A week ago Melissa and the kids and I spent a few days at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Indiana for the 2014 OMS International Missions Conference. It was a fantastic gathering of folks united together in their desire to see the fulfillment of Jesus’ Great Commission. We went with a trunk full of goodies …
… because while everyone else was listening to special speakers, attending break out sessions, and drinking coffee at various receptions (first honoring a retiring president, then the new president, then the 60th anniversary of Men For Missions), we had the privilege of working with the 25 teens in attendance for the weekend.
We had a unique meeting space – the “Little Black Box Theater” – and lots of help, from old friends and new.New Friend: Erika.
Erika has been working as an Intern at OMS Headquarters in Greenwood for several months. She led times of singing and worship with the youth for the weekend of Conference.Old Friends: Bob and Jill.
We’ve known Bob and Jill for years and years. Bob and I are both Wabash College/Asbury Seminary alums. (And that’s not a very common combination, I imagine!) It was such a blessing to get to catch up with these dear friends over the course of an entire weekend – even sharing a dormitory suite with them. Bob helped with the teaching and programming with the youth and Jill worked with Melissa mostly behind the scenes.Jill also spent a fair amount of time chasing our two…Relatively New Friends: Turner and Lilli Jo.
At two and a half, these twins are so stinking adorable! They even made getting out of bed in the morning a pleasant experience for our kids.
Samuel, waking up to pure cuteness.(All of a sudden, Samuel strikes me as being so big and so old – at age ten.) There were plenty of opportunities for fun and recreation throughout the weekend. Caleb and I ran in the “Homes for Haiti” 5K, which raised money for the ongoing OMS project of building new houses for Haitians who were left homeless by the 2010 earthquake.
Caleb and I were proud of the fact that we ran the entire 3.2 miles without stopping to walk.There was also time in the university’s game room:
Meals with friends:
And time to relax and enjoy “college life”:
For many of us, the highlight of the weekend was something that NOBODY planned ahead of time. One of our teens was a sweet-natured young man in a wheelchair. When Saturday morning rolled around, I wasn’t sure how he’d react to our scheduled event: climbing the rock wall. He sat and watched as one after another, three at a time, teens strapped on harnesses and helmets and climbing shoes and then pulled and stepped their way up the wall, each aided and guided by one of the college-aged staff. When the last group was on their way up the wall, I leaned down to him and asked, “How’s your upper body strength?” His quick reply: “I think I could do it, if they’ll let me.” They let him.And he did it.
A crowd gathered – even beyond our teens – and they were cheering and urging him on. It took a few minutes, but he made it to the top and the crowd erupted in applause.
Leave a Reply