NY Mission Trip :: Day 7

Stumps Are Gone.

Prayer Room Is Completed & Furnished.

Landscaping Is Done.

Passing Out Cards Is All Thats Left To Do...

T-Minus 10 Hours Til Take Off.

--Bryan

NY Mission Trip :: Day 6

New Floors Are In!!

The rain kept us from accomplishing a lot today, but the floors progressed! The above pictured room was a storage closet, but was emptied out, painted, and now has wood laminate floors. Tomorrow we will take a trip to Ikea to purchase some decorating items and furniture.

The other portion of the day was spent resting and bonding as a group. We cried over "Up!", the cartoon movie. It was cute, funny, and definately had its sad moments. Then we head back to the church and prepared for dinner, and Emma's birthday. Emma, Sterling's middle daughter, turned 6 years old today! We were so excited to spend her special day having fajitas with her, playing with her new stuffed tiger (appropriate from the FBC Katy group), and decorating with pink & purple balloons.

To see more pictures of this week, click on the appropriate link below:

Album 1

Album 2

Album 3

Album 4

--Bryan

NY Mission Trip :: Day 5 & 6

Well... where to start? I was too tired to write last night, so I am a little behind on the posting, sorry. Ill try my best to fill ya in.

Yesterday (Wednesday) was our official off-day, so we went into the city. For a large portion of the group, this was their first time into Manhattan. We started out the morning by taking the train from Farmingdale to Penn Station. The Farmingdale station was packed due to the US Open being nearby. Always an adventure, we made it to Penn and spent a few minutes trying to buy our 1-day fun passes for the subway. While it sounds easy enough, buying anything for 17 people is a little crazy.

Our first stop was at Battery Park, where we boarded a boat to LIberty Island. You can see in the picture above our entire group (minus me, someone had to take the picture). This was a really neat experience to actually visit the island and see the monument. Then, we got back to the mainland and walked up Broadway to Bowling Green. We had lunch at a Subway Sandwich shop, and then kept on walking to Trinity Church (as seen in National Treasure), Wall Street, Ground Zero, and St. Pauls church. The kids seemed to have a good time getting to see the sights and hear the sounds of Downtown.

We then boarded a train and went up to Rockefeller Center. Half of the group went into H&M for a bit of shopping, and the other half walked down Fifth Avenue to get a peek at the NYC Public Library (which was covered in a massive net for remodel/upkeep). A few souviener shops later, we returned to Rockefeller to participate int he NBC Studio Tour. While we couldnt take pictures, we did get to visit the set of the NFL pregame show on NBC. While standing on the set, we could hear The Roots playing down below us. They are the house band for Jimmy Fallons late night show. Kind of cool to know they were below us filming the show! And, we also got to sit in the Saturday Night Live studio. I would LOVE to see a taping of the show, but the odds are just unreal. Something like 30,000 ticket requests for only 1,500 available tickets... guess Ill hve to settle for watching it on TV.

Finally, we took a walk down to Times Square. Things have changed so much down there. The city has closed off portions of the roadway and made a pedestrian mall of sorts. Kind of a let down in my opinion. Part of the wonder of TS was having to dodge the cabs and cars in the roadway. We ended our night with dinner at Dallas BBQ. Located just off TS, on 42nd St., Dallas BBQ is a really cool venue with good food at a good price. Noone in our group went hungry, I promise you that!

And while that catches you up to this morning... we havent done much today. Our goal was to knock out our remaining work projects, but due to rain, we have had a pretty much washed out day. We were able to pass out cards for a bit, but as it began to rain harder, we called the kids back in. Now, we are in the process of having some down time. STerling and Luis have informed us we have completed nearly all of the jobs possible to do given the weather circumstances, so were taking some time off! We are preparing to head to the movies to see "Up!". Ill give you a review of that a little later tonight. :)

Again I ask that you would pray for us. Pray for the rain to stop, the sun to come out, and the dirt to dry enough for us to accomplish the tasks. Also, pray we rest while we have this time. It is so easy to want to go, go, go, but I firmly believe our team is in need of major refreshing. Thank you so much. We covet your prayers.

--Bryan Martisek

NYC Mission Trip :: Day 4

We Have Great Students!

The last 2 days have really solidified that opinion within me. Each evening while here, we have spent time praying together for each other, for the church, and for the Lord's will do be done. It has been a real joy and blessing to sit and listen as each student is specifically prayed for by their peers.

And, not only do our students pray together, but they work together too! As I mentioned in the previous post, we had half of our group head to the train station today to pass out bags with bottled water, a granola bar, and a few reading items. This meant waking up and being "at work" at 5AM. Thats REALLY early when you consider these kids have been working long days, AND, we are experiencing the time change. 5am really feels like 4am... whew! But service with a smile is the method of operation for this team. I am so proud of them, not for who they are on their own, but who they are allowing the Lord to be in them.

After a very early start today, we got to work around the CCLI campus tearing up stumps, painting, and preparing more bags for Thursday mornings visit to the train station. We are ahead of schedule as far as work projects go, but there is still much to do.

Please continue to pray for us tomorrow. We are heading into Manhattan for our fun day, and we are looking forward to having some great fun. Please pray for our safety and time of refreshing. We will be sure to take loads of pictures, and more than likely have loads of stories to share!

Until then,

--Bryan Martisek

NY Mission Trip :: Day 3

So Monday... was a really long day. A good day, but a long day.



We started out the morning as usual with a little breakfast time. Cereal is always the best way to go! Then, we divided up into 3 teams. Our 4 projects for the day were: 1) to plant 20 bushes & grass plants along the exterior of the worship center, 2) to remove a line of hedges along the front of the church property, 3) empty and make-ready a storage room into a prayer room, and 4) to assist in organizing 400 servant evangelism "gift bag."



The teams did great! The gift bags were all completed, each one with a water bottle, info card about CCLI, and granola bar. These bags are actually being passed out as I type by half of our group. They are at the Farmingdale and Massapequa Park train stations, sharing these items with business men and women on their way into the city. We will repeat this project on Thursday morning as well.



The landscaping along the building was quick and painless as well. Rebecca and Becky made quick work on digging, planting, and mulching the flower bed. You can see their progress in the the linked photos.



Bronson led a team of students to clean out, remove carpet, prime with paint, and de-bird nest the storage room. It seems that this particular project was full of little suprises. Noone was quiet sure where the odor was coming from, and the team had bleached the floor and concrete walls to try and kill whatever it was, but it continued to permiate the room. Bronson, the brave one he is, popped his head into the dropped ceiling and found, as he describes it, a "2-story condo for some sort of animal." It took a little time, and lots of trash bags, but they were able to remove the birds nest and begin the process of de-stinking the room.



The last team was Aaron, James, and myself. We had not planned on removing these hedges when we first arrived, but after Sterling and Luis discussed, we agreed to give them a hand with this large undertaking. As you can see in the above picture, this was not going to be an easy task. But, the Lord made a way with a chainsaw, and now all we have left is stump removal! (Also, a not so simple task :) )



We had a great day working on all of these tasks, and are getting an early start on wrapping them up today as well. Please continue to pray for our safety as we work, and that the Lord would us to further His kingdom.

Click Here For Additional Photos

--Bryan Martisek

NY Mission Trip :: Day 2

Link To Additional Photos

So... today was a really good day. I mean that in the most honest and sincere way possible.

We started the morning by having Dunkin Donuts (thank you Lord!), and then a short group prayer time with just our 16 FBCers. Then we joined the 10:30am Bible Study class. (pictured above) Then, we were able to attend the "Encounter" service, which is the contemporary service here at CCLI. Each year that I have been blessed to make this trip, I have seen the Sunday attendence grow. What excites me most about this is not that there are more physical bodies here, but that I know Sterling and Luis are investing in these relationships. Each person who comes in gets a friendly greeting, and a genuine opportunity to know about a God who loves them. It was so great to see.

Shortly after service, we had to make ourselves scarse while the CCLI team had a New Members info class. We took the opportunity to grab a quick bite at Burger King, then head out into the neighborhoods surrounding the church to pass out the previously mentioned Kidz Camp flyers. Today, we got out close to 750 or so cards. Now, only 4,000 left... :)


All of that is well and good, but the best part of the day, my highlight, and collectively the brightspot of our time so far... 5PM Prayer Meeting. Sterling and the crew here have begun meeting at 5PM on Sunday afternoons to pray. Not talk about praying, or teach about it. Simply to pray. They meet with whoever shows up, the format is fluid and flexible, and there is no set time limit. We spend nearly an hour and a half in prayer for CCLI, church members, their families, their jobs, our team, each one individually, and our church back home. It was an incredibly sweet time of seeking the Lord in our lives. If nothing else was done today, to see our students praying for each other was worth it.

After prayer time, we pulled out the grill and fire up some hamburgers. I dont know about you, but there is nothing better than a few burgers, dogs, and potato chips! We shared some great time in fellowship with the staff and mission team, and their families. Avery (Sterling's youngest daughter) is absolutely precious, and indeed, as he so often shares, a great reminder of God's provision and protection.




Please pray for us as Monday begins our physical work projects. There is much to do, and it seems the list grows each time we turn around. We are excited to accomplish all we can, but even more so are excited about what the Lord wants to teach us while here. Join us in asking the Lord to soften our hearts and open our ears to hear His message for each one on this trip.



Until Monday Nights Entry...







--Bryan Martisek

NYC Mission Trip :: Day 1

17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 18All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.

Greetings from Farmingdale, NY...

I am excited to report we have safely arrived and begun to make ourselves at home, thanks to our good friends at Crossroads Church of Long Island. Pastor Sterling & Pastor Luis, along with their wives and our own Hannah White (serving as a CCLI Intern), welcomed us warmly and made us feel right at home.

Though we had a 4am meet time, a 7am flight, and a big lunch of pizza pies, there is work to be done, and this team has come ready to do it! As Dom Grotti and I ventured off to Costco to purchase our groceries for the week, the rest of the team began their trip by walking door-to-door, passing out flyers about the upcoming CCLI summer events. Though it may seem like a menial task, Sterling reminded us that there are 1.5 million residents in Nassau County, and only 1 english-speaking Southern Baptist Church. Every connection counts.

Please be praying for our group over the next week as we do more advertising, landscaping, cleaning, and general make-ready for the summer. Our team consists of: Domenic Grotti, Bryan Martisek, Bronson & Leah Stewart, Rebecca Allen, Aaron Adams, James & Taylor Miller, Channing Stewart, Cede Patterson, Sage Auman, AJ Blackman, Kaylyn Sinclair, and Becky & Amber Zama.

Check back with us daily, as we plan to update the blog often both with pictures and written entries. For now, I leave you with a link to photos from today. Don't get the wrong idea, we did more than play basketball. :)

Click Here For Photos

--Bryan Martisek

PS - The above scripture is a life verse for Crossroads Church. A reminder to all that we are not only transformed by God's grace, but we are tasked with sharing that message of reconciliation to others. Please pray we would be obedient to answer that call.