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My trip to Kentucky, Part 1 of ??

(sunrise over the Appalachian Mountains...)

I got back from Kentucky last night. Wow. What a trip! There is no way I could describe to you everything that happened in 1 blog post, so I'm going to spread it out over a few posts.

The main purpose of our trip was to serve with Heritage Ministries in their ministry to the Tri-Cities (Lynch, Benham, and Cumberland) in Harlan County, Kentucky. The term "Tri-Cities" is a tad deceiving, and a bit of a gross overstatement, however. It's a bit like calling our modest 2 bedroom ranch a mansion. This part of the country is very poor. I won't go into the details of how poor, but you can get an idea here...

Tonight, I'll tell you about our Bible studies that we had during the week, as well as a little about one of the families we worked with.

We had a Bible study every night, during which we focused a lot on this passage from Ephesians 4:

1As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

We also looked at Philippians 1:27

27Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel

What, exactly, does it mean to "live a life worthy of the calling" we have received? How do we conduct ourselves "in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ"? We focused on how we are to be a witness for God. How the world can see Christ in what we do. The time we spent in The Word was definitely the hightlight for me. One of our pastors (Dave Johnson) came with us, and he led the study each night. I have a tremendous amount of respect for Dave, his love of God, his heart for evangelism, and his knowledge of the Bible.

God used this week to stretch me and my faith as well. One of the things I was challenged about was my perception of the poor, and my tendency to pre-judge people based soley on their appearence. We'll get into that in a later post...

One of the families we helped lived in a trailer on the side of a mountain. They had lived in a single trailer for 6 years. The husband is unable to work because of medical problems (as are many people in the area). Their old trailer was falling apart, and this past fall, someone donated a used double-wide trailer to them to live in. So, they tried to take down the old trailer. When they hooked it up to the truck, the old trailer basically fell apart, so someone brought in a bulldozer and pushed it off the side of the driveway. And there it sits.

The "new" trailer was brought in. How they got it up the driveway, I'll never know. Anyway, the new one was put in back in November. Unfortunately, they couldn't afford to run new sewer lines to thier septic tank (actually, they did hook up the toilet line, thankfully...). Our job was to hook up sewer lines from his sinks, toilet, shower, and washer to the septic. The old ones were just draining out to the ground around the trailer. Like this one...

See the white pipe sticking down? That's the kitchen sink drain. The ground all around the trailer was a mess of water and mud. See?

So, we got the new sewer line installed and working fine! That was day 1 of work.

Please pray for the people of Lynch. Also, please pray for Jeff and Linda Sim. They are the ones that run Heritage Ministries. They felt called by God to leave their home in Illinois and move to Kentucky five years ago. They have an incredible love for the people of Lynch, and are willing to serve God in whatever place they can. They live on support that people send them, and are a true inspiration to all of us!

To be continued...

In His arms

Please pray for the McClenahan family. Their little girl, Cora, died today. We've been praying for them for the past week, and can only imagine what they're going through. Only 2 weeks ago, they discovered their 11 month old daughter had cancer.

There is a beautiful family picture posted on their website here:

http://themcclenahans.blogspot.com/

Please pray for this little baby...

Danielle and I came across this blog tonight. We found it through another one that we read regularly. Please pray for this little angel and her family as they deal with the unthinkable.
http://themcclenahans.blogspot.com/

This little 11 month girl has cancer. It was just discovered about a week ago. They are now going through the process of chemo.

Superbowl blues

Well, the Super Bowl is here. I'm bummed that the Giants are not in it. i'm not sure who I'm pulling for tomorrow.

On the one hand, I've always liked the Steelers. I'd have to say they're my 2nd favorite team (Behind the Super Bowl Champion NY Giants, of course).

However, from a strictly historical perspective, I'd like Arizona to win. So, it's really a toss-up for me.

I'll say......Arizona.

But it doesn't really matter because, we DON'T HAVE TV. So, I'll be watching a movie or doing school work or something. This is the one time where I really don't like not having TV. Oh well.

i'm going to have a DAUGHTER!

I can't believe I'm saying that.

Danielle had her ultrasound today, and we are most definitely having a little girl. I'm not sure what that's going to do to our house, but it sure will make things interesting!

I have to admit, I'm a little overwhelmed by it. But, I'm absolutely thrilled to be having a girl.

i don't know what else to write...

Getting ready to go to Kentucky

On February 15, I will be going to Lynch, Kentucky on a missions trip with a group from church. Here is the information/support letter that i'm sending out this weekend...


January 23, 2009

Dear Family and Friends,

You may remember that two years ago, I went to Gulfport, Mississippi on a missions trip to do disaster relief work in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. My experience in Gulfport was a life-changing experience for me and many of the other men who went. Ever since that trip, I have looked forward to the next opportunity that God would give me to serve Him in this capacity. I now have the opportunity to travel to Lynch, Kentucky with a group from my church.
Harlan County, in which Lynch is located, is ranked as the 17th poorest county in the entire nation. It has a median income of just over $18,000 per household. The town of Lynch is an old coal mining town with a population of about 1,000 people, and it has a poverty rate of almost 50%. We will be going to Lynch for the week of February 15 with an organization called Heritage Ministries. Heritage is located in Lynch, and is an organization whose main work is home construction and repair projects in the immediate area. Most of the homes that Heritage works on are owned by very poor people, widows, and people who are disabled, many from mine related injuries. We will be helping to work on many homes that need upgrades just to make them safe for the people who live in them.

There are two areas in which I will need support for this trip. First and foremost, I am seeking your prayers while we are gone. Please pray for safety, good travel, and most importantly, that God would use us to show His love to the people of Lynch. Also, please pray that we would have the opportunity to share the Gospel with people we come in contact with. If you would be willing to commit to praying for us while we are gone, please contact me and let me know about it.
Secondly, each person going on the trip needs to raise $500 in support. The money will be used for travel expenses, lodging while we're in Lynch, purchasing building materials, and food. If you would be willing to contribute towards the trip, please let me know, or you can send a check to my church, Lafayette Federated Church, 180 Route 15, Lafayette, NJ 07848. Any support amount would be greatly appreciated!

If you have any questions, or would like any more information about the trip, please e-mail me at jeffdanielle@hotmail.com, or call me at home, and I'd love to answer any questions that you might have.

In Christ,
Jeff Colarusso