We have arrived safely in Guatemala and are unpacking at the Mission House! Seniors are hungry so we’re eating lunch.

Remember, schedules change, so we will hold onto this plan loosely!

Lititz Christian School

Saturday May 16^th

12:15              Team Arrives on Delta

2:00              Lunch at the mission house ( Sandwiches)

3:00              Team Welcome and rules for the week. (If you need a list email Mike)

6:00              Dinner

Sunday May 17^th

9:00                Depart for Sembradores church

12:00              Lunch (Packed from MH)

1:00-4:00       Home visits with food packs and praying with families.

4:00                Depart for Mission House

Monday – Thursday, May 18th thru May 21st

8:00                Depart Mission house for Zone 7

9:00                Arrive at small school

12:30              Lunch

1:00-4:00       Afternoon projects

4:00                Depart for Mission House

6:00                Dinner

Friday, May 22nd 

8:30AM           Depart for San Mateo

9:30AM           Arrive in San Mateo

11:00AM        Depart for Antigua

5:00PM           Dinner in Antigua

Saturday, May 23rd

 9:30AM Depart for Airport (Flight leaves at 1:00)

And the Senior Go blog is officially active!!!  Follow us daily as we journey to Guatemala from May 16-23 to serve with our friends at Clubhouse Guatemala!

Life has regained its normalcy as all of us have returned home to our families and friends and the chaperones are back to school.  As I reflect back over the last nine days, here are a few thoughts of things learned:

1) “The effective prayer of a righteous person can accomplish much.” (James 5:16).  There is NO WAY that we could have scripted the week we had in Scotland.  All of the best planning in the world wouldn’t have topped the plan that God put together for us while in Scotland.  The people we met, the experiences we had all fit together to create a beautiful tapestry of ministry and work for Christ and His kingdom.  

2) The people of Scotland are beautiful and welcoming and generous.  It is an extraordinary melting pot of different people groups (with a Scottish accent) who each hold a strong opinion about something (especially football and politics) that need Jesus.  Because of the strength of will of the Scottish people to stand alone when necessary, I personally believe that a revival in Scotland will have major ripple effects in many nations.

3) I need to take more coffee and tea breaks.  We struggled, initially, to embrace the regular coffee and tea breaks afforded to us in Scotland.  We wanted to work, but what we learned was the importance of people and relationship through these tea breaks filled with good conversation.  It was refreshing to be reminded of the need to set aside our agenda and listen to the person across from you.

4) All of the hard work, fundraising and planning was WORTH IT!

5) After three senior trips, this class raised the bar of expectation for future classes regarding team unity, work ethic and commitment to serving others.  I will be using Scotland 2014 as a reference for future planning.  This is a testament to Mr. Hokenbrough and Mrs. Urquhart’s excellent leadership and the seniors’ class.  Well done!  You finished well!

Friday is graduation… unbelievable.  I pray that you will keep what you have learned on this trip and from your time here at Lititz Christian to move forward in your faith in Christ and help you live more fearlessly for Him.

Cheers!

Mr. Lewis

We have packed, survived security, and are seated at our gate in Glasgow Airport. In less than an hour we’ll be boarding our plane for Philly! The flight is on-time and we are eager to see you all. (Although we may require a nap upon arrival.) See you soon!

Flight #: US Airways 769
Arrives: in Philly at 1:00 PM

Just wanted everyone to know that we safely arrived in Glasgow this afternoon, toured Celtic Park (home of Celtic Football Club) and have settled into our accommodations at the airport Travelodge hotel.  The trip back through the Highlands was stunning as the weather was far nicer than the day we travelled the A9 a week ago.  Beautiful valleys and winding rivers with crystal clear water… Scotland is truly a beautiful country.

After dinner in the hotel restaurant, we had a time of debriefing as a team.  As leaders, we are incredibly proud of their unity and hard work this week.  So many seeds were planted of Christ’s love through these seniors’ efforts and attitudes.  

Tomorrow morning, we head home to see each of you.  We will miss Scotland and its wonderful people, but we cannot wait to be with each of you again.  We will try to communicate from the airport of our flight status and then will call Mr. Bernhardt when we finally land in Philadelphia.

Cheers!

What an amazingly wonderful week!  We have been absolutely embraced by Margaret and Murdo Macleod, who hosted the boys all week and Reay Ross, who hosted the girls.  Last night, we had a farewell gathering, which also included extended family.  It was a blast getting to know so many of them.  Reay and Margaret’s brother Allen and his son, Jordan were also a regular with our group this week and were a delight to get to know.  I think it is safe to say that we will be having another senior trip here to Scotland at some point down the road.

Today, we say goodbye to our Scotland family and begin our trek back to Glasgow for a 1:45 p.m. tour of Deltic Park, the famed Scottish football club.  After our tour, then we will find our way to our hotel, return our vans to the airport rental agency and settle in for one final dinner together as a team.  Then, we get a shuttle to the airport to fly home on Sunday morning local time.  Depending on internet access at the hotel, we may not be able to update the blog.  We will try to send a quick communication from the Glasgow Airport before we leave to confirm our departure time.

See you Sunday!

On Thursday morning, we had a time of debriefing with some of the leaders who helped us at the Alness Baptist Church.  Jan was incredibly helpful in organizing our team with work each day and providing the tools we needed   He is a transplant from the Netherlands, but married a wonderful Scottish women which led him to Scotland years ago.  Captain Drew was integral in taking photos of each team and helping each team get organized with the local contacts in the community.  Drew works in the oil industry in the North Sea region on one of the tugboats, which ferries the large oil tankers and cruise ships into Invergordon.  Drew is a local.  Dirk was a wonderful influence on the team with his huge heart for evangelism and reaching the lost.  Dirk is from Malta, but has been pretty much everywhere in the world and has had some amazing experiences in ministering for Christ.  Pastor Mike was the driving influence in helping our team get to Alness and organizing the basketball game for us on Tuesday night.  Mike’s father was from Poland who fled to Scotland during WWII.  Mike coached Anna Urquhart’s husband, Jonathan’s basketball team for years and has been a steady influence for Jesus in the area.

Jan

So many members of this wonderful little “city on a hill” (literally) were so encouraging and helpful during our stay here.  They fed us time and again and were so flexible to our needs.  I am sincerely praying that the Lord allows another senior class in the future to come and learn alongside these brothers and sisters to see their genuine faith and love for others.  We will miss them greatly!

Pray that God will bring healing to Pastor Ian.  We were only able to see him one time at the Sunday morning service due to some health issues, so pray for a full recovery.  Also, pray that the Lord will raise up a new generation of believers at the church who can embrace leadership and take the church into the future.

Captain Drew

Dirk