New Palestine Methodist Church

About a week before Spring Break, we decided we needed to find a stopping point in the middle of our trip to stay the night. I have a pretty big family and I was pretty excited that we were going right by one of my Aunt and Uncle’s house.  I called up my Aunt Barbara and Uncle Woody to see if we could stay with them and they immediately said yes to housing 10 random college-aged and older kids that they had never met before except for their niece. Such brave souls to take on that challenge!  But they took it and we all were very humbled by their hospitality. 

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Joplin Organizations

During 2012's spring break trip we had the opportunity to go to Joplin, Missouri and assist two great organizations, Rebuild Joplin and AmeriCorps. As we entered Rebuild Joplin's office on our first day, I noticed images, inspiring stories, and signatures from volunteers surrounding me. The woman speaking with us was very kind and very happy to see new volunteers. They had many different jobs going on throughout the town, many of which involved AmeriCorps whom we worked side by side with. They had numerous jobs waiting for us and we gladly went. Everyone we worked with was extremely enthusiastic about their work. Some even told of how happy they were that they'd gotten the chance to be stationed in Joplin. Seeing their love and passion inspired me. These people weren't forced into these jobs, it wasn't their family business. No, these people signed up to help out of kindness. I've beein raised around faith, hard work, and helping others. That week in Joplin made me realize what I want to do with my  life. The work we did during that time, helping others physically and emotionally, it's my dream job.

Preparation For Joplin

As you can imagine, preparation for a mission trip is chaotic, stressful, and requires a massive cooperative effort from everyone involved. However, I am convinced that God had His hand over us through all of it. No matter how much time or money was required to get it done or how impossible the work seemed, God gave us everything we needed.

The preparation for CSF’s trip to Joplin consisted of three main areas:  getting connected with groups in Joplin, determining and satisfying the financial need, and developing a curriculum for a God-focused week.

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CSF Goes To Joplin, MO

Have you ever had the opportunity to spend a whole week focusing entirely on God’s two greatest commandments: Love God, Love Others? (Matt. 22:37-40) Well, as some of you already know, ten of our very own CSFers did just that in Joplin, Missouri during Spring Break this year!  We met many amazing people along the way and exchanged a lot of life-changing, world-changing love with them!
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