Just about every year since we moved here in 2000, our sending church in IL has sent up a youth group to do VBS on one of the Reservations near us.
This year, the group arrived on Saturday, June 21, after an 11 hour drive and after our mad rush to clean the house. 🙂 This year we only had eight extra people in our house for a week. Because of conflicting schedules with the camp that many of the youth group kids counsel at, the group that came here this year was exceptionally small.
One of the main highlights this year for everyone, I think, was the fellowship and getting to know each other better or for the first time. We played many games, some of which were volleyball, the Darcy game (aka the name game) and signs.
In the mornings after breakfast and group devotions taught by Dad, there was outdoor work to do. We had a truckload of 10 cords of wood delivered right before the group came, so the project for the week was cutting, splitting, and stacking the wood so that we will have wood to burn in the winter.
Everyone had a different job to do.
While the outdoor work was being done, the lunch crew would make sandwiches. Around eleven or so, everyone would come in and get cleaned up, finish packing their lunches, and put on our team shirts and head out to reservation about eleven thirty. On the way there we would eat our lunches, and after we crossed the Reservation line we would pray and read Scripture.
All the order forms from everybody’s lunches
When we got to the rez, a group of us would head out to pick up a van load of kids, and more local kids got dropped off, or they walked or rode their bikes to the chapel.
Because the group was so small this year, Jonathan got to help out, and he was excited about that. He took Daniel’s place as snack man, and Daniel joined me in games. Daniel did a lot of running for me: whether it was putting cones out, or filling up buckets of water, he was right there to help. I don’t know what I would have done without him, because Mr. Spaargaren wasn’t able to make it this year. I was the head games leader, Deborah was the guitar player for singing and the lesson teacher, and Sara was head craftswoman.
Each day had lots of activities…
Deborah, Olivia, and Jack were great song leaders.
Sara did a great job with crafts again!
Everyone enjoyed Drip, Drip, Drop. 🙂
Deborah praying at the end of one her lessons on what Jesus is like.
On Tuesday night, a very hospitable family had the whole group over for hamburgers, walleye, and tubing. We ate first and then went tubing even though the weather wasn’t the most beautiful. We all had a blast, and everyone who wanted to went at least twice.
On Thursday, we had a picnic after Kid’s Club and invited the families of the kids to join us. I am not exactly sure how many adults came, but there were a few, and we were encouraged because one lady from the community even brought a dish to share!
Getting ready to serve the first people through the line.
A few more pictures from the week…
If you look closely at the leaders, you can see they look a little wet 🙂
Group devotions in the evening.
The kids liked playing jump-rope
The wood pile later in the week!
On Friday night we had our annual go-to-Walmart-night, where girls go in one van and guys in the other. Usually we go to Caribou Coffee and Dairy Queen before Walmart and don’t cross paths until Walmart, but this year because the group was so small, we broke tradition and all went in the same vehicle. 🙂 When we got to DQ, it started pouring. We saw it coming, and made a dash for the one foot of protection under the roof, but we didn’t make it quite it in time. 🙁
Trying to escape the pounding rain.
Then, on Saturday morning they left, and it was very quiet.
Once again, our wonderful week serving the Lord in this little village is over, but we continue serving Him in other ways.
The group on the last day of VBS.
