catch you up later. The wind is starting to blow and I think I’m about to lose signal! I love you all!

Hot and Sweaty

There has to be something wrong when it’s just 10:30am and it’s already 92 degrees. Yeah. Road Trip is underway! We’ve made it to our first destination and I haven’t killed anyone yet! Haha! Well, just wanted to say hello and let you know we’re alive and well…well, hot and sweaty but good! I love you all! LEAVE COMMENTS!!!

This is Where it Begins

Last night, we had our final meeting, that included the team and their parents.

Anticipation.  Wonder.  Impatience.  Excitement.  Intimidation.  Fear.  Ready.

All of these emotions and so much more are running around in the team.  I can’t wait to see how God will change all of our lives, and the lives of people who we come in contact with.

I’ve got one word for everyone who knows Road Trip.  One word that will be a source of ongoing strength for everyone concerned.  For all the team, their parents, the church, the people out there…Pray.

I love you all!

Sherman