Murano @ Gunella Pass Colorado

Well, its been awhile since I have posted so I really need to get something up here! I am currently looking for a house in the Aurora area just outside of Denver. It has been difficult, but I may have it narrowed down to 1 or 2 places. Hopefully I’ll close by the end of the month. From what I can tell it is pretty awesome up here. The temp. is comfortable, the humidity low, and ski resorts as close as 45min. The mountains are crazy big!! I got to drive through parts of them this past weekend while they were getting hammered with snow. It was probably the coolest drive I have ever made, and definitely had the best scenery. I’ll try to get some pics up on here as well. I’m really looking forward to living here, and experiencing all that Denver has to offer. Hopefully it won’t be as long until my next post. I’ll try to be on here more as soon as I get settled. Ijust posted some other pics under the pictures tab.

Christmas Tree and Volunteers

I just want to start off by saying that the Christmas Dinner in downtown Corpus Christi was AWESOME!!!!!! I don’t feel that it could have went any better considering the magnitude of the event and the short notice that everyone had. The food was great, the servers/volunteers were amazing, and the execution of event flowed very well. I just can’t get over how well everything seemed to work out!! Rudy’s sermon about the birth of Jesus and the Christmas story was also a huge highlight. Thanks Rudy, great job! There were just so many key players that made this dinner a success, and I just want to point out once again that great things happen when when people unite for a common cause.

As for the dinner: I’m not exactly sure how many people we provided for, but after talking to several people, my estimate is about 80-100 people. More important than the numbers though, is that we had almost the perfect amount of food and that there was none left over. (Well, I think I saw two cups of maccaroni and cheese left over) The way the dinner was served was what I was really impressed with. We had so many volunteers show up that we were able to have waiters/waitresses prepare the plates of food and serve those sitting at the tables. We basically had a restaurant style dinner under a street light in a parking lot at City Hall! For those of you unable to make it downtown, I urge you witness it for yourself next year. (My words can’t even come close to fully describing the experience) Before the meal, Rudy told about the birth of Jesus and prayed over the food. As the meal was being served, the Santa hats that the volunteers were wearing began making their way to the kids’ heads that were eating. When all the kids had hats, the adults began asking for them. So, within a short time, all the volunteers had given up their Santa hats. It was just another sign of the giving spirit that night.

After the meal, we began handing out all the clothing items that had been donated. There was an entire truck bed full of socks, underwear, jackets, blankets etc. There was so much stuff it took about 30 minutes to hand it all out! On top of that, there was a big demand for bibles as well. I would estimate that we probably handed out about 30-40 bibles. (Maybe more!) So, when all the food was gone, the truck bed of clothing was gone, all the Santa hats gone, and all of the bibles gone, all of the volunteers tore down and packed up as quickly as they set up. The Christmas Dinner of 2007 had come to an end only 2 1/2 hours after it began. For those who attended, volunteers as well as those in search of food and fellowship, that 2 1/2 hours under the street lamp won’t soon be forgotten.

Looking back to when my roommate Charles and I started this whole thing, handing out only 24 sack lunches, its rewarding to see how it has grown to this. We couldn’t have done it with the help of Rudy and the members of BAF. Unfortunately, this Christmas dinner was also my grand finale. I am being stationed in Denver, CO and will be leaving on Jan. 4th. Rudy has assured me, though, that the Open Arms Ministry will continue in the Kingsville/Corpus Christi area. We are currently praying that someone will step up and take charge in my absence, because as much as Rudy would love to do it himself, he has a ton on his plate already. If you feel this may be your calling, please contact Rudy, or comment on this post.

Oh yeah, I nearly forgot. We also presented Rudy with “The Winner Award”. It is a gold plated plastic award embossed with a 5 pointed star on one side, and the word “Winner” on the other. This prestigious award is suspended around the neck by a red, white and blue nylon strap with velcro clasp. Total value of the award has been appraised at $0.05 by the local Goodwill.

Rudy showing off his new award

Well, I just found out that I will be stationed in Denver Colorado with the Navy.  I didn’t even know the navy was in Denver, but oh well.  I am really looking forward to it and can’t wait to hit some rivers kayaking, trails mountain biking, and learn to snowboard.  It seems like it is outdoorsman heaven!!  More to come on this later.  Oh yeah, I won’t be able to write on here until after the first of the year.  Topics to come include:  Christmas Dinner downtown Corpus, more about the Denver move, some book reviews, and some other cool stuff I don’t even know about yet!!  Peace out.

Imagine Fellowship is a new church that has been planted in San Antonio, Tx.  The pastor, Kevin Joyce, recently finished his internship under Pastor Bil Cornelius of Bay Area Fellowship in Corpus Christi.  The church just finished its fourth Thursday service, and will begin having Sunday services on Dec. 16th.  I was able to attend the service last night and visit with Pastor Kevin and his congregation.  First off, the message given by Pastor Kevin was amazing!  He incorporates the group when reading scripture, he uses video presentations, and uses creative props (cut up shirt) to convey the message.  I had the chance to talk with many of the new members of the church to see how they felt about Imagine Fellowship.  They were all excited, enthusiastic, and anxious to see the church grow.  Many told me that they had been praying for months that a new church would come along that would fulfill their spiritual needs.  They all felt that Imagine Fellowship was the answer to their prayers.  After getting to visit the church, speak with its members, and listen to its pastor, I have no doubt that Imagine Fellowship will quickly grow to be one of San Antonio’s prominent churches.  The church is currently building a website.  In the near future you can visit it online at: www.imaginefellowship.org  You can also reach Pastor Kevin Joyce at joycekevin@gmail.com with any questions concerning the church.

   

                                      Me, Kevin, and Joe                                      

Just wanted to post about the Christmas Dinner that we are planning for those in need living in downtown Corpus Christi.  It will take place on Sat. December 22nd at 6:30 pm.  This is a huge undertaking for us, and a little last minute, but we feel we can pull it off with a little help.  Our goal is to provide a family style Christmas dinner to at least 80 people in need.  We are receiving support from many, but still have a long ways to go.  We are in great need of volunteers to help set up and tear down, food servers, and food contributors.  With everyone’s help we will be able to provide a Christmas dinner to those who don’t have families, don’t have a home, or don’t have food.  Please join us in giving to those who need it most. 

If you can help out in any way please leave a comment to this post.   Thanks!

Kingsville, TX Layover « Teacher on Two Wheels
Tuesday 11/27/07

For the past few days I’ve been staying in Kingsville, Texas, a quiet town of 25,000 people surrounded on all sides by flat ranchland. I ended up in Kingsville because I received an email a few weeks ago from a guy named Adam. He randomly found my website while doing research for an upcoming bike trip he’s planning. When he asked if I wouldn’t mind stopping by for a day or two to show him my gear and talk bike stuff in exchange for a few hot showers and a bed, I didn’t think twice….

This is part of the write up that Andrew posted on his site about his stay with me in Kingsville while on his world biking expedition.  Click here for the rest of the story.

Quote of the day… « NotAverageJoe
Quote of the day…“Baxter, you ate a whole block of cheese? That’s amazing, I mean that’s amazing, I’m not even mad.” -Ron Burgundy (San Diego news anchor)

This is an awesome movie!! Anchorman definitely makes the favorites list. 

This is a pretty cool video about the Earth only having 100 people on it.  It shows how many people out of a hundred would be affected by things such as aids, poverty, wealth, and starvation.  This short video really puts perspective on the problems of the world.  Click on the image above to go directly to the video!  The home page is as follows:  http://www.miniature-earth.com/

“Helping the Hurting”

This is the mission of Pastor Milton B. Robertson Sr. Pastor Milton created “Unto the Lord Ministry” to carry out this mission. Several weeks ago I met Victoria, Pastor Milton’s wife, while downtown passing out meals. Last night, while we were handing out lunches, she mentioned that her and her husband deliver a hot meal to the hungry at the park on Sunday. So, Joe and I decided to head back downtown today to help them out. This is where I met Pastor Milton for the first time. Let me tell you, this man is definitely doing the work of the Lord. At the beginning, he gives a short 15-20 minute sermon. For most, this is the only exposure to the Word they get. His sermon is direct and to the point, but is also delivered in a way that you can see its practical application. It is as if he is speaking directly to the needs of those around him. He can sense their pain and their struggles, and knows the exact words they need to hear. You can feel the emotion he puts into preaching the Word, and can tell he lives by what he preaches. After the sermon, his wife Victoria begins serving the meal that she has spent all day preparing. By her side are several assistants that dish out the meal as people file past with their plates. What I later learned is that these assistants are not employees, church staff, or volunteers. These
assistants are people that Pastor Milton have invited into his home off the streets. These are people that have been given a second chance and a place to get back on their feet due to the kindness and love of Pastor Milton and his family. While people filed through to fill their plates, I had a chance to speak with Pastor Milton about how he got started and how long he had been doing this. He informed me that he had been doing this for two years now, and that he was doing this because the Lord had placed it in his heart to do it. He started out in a one bedroom house that he still invited people to stay in, but has since been blessed with a four bedroom house with men’s and women’s dorms. His vision, he explained, was to do the Lord’s work on Earth so that he may enjoy the company of the Lord in heaven. He also gave me a piece of advice. “Never wait!”, he said, “If you can do something now, never wait.” He explained that you never know how much longer you have to live, and that problems will never be solved if you just wait around hoping for the best. He said take action, someone will take notice, and help will come.

Helping out those in need

This was truly an awesome experience! Not everyday that you meet someone so humble and selfless. If everyone in the world was half as giving and caring as the Robertson family, we would live in a much better world.

The line just keeps wrapping around

I would just like to say thanks to the Robertson family for dedicating their lives to helping others.  Your actions do not go unnoticed, in fact, they are motivating to those around you.  You truly exemplify the old sayings of, ‘lead by example’ and ‘practice what you preach’.

Amy, Rudy, Joe, Garrett, Giovanni 

 

Well, we just got back from feeding the hungry in downtown Corpus Christi. Since this is my first post about this, I’ll try to give a little background info. About 2 1/2 months ago, my roommate and I began handing out bag lunches that we had made. I got the idea to do something like this due to several factors. For starters, I had read a book called “The Irresistible Revolution”. This book alone will ignite a fire in anyone with a heart. Definitely a must read. I had recently became a member at a church, Bay Area Fellowship (check out the link on my site), that teaches you should live The Word, not just read it on Sunday and forget about it. And finally, I had completed a 3-day fast recently and experienced what it was like to be hungry and not be able to eat. (The fasting experience I had is worthy of a post by itself. Leave a comment to show your interest in a post about it.) So, all of this drove me to helping those that are less fortunate than myself. We began by going to the grocery store and buying the goods. We would buy enough for 24 bag lunches. Why 24? It’s a magic number!! A pack of cheese, box of peanut butter crackers, case of water, 2lb. pack of sliced ham, family bag of individual bags of chips, and box of individually wrapped cookies all come in a count of 24. Throw in two loaves of bread, which will make 24 sandwiches, and 24 bananas and you’ve got it all covered. All of this at a cost of $35-$40. Not to bad! And that is how it all got started for the most part. So, back to the present. Tonight we were able to hand out 54 lunches, and a truck load of clothing/blankets. The reason for this greater ability is due to the awesome church I attend. The youth pastor at Bay Area Fellowship Kingsville, Rudy Garcia, heard about what we were doing and wanted to come check it out. After the first weekend he was hooked! He is now volunteering his time to the cause and bringing along 30 lunches himself. He plans to present what we are doing downtown to the church in hope of even greater support. By the way, a huge thanks to Joe for purchasing all of the clothes that we handed out tonight. Greatly appreciated! It was such an awesome night, and I can see it only getting better now that we are surrounded by the support of BAF(Bay Area Fellowship). Well, I guess this kind of sets the stage for later posts. I plan to get into more detail about the people we meet and their stories, as well as our experiences while downtown. It is definitely exciting to think about what is to come!

Joe with the sack lunches