New Photos!

Now that I'm home, I was able to upload the photos.  New ones have been added to "Another Awesome Day" and "Learning More About the Area" posts.

Enjoy!

Wrapping Up

Well, Friday is here and it is time to say our goodbye's and head down the mountain.  Our hearts are full of love for those we have met.  It has been fun to love on the Meridzo Ministries Family.  They have loved on us, too, and have been so willing to share their stories of God's faithfulness.

One last stop at the Coffee Shop on our way out

God continues to do amazing things in Harlan County.  Many of the men and women who are serving started their journey here years ago, coming to serve on a mission trip, just like the Lynch Ladies.  They came again and again, and the Lord started a process of wooing them to come here to live.  They left family and friends, and many left steady jobs.  But, the Lord made it so clear to them that this is where He wants them to be.  They wanted to join Him and experience a life of trusting Him to provide.  Many of them have personal struggles and hardships, but they will be quick to tell you that the peace they have surpasses the challenges.  Their faith has grown as they have trusted God.  He has been faithful in ways they could not have imagined.

For the Lynch Ladies,  this has been a week we are glad we didn't miss.  We were happy to paint, stain, organize, sew, sweep and clean.  But the best part was building relationships, and pausing to see how God can work things together for our good.  For 6 days, we put the demands of our routine on the back burner, and focused on a new set of people.  We took time for fellowship.  The "chores" we did were just a venue to give us an opportunity to get to know ourselves and others better.

Thanks SO much for praying with us and supporting us!  We literally could not have done it without you.  The Meridzo family and the ones they serve are also grateful.  Please continue to pray, as the Lord brings this trip to your mind, that He will bless and protect these people.  Ricky and Dee Money are moving back to western Kentucky to "love on their grandkids", so they are praying for the Lord to raise up new Directors for Solomon's Porch.  They plan to move by December.  They have been here five years. 

Doc Kelley says that God has more fruit to produce in this area, but the ministry that extends beyond Lynch is even greater.  People come to Lynch to serve for a week, experience a growth in their faith, and then go back home to live a different life.  We have been challenged to trust God more and ourselves less.

"And my God will supply your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus."  Philippians 4:19  It's an easy verse to quote, but do we really believe it?  The people we met this week KNOW it to be true.

Thursday Happenings

Thanks for your prayers for today.  It was another good one.  The group that went to the Stables to paint in the morning, ended up staying most of the day.  They turned a chocolate brown room into a bright yellow room.  They also spent some time visiting with Drew, Leah's husband (they are the Directors of The Stables).  Drew shared some more info on the programs they run, particularly the kids camps in the summer.

 




Another group visited Harlan County Christian School.  It is located at a church and the staff have a deep love for the Lord and their students.  Several years ago, the congregation trusted God to help them raise the funds needed to build an education wing for Phase 1 of the school, and then a gymnasium for Phase 2.  A mighty faith builder, they saw God enable them to pay all their bills during the construction, and now have no debt!  Tuition is very reasonable and the teachers treat their job as a ministry as much as they do a paid position.

A third group went with Dee (she and her husband are the Directors of Solomon's Porch) to visit some of the widows and widowers.  Dee has developed a special relationship with these sweet people.  She brings the joy of Jesus to their lives.  She truly loves them and they adore her.  Some members of our team had put together Sonshine baskets, so this group was able to deliver them on the visits.  It contained homemade items, as well as some pencils, pads, nuts, etc.

All but the paint crew met at the Lamp House Coffee Shop for lunch.  After enjoying some tasty sandwiches and soup, Managers Eric and Sissy Rutherford, shared how God called them to Lynch over the course of a few years.  They moved to the area about 18 months ago from Pawleys Island, SC (please pray their house sells soon, at a good price for them).  It was so neat to hear how the Lord prepared them for this position.  They love the people of Lynch and see the Coffee Shop as a place where folks can share their lives with each other over a cup of coffee or a smoothie, and perhaps even be prayed for.  They pray many will meet Jesus there.

After lunch, a few of the ladies went out to the Stables, and a few others joined Dee to visit three more widows.

For supper, we ordered pizza and worked on cleaning out the frig.  That evening, we enjoyed hearing the story of Dr. Kelley and Debbie Bradford.  Doc Kelley is the new vet in town.  He and his wife are some of the newest members of the Meridzo Ministries family.  They arrived in May from Florida.  They have bought a house and are getting settled in.  They work closely with Drew and Leah at the Stables.  Doc and Debbie have such peace about being here and don't feel like they have given up anything.

Time to start packing for our trip home.

Thursday Prayer Requests

Good Morning!  It's hard to believe this is our last work day.  One group is going to visit some of the local widows.  Please pray they have a sweet time of fellowship together and stay safe on the roads.  The team is taking Sonshine Baskets of little goodies (some items bought and others made by team members) to the widows.  We hope it will bless them.

Another group is going to put Kilz on the walls of a room at the Stables.  They want to get two coats on today.  Actually, they would like to get it done this morning so they can do other things this afternoon.  Please pray that all goes well.  I'll let you and the Holy Spirit fill in the details.

A third group is going to visit the only Christian school in the area.  It has about 40 students.  We are bringing a few supplies.  It would be awesome if they could get some more students, but since the school year has already started, that is not likely.  So, please pray that other folks will make contributions to help them get through the school year.

Please also pray that our team will continue to mesh as one...each with different gifts, but all important and precious in God's sight. 

We got more rain last night, but the sky is clearing, with a temp around 70.  Praise the Lord!

Learning More About the Area

We awoke to a beautiful day.  After breakfast, Mary and Theresa headed back to the Sewing Room.  They have been so faithful and are very talented at making quilts for the beds.  The rest of us piled in the van and made several stops.

One stop was Arlie Boggs Elementary School.  They teach K-8, but only have 123 students, so their budget is not very large.  A few churches and other organizations donate food for a Backpack Program, as well as school supplies, to help with basic needs. We provided some food for the backpacks.

We were given a tour of the school.  There is a sweet spirit in the halls.  The principal, teachers and students have worked hard over the last few years.  Tests scores that used to be very low are now in the top 30th percentile in Kentucky, and they have a high attendance record, as well.  They are waiting for the test results from last year, but anticipate another banner.  

After the tour, we got to work weeding.

 

After weeding, we chatted a little with the principal and even had a short prayer.

Because of Jan's job, she was able to share with the principal how he might be able to get some additional government funding.  How cool is that!  Before we left, they gave all of us a school staff T-Shirt that says "Overcoming Odds  Prov. 17:4"!

On our way back to Solomon's Porch, we stopped at ECCO, Eolia Christian Community Outreach.  This outreach ministry serves the physical needs of people in the area, while sharing the love of Jesus.  Randy had cases of soup mix that were prepared and boxed by his Feed the Hunger volunteers, so we unloaded them.

In the afternoon, we visited the Coal Museum and went on the Portal 31 Coal Mine Tour.  It was a fascinating way to get a better feel for what the people in this town have gone through over the last 100 years.

Coal Museum

Portal 31 Coal Mine Tour - seen from a trolley inside a real coal mine

For dinner, we had a real treat.  Lonnie and Belinda Riley, the founders of Meridzo Ministries, joined us.  Lonnie wrote the book, Miracle in the Mountains, that we all read before arriving here.  It was exciting to hear more stories of what God has continued to do in this area!

Another Awesome Day

On Tuesday, we divided up into three groups.  One team worked in the Sewing Room.  They are making pillowcases and coverlets for beds.

Another group went to the Black Mountain Exchange.  Jim and Vickie Pinkley have been coming to Lynch for several summers to help on missions trips from their church and they have decided to move here and open the Exchange.  They will sell gas, groceries, pizza and hot dogs.  A big oil corporation is considering taking them on as a customer.  In addition to bringing in the gas and new tanks, they would also provide a Point of Sale system, cash registers, etc.  Please pray that if this is God's will, the Board will approve it in His good timing.  They would like to open in a couple of months, even if it's only the grocery store.  Part of our team worked on painting some shelves and cleaning.  Some major plumbing and electrical work needs to be done.  A couple more teams are scheduled to come in the next couple of weeks to work on that.

Vickie Pinkley

The third group worked the hardest.  They were in the Bath House.  This old building used to be where the miners took their showers after working.  Part of it has been converted into apartments, but there is a lot more square footage that Meridzo has plans to use. This group swept, shoveled and hauled dirt, pulled weeds, moved lumber, etc.

We took a break and went to the Coffee Shop, a darling place that serves wonderful coffees, as well as soups, sandwiches, etc.  It was inspiring to hear how God is working in the life of a young lady who works there. She also volunteers at the Stables, and is going to school to get a degree.  She has a passion for therapeutic horse riding.  One of our team members, Sharon Neely, has experience and a love for that, as well.  They plan to connect later on.  And guess what?  Her son has the same first and middle name as Sharon's grandson!

 

We all finished up in the afternoon and the air had cleared, so we headed up to Kingdom Come Park. 

Some of our team got adventuresome and climbed on top of the Log Rock

At one of the lookouts, you can see five states.  Awesome!

On our way back "home", we grabbed dinner.  Once we were back at Solomon's Porch, Randy gathered us on the outside porch to discuss the events of the day and talk about our plans for Wednesday.  

Just as he was beginning to talk, Julia noticed a beautiful rainbow in the sky.  The end of it looked like it was almost in our front yard!  We all grabbed our cameras, took photos, and then got back to our discussion.  We marveled at the gift of His glory that He displayed right before our eyes. 

After a walk, we had time to enjoy laughter and fellowship in the kitchen.  We praise God for the way He has allowed us to assist others, and for the way those we have met have warmed our hearts and sometimes brought us to tears as we see and hear how faithful He has been in their lives!

Staining and Sewing

It was a great day today!  We got up, ate breakfast and packed our lunches.  Theresa was not feeling that great, so she and Mary stayed at Solomon's Porch.  The other nine of us headed to Shekinah Village, about 20 minutes away.  We met Chad, the Director, and then started solid staining one of the cabins.  It was not too hot and we were also able to work in the shade.

Here is Randy Hite, our "Foreman".

We stopped around Noon and ate our lunch.  Then we got to sit down with Leah.  She and her husband, Drew, run Creekside Stables.  It was so neat to hear the story of how the Lord led them to Lynch, and continues to provide for their needs.  God is using them to minister to people of all ages.   They run several kids camps in the summer.  They also have four children, eight and under! 

Here is a picture of us with Leah

Remember how I said it would be great if God would scatter those thunderstorms somewhere else?  Well, we did get quite a downpour, but it happened while we were in Leah's house!  By the time we finished our visit, the rain had stopped.  We got back to work and were able to get two cabins stained.  I just gotta tell you.  It is so much faster and more fun to paint with a team of ladies and chat while you are working!

Tammi, Marybeth and Sharon painting the high areas

One of the cabins that we stained

As we drove back to town, it rained again, but let up when it was time to go into the restaurant.  Dee and Ricky, the Managers of Solomon's Porch, met us there and brought Theresa and Mary.  We found out that Theresa got to feeling better and they had been busy sewing, working in the Fabric Room, and loving on Dee!  That must have been God's plan all along.

We enjoyed a great meal and then Ricky and Dee gave us a tour of Solomon's Porch, the former hospital that has been transformed into the retreat center where we are staying.  Randy gave us a tentative schedule for tomorrow {Tuesday), but said to stay flexible since the weather might change our plans.  We intend to work at various ministries in Lynch tomorrow.

Thanks for your continued support and interest!  We are really enjoying being here.