U.M. Army

So I realized it has been a week since I got back from U.M. Army and I haven't posted about my experience. For those that don't know U.M. Army is a week long mission trip with our church. It is high school youth focused, but it needs adults to make it happen. This was my second year and both years I have been a work team adult, which means I am the adult (yeah right) of a team consisting of myself and 4 youth. The physical work we do during the day is home repair; things such as building wheelchair ramps and steps, repairing roofs, painting, putting up siding, etc. It is always amazing to see a project come together over a matter of days. It is even more amazing to see a project come together over a matter of days with me in charge. Getting out of the office and out of our suburban comfort zone is always eye-opening. Although the camp is centered around building, the real building is being done by God. During the week he builds each and every individual involved into stronger Christians. It is wonderful to see high school kids growing closer to God and realizing the blessings God has bestowed upon them at such young ages. Here are a few pictures from the work sites during the week:

Wheelchair ramp beginnings

Handrails for the porch and steps Wheelchair ramp completion
How many people does it take to build a wheelchair ramp?
Ms. Brown and the gang -her house got a new paint job
Are this many guns a violation of the 2nd amendment?

Also during the week there is stuff happening at the church. Every morning begins with a short worship that has singing and a morning talk. After a long day working there are different evening activities such as Color Group Olympics, Oscar Night, Client Night, capture the flag, family pictures, etc. Each night closes with a worship service. Here are some pictures of the evening activities:

My parents for the week (Hank & Nancy)An Oscar Night presentation of David vs. .....
Goliath
The Bauer Boys