walking next to you...

So we are back in Bucharest after a VERY exciting week of camping in the Carpathian Mountains, yes indeed, the Carpathian Mountains. We were able to go up with one of our host families to prepare a camp for the orphans that will be going up in two weeks. The camp was everything we all never expected. NO, we did not really have any expectations but if we would have, they would not have matched up with the camp. We had a four-hour drive and one bumpy road that led the way and once we finally stopped, we crossed the creek and headed for the cabin. Girls were upstairs and boys were down...the upstairs section reminded me of a few scenes from Seven Brides For Seven Brothers,so we decided a photo was definitely a must.

During our first day we experienced something new to all of us...Japanese Hornets... they were HUGE and this my friends is not an exaggeration. Those crazy things kept us up all night the first night with their buzzing... just the idea that we were sharing a cabin with them made us unhappy campers... it was the funniest night of my life.

It is easy to say that the camp experience was out of the comfort zone for every person on the team,but every individual served whole heartedly and we were all able to put ourselves aside in order to really enjoy our time there. We used the outhouse, we fetched water every day, we ate/prepared food by the campfire, dried our wet clothes by the campfire, washed dishes by the campfire, and worshipped by the campfire. It was the most incredible week. We also had what the boys liked to call, "shrimp water". Now, I am pretty sure they were not shrimp and just in case you were wondering, we did NOT drink that water.

Our first full day there was the busiest. We sanded and mowed mountain grass... I experienced stinging nettle for the first time in my life... not once or twice, but three times! And well, lets just say it was quite unpleasant. I ran to the creek like I have never run before.

The following day the team continued sanding tables and benches and everything else that needed sanding. That night Ashley, Jeni, and myself decided we were ready for the next step of the camp life. We found ourselves a tent, pitched it, and moved all of our belongings inside. We camped out seriously for our last three days of camp.

We all experienced wonderful fellowship with our Lord during our time there. Dave said he was learning to not only do things for God, but to do things with God, and when we were up there, there was truly a sense that all the work we were doing was with our Lord. We were serving our fellow brothers and sisters with our Father guiding every step. It was a growing experience and a definite blessing for all of us.

After a week of no showering along with many other fun things, we were all ready to come back to the city... but on our way across the creek everyone said they would really miss the place. We all experienced something pretty terrific.

Tomorrow, we will begin VBS and it will be AMAZING. Continue to keep us in your prayers. We are still not all better yet, but we are all in good spirits which is brilliant!