It is almost time!

Today our nation celebrated Memorial Day, a day set aside to remember those who have found and those who died defending the rights, privileges, and freedoms we hold so important and what sets us apart from the other countries of the world. I frequently see bumper stickers and billboards which state "Freedom is not free." that is very, very true. Great prices have been paid in order that freedom might exist today not only here, but other places as well. I know most of you, like me, have family members that are or have served in the military and I am very proud of them. It is very humbling to know that others, people I do not even know, that are standing in the gap for me right now. To say thank you is but one way to show appreciation. Memorial Day is but one day to honor those to whom honor is due. I hope we never forget the price that has been paid for us because there is no way we can ever repay it. Thank you!

Spiritually, the same thing is true. Every Sunday is a memorial day in which we honor and remember Jesus who paid the ultimate price for our freedom from sin. This freedom too came at a huge price. Jesus willfully came and died to take our place and to take our sins to the grave with Him. To say thank you is but one way to show appreciation. To remember Him and to obey His commands and wishes is another. I hope that we never forget the price that was paid for us because there is no way we can ever repay it. Thank you!

The Costa Rica team is now just days (1 week) away from leaving!!! Things are in a frenzy around here as we are getting the last minute things done in preparation for departure. Tomorrow (Tuesday) boxes and packages are being mailed out all over the place to get t-shirts, journals, water bottles, and rain jackets to everyone before we leave. It has taken us hours of sorting and double checking everything before packing them up and sealing the boxes. Depending on how fast the mail travels everyone should have their stuff by this weekend.

I am going to the bank tomorrow to let them know that a big withdrawal is coming (big for me anyways... for banks it might not be that big of a deal...). The supplemental travel insurance HOPEFULLY will be taken care of tomorrow... I am still waiting on 1 application to arrive... I can't order until I have every one's applications so I can get the right information off of them. Once that is done all of the major things that are pressing will be just about complete and I will be able to get to bed and get some sleep. I feel like I am aging in dog years!

Now would be a good time to go over your packing list, locate your passport (you would be surprised how many people panic the night before they leave because they can't find their passports!), and start prepping for the trip. Now, I know for some of you that you are laughing right now, and that is OK. Believe it or not there are people that really do get ready for the trip days ahead of time and do not wait till the last minute. I of course am not one of them, but there are some out there! Please make sure you have contacted your insurance company and your bank to let them know you are going to be out of the country... they need to know. If you take prescription medicines, now would be a great time to make sure you have plenty of medicine before you leave.

I will be sending out emergency contact information very soon for you to leave at home in case someone needs to reach us during the trip. Please remember that phone calls back to the States is for emergency purposes but emails and fax will be available on limited basis. We will be posting information about the trip everyday on this blogspot so make sure everyone knows the blog address so that they can read the daily updates to see what we have been doing! Brandy Barnett and her assistants do a great job tracking the events of the day and posting photos too. Also remember that we are going to be on a media fast. Cell phones, I-Pads, computers, I-Pods, etc. will not be used on the trip. We want participants to focus on the mission trip and getting to know people on the trip and not retreating to ear buds to listen to music, texting on cell phones, or hoping on a computer to check Facebook.

More information coming soon. I can't believe it is almost here! Take care and I will talk to you again soon!

TR

It's here!

We just got home late Monday night from a week's vacation (yes, an actual vacation!) and a trip to Birmingham to visit with Nathan and Karen and to go to Karen's graduation from UAB optometry school. We now have our second doctor in the family (Judy Mitchell was our first when she got her Dr. of therapy from Belmont a couple of years ago). Karen and Nate are now off to St. Petersburg, Florida, where she will complete her residency at the V.A. Hospital. She begins July 1 for a year long program. I guess we will have to tough it out and go visit them while they are there!

This week almost seemed like Christmas here. I have been patiently waiting for all of the stuff to get here from the silk screen shop for the trip. Monday the main team t-shirts came in, 4 boxes in all. Of course I opened every one of them! The shirts look great! Tuesday a second set of shirts arrived. Wednesday the rain jackets AND water bottles came in!!! Did anyone hear me say, "Oh yeah!"? Everything looks really good, especially the water bottles. I was nervous since we had to go with another style but I am quite happy with them. Our living room is filled with all of this stuff and is in the process of being sorted into sizes so that we can begin putting together every one's orders. The last piece of the puzzle, the Torch journal, is almost done and should be going to print later today or Friday. Everything should be ready to go and in the mail no later than Tuesday of next week!

Payments and checks have been flooding my mailbox this week as well. REMEMBER, THIS WEEKEND IS THE DEADLINE IF YOU ARE MAILING A CHECK TO ME! Starting Tuesday (Monday is a Federal holiday) any outstanding payments or donations has to be in the form of cash. I will not have time to deposit checks and have them clear in time to withdraw the money for the trips.

The container is off and away! Gayle Davidson and crew from Melbourne loaded the 40' container and it was trucked to Port Everglades Tuesday and was loaded on a boat headed for Honduras. The projected arrival date for the container is June 2nd. Our team ended up with an amazing 450 boxes of supplies! Thank you so much for all of your hard work and effort to collect, sort, box, and label supplies. A very special thanks to those who traveled to Melbourne to delver the supplies. Steve Schneider, from Mobile, Alabama, receives the Road Warrior Award for his efforts! According to Gayle Davidson, Steve is worth of double honor for what he went through to get his supplies to her. Let's just say he went the extra mile and we will let him tell his story! Years from now it will reach legendary status.

The Costa Rica team is now exactly 2 weeks away from departure today! Last minute arrangements and plans are being worked on and should be completed this week. There is still a lot to do and I only have 24 hours in a day to work on them. I am going to bed late and getting up early (I guess I am conditioning myself for the trip sleep schedule too!) to get it all done. Lots of emails will be sent out in the next few days but hopefully most are reading this blog. The Honduras team is now less than a month away from leaving. Even though the Honduras team has a bit more time to get ready, it will be here before you know it. but for me everything has to be done in the next 10 days. And I have to tell you, I am excited!

In the next few days I will be posting all kinds of information from items to pack to take with you to travel suggestions to make the trip go a little bit smoother. A lot of you will need to do some things that will require a bit of time and work, but it will all make your trip better. So make sure to check the blog daily as updates are posted. Hasta luego!

TR

Some days are like that, even in Australia

Have you ever read the book, "Alexander's terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day?" If you haven't, go out and get it and read it. If you have, you will totally understand why I am referencing the book in this blog.

As our trip rapidly approaches, we have experienced the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. In the book Alexander has a horrible day with a string of events that just doesn't go his way... at all. From not getting a pair of shoes he liked to "accidentally" calling Australia on his Dad's phone, he just had one of those days. The book puts humor to the fact that things don't always go as you wanted or hoped, and that you just have to accept the fact that some days are just like that... even in Australia, where Alexander wants to move to in the book. Well, let me share with you our version of the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.

I have been working daily for the past 3 weeks on the art work for our t-shirts, rain jackets, and water bottles. Emails and art work has been going back and forth as I worked to polish and perfect what I wanted on all of the stuff. I received orders, sizes, colors, and things where just clipping along beautifully, until it was time to actually place the order and "run with it." This past Thursday, when I placed the order and finalized everything, I received an email from the print company that the water bottle we had picked out was out of stock and would not be available until September. They had searched and could not find a suitable replacement. Great news 3 weeks before we are supposed to leave. So 24 hours of searching and calling finally found a 32 ounce bottle similar to the one we wanted and the order was placed... now we are playing a waiting game to see if everything will come in by May 27th so I will have enough time to mail everything out to team leaders.

Over a week ago Daniel Chavez contacted Minor Perez and I asked for money so that he could go ahead and pay for some of the things that he needed do to get ready for our trip to Costa Rica. He needed money for the hotel in Buenos Aires, money for the bus rentals... money to buy food and to rent a house for a week for all of the extra workers coming in. He needed to pay for the TV and radio advertisements he did for the campaign, money to buy paint and brushes for the service projects. No problem. Minor and I calculated the amount, Daniel sent us his bank information, and I went to my bank to wire the money. No problem. I wired about $11,000 to Costa Rica that very day. The bank confirmed the wire went through and was in the National Bank of Costa Rica. The next day we receive information that Daniel could not withdraw the money because it was more than $10,000 and that his account had been frozen. The bank thought it looked a bit suspicious. It took almost a week before Daniel could convince the bank that we were a mission group and not drug runners!

Got an email from Steve Schneider from Mobile asking for contact information for Tim in New Orleans so he can make arrangements to take his boxes of supplies over to New Orleans to the container going out from there. I gave Steve Tim's email address and received a copy from Steve contacting Tim. I also received a copy of Tim's email response asking Steve to call him because there has been a change in plans. Tim is now taking all of my supplies, along with his, to Melbourne to ship out because only 1 container is now going instead of 2. Steve now has to take his stuff to Melbourne instead of New Orleans before the 20th so that it can make it on the container. I then receive an email from Gayle stating that Steve's truck broke down on the way to Melbourne and is having all kinds of trouble getting his stuff to her.

Ken Haab called me last night. He was contacted by American Airlines stating that anyone who purchased an airline ticket after February 1st cannot check 2 bags on the flight for free but will have to pay $30 for the 2nd bag. By the time I got off the phone with Ken I realized I wasn't even surprised, and that I must now just go ahead and change my name to Alexander. Maybe I could go by Alex, or even Al. However, anyone who helps me organize trips, and is a veteran to all of this knows that this happens all the time. It isn't even a trip without stuff like this happening. These are the bumps in the road, the hiccups along the way, that you deal with as you prepare for a trip like ours. After all, in the book Alexander gets upset over lots of things. He doesn't get a prize in his box of cereal, but he does get cereal. He doesn't get fancy tennis shoes, but he does get shoes. Alexander got what he needed, not necessarily what he wanted. And the same thing will be true for us as we get ready for this trip.

This doesn't mean we don't keep planning. It doesn't mean we don't try to plan the work and then work the plan. Quite the opposite. The only way to make a trip like ours run smoothly is to set due dates, plan schedules, and implement them. When a bump comes along, you deal with it and continue on your way. You adjust, fix, or solve the problem at hand and go on. I have used the analogy of a duck swimming on a pond. From the surface you see a duck swimming on the top of the water of the pond, gliding along with such beauty and grace. The duck looks so calm and he does everything with such little effort from your view point. What you don't see is what is going on under the water. Those little webbed feet are busy at work keeping the duck balanced and on course so that up top everything looks so smooth and perfect. Just know as you get ready to go on your trip, many people are busy at work getting everything done so that our trip will run as smoothly as possible.

So, we are coming down the home stretch. Remember, all money in the form of checks MUST, MUST, MUST be in my possession by May 28th (11 days from today!!!). Any money after that date has to be cash and cash cannot be sent in the mail. After May 28th any remaining balance has to be paid in cash in Costa Rica or Honduras, depending on which team you are on. Photocopies of passports are due now. We MUST have photocopies of ALL passports before we leave the country. Margaret will be giving me an updated list of things that are missing from everyone and I will be passing that information on ASAP. Time is beginning to run out and the stress level is rising. due dates are rapidly approaching and the pressure is on. Everyone has to do their part to make this trip go smoothly. Don't be the bump in the road or the hiccup that we have to deal with here. Do your part so that we can do ours.

Let me know if you have any questions. My excitement for the trips is blended with stress and concern but one thing is for sure, we are about 3 weeks away from launching out for Central America!!!!! Can you believe it? After all of this time we are just about there. The count down clocks on the blog says it all... ready or not, here we go! Hasta luego me amigos, Dios te bendiga!

TR

Gear for sale

As our trips rapidly approach, some of you might already be starting to round up items from the packing list for your trip. 2 items on the list that are of importance is a rain jacket and a water bottle. Now, some of you might have old water bottles and jackets to take, which is great. Others might need to go out and buy these before the trip. I have a suggestion for you! We are having custom water bottles and rain jackets made for our trips this summer. Now, it is totally up to you, but you have a chance to buy some cool gear and let the profits of the sales go towards our work fund or you can save a couple of bucks and let the profits go to some store that does not have the people of Honduras and Costa Rica in mind.

The water bottle this year is very cool. It is a 32 ounce polyurethane bottle with a heavy duty screw on top with a pop up spout. Charcoal grey with Torch logo imprinted. These bottles retail in stores for $19 but we are selling ours for $12.

Rain jackets are water resistant with hood and draw string. The jacket folds up and is stored inside the front pouch pocket and can easily be stored in your backpack. It comes in 4 different colors! Red, Navy, black, and royal blue. Retails for $26 but we are selling ours for $22. Comes in sizes S-3X. Torch logo imprinted on left chest.

Orders must be placed by May 11th to give the supplier time to get the order ready. Contact me by email to place an order. Groups go through your group leader to place orders. Remember, profits will go into our work fund this summer to help assist in our projects! Hope to hear from you soon!

TR

What do you do when the wind blows?

An old farmer owned and operated a large farm outside of a small town in Indiana. He was in need of help and put an ad in the local paper seeking a farm hand. A handsome young man drove up to the house a day later to ask about the job. During the discussion, the farmer asked for the young man's qualifications. With an air of confidence the man replied, "I can sleep when the wind blows." Puzzled by the statement the old farmer scratched his head for a moment. He wasn't sure about the statement but the young man was kind, polite, and looked like he could handle hard work so he was offered the job.

Just a few days after the young man began work the old farmer and his wife were suddenly awakened in the night by a violent storm. The quickly set out to check things to see if everything was alright. As they headed for the door they noticed a good supply of split logs neatly stacked by the fireplace. As they circled the house they noticed that the window shutters had been closed and securely fastened. Inside the storage shed they found all of the farm tools neatly arranged and stored. The tractor was in the over-sized garage and the barn was properly locked. Animals were in their stalls and the horses in the corral. The finally made it to the guest quarters to check on the young man. The man was in bed and asleep. All was well.

It was then that the old farmer understood the young man's words a few days ago, "I can sleep when the wind blows." Because the young man did his work properly and faithfully when the skies were clear he was prepared for a storm if it ever came upon him. So, when the storm came, he was fearless and slept in peace. It isn't the things you do but the things left undone that gives you heartache and grief.

As our trip grows every nearer, it is my hope that we have done the things needed ahead of time properly and faithfully so that we will be able to sleep soundly at night while in Costa Rica or Honduras! 6 weeks and counting before our first group departs. Lots of work still to do. Lets get to it.

TR

Time line updated!

April 21, 2011. Time line for those who need to know -

Wednesday, May 4th: Deadline for supplies being brought to Henderson, TN to go to New Orleans, LA for the container
Thursday, May 5th: Deadline for all supplies being loaded on the container in Melbourne, FL
Saturday, May 7th: Deadline for all supplies being loaded on the container in New Orleans, LA
Sunday, May 24th: Deadline for all paperwork, photographs, passport copies, etc.
Sunday, May 29th: All money and unpaid balances due. No checks accepted after this date, cash only from this point on.
Wednesday, June 8th: Interns and extended team leave for Atlanta
Thursday, June 9th: Costa Rica team arrives and begins work
Sunday, June 19th: Costa Rica team returns to the States; Nicaragua team arrives in Managua
Tuesday, June 21st: Extended team and advance team arrive in Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Friday, June 24th: Honduras team arrives
Monday, July 4th: Honduras team returns to the States; extended team departs for Santa Rosa de Copan, Honduras
Monday, July 11th: Extended team departs for the States

Supplies being sent to Honduras are due VERY soon. So far a ton of stuff has been collected, sorted, boxed, inventoried, and labeled. The Bell Shoals congregation collected a whopping 107 boxes of supplies! Steve Johnson and company have already delivered their boxes to Gayle in Melbourne. Ken Haab, in Islamarada, FL, has been collecting supplies for several weeks now and are nearly ready to take their supplies to Melbourne. Diane Adams will be taking supplies from Sarasota too. Up here, the Pennsylvania team brought down their supplies a couple of weeks ago. Theirs, along with supplies from west Tennessee and middle Tennessee, has totaled 106 boxes so far. Today more supplies arrived here at F-HU and we will be having another packing party in the next couple of days! I will also be ordering a pallet of Romen Noodles and some playground equipment to go on the New Orleans container. Tim O'Dell and the Cookville team have collected over 100 handmade dresses that they will be bringing down with them in their luggage. I believe the Mobile, AL team has collected several boxes of supplies as well that will be going over to New Orleans. I am estimating that we will have well over 300 boxes of supplies going to Honduras this summer!

LOTS of money that has been paid in has gone out in the form of deposits for hotels, bus reservations, etc. In just a couple of weeks I will be purchasing the supplemental travel insurance policies for everyone. The Torch admin fees will also be paid during that time. T-shirts are about to be ordered and journals will be printed within the next 3 or 4 weeks. In other words, we are on the move and the train is about to leave the station! Although a few have completely paid off their remaining balances, MOST of you are in the count down before final money is due. 38 days to be exact! If you are not in crunch mode, it is time. The next 7-8 weeks are going to fly by and there is very little time to waste. MANY still have not turned in vital paper work and several have not sent me flight information yet! That was due several weeks ago... I must have this information ASAP.

I will keep you updated on information schedules, etc., as I receive it. Man am I getting excited! Stay tuned, much, much more to come soon!

TR

What would you do?

Ice cream. Oh the very mention of the word. Soft serve. Hand dipped. Homemade. Store bought. All natural. Vanilla. Chocolate. Mint chocolate chip. 32 flavors. Ben and Jerry. Bryers. Hagen daz. One of the major food groups. Nero, during the 4th century BC, started the craze by bringing ice down from the mountains and crushing it and mixing fruit into it. By the 13th century Marco Polo brought back to Europe the milk and ice method from the Chinese. By the 18th century Italy and France was making sherbets. George Washington ate it. Thomas Jefferson's favorite was vanilla. By 1851 in was being sold in stores. Don't you love studying history? Along came the ice cream sandwich. And in particular, a company that made Klondike Bars. And their clever and nifty little catch phrase, "What would you do for a Klondike Bar?" Great commercials! Oh the things people were willing to do to get a Klondike bar! Of course, the point of the advertisement was to get people to think that people would be willing to do just about anything to get one. And they sold a LOT of ice cream bars. Right now some of you might be thinking, "You are right! I would do just about anything for a Klondike Bar!" What would you do? So, how did the Klondike Bar become so successful? After all, there are dozens and dozens of ice cream companies out there that offer hundreds, if not thousands of products. How did Klondike separate themselves from the pack? Well, they took something that was well known, something that people felt like they needed, something desirable. They produced a product that was practical, unique, and affordable. They built up a loyal consumer base, and then hit a home run with the advertisement catch phrase. Make sense? Did it work? So, let's use the Klondike bar's amazing little catch phrase, change up just a little, and use it in another way, shall we? Let's go with, "what would you do to go on a Torch trip?" Well, let's see, we found something that was well known that people felt like they needed to have. Mission work is the heart and soul of Christianity and evangelism. Christians feel the need to do mission work and have a passion for it. We took the concept of mission work and made it practical, unique, and affordable. We took the words of Matthew 25 and developed a program that incorporated the things Jesus talked about in that chapter. We refined the ministries, streamlined methods, and made trips that were available for most people on a budget that most people could afford. Then we built up a loyal base, or core group, of workers that have come year after year. We don't have a clever jingle or catch phrase, at least not yet. Now, I am not saying that Torch Missions is a company with a clever Marketing and Public Relations department. Far from it. I just happen to see some things that are in common. But you know what they say, the best advertising is by word of mouth by satisfied customers. Sure, we set up booths at youth rallies and lectureships. We visit congregations and make presentations to schools, youth groups, and churches. We have pamphlets and booklets and banners and posters. We have slide shows and DVDs. But to be honest, that is not where we get most of our team members. Most of our team members are recruited by the people that have gone on our trips before. They know what we do, why we do it, and what they get from it. They believe in Torch Missions, and because of their convictions, they bring others with them to share in the experience. So, back to the question, "What would you do to go on a Torch trip?" Work a second job. Take on a paper route. Bag groceries on my day off for tips. Wash cars. Baby sit... a lot. Sell my truck. Use part of my school loan money. Cash in an insurance policy. Use the savings I built up to buy a car. Have a yard sale, and then another, and another, and another. Bake pies and cakes. Clean the church building. Build a homemade putt putt course for people to play. Put on a murder mystery dinner show. Have an auction. Sell BBQ ribs and chicken. Paint Christmas decorations. Dress up like Santa and use White Out to make my eyebrows white. Have a golf tournament. Have a spaghetti dinner and sell tickets. Flip pancakes and cook sausage. Sell refreshments at a ball game. Do yard work and cut grass. Sell doughnuts before school starts. Hand paint tennis shoes to sell. Use up all of my vacation time for the year to go on the trip. That is what you would do. You would do this and more. Because every one of these examples are true examples that someone did to go on a Torch Missions trip. Why? Because it is worth it. Pure and simple... it is worth it. Of course, there are lots of people that don't like Klondike Bars. Some people don't like them and they haven't even tried one. But their minds are made up. They look at people who are willing to do almost anything to get a Klondike Bar as someone that is weird and one brick shy of a load. They don't like it, want it, and because of that do not get it. The same thing is true for mission work to Central America. They don't like it, want it, and because of that do not get it. They think it is a waste of time and money and think you are weird and one brick shy of a load. They just don't get it. I feel sorry for them. I really do. Because once you get it, you GET IT! Have you got it? TR

It's all in the details

To the surprise of most, I did not pull any April Fool's pranks today. I really didn't. And even more shocking, no one pulled any on me. That's OK with me, I really don't need April 1st to pull a prank... just ask Diane Adams or Tara Shay. Sometimes I do my best work in Honduras. Time will tell what this year's trip might bring... we do have a LOT of new people going this year! However, April 1st means other things to us. Specifically, it begins the final count down for all supplies that will be shipped down to Honduras. 30 days and counting, give or take, until everything needs to be sorted, counted, boxed, labeled, and inventoried. I will be emailing specific instructions to team leaders next week concerning all of this. The better organized we are on this end will help make the job of unloading and unpacking on the other end. 24 of us will be in Honduras a couple days ahead of the main team getting things ready. Our specific job will be to organize the boxes according to content into several different groupings: Men's clothes; women's clothes; children's clothes; infant clothes; shoes; toys and stuffed animals; school supplies; medical supplies; hygiene supplies; tools; medicines; Bible and VBS supplies; etc. Once the main team arrives we will sort the supplies even further according to male/female clothes and by sizes; male / female / children's shoes and by sizes; sort the 50+ different medicines and break the bulk items into prescription sized pill bottles; sort the school supplies; sort the VBS supplies; sort and package the hygiene items; etc. It is a lot of work but the better organized we are the more efficient we are when it comes time to give the supplies away to those who need it. We will do the same thing with bulk foods. We will order huge amounts of beans; rice; sugar; flour; spaghetti noodles; tomato sauce; shortening; bullion cubes; coffee; etc. and will break the items down into family sized portions and assemble food bags. We will also buy fresh food such as carrots; cucumbers; onions; potatoes; cabbage; oranges; etc. and will make family sized portions to be given away. Depending on how much money we raise for the work fund, we might be able to distribute food bags to over 1,000 families this trip (or about 5,000 people) which could amount to over 100,000 meals (3 meals a day for 1 week). . I have talked to Gayle Davidson and Tim Hines this past week concerning the containers. Plans have changed slightly and most definitely to our favor. All supplies being collected in Florida will still be sent to Melbourne, Florida, where Gayle will make room for them on her container that is being loaded and shipped out the 1st week of May. Any supplies that are being collected elsewhere will be sending their boxes to New Orleans. Tim has a container that is going out the 2nd weekend of May. Both containers will arrive in Honduras before we get there. I will be driving a truck down to New Orleans the 1st weekend in May so if you can get your stuff to me I will be glad to take it along with the things we have collected here. Jenny Lovell continues to do a great job raising money for our work fund. She has had donations for dedication houses, money to buy Bibles, funds to help buy medicines, and donations to help with the cost of shipping our supplies down. Remember, the more money we have in the work fund the more houses we can build, food distributions to give away, Bibles to give away, and special projects like banquets for Jesus we can do. With a team as large as ours, our only real limit is how much we have to fund projects. We are capable of doing multiple tasks every day during our entire trip to Honduras. On the Costa Rica trip, things are well on their way to being organized and ready to roll. 36 of the 42 team members have now bought their airline tickets. Hotel rooms have been reserved (3 different locations). Buses have been reserved. Daniel Chaves has organized work projects for us... we literally start work 3 hours after we arrive in Buenos Aires! Door knocking teams will be going out every day that we are there; 5 nights for the gospel meeting; 4 days of VBS; 3 days of training classes for men, women, and children; service projects; painting projects; visitation; benevolence projects; and fellowship. Joe Roberts, from Eustis, Florida, has already written his lessons on church growth. Keffee Morrow has already written her lessons for the ladies bible class. Carla Richardson is working on the children's Bible lessons. Kim Fussell has written the VBS lessons and we will be using them in Costa Rica; Nicaragua, and Honduras. Puppet skits are being planned for both trips. Drama skits are being written for both teams. Minor Perez has been working like a mad man calling and emailing Costa Rica making plans and reservations. translators have been recruited and secured and ready to go. Margaret has been updating spread sheets like crazy. I guess what I am trying to say is a LOT OF STUFF HAS BEEN DONE ALREADY! This is, by far, the most organized we have been by April 1st. My biggest task now is writing the journal and getting it printed and finishing the t-shirt design and getting them screened. Thanks to all that have been working so hard to get things ready for this trip. Many of you are collecting supplies for the trips. Others have been raising money for the work fund. Keep up the good work. Keep finding ways to keep people focused on the trip and to get more and more people involved in the trip. It is awesome to hear about the things groups are doing! This weekend Kittanning church of Christ in Pennsylvania is having a putt-putt tournament. What makes this special is the fact that there is not a putt-putt course within 45 miles of Kittanning... they are building their own at the church building! 18 one of kind holes are being built and designed by members at the congregation. Unique? Sure! Sound like fund? Absolutely! They are also doing a murder mystery dinner before the trip. Western Hills church of Christ in Nashville is gearing up for a huge yard sale, spaghetti luncheon and auction, and a baby back rib sale. The Florida Keys group is bagging food at a local grocery store and selling pizza at a community event. Let me know what other groups are doing! I would love to share your stories!!! I keep watching the count down calendars for Honduras and Costa Rica. I keep scratching off things on my "to do" list. I keep tossing change into the jar (spending money for the trip... it is amazing how much money we collect every year by just saving change!). Stay tuned, more information, stories, and thoughts for the day are coming. Las primeras cinco personas que leen esto y me entran en contacto con recibran una bottella de agua libre de la TORCH. Hope to hear from you soon! TR

Headlines in the news

If you don't keep up with the news, you are missing out on some interesting stuff. Apparently, God had a wife... but the details were edited out of the Bible by the men who wrote it. Sammy Hager (former Van Halen lead singer) was abducted by aliens. There is no Hell, according to Bob Bell, the minister at the Mars Hill Bible Church, in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Barry Bonds thought the steroids he was receiving was flax seed oil. Really? I mean, REALLY? Balderdash! (word was used last Sunday in worship assembly and I am now dedicated to using this word as much as I can) Oh, and Madonna's plans to build a school for girls in Malawi is over before it ever got started. It seems the $3.8 million that was donated is gone without a piece of land purchased, a brick laid... just outlandish expenditures on salaries, cars, and golf course memberships for the "handpicked" staff. Balderdash! (Can you imagine what TORCH could do with $3.8 million?)

On the other hand, good news is out there. You just have to look for it. sometimes you have to look for it really hard. Most of you know I am a die hard Alabama fan. I bleed Crimson. Well, I guess everyone bleeds crimson, but I bleed with a capital C. Anyways, Alabama football is a pretty big deal to me and I try to follow the news on the team, players, coaches, etc. I mean, after all, I live in a men's dorm with guys from Texas, Alabama, Tennessee, Florida, Ohio, Wisconsin, California, South Carolina, Mississippi, Georgia... when trash talk starts up you better know your stuff. I pretty much live for this ya know!

So, I read an article that really caught my attention. And it had nothing to do with bench presses, 40 yard dashes, or agility drills. It was a story about some Alabama football players and how they spent their spring break. With head lines the way they are these days, if you hear college students and spring break in the same sentence, you are about to read something that is not for the faint of heart. Some of the things that go on during spring break around the country is not suitable to be written, especially in this blog. But not so fast, not all news is bad... or shocking. Sometimes news is positive and uplifting... you just have to read about it in the middle of the paper for this rarely makes front page news.

The main character of the article was Barrett Jones, one of my favorite players for the Crimson Tide. Barrett is a junior offensive lineman for the tide, and a big man on campus. I mean, he really is big. 6'5" and 311 pounds big. All SEC, All American big. National championship ring big. He is a big man with a big heart. Last year Barrett went on a mission trip to Haiti during spring break to do earthquake relief. He flew into the Dominican Republic and then took a 6 hour Jeep ride into Haiti to work with other teammates and classmates in a variety of projects. It made such an impact that this year he went back with more players and a larger group (31 total) including his younger brother and mom and dad. For spring break this year they worked with construction of a school, worked at an orphanage, and worked in a feeding kitchen to feed the hungry. Spring break was more like spring work, especially knowing that spring football practice was starting up as soon as he got back to Tuscaloosa. But he said he wouldn't trade the experience for anything. "You go over there and see someone who literally has nothing, who lives under a tin roof in a mud hut... it really puts things in perspective as to how fortunate we are."

Sounds familiar, doesn't it? How many of us have said the very same thing? We might not be All American football players or even people that even get press time for what we do, but we are all in this together. Helping others. Helping those who are hurting. Helping those who are down trodden. Helping those whose lives have been shattered. Helping those who cannot help themselves. Providing food. Providing water. Providing shoes. Providing clothes. Providing medicine. Giving hope. Giving mercy. Giving peace. Giving ourselves. Giving Jesus. Not because we have to, but because we want to... answering the call that God gave when He said, "Who will go?" "Here am I, send me! Lord, send me!"

Many are answering the call. Many are putting on their traveling shoes. It won't be long till it will be time to pack our bags, grab our passports, and roll up our sleeves. I can almost smell the diesel fumes, feel the saw dust on my neck, and taste the papusas . I can almost hear the laughter from the children and see those big brown eyes. If this is your first trip, it won't be long till you will be saying the same things. For those who are not going this year, you are feeling the withdrawal pains. Many are called but few will answer. Yet God will take those which are brought before Him, and will bless us, and will use us, to do His good will. And in all things He will receive the glory and honor. We are His chosen vessels. God has prepared good works for us to do, and we are lucky and fortunate enough to be a part of it! How cool is that!

"But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear." I Peter 3:15 We worship a might God. We serve a glorious Savior.

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"O, what a glorious God! O, what a powerful Savior! All creation cries out around You, holy is the Lord. O, what a glorious God! O, what a powerful Savior! Mercy , grace, and goodness surround You, o-oh what a glorious God, o-ho, what a glorious God!

You speak with a voice like a crashing cymbol, o-oh, what a glorious God! You stretch forth Your hand and the whole world tembles, o-oh, what a glorious God.

Your rose from the dead to redeem Your people, o-oh, what a glorious God! You give us strength and we soar like eagles, o-oh, what a glorious God!

O, what a glorious God! O, what a powerful Savior! All creation cries out around You, holy is the Lord. O, what a glorious God! O, what a powerful Savior! Mercy, grace, and goodness surround You, 0-oh, what a glorious God, o-oh, what a glorious God!" Don Moen

TR

March madness!

Spring break is in its final days here at Freed-Hardeman. In just a day or so students will be rolling back in from their well deserved break. Nearly 65% of our student body participated in mission trips during break, both stateside and abroad. The men's and women's basketball teams played in the national tournament, and the baseball and softball teams were traveling and playing in Florida. Others stayed here to do student teaching and a small number actually went home or elsewhere for a week off. 7 weeks of classes and this academic year is over! Wow.

Margaret and I were able to get away for a few days and went south. Way south. Florida Keys south! We went down to visit with Ken and Sandi Haab who live on Islamorada. They are heading up a team of 17 from the area and we had a cookout Monday evening and did a Q&A session with them. One of my former youth groupies (I guess that is the term...) Katie Haab, aka KTV, lives there too (and is indeed related to the other Haabs mentioned). It was really fun to see here all grown up and a Lipscomb alumni. While we were there we went to a HUGE seafood festival on Sunday afternoon, deep sea fishing (yes Steve, I did catch some fish!), and ate at some great restaurants. We also got to spend a day with friends from Miami and play a round of golf (pretty good day, only lost 6 golf balls!). Most importantly we saw the sun, enjoyed some great weather, and got a little R&R.

As you might have noticed, I have added a countdown for the Costa Rica and the Honduras trips. Just under 12 weeks for the Buenos Aires and under 14 weeks for Tegucigalpa. For most, the time can't go by fast enough... for others (like me!) it is going by way fast. Wait, let me put some emphasis on that... WAYYYYYYYY FAST!!! Trying to keep up with 175 people is not an easy task, no matter how much time you have. I know I say this a lot but with time zipping by at such a rapid clip it seems I need more time than what I am allotted. But all in all things are progressing well.

85% of the Costa Rica team have purchased their airline tickets. 69% have turned in all of their paper work. 85% have paid their deposits. For the Honduras trip, 79%have purchased or have tickets bought or secured, 88% have turned in paper work, and 91% have paid their deposits. Good numbers for sure, and I am hoping that we will have 100% on all categories at the end of the month. March 31 is the deadline for all paper work, deposits, and airline flight bookings. Check with your team leader if you are not sure which percentage you are in! Trust me, they know...

We are 5 1/2 weeks away from the due date for supply collections. All supplies need to be sorted, boxed, labeled, and inventoried before we send everything over to the Melbourne church of Christ to be loaded on the container. I will be sending our specific information soon on specifics on how to sort, label, and inventory your supplies. Our shipping manifest must be very specific and very complete. Each box or item must be labeled and numbered. Those that have done this before know the routine well and it is a pain but a vital necessity to make sure our container goes through the Honduras customs agency without any hitches. The better we do our job on this end speeds up the process of getting our container out of Porta Cortez and on to Tegucigalpa.

Speaking of supplies, I need to get a estimate from everyone on what they have collected so far and quantities. I need to know what supplies need to be emphasized for a final push before we leave. Right now the most important single item we need is toothbrushes. Hopefully everyone has already talked to their family dentist to get them to pitch in with donations. If not, Dollar General, Family Dollar, Fred's, and Dollar Tree is your best bet to buy toothbrushes. Wal-Mart, Target, and K-Mart do not carry inexpensive toothbrushes like the other stores mentioned. Quantity is important, we need approximately 5,000 toothbrushes for our hygiene packets. We try to put 5 brushes in a packet with 1 family size tube of toothpaste (the math whizzes out there already figured out we need 1,000 tubes of toothpaste). Disposable razors are also high on the list.

Our order of pharmaceutical medicines just arrived here in Henderson today. This is great news since it arrived 3 weeks ahead of schedule! (Yes, scary thought) With the payment of the medicines, along with deposits that need to be sent out in the next 2 weeks for hotel reservations, our Torch funds will be nearly depleted. This is just a subtle reminder that if you have not sent your deposits in we need them! Everything has a purpose behind it.

I want to thank all of you that have been working so hard for the past several weeks, even months, getting things ready for the trips. It is not an easy task to get your team to turn in applications, get rules sheets and Spanish release forms notarized, and collect money. It certainly is not easy doing fund raisers (although some of the things I have heard about sound like a ton of fun!) and trying to get donations for the work fund. Collecting supplies can be a bit of a pain too. Oh, yeah, don't forget those essays and letters of recommendation. Just remember, everything is done for a reason. Sometimes the big picture just doesn't come into focus till later on... sort of like those 3-D movies! (OK, maybe not, but at the time is sounded like a good analogy)

But, remember the purpose behind all of the madness... there are literally thousands of people that are crying out for help and guidance, praying for relief and a helping hand... not knowing that God has formed a group of people from all over the place into a team that will do His good will in due time. You are a part of that team and a part of His plan. That should send chill bumps down your back. It should humble you. And it should pump you up! Man, you got to love this stuff! Think of how many people that you know and have talked to that wanted to go on this trip but can't for one reason or another. But you get to go! You get to participate! You are a part of God's team. Whether you are literally going on the trip or supporting the team with donations, funds, or supplies, a difference is going to be made in a few months.

March madness... it is not always about basketball. Sometimes it is just the craziness that happens as a group of God's people work to get ready to do something remarkable. I like it... I like it a lot. Hasta luego!

TR

what do you see?

What do you see when you look in a mirror?

This might seem like an odd question, especially coming from me. But tonight, after sitting through our Sunday night mission group devo and Spanish class, watching a movie with friends, and doing my nightly lobby and duty and monitor's report, I sit in a quiet apartment with thoughts racing through my head. It is almost mid-March and I have been spending 2-3 hours a day working on plans for the mission trips, booking tickets, contacting hotels, and sending out emails and making phone calls for weeks. It has been a tremendously fast paced time with very little down time, let along quiet time. But now, at 2:30 in the morning, it is quiet and I have time to think.

Anyways, back to the question. What do you see when you look in a mirror? I don't like looking in a mirror. At all. I don't like what I see. For that matter, I don't like looking at recent photos in which I am in for the same reason. All I can see are flaws. The buzzed hair. Receding hairline. Wrinkles. Greying hair. The weight. Man, the list could go on and on. However, whether I like it or not, the mirror is a reflection of what I LOOK like. And sometimes, maybe most of the time, that is what I notice. I notice what I look like when I should be looking to see WHO I AM. For you see what I look like has little to do with who I am.

Sometimes I look into a mirror and I stare into my eyes. I try to see who I am. I try to see beyond the physical and look at what is behind the flesh and bone. I try to see who I am, what I have become, and what I want to be. I try to see the inward, the heart and soul, the inner man so to speak. I try to see what others see. Sure, I know what I physically look like and I know what they see that way, but what do people see when they look at me? What type of reflection do they see of my inner man? What do they see when they see my heart and soul? Do they see what I see or do they see something else?

James 1:23-24 talks about a man looking into a mirror. "Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it-not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it- they will be blessed in what they do." What is James talking about??? How can someone look into a mirror and forget what he looks like? Most of us spend a good deal of time looking in a mirror, whether we like it or not. After all, we want to look presentable. Nobody wants to go around with a piece of green yuk stuck between your front teeth, right? Most people are going to remember what color their hair is (usually), the color of their eyes (or color of their contacts), shape of their head and amount of facial hair. James certainly can't be talking about physical appearances.

But, what about the inner man? When you look in a mirror, what do you see THEN? What do you see when you are not looking at the length or color or style of your hair? What do you see when you are not looking at your cheekbones, lips, and skin tone? What do you see when you look at your character? Your moral stance? Your convictions? Your pride? Your integrity? Your perseverance? Your honor? Your conduct? Your loyalty? Your beliefs? Your patience? Your attitude about others? Your willingness to serve? Your Christianity? You see, your inner man can change. It can change daily! If you don't stop and take a good long look at yourself every now and then, you really can forget what you look like!

I am not the same person I was years ago. I have changed. When I run into someone that I have not seen for a long time we both usually have the same reaction. Neither of us look like we did the last time we saw each other. Aging does that... we assume people will look and ACT differently. We expect it. Physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Hopefully a maturing process has taken place. Paul writes in I Corinthians 13:11: "When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish things behind me." As we age and mature we change from a child, physically and spiritually, to an adult, physically and spiritually. And the changes are constantly happening. We must constantly be looking into the mirror, the word of God, to take a good look at ourselves to see who we are and what we look like. Otherwise we could walk away and forget what we look like and reflect the world and what it is and represents. "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love of the Father is not in them. For everything of the world,- the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life- comes not from the Father but of the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever." I John 2:15-17.

When I look into the mirror I see a changed man. I see a person who is changing every single day. I see a man who is trying to become more and more like Jesus but falls short on a regular basis. I see a man who falls down and gets back up. I see a man who is running the race and striving for the prize. Running, walking, and even crawling at times. But always trying to move forward and upward. Trying to keep my eye on the goal.

When you look into the mirror do you see a kitten or a lion? A prisoner or a conqueror? A run away slave or a faithful servant? A peasant or a child of the King? A loser or a victor? A worthless life of a priceless soul? Discarded or redeemed? Lost or saved?

What do you see in the mirror?

TR

A piggy back ride

Good news on the home front. I found out today that we are going to be able to piggy back supplies on a container this summer! Gayle Davidson, Torch team leader and awesome friend, will be shipping a container to Honduras sometime near the end of April / first of May and will be in Tegucigalpa in time for our trip this summer. The container will be loaded in Melbourne, Florida, which is even better news for the Tampa, Sarasota, and Islamorada teams. Those of us north of Florida will have to figure out a way to truck our stuff down to Melbourne in time for the loading. This is great news because now we can send stuff down and will not have to pay for an entire container, but chip in our fair share for Gayle's.

Right now our major focus for supply collection is hygiene products (tooth brushes, tooth paste, soap, etc), toys, stuffed animals, children's shoes and clothes, and over the counter meds like Tylenol, Advil, chewable vitamins, etc. Let me know if you come across anything interesting that you are offered, sometimes my motto, "If its free its for me!" can bring in some very interesting items. As you collect shoes and clothes, pay close attention to the condition of the donations and sort out things that are too worn, stained, or inappropriate. One of Torch's slogans is "NO JUNK FOR JESUS." We want to be able to give quality goods to the people of Honduras.

Airline tickets are definitely on the rise. If you have not bought your ticket yet I hope you are in the process of getting it done. I bought Margaret's ticket this week and the price went up $50 in 24 hours. With the situation in the Middle East right now there is no telling how expensive the tickets will get. As a reminder, please send me your flight information once you have bought your ticket(s), especially if you are going on the Honduras trip. Scheduling buses to be at the airport at the correct times will be important as flights arrive. It looks like we have people flying on all the carriers mentioned in the last blog so finding out how many are on each flight is the puzzle piece we are trying to find now.

Plans for the Costa Rica trip is getting more and more specific as the days advance. We have been in communication with Daniel Chavez, the preacher in Buenos Aires, several times. He now has Skype and we can talk to him on a more consistent basis now. You can't help but get excited listening to him as we discus the plans for the campaign there! Daniel is planning on doing radio and television advertisements for a month leading up to the mission team's arrival. Today we decided to add an additional day to the gospel meeting. We will now be doing a 5 day meeting to take advantage of the time that the Torch team, along with several of the ministers from other congregations throughout Costa Rica, are there working. Our goal is to try to canvas the entire city (about 45,000-60,000) while we are there. Besides the evening tent meeting, we will be doing a 4 day training seminar with a class on church growth for the men taught by Dr. Joe Roberts, a ladies class taught by Keffie Morrow, and a children's class. We will also be doing a 4 day VBS class too along with several service projects.

The Honduras plans are still a work in progress. We are still getting information in about potential work sites for this summer. Mark Connell, Tim Hines, and Marc Tindall have been discussing various work areas and researching needs and ways in which we night be able to help. Tim has found some new places to visit and of course places like Mololoa, Dadakso, the blind school, the special needs orphanage, and others are in the plans. We are gearing up for at least 1 major medical clinic this year, possibly 2. We do know that we will be working in Tegucigalpa and the surrounding area the entire trip this summer. Nathan's team is planning on working their entire trip in Choluteca at Agua Agria installing a hydro-electric system there along with other projects. They will take care of the clothing and shoe distribution there this year so we will be able to focus our energy in the capital city.

Stay tuned, I will be posting again soon. As February comes to a close we find ourselves that much closer to the summer months and our mission trips. For the Costa Rica team we are just barely 100 days away from the trip! Hasta luego, recuerde que servimos a Dios de la fuerza! Reinados de Dios!

TR

Flight information for this summer

Spring is in the air (unless you live above the Mason - Dixon Line... in that case I am not sure when you know when spring starts up there!) and the natives are growing restless. Here at F-HU, students have taken a liking to being outside, wearing flip flops, washing cars, and enjoying the sunshine. The countdown has begun for spring break and mid-term exams. Yep, its official, this year is clipping along at a pretty fast speed. We are a week away from March and it is time to start moving on to the next phase of our mission trip(s).

March is the deadline to officially withdraw from the trip. Anyone who has signed up to go on one of the mission trips can withdraw in March and still get a full refund of money that has been paid in for the trip. After March 31st down payments and deposits are made that are non-refundable. After March refunds are given based on what is left after deposits and down payments have been made. The closer we get to the trip the more money will have been paid for specifics such as lodging, insurance, etc. We certainly understand that things come up that are unexpected that might cause someone to miss the trip, but once money has been paid out we simply cannot get it back.

March is also the month most people begin buying their airline tickets. I know there is a large number of you that have already purchased airline tickets, which is great. For the rest of us, the time has come to start shopping in earnest for our tickets. I have been watching the websites closely and ticket prices have been going up and down (mostly up) and with the crisis in the Middle East right now, I do not expect ticket prices to come down any time soon. One thing is certain, there will be a limited number of seats available on the dates we will be traveling, and once those tickets have been purchased there will not be any more. Since we are not the only group traveling this summer, tickets are selling and selling pretty fast. Delaying your purchase increases the likelihood of losing out on a seat on the flight. Hopefully most, if not all, of you are ready to purchase tickets.

Airline carriers:
American Airlines: http://www.aa.com/
Continental Airlines: http://www.continental.com/
Delta airlines: http://www.delta.com/
Spirit airlines: http://www.spirit.com/
TACA: http://www.taca.com/

Some departure / arrival city abbreviations:
Atlanta: ATL
Memphis: MEM
Nashville: BNA
Houston: IAH
Tampa: TPA
Miami: MIA
Orlando: ORL
Pittsburgh: PIT
San Jose, Costa Rica: SJO
Tegucigalpa: TGU
San Pedro Sula: SAP

If you are going on the Costa Rica trip, June 9th - June 19th, you have several flight options. Depending on your departure city, you will make a connection before you go down to San Jose. It is important that you arrive in San Jose before or around 12:00pm on the 9th. The following flights arrive during that time frame:
TACA flight #319 departs Miami at 6:45 am to San Salvador. You connect on TACA #321 which arrives in San Jose at 9:45 am.
Continental flight 1528 departs Houston at 9:10 am and arrives in San Jose at 11:50 am.
American flight #971 departs Miami at 10:10 am and arrives in San Jose at 10:55 am.
Spirit flight #755 departs Ft. Lauderdale at 10:48 am and arrives in San Jose at 11:40 am.
Delta flight #415 departs Atlanta at 9:50 am and arrives is San Jose at 11:55 am. Return flights vary so check the websites for choices leaving on June 19th.

If you are going on the trip to Honduras June 24th through July 4th, here are your flight options:
TACA flight #190 departs Miami at 5:10 am to San Salvador. Flight continues to Tegucigalpa and arrives at 9:32 am.
Continental flight #756 departs Houston at 9:05 am and arrives in Tegucigalpa at 11:10 am.
American Airlines flight #953 departs Miami at 11:15 am and arrives in Tegucigalpa at 11:35 am.
Delta flight #551 departs Atlanta 10:10 am and arrives in Tegucigalpa at 11:45 am. Return flights vary so check the websites for choices leaving on July 4th.

If you are staying in Honduras until July 11th, you will be flying home from San Pedro Sula. When you book your ticket you need to select the multi-city option on the website. You will fly into Tegucigalpa on one of the flights listed above, and then you will select a return flight from one of the following choices:
TACA flight #575 departing San Pedro Sula at 7:05 am to San Salvador. Connect on TACA #310 departing at 8:55 am arriving in Miami at 1:30 pm.
Continental flight #763 departing San Pedro Sula at 11:45 am arriving in Houston 3:30 pm.
American Airlines flight #944 departing San Pedro Sula at 7:10 am arriving in Miami at 11:35 am.
Delta flight #504 departing San Pedro Sula at 12:05 pm arriving in Atlanta at 5:20 pm.
Spirit flight#826 departing San Pedro Sula at 1:15 AM arriving in Ft. Lauderdale 5:39 am. Check connections to your final destination for flight options.

Check with airline websites and read checked baggage information closely. Also check to see about carry on bags. Every carrier has different policies and charges. Make sure you read information pertaining to international flights. Weight restrictions vary too so make sure you know all of the "fine print" details before you book. Once you have booked your flight please send me a copy of your flight information. I will need it to make arrangements for transportation once you arrive! Eso es muy importante!

Along with booking flights, March is when rule sheets, Spanish release forms (for anyone under the age of 18), photos (everyone needs to send me a passport type photo to attach to your application), and a photocopy of your passport is due. Email me if you need a copy of any of the forms mentioned. Once this is done all of the paper work that you are to turn in is completed. Your final due date is May 31st when the final payment of your balance is due.

This is a lot of information. I hope you will copy and paste this to make your flight search a bit easier. Please make sure anyone you know that is going on the trip is checking this blog and reading the information that is being posted. I know people are reading the blog everyday, unfortunately, I don't know who those people are and more importantly, the ones who are not reading it. Let me know if you have any questions, comments, deep thoughts, jokes, etc., I would love hearing from you! take care and I will be posting again soon. Reinados de Dios!

TR

VBS information and more

This past weekend we braved the chills of west Tennessee for the intern retreat at Mid-South Youth Camp here in Henderson, Tennessee. It was cold Friday night but by Saturday it started warming up and the past couple of days has been magnificent! It was a good weekend and it was the first time that the entire group of interns met each other. As you can tell from my last blog, we have quite a group that will be with me this summer for the entire trip. They are talented, enthusiastic, and a lot of fun to be around. Although they are all very much different from each other in certain ways, they all have similar traits as well. And to set the record straight, I sort of exaggerated their bios... which I know many of you will find hard to believe. All of the rock comments were made up along with some of their hobbies, although Joe Jones insists that he does indeed like needlepoint and grape snow cones.

The things we talked about apply to everyone going on the trip so I want to share some of them with you.

One of the things I emphasized during the retreat was the need to be flexible. Ashley Stewart explained how important it is to stretch before workouts and to keep our muscles flexible, but I told her that was the wrong kind of flexible. (Just kidding, although we did have a discussion about stretching every morning during the trip) Schedules are going to change, plans are going to change, and work projects are going to change. That is just part of life on the mission field, especially in Central America. Weather, transportation, equipment problems, and other things go awry and sometimes we have to go to a plan B, or plan C, or even a plan D on a moment's notice. And sometimes we don't have plans B,C, or D! This drives most Americans crazy, especially if this is your first trip to Central America. As Dorothy would say, "We are not in Kansas anymore." Things are different in Central America and we need to be flexible and roll with it!

We also discussed staying focused during the trip. One of the things that can happen, especially on an extended trip, is losing focus. Everyday each person on the trip has 24 hours to use in whatever way they choose to use them. Whether it is 10 days or 32, all of us have a very finite number of days and hours to use during the trip. We will all spend a great deal of time, energy, and money to prepare for this trip. For some of us we will have spent months getting ready for this trip. Once we arrive, the clock starts ticking and the time goes by VERY quickly. Losing focus and wasting valuable time is one of the worst things you can do. Whether it be personality conflicts, dislike of the food we are eating for our meals, or the person on the bunk next to you that snores, or singing songs that you are not overly fond of, stay focused. Don't let anything steal away your time that you have dedicated to God for the work you are there to do.

One of our longest sessions this weekend had to do with our vacation Bible school lessons. Kim Fussell, from Memphis, Tennessee, will be in charge of writing the VBS lessons again this year. Since we will be using the VBS lessons in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Honduras, we are putting even more work and emphasis on the VBS lessons. Each lesson will be capable of being taught by itself, or together as a series. The VBS theme this year is based off of the life of Paul. Kim will be writing 4 lessons for our teams to use this summer. The lessons will cover different aspects of Paul's life and will include:

* Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus

* Paul and Silas in jail / conversion of the Philippian jailer

* The shipwreck on the way to Rome

* Paul's sermon to King Agrippa ("Almost thou persuaded me to become a Christian")

Anyone that is interested in working with the VBS this year needs to bring props, costumes, etc, that can be used for these lessons. Many churches have a wealth of stuff that we might be able to use. Remember that props have to pack in suitecases so a 8' Roman spear probably is not going to pack very well!

We are going to be designing coloring book pages to go along with the Bible lessons. We will be in need of a LOT of crayons for VBS. If you have a chance, check with local restaurants in your area. Many times they have pre-packaged crayons that they give children. Last year Steve Kemp went to a Shoneys near his house and had 2 cases of crayons donated. We will also be giving out coloring pages and crayons at hospitals, schools, and orphanages, so the more the better! We have a terrific 50 page coloring book with Spanish Bible verses that was written and illustrated by a student at Freed-Hardeman University last year that we will be using again. We will have the coloring book printed up and we will assemble it and staple it once we are on the mission trip.

Continue your supply collections. Although I still do not know about shipping details, we are collecting the following items:

Tooth brushes

Tooth paste

Floss

Advil

Tylenol

Q-Tips

Cotton balls

Band aides (all sizes)

Shampoo (especially baby shampoo)

Bar soap

Disposable razors

Children's vitamins (chewable)

Adult vitamins

Crayons

Pencils, pens, and markers

Toys

Stuffed animals

Infant and children's shoes

Infant and childrn's clothes

As we have reached the midway point of February, we are now 114 days from the Costa Rica mission trip and 129 days from the Honduras mission trip. That might seem like a long time, but trust me when I say it is going to pass quickly and there is a lot to do before it is time to leave! Hasta luego mi amigos, Dios te bendiga! Reinados de Dios!

TR

rock on

A lot of us would love to do full time mission work, especially in Honduras. Many have asked why I have not done it yet... and to be honest there are several reasons. Probably the most obvious would be health reasons, since I am still not considered in remission yet from cancer. Being close to the proper medical centers needs to stay on my priority list in case I have to deal with any more treatments. Fortunately, my health has held and I have a great job that allows me to continue doing short term trips. And I love recruiting people to go on trips so it seems to be working out really well right now.

Working at Freed-Hardeman University has put me in a situation where I have more time than ever to go on short term trips. I plan to take advantage of that and this summer begins the adventure. This summer I will get the opportunity to go to Central America to spend 33 days doing mission work. It will start off in Costa Rica and will end in Honduras. Along with me I will have 14 people that will join me on the adventure. 11 are college students that will be serving as interns this summer. The other 3 are my "special" friends! All will have challenge of working for 33 days straight and putting up with me! Ask Margaret, she will tell you...

Brandy Barnett, a F-HU graduate in 2008 and a veteran of 10 Torch trips, will be our communication czar this summer. She is currently in grad school and has an awesome job at Region IV Mental health Commission that will allow her to have the time off this summer. Kennedy Cheatham is a high school junior and is from Hendersonville, TN. This will be her 2nd year to go to Central America. Along with Brandy and Kennedy Pat Guthrie, from Kittanning, Pennsylvania, will be with me. Pat, who goes by various nicknames, is a long term veteran of Torch and is retired. Pat is a construction guru and will be the tool czar this summer.

My college interns will have a variety of jobs and tasks this summer. If you are going on the Costa Rica or Honduras trip, you will get to know these interns very well. Paige Atkinson is a sophomore at Freed-Hardeman. She is from Centerville, TN, and is a nursing major with a minor in missions. This will be her first trip with Torch Missions. She has worked 2 summers in El Salvador with Latin American missions and has also done Stateside work in Arkansas with her social club, Phi Kappa Alpha. She loves to sing in the rain and has an awesome rock collection. Macy England is a sophomore social work major at Freed-Hardeman University. She is from Mt. Juliet, Tennessee. Macy has done several Stateside mission trips to Georgia, Missouri, Arkansas, and West Virginia. This will be Macy's first trip with Torch Missions as well. Macy loves sports and being outdoors. She also enjoys admiring her roommate's awesome rock collection.

Tyler Gist is a sophomore non-traditional student at Lipscomb University. He told me he does not know what non-traditional means so I thought I would use it in his bio. He is from Lexington, SC. Tyler is majoring in Bible at Lipscomb with an emphasis in youth ministry with a minor in missions. Tyler has been on 8 Torch Missions trips. Tyler loves sports and plays baseball and softball, but his favorite is Ultimate Frisbee. He loves snow and being in the cold. Other hobbies include building Lincoln Log cabins and starting a rock collection like Paige. Leah Wright is from Gallatin, TN, and is a freshman at Freed-Hardeman. Leah is really smart and is in the honor college at F-HU with a double major in mathematics and secondary education. According to Leah, she wants to be a high school math teacher (go figure). She has been to Honduras on 2 Torch trips. She loves eating ice cream, talking, identifying and classifying rocks, and making things with duct tape. She also likes playing soccer and running over flags.

Jorden Camp (yes, that is the way she spells her name) is from Lebanon, Tennessee, but is originally from Texas. Jorden is a freshman at Freed-Hademan University and is majoring in nursing. Jorden has done Stateside mission work and has gone on 1 Torch trip to Recife, Brazil, and 1 trip to Honduras during spring break with Friendship Christian School. Jorden loves animals, especially horses and dogs. She is also loves playing soccer, spending money, and geo-caching. Andrew Allgood is a sophomore Bible major at Freed-Hademan. He is also studying physiology. Andrew is from Joelton, Tennessee. Andrew has participated in Stateside mission trips to Kentucky and Florida and has also been on Torch trips to Honduras. Playing sports and hanging out with friends are his favorite things to do, along with talking and reading books about rocks.

Kathryn Bettis is also a sophomore at Freed-Hardeman. She is a Child and Family Studies major and hopes to teach pre-K through 3rd grade. She is also minoring in Spanish and missions. She is from Clarksville, TN. She loves sports and has been on 1 Torch trip to Honduras in 2009. Besides the trip this summer she plans on going to the City of Children in Mexico this spring break with her social club Xi Chi Delta. Kathryn's hobbies include weaving fishing nets, yodeling, and star gazing. Another sophomore on the trip is Minor Perez. Minor is from Costa Rica and is working on a double major in Bible and Communications at Freed-Hardeman.. Minor has done extensive work with Latin American Missions and has been to Honduras once with Torch. He studied aviation and computer engineering in Costa Rica. He enjoys swimming, playing soccer, and getting up early to watch the sun rise. He doesn't like rocks.

Ashley Stewart is from Columbia, TN. She is a Harding University student but is currently going to school part time at Columbia State and working full time at the YMCA until she goes back to Searcy. She is majoring in Sports Therapy. She is the assistant coach for the YMCA swim team and works with about 50 children. She has done mission work in Arkansas and has been on 3 Torch trips to Honduras. She enjoys running and is training for a 5K this spring, drawing, and is a scrapbook junkie. Her favorite scrapbook was the one she did for Paige and her rock collection. Brandon Mann is a freshman at Freed-Hademan. He plays for the Lions soccer team and is an Exercise Science major. He was born in Florida and currently lives in Joelton, Tennessee. Brandon has been on 3 Honduras mission trips with Torch Missions and worked with the youth group at his mome congregation this past summer. Brandon enjoys hangin' with his boys and texting Brandy Barnett. He got to see Ashley's scrapbook of Paige's rock collection and in contemplating starting his own collection, however, he is not sure if he wants to dedicate the amount of time needed to have one as complete as her's.

Joe Jones, AKA Little Joe, finishes the list of interns. Joe is from Corinth, Mississippi, and is a junior at Freed-Hademan University. Joe recently changed majors from Graphic Design to Bible with an emphasis in youth ministry. Joe has served as the youth intern at the Foote Street congregation last year and is serving as the intern again this year. Joe has been on 1 trip to Honduras with Torch Missions and has also participated in Mission Mississippi on spring breaks. Joe likes long walks on the beach, gardening, and needlepoint. He also has a pet rock collection and likes to eat grape snow cones.

As you can see, I have quite a group of interns this summer. This weekend we will be at the Mid-South Youth Camp, here in Henderson, for a 2 day retreat. We will be discussing several different aspects of the 33 day trip, look at a lot of photos, and discuss the tentative schedule of each trip and details concerning the Vacation bible School. It is going to be a great weekend, especially if it wams up and the snow melts! With 8 snow storms this year, I have decided that I am offially done with snow. There are many reasons to live in the South, and I can assure you that smow is not one of them!

2011 marches on, spring break for F-HU is just a month away! And summer will be here before you know it and so will our trips. Stay tuned, more to come! Reinados de Dios!

Terry

PAID IN FULL

He was an only child of a wealthy CEO of a multi-million dollar company. He was a bit of an over achiever, focused, and driven. He was graduating from college after only 3 years with honors. For months he had his eyes on a nifty sports car that was in the show room of a local car dealership a few miles from campus. Although a bit pricey, he knew his father could afford it and it was the only thing he asked for when graduation day came. After all, he had breezed through college on scholarship and was graduating school without any school loans.

As graduation approached the son filled out his exit paper work, picked up his cap and gown, and sent out invitations. He had a great job lined up after he graduated and had already found an apartment. Living 8 hours away from home didn't seem like much and it was close to the mountains where he loved to go snow skiing.

Finally the big day arrived. The weather allowed for an outdoor graduation and his reception at his father's house was awesome. Finally after the guests left his father called him into his private study. His father told his son how incredibly proud he was of him and how much he loved him. He expressed his appreciation for his hard work and for his academic accomplishments. His father then gave him a gift box wrapped in very expensive wrapping paper. A perplexed and curious look fell upon the son's face as he took the box.

He carefully unwrapped the gift box to find a beautiful, leather-bound Bible with is name stamped on the cover in gold leaf print. The curious look on his face turned to disappointment and then to anger. "Are you kidding me? With all of your wealth this is what you give me for graduation? A BIBLE? This is not what I asked for and not what I expected!" The son tossed the Bible onto his father's desk and walked out of the room never to see his father again.

He moved to his new home, 8 hours away, and began his job. He did not write, email, or call his father. Days turned into weeks and weeks into months. 2 years later he received a phone call from his father's administrative assistant. His father had been in a terrible car accident and was in the hospital. He was in critical condition. With tears in his eyes he jumped into his 10 year old car and raced home. He arrived at the hospital too late, his father passed away 2 hours before he arrived.

Tears streamed from his face as he sat in the room... alone. His mind replayed the last time he had seen or talked to his father. Oh how he wished he could go back in time. How could he have been so insensitive... so immature.

The next day he went to his father's office at work to gather his dad's belongings and to sign papers. The lawyer was there to go over everything with him. His father had left him everything... the house, the checking account, savings account, everything. Sitting on the corner of his father's desk was the Bible he had given him 2 years ago. Tears swelled up as he picked up the Bible. It was really nice. There was little doubt his father had taken a great deal of time picking it out. He opened it up for the first time and read the inscription his father had written: To my most beloved son to whom I am so proud, May this book provide light for you in your darkest days and guidance when the pathway seems so unclear. May this book give you wisdom when you need it most and inspiration when you need it. May it give you strength when you are weak and companionship when you feel alone. And most importantly, may it guide you home when your journey is completed. Love, Dad

The son sat in the office in silence. He stared at the Bible that he held in his hands. He then flipped through the pages when suddenly something fell from it to the carpet below. He reached down and picked up a small brown envelope that had fallen out of the back of the Bible. He opened the envelope to find a key in it with a piece of paper. It was the title to the sports car he had wanted with the words "PAID IN FULL" stamped on it.

How many times in your life have you missed a blessing because it came packaged differently than the way you expected it? How many times did you react to something, or somebody, in such a way that you found that you were way off base once you figured everything out? How many times have you wished you could go back and change the words that you said to someone, or change the way you acted? How many times have you blown it?

How many times have you missed God's blessings for the exact same reasons? Maybe it is time for us to tune in to God and what He is doing in our lives. Life's journey is filled with twists and turns. Some are gentle curves and and rolling hills and sometimes it might be a harsh, drastic turn of events. Don't wait for a "better moment" or a more opportune time. Don't allow something that has happened to you weigh you down like an anchor or harbor ill will that poisons your soul. Remember what James 4:14 says, life is like a vapor, it appears for a short time and then vanishes away. There is no guarentees for tomorrow, so live each day as if it is your last. Otherwise, something that should have brought you great happiness and joy might come and bring sorrow instead.

TR