FCC Project Reach October Appalacia Mission Re-Cap

This was a trip filled with provision! During the weeks leading up to our departure, many people stepped up to deliver clothing. By the day we left, we had so many bags of clothing that we almost could not take them all. One of our church members donated probably around two thousand lbs. of construction supplies (such as ceiling fans, electrical items, plywood, tile, hardwood flooring, a shop vac, etc. And we received what had to be several thousand lbs. of food/diapers/etc. from one of our Project Reach partners (Golden Corner Food Pantry.) All in all, we probably had about 5000 lbs. of items to bring to donate to the ministries we work with in Kentucky, and even a few we don’t work directly with.  

As you can see in the pics, our trailers were LOADED down! Neither trailer could have handled much more; and my poor old GMC Jimmy had all it could handle before the suspension would squat so low that the trailer chains were dragging! What a blessing. Look at all that stuff! Thank God for Will Black and his big old F150 4x4 which pulled the FCC trailer no problem. 

After coming down Black Mountain,

Will did say he wished the trailer had brakes though! :)

 

We scheduled this trip for those who wanted a shorter-term mission, so that they could take less days off of work. Basically this was a “go as early and quickly as we can, and have as much impact as we can in 4 days” sort of journey.

The travel to Lynch, KY provided some great time to get to know each other. When pulling trailers, it is about a 6 hour ride, pretty much through mountains the entire way.

Just before we hit Black Mountain (which is a 15 mile stretch of steep curvy road climbing to the highest point in Kentucky), I asked our missionary friends John and Melissa Fitzwater from Loaves and Fishes ministry if we could meet them at their pantry to unload. John said that they had been waiting for us, to see what items we were bringing before they purchased food for the 200 boxes which would be prepared this week.

After we arrived and opened the trailer doors, I was overwhelmed with thankfulness in my heart to the Lord for what he had provided for the pantry. The trailer was overflowing with items needed by Loaves and Fishes. One ministry giving to another ministry hundreds of miles away…I love it! And God used Foothills Community Church to make it happen!

We also had many baby related items such as diapers which the food pantry did not need, but within a short walk down the street is “Esther’s Closet”; a ministry dedicated to ministering to young pregnant mothers and single mother’s with a Christ-focused program of help.  It was great to see our team members walking down the street…diapers in hand…ready to bless another ministry!

It took an hour or so to unload and get things sorted, then we all piled in our vehicles and headed over to the shop to unload all the

construction supplies and clothing that had been donated.

This was some harder work unloading large panels of wood, flooring, heavy boxes of marble and ceramic tile, ceiling fans, etc. But as we would soon learn, there were people who were in need and had been waiting for God to supply those exact items for repairs on their homes! When there seems to be no way.....God will make a way!

After all the unloading and delivery was finished, our team gathered back at the Heritage Ministries mission house to get ready for supper. We ended the evening with some worship singing "Jesus Messiah" and then had a short time of sharing from scripture.

 One of our objectives this trip was to winterize as many homes as possible, while getting to know the people we were helping. The next day was Sunday, and we served in the morning working and a man's home up the street installing plastic over the windows from the inside. The winters get quite cold in this part of Kentucky, and a good seal over the windows saves a lot of money in heating costs. Money which most people in the area do not have, so they simply stay very cold all winter without some help. This is a great way for Heritage Ministries to develop long-term relationships with people who would normally never allow a "ministry" into their homes.

We had also planned a "Fall Festival" outreach at the local park in Lynch,KY for all afternoon. This park is in more of an urban area, and there are many people living in the area who can always use a little break from the routine, and a free meal. The plan was to do something similar to our "Party in the Pasture" and have free food, games, face painting, music, inflatables, prizes, and just a whole bunch of fun. 

God provided an incredibly beautiful day. Probably one of my top ten most beautiful days I have seen over the years for any similar event. The temperature was perfect (in the upper 70's), and the sky was clear for miles.

At first I was sort of wondering if many would come, but as the hour moved past 1pm, many people started walking and driving to the park. Tons of kids too! It turned out to be over 60 people from the area, which in a town of about 900 is a pretty large crowd. There was such an atmosphere of refreshing. A pleasant spirit and the people were receptive as I shared with them that the reason were were there was because of Jesus Christ. I believe when we do service as followers of Christ, it is important to let the people know that you are there in the name of Jesus. That He is the one who has led you to give to them.

Team members had prepared a LOT of food, and we were glad, because as so many kept coming, most of the food and drinks dwindled, but we did have a little left over. Especially the Chili-Mac, which seemed to multiply as the day went on! Actually we just baked way too much!

We had a "Candy Drop" event which was basically hiding hundreds of candy bars and other candy underneath hay, and then breaking the kids up into age groups for an all out grab fest. It was a lot of fun for us all, but the kids just ate it up :) Check out the video:

  Some of the team members painted faces, while others worked with the kids painting pumpkins. It was unplanned, but many of the children found the concrete to be a great place for some "custom" chalk artwork. This was a great day full of hope, provision, and laughter. Many people thanked us throughout the afternoon. It was our pleasure, and we hope to do it over and over again!

We spent much of the rest of our time this trip serving winterizing people's homes and serving at the pantry. Two of our members went back to the park a couple times to help some of the kids who needed some help.  Two of the houses we worked on stand out in my mind, not because of the houses, but because of the people that lived there.  One of the homes was a log cabin, and at one time it must have been very nice, but now it is riddled with issues such as a leaking roof and drafty windows. As I spoke with the woman living there, she shared with me how her husband was a miner who passed away years ago due to cancer, and she just could not afford to keep up with the maintenance on the their home. She shared much of her life story with me, and in the end I prayed with her as she stood in my arms in tears. 

Still another home we served in was a trailer that a young couple had been working hard at fixing up, until the big strong husband had an accident at work. A large boulder fell directly on his head. It injured his neck and spine, so he was out of work and unable to get the trailer ready for winter. He was planning on trying to go back to work soon, and his job was still available which is awesome. 

We installed plastic on their windows and gave them extra just in case they needed it. This family had a small child runnin' around, and they did not have a working source of heat. Someone had stolen their central unit. Can you believe that? This is so sad, considering winter is just around the corner. Our team gathered together on their front porch, and I let them know we were there serving them in the name of Jesus. We held hands and prayed for God to bring healing to the husband and return him to work with no pain or recurring issues. What a great time to simply be Jesus to some folks in need of some help.

One of the other homes we served in had some broken out windows. and the thick plastic was really needed to keep out the cold. Jeff Simm (our missionary partner in Lynch) went and cut some glass which he was going to install within the next few days to provide a permanent fix. The mother in this home is a bed-ridden elderly woman with COPD, who lies in a hospital bed in the family room, singing country songs at the top of her lungs.  She has a favorite country music channel on their little television and sings along with the music. One of our team members Amanda Atkins spent quite a bit of time just sharing with and loving on this woman. Although she was living out her days lying in that bed in the family room, she was a joy to talk with.

This trip to Lynch, Ky and Harlan county was a great one and a trip that made us remember the brevity of life. We had one day where the team split up into three groups, as some worked on homes, and others worked on food boxing and stocking the shelves at the pantry.

Part of one of our afternoons was quite sad as one of the elderly Harlan County men whom team members were helping with a roof repair, suddenly passed away while he was watching them repair his roof. Our team members Will Black and Wayne Kelley worked tirelessly to revive him through CPR, but he was too far gone.  That night a bunch of us gathered around the mission house and shared our hearts, and then prayed for one another in a big circle. Unity at it's finest.

Another great experience one afternoon was when we all rode up to Kingdom Come Park; a beautiful climb to some incredible lookouts. This pic is of one of our team members Charles Fowler. It is said that you can see at least 4 or 5 states from this lookout area.

The trip home was a lot quicker due to the fact that we weren't towing thousands of pounds of stuff to donate. It was filled with joking and laughter as some of us talked on walkie talkies and cell phones between vehicles.

God truly provided in abundance for the people we are serving in Harlan county. I was truly praying that our axles would not break on the trailers. That is how loaded we were! Our second trip this year has helped us to get to know Heritage Ministries, Loaves and Fishes, and several other ministries more. We are getting to know more people in the park neighborhood, and God is allowing us to use the resources He miraculously provides, to show the true loving, compassionate, and giving nature of Jesus Christ. It has been a pleasure. Can't wait for the next journey to Harlan County.

If you would like more information about serving through Project Reach, simply call the church office at 864-888-8008 or visit http://www.foothillscc.org/projectreach/