Wow – It is already Friday! Thursday was such a blur, and I have no doubt today will go even quicker. Sorry this post is a little later than normal, but yesterday was full and we returned back to the church late.
We started out, as usual, with Kidz Camp. The kids are really enjoying all of it, but I get the feeling they enjoy the music time the most. Its always fun as Lance and I rotate working the sound board for them. This morning as I type this, the 3rd-5th graders are singing “Famous One”. Its actually a very sweet sound.
Following Kidz Camp, we had a short lunch, and then decided to “divide and conquer” our list of tasks. More cleaning, rearranging, and organizing were in order. Having a church property this size means there is a lot to clean, and gives us an even bigger appreciation for Carlos and the “guys in green” at FBC Katy.
Yesterday evening was rounded out with a trip to Shea Stadium for a Mets vs. Reds game. We are pretty thankful that we live in an area not heavily reliant on trains for transportation, as our group tends to always find some way to nearly miss our train, or nearly get on the wrong one, but in the end, we got it – and safely! The game was great and a perfect way to end the day.
Thank you all so much who have been praying. I personally feel much better, and I know many of the students have gotten a second wind of energy. We look forward to getting home tomorrow morning, but are also excited about what God is doing here, as well as what the future holds for this community.
Please continue to pray for us, and for the team preparing to leave for Trinidad in the morning.
--Bryan Martisek
Friday, July 13, 2007
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Day 6 :: Kidz Camp & Landscaping Done!
Wednesday is coming to a close, and things are beginning to wind down, in some sense. It is hard to believe we have only been here since Friday. It feels so much longer, in a good way! We will be sad to leave early Saturday morning.
Kidz Camp continues to run strong, having 47 kids today. We are praying to pass the 50 person count tomorrow! This is great considering there has not been a Kidz Camp/VBS here for nearly 10 years, and even this year there were some who questioned wether anyone would even attend. But God has been glorified and these children and spending the week learning what it means to know Jesus.
This afternoon the students nearly completed the landscaping project. There are only some minor details to finish up, and tomorrow afternoon will be spent completing a list of “honey dos” around the church campus. You can see before and after picture pictures of the landscaping above.
This evening is a “down night” for us, as we have no plans to visit beaches, or do anything but chill out and rest. Please continue to pray for our team, our mission, and the people of this community. And of course, please remember Jenna Edwards as she recovers from her hospital stay.
--Bryan Martisek
Kidz Camp continues to run strong, having 47 kids today. We are praying to pass the 50 person count tomorrow! This is great considering there has not been a Kidz Camp/VBS here for nearly 10 years, and even this year there were some who questioned wether anyone would even attend. But God has been glorified and these children and spending the week learning what it means to know Jesus.
This afternoon the students nearly completed the landscaping project. There are only some minor details to finish up, and tomorrow afternoon will be spent completing a list of “honey dos” around the church campus. You can see before and after picture pictures of the landscaping above.
This evening is a “down night” for us, as we have no plans to visit beaches, or do anything but chill out and rest. Please continue to pray for our team, our mission, and the people of this community. And of course, please remember Jenna Edwards as she recovers from her hospital stay.
--Bryan Martisek
Day 5 :: Kidz Camp, Cleaning, & The Beach
Today has been a long day. I’d have to say probably one of the longest this trip.
This morning started with Kidz Camp and approx. 40 kids. Each day we are seeing more and more in attendance, which is really great.
Then, after lunch, we began cleaning and organizing some storage rooms, as well as trimming hedges around the church property. I must say the students did a great job of pressing through the heat and humidity to get the job done.
This evening after dinner, we took the 15 minute drive to Jones’ Beach on the Atlantic Ocean. It was actually a very neat sight, as the weather is beginning to chance as a front comes into the area. A low cloud bank covered the beach area and visibility was low. But even in spite of the weather, we had a great time.
Now we are sitting around playing some games with Julie & Melanie, the summer missionary/interns.
--Bryan
PS – On a personal note, I have been suffering from some sinus issues. Please keep me, and all of the others, in your prayers are we are working long hours with limited sleep. Thanks in advance!
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Day Five :: Quick Post
Please lift us up in your prayers this afternoon/evening. Many of us are hitting the wall energy ways and there is much yet to do. Also, continue to pray for Jenna Edwards, as she recoups in the hostpital from her procedure today. Thank you so very much.
--Bryan Martisek
--Bryan Martisek
Day Four :: Kidz Camp & Landscaping
Ok well… yesterday (Monday) was so incredibly full that when the evening came and it was time to sit down and write on here, I was out of time and didn’t get around to it! Sorry for the delay, but I have a feeling few of you are up reading this blog at 11p.m. when I usually post it anyways. J
Kidz Camp went great yesterday, with over 30 children in attendance. Including those who pre-registered and should be showing up today, the master registration list is up to around 46. This is a really crazy thought, as the workers here prepared for a possible max of only 50… if the Lord chooses to continue sending more children each day, we could easily bypass that number, which is our prayer!
I personally spent yesterday afternoon driving around the Farmingdale area with Luis Rivera, one of the CCLI members, and a very good friend of Sterling and Jenna’s. Luis is an Independent Contractor who has been able to help with many of the construction projects around here. Yesterday he took me to a nursery to purchase plants, and then to various Lowe’s and Home Depot’s and soil yards as we looked for brick retaining wall materials. It might sound easy, but in reality we had quiet a difficult time finding what we needed. But again the Lord provided and the first place we called this morning is able to complete our order and get it to us first thing Wednesday – something everyplace we went yesterday said couldn’t happen.
While Luis and I were out and about, Lance and the rest of the group made easy work of demolishing the existing sign in front of the church. Apparently, a drunk driver had run into the cinder block flower box a while back, and it needed to be torn down. Of course you can always count on Texans to get the job done extra quick. Below are a few pictures of our crew at work.
Please continue to keep us, CCLI, Sterling & Jenna, and Kidz Camp in your prayers!
--Bryan Martisek
Kidz Camp went great yesterday, with over 30 children in attendance. Including those who pre-registered and should be showing up today, the master registration list is up to around 46. This is a really crazy thought, as the workers here prepared for a possible max of only 50… if the Lord chooses to continue sending more children each day, we could easily bypass that number, which is our prayer!
I personally spent yesterday afternoon driving around the Farmingdale area with Luis Rivera, one of the CCLI members, and a very good friend of Sterling and Jenna’s. Luis is an Independent Contractor who has been able to help with many of the construction projects around here. Yesterday he took me to a nursery to purchase plants, and then to various Lowe’s and Home Depot’s and soil yards as we looked for brick retaining wall materials. It might sound easy, but in reality we had quiet a difficult time finding what we needed. But again the Lord provided and the first place we called this morning is able to complete our order and get it to us first thing Wednesday – something everyplace we went yesterday said couldn’t happen.
While Luis and I were out and about, Lance and the rest of the group made easy work of demolishing the existing sign in front of the church. Apparently, a drunk driver had run into the cinder block flower box a while back, and it needed to be torn down. Of course you can always count on Texans to get the job done extra quick. Below are a few pictures of our crew at work.
Please continue to keep us, CCLI, Sterling & Jenna, and Kidz Camp in your prayers!
--Bryan Martisek
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Day Three :: Worship Service & Groceries
So this evening will be a short entry, as we are still going strong playing games and hanging out around the church.
This morning we were able to attend the morning worship service here at CCLI. This was a really cool experience, personally for me, because I have been able to listen to Sterling share about this congregation for the last few months and it was very cool to finally put some faces to the names. The service had around 70 in attendance and was a great of time of worship and preaching. Sterling does a great job of relating so easily connecting with this community.
The afternoon was spent decorating for Kidz Camp all around the church campus, as well as planning out some of the landscaping project we will be doing in the afternoons. And then, Lance and I took off on an adventure to shop for groceries. Ill just say you feel funny purchasing a weeks worth of groceries for 13 people. Big baskets full of all kinds of good eats!
I hope you are all enjoying these updates on our trip. Please keep us in your prayers as you read this. Kidz Camp will begin in just a few hours, and we are excited to get underway!
--Bryan Martisek
This morning we were able to attend the morning worship service here at CCLI. This was a really cool experience, personally for me, because I have been able to listen to Sterling share about this congregation for the last few months and it was very cool to finally put some faces to the names. The service had around 70 in attendance and was a great of time of worship and preaching. Sterling does a great job of relating so easily connecting with this community.
The afternoon was spent decorating for Kidz Camp all around the church campus, as well as planning out some of the landscaping project we will be doing in the afternoons. And then, Lance and I took off on an adventure to shop for groceries. Ill just say you feel funny purchasing a weeks worth of groceries for 13 people. Big baskets full of all kinds of good eats!
I hope you are all enjoying these updates on our trip. Please keep us in your prayers as you read this. Kidz Camp will begin in just a few hours, and we are excited to get underway!
--Bryan Martisek
PS - The attached is a photo of our group from Yesterday as we waited for the subway at the 50th street station.
Saturday, July 7, 2007
Day Two :: Manhattan Fun Day
Wow…today has been so much fun!
We began the day with some donuts, bagels, and a short devotion prepared by Allison, one of the students on the trip. She shared from Proverbs 4 and we had a little discussion on wisdom, and the difference between “wordly wisdom” and true wisdom that can only come from spending time in the Word.
After that, we loaded up and headed to the train station for the 45 minute ride to Penn Station in lower Manhattan. Anticipation ran high as we were all ready to see some skyscrapers and do a little tourist action- and the city definitely delivered! From our first stop in Times Square, on to Ground Zero, then to a little light shopping for the girls, and some sight seeing for the boys, we had a blast. The Empire State Building had a bit too much of a wait for our little group (the guys), but we did make it to Rockefeller Center where we toured the NBC studio, as well as a stop at the Nintendo store and a nice little walk around the area. The girls made their way through a few different stores (something I can’t really give too many details on, as I wasn’t there.) We all met up for dinner at a little burrito placed called Blockheads. It really was quiet nice to sit on the patio in the breezy weather – something I wish we had more of back home.
After our trip back home, we spent a little time doing the clean-up routine (only 1 shower at this time – see yesterday’s prayer items), and the last few are getting ready to bed down for the night.
One thing this group has talked about is the “work hard, play hard” motto. While we had a great time today playing, we cannot wait for tomorrow and church services, a little Kidz Camp prep in the afternoon, and the eventual first day of Kidz Camp Monday morning!
Please keep us in your prayers as Sunday holds services and prep time for this week. It is also the last day to cast the vision of Kidz Camp to the community before the event actually begins. Our students are so excited about everything we have talked about so far. Hopefully, some of them will be writing these posts in the coming days.
Until then,
Bryan Martisek
We began the day with some donuts, bagels, and a short devotion prepared by Allison, one of the students on the trip. She shared from Proverbs 4 and we had a little discussion on wisdom, and the difference between “wordly wisdom” and true wisdom that can only come from spending time in the Word.
After that, we loaded up and headed to the train station for the 45 minute ride to Penn Station in lower Manhattan. Anticipation ran high as we were all ready to see some skyscrapers and do a little tourist action- and the city definitely delivered! From our first stop in Times Square, on to Ground Zero, then to a little light shopping for the girls, and some sight seeing for the boys, we had a blast. The Empire State Building had a bit too much of a wait for our little group (the guys), but we did make it to Rockefeller Center where we toured the NBC studio, as well as a stop at the Nintendo store and a nice little walk around the area. The girls made their way through a few different stores (something I can’t really give too many details on, as I wasn’t there.) We all met up for dinner at a little burrito placed called Blockheads. It really was quiet nice to sit on the patio in the breezy weather – something I wish we had more of back home.
After our trip back home, we spent a little time doing the clean-up routine (only 1 shower at this time – see yesterday’s prayer items), and the last few are getting ready to bed down for the night.
One thing this group has talked about is the “work hard, play hard” motto. While we had a great time today playing, we cannot wait for tomorrow and church services, a little Kidz Camp prep in the afternoon, and the eventual first day of Kidz Camp Monday morning!
Please keep us in your prayers as Sunday holds services and prep time for this week. It is also the last day to cast the vision of Kidz Camp to the community before the event actually begins. Our students are so excited about everything we have talked about so far. Hopefully, some of them will be writing these posts in the coming days.
Until then,
Bryan Martisek
Friday, July 6, 2007
Day One :: Travel
Greetings! It’s Tuesday evening, about 11:00pm and we are just winding down for the night. After the amazing adventures of traveling by plane, train, and automobile, we finally arrived around 7:00pm, where we were greeted by our new friends at Crossroads Church of Long Island. Lots of burgers, chips and sodas later we sat down to an orientation time, complete with introductions of Sterling and his 2 summer missionaries/interns.
Now, I need you to understand these 2 interns are playing a big role in what takes place this summer at CCLI. While Sterling takes care of the “regular” stuff around the church office, Julie and Melanie, both college students from Texas, are responsible for planning for the Kidz Camp and playing “guide” to the many mission teams coming to CCLI this summer. From preparing crafts to helping us navigate the Railroad system, these 2 rock!
And to continue… we had our orientation, set up our bunk rooms, did some unpacking, had a bit of fellowship time, and now, are very ready for bed! Tomorrow is our “fun day” before Kidz Camp starts and we will be traveling into Manhattan to see some sights, and maybe do a little souveniring
A few prayer items before I go…
- Jenna, Sterling’s wife, went into the hospital this morning for some Kidney Stone related stuff. If all goes well, she should be home tomorrow.
- Registration for Kidz Camp sits around 30 people – which is HUGE when you consider that there has not been a program like this for years at this church. Please pray for more children/students, the workers, and most importantly, that those involved would come to know more about a loving God who desires to have a personal relationship with them.
- Construction is one of the things that we have noticed around here. CCLI is in the process of updating its fellowship hall, adding 2 new bathroom/shower areas, and reflooring parts of its education space. While the work has been started by great mission teams over the last few months, there is still more to do. From replacing flooring to painting to installing some showers/toilets/sinks, there is work-a-plenty, and we believe our God can meet these needs for working hands.
To those of you keeping up with our adventure, “Thank you!” We covet your prayers and are encouraged to know you are with us in heart.
Until next time…
--Bryan Martisek
Now, I need you to understand these 2 interns are playing a big role in what takes place this summer at CCLI. While Sterling takes care of the “regular” stuff around the church office, Julie and Melanie, both college students from Texas, are responsible for planning for the Kidz Camp and playing “guide” to the many mission teams coming to CCLI this summer. From preparing crafts to helping us navigate the Railroad system, these 2 rock!
And to continue… we had our orientation, set up our bunk rooms, did some unpacking, had a bit of fellowship time, and now, are very ready for bed! Tomorrow is our “fun day” before Kidz Camp starts and we will be traveling into Manhattan to see some sights, and maybe do a little souveniring
A few prayer items before I go…
- Jenna, Sterling’s wife, went into the hospital this morning for some Kidney Stone related stuff. If all goes well, she should be home tomorrow.
- Registration for Kidz Camp sits around 30 people – which is HUGE when you consider that there has not been a program like this for years at this church. Please pray for more children/students, the workers, and most importantly, that those involved would come to know more about a loving God who desires to have a personal relationship with them.
- Construction is one of the things that we have noticed around here. CCLI is in the process of updating its fellowship hall, adding 2 new bathroom/shower areas, and reflooring parts of its education space. While the work has been started by great mission teams over the last few months, there is still more to do. From replacing flooring to painting to installing some showers/toilets/sinks, there is work-a-plenty, and we believe our God can meet these needs for working hands.
To those of you keeping up with our adventure, “Thank you!” We covet your prayers and are encouraged to know you are with us in heart.
Until next time…
--Bryan Martisek
Thursday, July 5, 2007
Day Zero
Greetings! So you can better understand, we have created this blog page so the world can keep up-to-date with the adventures of the FBC Katy Student Ministry mission trip to Long Island, NY.Our mission team of 13 will be leaving for Farmingdale in approx. 16 hours (10:40a.m.) via our flight to JFK International Airport.
Our team consists of 6 guys and 7 girls. They are:
Lance Redmon*
Bradi Redmon*
Bryan Martisek*
Brittani Briner*
Tory Brown
Sam Mancill
Josh Irwin
Nick Casada
Caitlin Locke
Peyton Ellison
Kelcie Burkhalter
Bri Greener
Allison Kingsley
*staff/sponsor
While in NY, we will work together with our man-on-the-ground, Sterling Edwards, and his family as we host the first Kidz Camp at Crossroads Church of Long Island, the church plant we support. In the afternoons, we will spent time helping landscape and meeting some light-constuction needs around the church campus.
Please keep us in your prayers as we travel the nearly 1,500 miles to Farmingdale to support our brothers and sisters in Christ with their first Kidz Camp (VBS).
--Bryan Martisek
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)