A community making a difference in the world

A community making a difference in the world

Saturday, April 25, 2015

We Made It Home

About 4:30 this afternoon, the Mission Team pulled into the First Church parking lot: safe, sound, tired, but grateful.  We have lots of great memories and stories to tell.

I will be preaching about the trip tomorrow, but the trip cannot be contained to one sermon. We hope to have opportunities to share our experiences with you in the near future.

This is the last blog for this Mission Trip.  Thanks for checking us out and connecting with us on this amazing journey.

Thanks to an amazing team: Dotty "sledgehammer" Blake, Mary "tough chick" Criscone, Morgan "the machine," Alice "the slinger," Rick "St. Rick" Burke, Matt Bridgemen and myself, John Castricum, "the masked men."  It was a privilege serving with all of you this week.  You each brought an amazing gift to the trip and I will never forget your love and devotion.

Until the next mission trip....

Pastor John

Friday, April 24, 2015

Made it to Harrisburg, PA

After 4 hard days of work, we finally got to see some beauty in West Virginia.  We spent the morning and early afternoon exploring the New River Gorge area.  It is part of the National Park Service, and they do a great job.


We got a great view of the bridge we went over, which is apparently an engineering masterpiece.  The largest single arch bridge in the world.  Quite impressive.


Then we too a 2 1/2 mile hike on the "Endless Wall" trail, which ran right up to these enormously steep cliffs overlooking the gorge.  The most scenic point was called Diamond Point, but I would call it Vertico Point.







After that, we had a late lunch at our beloved Biscuit World, and drove to Harrisburg, PA.  We hope to be back in Bedford tomorrow by 5 p.m.  We are ready to return to our families, friends, our own beds and all the things we often take for granted at home.  We can't wait to see you all and start telling our story in person.

Pray for travel mercies on our last leg of the journey.

Thursday, April 23, 2015

Last Day of Work

This was the last day of work at our mission site, and quite frankly, I think we are glad for it.  It has been hard work, and every day seems to accumulate.  We are tired but grateful for what has happened this week.  

_______________________

There are some in the church who might be wondering who Morgan and Alice are.  The answer is that they are phenomenal women.  They are not part of our church, but certainly know many in the church through the hiking group.



Morgan has a kind, generous, gentle, compassionate heart.  She has a special relationship with nature.  She is wonderful with children.  She is always there to help, to talk, to listen.  I really appreciate her spirit for the week.  There are some pretty scrawny cats and an underfed dog around the worksite.  Today, Morgan bought some cat food at the convenience store and fed these poor animals.  She did amazing watercolors this week, one of the local scenery that she gave to me and I will treasure.  She is never afraid to talk to local people here: to reach out to strangers and people respond to her kindness.  Here is a poem she wrote, just impressions of the week, and I think she is spot on:

water falls
windy roads
blizzard cups
biscuit world
Dotty's way
John's chicken
Matt's muscle
Mary's mitts
Alice's slings
Rick's wisdom
Dust and dirt
sledge and hammer
poor and poorer

West Virginia
Take me home.


Alice is 82 years old, but it is clear that age does not define her.  She has more energy, more stamina, willpower than most people half her age.  We have heard folks from the church say, "if I were ten years younger, I would go..."  Well Alice totally takes that excuse away.  You should see her "sling" a piece of debris over the walls of a dumpster.  She is also a caring soul, and someone who connected with the local people, too.  She is always there to help, at the work site or here at "base camp."  I appreciate her unstoppable spirit and her loving ways.


______________________________

Today, they asked us simply to clean any debris in the apartments, and there was plenty of work.  The miracle of the day concerned huge contractor bags of drywall etc. that had been left out on two outdoor balconies.  They were waterlogged and weighed a ton.  Our first impression was pretty predictable - "we can't possibly move these - let someone else take care of them."  But then we thought, "if not us, who will?"  Dotty, as usual, came up with a plan to make the impossible possible.  We found a way of getting these bags into a small wheelbarrow, then step-by-step, got them downstairs, and somehow, got them in the dumpster.  One heavy wet trash bag after another came down, with a lot of grunting and cursing, but before we knew it, they were done.



In some way, I thought this is a good metaphor for what we do in West Virginia.  What other people see as useless, to much to do, to impossible to try, we just start doing it anyway.  Then low and behold, it's done.  St. Francis again: "first do what's necessary, then do the possible, suddenly you're doing the impossible."

Sometimes, I think Jesus calls us to be the world's garbage men/women.  What the world thinks we should not bother with: too messy, to far gone to help - Jesus tells us to go in and do something.  That's what Jesus did in his three years of ministry.  Going into the messy places, helping people clean out the garbage in their lives.  That's how resurrection happens.  You clean out the garbage and prepare a place for new life to begin.  That's what this week seems to be about.

___________________________

We worked with several people from SALS.  There are people connected with volunteer organizations, like Americore and Vista.  They don't get paid a lot and its obvious that life is not easy for them.  Some of them really don't do much work at all.  For every minute worked, there is are two or more minutes taking a cigarette break.

But then there was Tyler.  He was quite an amazing young man.  He drives a car with Batman symbols on it, sort of his version of the batmobile.  He has dreadlocks (no - he's not Jamaican).  But Tyler works hard and doesn't take too many breaks.  We've heard that he might become a supervisor in the organization at one point, and I could see him doing a great job.  His passion and commitment to get the job done really inspired us.  And we inspired him, too.  He couldn't believe how much we got done.  He even wanted to give us some ramps (ask Sue Wingfield what they are) but we'll be gone tomorrow.  We didn't get a picture of Tyler, but we certainly will remember him and pray for the best for him.

__________________________

We went into this week not knowing what we would be doing, what this is going to be like, etc.  Now we are leaving amazed at what happened.  We also leave glad we don't have to do this tomorrow: we've hit our limit.  Tomorrow morning, we'll go the New River Gorge and do some sightseeing and hiking in the morning.  Then it's heading back home.  We'll be stop in Harrisburg, PA tomorrow night, then a trip to home sweet home in Bedford  on Saturday.

Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Day 3 - Progress and Fun

On the first day of the mission, we looked into one apartment, and saw piles and piles of stuff that looked like either dirt or mouse droppings.  It turned out to be insulation that was blown over the ceiling.  I looked in the morning and thought "no way - let someone else take care of this."  Then, after lunch, I thought, "someone has to do it, it might as well be us."  So Matt and I started taking down the insulation.  The first day, I shoveled it into a trash bag that Matt held and then took to the dumpster.  I asked a worker about why the ceiling collapsed.  He said that people were pulling electric wires in the attic so they could sell the copper.  One of them slipped off a beam and fell through the ceiling.  It came clear how desperate people are to get by.

Matt shoveling insulation (Before)


The next day, we all got smart, stopped by a hardware store to make the job easier and more efficient.  We got a tarp, so both of us could shovel the insulation on it, like fallen leaves, then we could both take a load to the dumpster.  By yesterday, we cleared out the living room and felt a deep sense of accomplishment, wondering what was next.  Then I walked down the hall to a bedroom and my heart sank - another room with huge piles of insulation.  After a few curses muttered under breath, we could only go after this room.  By lunch time today, we cleared out the room of insulation, plus two disgusting mattresses.


The apartment empty (after)


After lunch, we and other workers pulled up the carpet and padding, took that to the dumpster, and the apartment looked empty.  Then Dotty "Sledgehammer" Blake came in and took the hammer to the kitchen.  By the end of the day, all cabinets, sinks, etc. werer gone from the apartment, and several walls were stripped to the studs.  It seemed like a miracle.  It seemed impossible the first day and now it is stripped down.  All it took was a willing spirit, ready to start.  One shovel at a time.



Dotty "sledgehammer" Blake going to town on the cabinets.


Again, St. Francis came to mind.  When God asked him to rebuild the church, he started putting one stone on top of another, and all the sudden, the chapel was restored.  Yet the job was not done.  This spirit of one stone at a time renewed the whole church.  And this is what mission does - on stone, one shovel at a time, the church is renewed.

_______________

Doing this type of work - demolition - is actually hard from a mission perspective, because you don't get to see the final product - nothing constructive.  We won't see the faces of the folks who get a new, beautiful apartment.  We won't even see indications of a new beautiful apartment.  We just have an empty structure.  St. Francis' prayer came to mind: he prayed where there is darkness, let me sow light, where there is sadness, let me sow joy, where there is despair, let me sow hope.  The emphasis is on the sowing.  It is close to sowing time, and as a gardner, I know there is lots of faith throwing little seeds into the ground, and watering the ground, waiting for those stupid seeds to start sprouting.  It is a waiting game and it takes lots of faith that what you sow will eventually turn into a seedling, a plant and eventually fruit.  We are sowers this week.  We can hope to come back sometime and see beautiful apartments, but that's not guaranteed.


Accomplishment!  The truck takes away one of two and a half dumpsters we filled over the 3 days.

_____________________

The day was not all grind.  Since today was raining (pretty hard at times) - we skipped our peanut butter and jelly sandwiches by the river and went to Biscuit World.  Coming into West Virginia, we started to see Biscuit Worlds all over the place.  I had to try this place - it sounded so good.  So tday, my wish came true.  It was absolutely glorious.  We all enjoyed our biscuit sandwiches.  I had the "Duke" which was an egg, bacon, cheese and a hash brown between biscuits.  It was glorious!


Biscuit World selfie!
___________________________



After dinner tonight, we had a real treat.  Billy Payne came to the school next door and gave us a private concert.  He was "old school" country music.  He played for an hour and a half for us.  Apparently, he is pretty popular in England and Australia.  We got cultural immersion.  His guitar was amazing: beautifully crafted in Nashville.  He sang with his guitar to a backtrack that he and a band put together.  A couple of my favorites:  "Give Me a Triple on the Double Because I'm Single Again" and "Flat Champagne and Wilted Roses."  He lives in Kincaid, right down the road, and tours around.  I guess he plays for SALS guests.





___________________________

All this week, music from one of my favorite groups, "The Band" kept going through my head.  I guess this country inspires this type of music: Americana at its best.  I was playing "Music from Big Pink" while cooking dinner when "The Weight" came on.  Remember?  "Take the load off Fanny, take a load for free, take a load off Fanny, and put the load right on me."



The song was written by Robbie Robertson, who was bewildered why fellow human beings refuse to hlep their neighbors in need.  We see this all over this place.  How can the human heart be so cold to refuse to help even the guy next door?  But the refrain seems to be a compassionate response that his me..take the load off Fanny...and put the load right on me.  That seems to be what we're doing.  It really amazes me that seven people paid $175 to get the privilege of ripping apartments out for people they don't know and will probably never meet.  That is a miracle in my book.  They could have gone to Aruba for April break, here they are, taking the load for free.  I am so proud of them.



Keep praying for us - one more day of strength to do what needs to be done at those apartments.  Then Friday morning, we enjoy some hiking and scenery in the morning, and start making our way home in the afternoon.  See y'all Saturday, Sunday or whenever.



Rick



At 4:30 this morning, Rick and I got up to go to the Yeager Airport in Charleston to send him home to tend to Debbie.  As Rick posted yesterday, she had a ski accident and came home with a fractured hip.  Rick was disappointed that he couldn't finish what he began, but, like the good husband he is, he is flying back to attend to the love of his life.

There are some parishioners I want to clone, and Rick is a prime candidate.  His faith is deep, his prayer life strong, his heart is open to the wounds of the world.  He always has a smile, no matter what, always willing to do the hard work.  I came to First Church with a vision of a discipleship model church, where the emphasis is less on being a "member" of a church and more of being a follower of Jesus.  The marks of discipleship are regular prayer, Bible reading, worship attendance, generous giving and service to the church and world.  I think Rick fulfills all these requirements, and then some.



When I came, Rick chaired the Outreach Board, and it was clear his passion for mission was the central engine that drove his faith.  I then told the Board that they were the most important board in the church: mission is the heart of the church and the very thing that renews churches.  Rick responded with passion and vision.  He set up a mission plan that we are still using.  That plan included going further and further out from Bedford to help those in need.  This trip was an integral part of that plan.  Rick went off Outreach last year, but we kept him on the email list because his passion for outreach did not end simply because a term limit was up.

When I told him about this West Virginia trip, he lit up like a Christmas tree and was on board from the start.  He was looking forward to this week of back-breaking work like most people would look forward to a cruise to Bermuda.

Rick has been our "spiritual director" for this trip.  The first day, he asked me about he prayer of St. Francis: "make me an instrument of your peace....where there is despair, let me sow hope...it is in giving that we receive."  I talked to him about St. Francis and his life, and how that prayer reflected who Francis was.  I told Rick about the vision Francis had in a decrepit church, how God said to Francis, "rebuild my church, which, as you can see, is in need of disrepair."  Francis thought God meant the church he was praying in, so started rebuilding the church on stone at a time.  He then attracted more followers with this simple vision of service.  What Francis didn't realize was that God meant the whole universal church.  It was from this and other experiences came another famous quote from Francis, "start doing what's necessary, then do the possible, suddenly you are doing the impossible."  That really provided us with the spiritual framework for what we are doing here in West Virginia.

Throughout, Rick kept us smiling and going on with his unquenchable enthusiasm.  He was a hard worker, too.  I'll never forget yesterday afternoon, when he cleaned out a bathroom: getting rid of the vanity, toilet and bath tub with a focus on accomplishing this task.  It was an inspiration.   Rick drove many miles for us, too.

Rick has also been my roomate throughout, and I will miss him in our room (although I won't miss the snoring).

So God bless you, Rick.  We love you and send you off with our blessings.  We'll catch up with you this weekend.  You might not have made it through the whole trip, but you have made an impact that we will never forget.  Catch you on the next mission trip!





Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Day Two - Sore, but Going Strong

Hi Folks!  Thanks for keeping us in your prayers.  We had an amazing day: got a lot of work done.  But don't take my word for it, let the mission team tell you:

From Dotty
Woke up with some sore muscles from weilding the sledge hammer yesterday taking down sheet rock.  Took out kitchen cabinets & lots of walls. Today we took a mini plastic wheel barrel & a rolling plastic trash can that made carting out the debris to the dumpster a lot quicker & easier. Along with brooms, hammers, crow bars, & a good pair of work gloves made us much more productive today.  Even the young men working with us were amazed at what 4 old women & 3 guys can do in 4-5 hours.  We've nearly filled 2 big dumpsters in 2 days, not bad. The men are great cooks, & we brought lots of baked goods from home, plus we found a Dairy Queen by the hardware store, so no weight loss here, even with the intense work!! :(


From Morgan
hi friends, just finished a yummy crisp herb chix dinner with fresh broccoli, carrots, rice and spanish kale, bean casserole. Worked hard at the former Regina apartments. We are on demolition mode: walls down, insulation removed, furniture out. Dotty with the sledge hammer, Matt and John scooping insulation, Rick tearing out the bathrooms, Mary, Alice and I removing everything. The woods and river are lovely. Greeetings to all, Morgan

From Mary
With my handiman skills it is probably fortunate that I am tearing down instead of trying to build something. We are working hard - what a team! Tyler, one of the locals we are working with ended today saying "you guys really did A LOT in two days." I think they were incredulous. We are a formidable team! We are working hard but also eating very well - John and Rick are our gourmet cooks. West Virginia is a place of many contrasts - it is beautiful with very friendly people, but lots of economic problems. A slower pace than New England so we are trying to slow down....

From Alice
I am having a great time. the country side is lovely, narrow roads like Carlisle, hairpin turns and warnings of potential fast flooding to roads. we follow the river narrow and fast running.  The people are grateful and friendly ,the stores are well stocked and very cordial.  The Lilacs are out and we are enjoying Peanut, butter and Jelly or Jam  sandwiches, chips and homemade cookies or squaures every day by water,how cool is that!  We are a good group ,with St. Rick or Capt. Fantastic, John and Matt, the Masked Men,   Mary the "the tough Chick," Morgan "the Machine," Dot, the Sledgehammer,and Alice, the Slinger.  What fun.  We are enjoying ourchefs and sharing well. Loving it all . Alice









And now the pictures from today:



We found this lovely Gazebo by the river to have lunch.  West Virginia is so beautiful.


The two masked men.  Matt and I spent the day cleaning out insulation from one apartment when the ceiling collapsed.  The shower after we came home felt so good!




Mary carrying wall insulation out of the apartments.



Rick is victorious!



"Sledgehammer" Blake getting things down to the studs.



Matt digging out insulation.



The crew after day 2.  Still sore, but still standing.



Morgan, one of the crew, is a  amazing artist.  Here is a postcard watercolor she created this evening.  This country is so beautiful - it inspires great art!


It Was an Honor

Today was a great day, and a difficult day at the exact same time.
I had the honor of working alongside some amazing people.
Our second day working for the Southern Appalachian Labor School, we all woke up with a lot of "oh, my back really hurts".
But we had a great breakfast, and after a quick stop at the hardward store, headed off to the work site.
We plunged right in, and we accomplished so much.
John and Matthew were amazing.  The working conditions were really not pleasant, yet they perservered, and in the end, cleaned up a wreck of an apartment.
Dottie and I beat the living heck out of the downstairs apartments.
I had the sledgehammer going, and I completely gutted a nasty bathroom, including doing my best imitation of the Incredible Hulk to rip out a fiberglass bathtub, a toilet and a vanity.
Dottie was fierce taking out sheetrock, insulation, and any nail that even dared to stick it's head up in her direction.
Mary, Morgan and Alice were beyond amazing.  I've never seen 3 ladies work so hard, lugging one load of trash after another out to the dumpster.  They were relentless, and I was so incredibly impressed.
Sadly, during lunch, I learned that my Debbie suffered a terrible fall while skiing with Jacob up at Jay Peak in Vermont.  Deb is my entire life, and I would do anything for her.  So, I'm getting on an early flight tomorrow morning out of Charleston to fly home to Boston to take care of her.
But....
my memories of my short time in Beard's Fork, West Virginia will last forever.
I will always be grateful for the opportunity to have shared a mission trip with John, Matthew, Mary, Alice, Morgan and Dotty.  They did our church and our community proud.
I am already looking forward to our next big mission trip.
For those of you that were not able to join us, I encourage you with all my heart to plan to participate in the next big opportunity.  It would be impossible for me to articulate the many great memories I have from this experience.
In my first blog post, I finished with a quote from St. Francis of Assisi's great prayer "Lord, let me be an instrument of your peace - for it is in giving that you receive."
I had a chance to live that prayer this week, and truer words were never spoken.
I have received so much in return for the little that I have given.
I have walked in the path of righteousness for his name's sake, and I am grateful.
I am blessed in so many ways, and I will always be gratefull for this opportunity to serve.
Amen.

RB

The First Day



Some tough women taking a break



Rick in action



Our first day of miision work is done, and what a day. Overall, we're sore and exhausted, but doing well.  

We spent the day at an apartment complex that fell into disrepair.  For the past few years, it was inhabited by squatters.  SALS bought it for $7,000 and is now gutting it so they can rebuild.  

We were working on gutting 4 apartments: removing lots of stuff left over by the squatters, tearing out cabinets (Dotty is amazing with a sledgehammer), and pulling out the wallboard to the studs.  Matt and I were removing piles of insulation that fell to the floor when the ceiling collapsed.  

We can only wonder what life was like for these people who had no choice but live there.  We threw out clothes Christmas decorations, children's toys, food, cigarette packages, drug needles and a math book.  

We can only hope that this means decent, affordable housing for people who need it.

Keep praying for us!


Matt in the entryway to the apartments.




What was left in one apartment 




After clearing the apartment 



Mary filling the dumpster


A huge dumpster filled



Dotty at work

Sunday, April 19, 2015

Dinner and Meet the Director

We did indeed make it to Beard's Fork!  We got settled in, got the frozen lasagna in the oven, and waited forever to get it reheated.  Dinner was great!

Our place is simple, but fine (see pictures below).  The director, John David, came after dinner for our "orientation."  He came to WV to get an economics degree at West Virginia U.  He then worked in the Peace Corp and got further work around this area.  He shared his extensive knowledge of the history of the area and what is happening now.  The story seems to be that mining companies, chemical companies, etc. came here, made money, did serious health damage to the population, then left town or folded.  Median income here is $7,000 per year.  People scramble for whatever work they can get.  Drugs are rampant.

Despite all this, SALS has done amazing work here.  They were responsible for getting a water and sewer system throughout the area.  They have rehabilitated old, decrepit homes.  They are doing their best to make a difference in a place where there is so much need.

Tomorrow, we are going to an apartment complex that was run down and needs to gutted so that they can build new units.  We're on the demolition team.  In a way, this is a relief: I think I'm much better demolishing than building a home.  We might have a chance to get to help with an after-school program later in the day.

At 10 a.m., on the way down, while church was starting back home, we passed through Bedford, Maryland.  Coincidence?  I don't think so.  You were all in our minds, and we could feel lots of love and prayers coming our way.  Keep us in your prayers during the week, and keep the people of Fayette County, WV in your prayers.  Toward the end of his conversation, John David said that we were in a Third World Country, and I believe him.  This is happening in the most prosperous country in the world.  Makes you wonder.









We Made It!

After a full day of driving on Saturday, and a lot of crazy winding roads, rain and a 1 lane dirt road leading into Beards Fork, West Virginia - We Made It!

We've got John's lasagna in the oven, a big salad on the table and some great brownies and cookies from the Bridgemans for desert.

So many blessings.

The work starts tomorrow...

Saturday, April 18, 2015

Safely in Chambersburg, PA

We all made it on the first leg of the journey, thanks to some great driving and beautiful weather.  The eight hours in the car seemed to go faster than expected, with lots of good conversation.  We arrived in Chambersburg a little after 5 p.m.  After a brief rest, we headed to Applebee's for a great dinner and we're settling in now.  Looking forward to getting to West Virginia tomorrow.  Still wondering what exactly we'll be doing, what it's going to be like, etc.  Keep praying for us!

Fulfillment of a Dream

2 years ago, when I was part of the Outreach Board - "I Had a Dream!"

I had done many exceptional service projects with our congregation over the years, enjoyed every single one of them, and always walked away knowing that we had not just talked about being Christian, but we were living out our faith by helping people in need.

But I had always yearned to reach further out than our local community.  I had always dreamed about serving God on a broader stage, where we had to endure a little bit of hardship, inconvenience ourselves, maybe pass up a great trip that our friends and family may be going on, to be of service in his name.

And then Pastor John came along...

John and I share a similar vision that mission is at the heart of the church.  We talked about doing something big, somewhere down the road, and we eventually went from talking about it, to planning for it.  We started saving $500 here, and $500 there with the dream that someday, we'd be able to go on a "big" mission trip.

Well, 2 years later, and with thanks to a lot of people like Mary Criscione and all the members of our Outreach board, and members of our congregation that have given so generously to the Outreach cause, we find ourselves well into our journey to Beards Fork, West Virginia.

I don't think any of us know what we will find when we get there.  But we all know that whatever we do, it will be living out all of the things we talk about in church every week - helping those less fortunate, using some of the gifts we have been given to serve others.

...for it is in giving, that we receive.

Rick


On the Road

Just around 7:15, we headed out from the First Church parking lot: seven people and a bunch of luggage in a minivan.

The two things we worry about most?  Food and luggage.  I spent the week worrying about what we'll eat and if the luggage will fit in our minivan.  We thought we could put a roof carrier on the van, until the car rental guy said we ca't do it.  So this morning, I was praying it would all fit, and wondering what we'd do if it didn't.  So the first miracle was: everything did fit.  I ye of little faith!

Of course this reminds me of Jesus sending his disciples out wit no food and only the clothes on their back.  Lesson number one.

We're going through Connecticut right now - Rick at the wheel and everyone doing well so far.  Destination today is Chambersburg, PA.  Then on to Beards Fork tomorrow morning.  Pray for us!

Tuesday, April 7, 2015

Less than Two Weeks


WHERE WILL WE BE GOING?


It is less than two weeks before seven members and friends of First Church Congregational head off to Beards Fork, West Virginia.  Where is Beard's Fork?  Not totally sure, but it is Southern West Virginia.



We plan on two days of van travel to get down there.  Here's a picture of Beard's Fork from Google Images:






WHO WILL WE BE WORKING WITH?


We will be working with the Southern Appalachian Labor School, S.A.L.S. started as a job training organization for out-of-work coal miners.  Today, it provides services and resources to a dozen local camp communities along the "Loup Creek."



WHAT WILL WE BE DOING?

There will be many different things we will be doing.  We may help with home repairs, build or renovate homes for economically impoverished seniors and families.  We may help rebuild a 1900-era temporary coal mine housing as part of a housing revitalization project.    Others may help with an after-school program, in the school, the food pantry or the community garden.

FIRST MEETING


Members of the mission team will be meeting this Thursday for our first meeting.  We look forward to getting together for the first time and make plans!


FOLLOW US!


We plan to blog throughout our trip, so you can participate with us in our mission.  Please subscribe to our blog and follow us.  And please pray for us!