ALONE??

"Lo, I am with you always..."

What a comfort to know that we are not alone in any endeavor that we attempt for God! Ray and I started out with a little trepidation this morning to hold church service and then to have the afternoon Sunday School. We are doing what missionaries are doing and have done for many years past--trying to hold Sunday School by themselves. We are aware that there have been behavior issues in the past, though we have not experienced them since we have been there; and we know that the children could get out of control. In spite of our uneasiness, we enjoyed our drive out to the reservation. The sunflowers are in full bloom now, and the sunflower fields stretched on each side of us as we drove. The wild sunflowers are blooming profusely along the interstate, interspersed with other wild flowers; and I had a crazy desire to stop along the highway and take some pictures. I fought down the desire and got a few pictures after we exited to go to Lower Brule.

Pow-Wow Grounds at Lower Brule

Today is the Pow-Wow at Lower Brule, and our attendance reflected the event. We were sorry when we realized we had not come early enough to see the parade, as we thoroughly enjoyed it last year (see blog entry Where were all the children?) We took a couple of pictures of the Pow-Wow, and we will share them with you.

Molly usually goes to Sunday School, but she was headed to the Pow-Wow this morning. Mr. Shetland was not cooperating so well. She is such a happy girl.

I attended the orientation for instructors at the Lower Brule College this week, and everyone is so friendly. I am looking forward to working with all of them. We feel that this will help us to become acquainted with more people of the Lower Brule area. One of the young men who comes to church sometimes told us that he registered to go to college there, and he is registered in one of my classes. The Bible commands us to go and 'teach' all men, and this is an integral part of the Kingdom of God.

These girls decided to do their coloring under the table.

We are looking at a van to purchase for the mission. Please pray that we can have the money that is needed to make this purchase. Thank you for your interest in Lower Brule Wesley Chapel.

A CURVE IN THE ROAD

Sometimes when I have been driving or riding, a curve in the road has evoked a strong feeling of relief: for instance, when I thought I had made a wrong turn because the road seemed to be going another direction than I needed to go, but it suddenly curved and headed the right direction. Sometimes, I have been frightened when I realized that the road curved when I didn't expect it and I felt I was going too fast to negotiate it safely. Other times, I have been driving or riding when the curves in the road spoke peace simply because they were so much a part of the beautiful landscape of overarching tree branches, bird songs and wild flowers on our drive. Our family has been driving before when the road appeared to end and a part of a lake or a house or something else seemed to be placed directly in our path, and we would comment and chuckle as we knew that the road turned and twisted around the 'roadblock.' Our pastor in time past quoted a poem that spoke of a road that looks like it is ending for us, but in reality it is just a curve in the road. Ray and Esther and I have reached that curve in our road. Our afternoon Sunday School is a change that we felt it best to make, and it appears that it is a good decision. Our attendance has picked up, and the children are usually dressed and ready for us when we arrive. This is so much easier than having to leave the vehicle and go knock on the door and wake them up and then wait for them to get dressed to come.

Esther has been taking care of the Sunday School, and she has done a fabulous job; however, today was my time to take over the Sunday School, as Esther left today to drive to a friend's house and then drive to school in Florida for the year. Ray and I will have to 'keep on our toes' to keep order and still teach the children. This Sunday went very well, as the children were relatively quiet and listened to the Bible story. They were mostly very interested in their little project that we gave them to do after the lesson. They are such good children.I have been working on preparing the English 101 and 102 classes that I will be teaching at Lower Brule Community College starting August 30. This will be another change, as it will neccessitate our staying in Lower Brule area on Sunday nights to be there on Mondays. I will teach both classes on Mondays, and then we will return to Mitchell on Monday nights.

We have been assessing 'progress' at Lower Brule Wesley Chapel, and we feel that the Lord might be pleased for some other changes to be made that might help the mission to grow to be a more healthy mission. It has been close to 10 years since the church was reopened under the present organization, and we are interested in fanning the flame of potential that we see burning in the mission and in the Lower Brule area. Please pray for guidance for Ray and I as we seek to further the work.