The First Day of Work!

After the craziness of last night we finally got to bed...and (at least for me, slept hard). You would be surprised how you don't mind sleeping on a a hardwood floor when you are really tired. We will be working hard all week too, so tired shouldn't be hard to come by.

We started that hard work today. We are working in what is known as the Beltline, a Memphis neighborhood in the shadow of the University of Memphis football stadium. The Beltline is a pretty impoverished area that has a history of high crime rates and drugs. But Jacob's Ladder, the organization we are volunteering with, is working in conjunction with residents to turn the neighborhood around. In the five years since their conception, the crime rate of the Beltline has reduced by 30%. This happens because they work to make the community a better place by cleaning up vacant lots, repairing homes, creating a community garden, and working with local youth at their children center and teen center. As Rev. Bill Marler told me this morning, the way a neighborhood looks really does affect the crime rate. I think a lot of that is because they are helping to restore hope and pride to the area. We are glad to be able to help them in this effort.

We met the aforementioned Bill Marler at their teen center this morning and he made sure our 4 workgroups got to the right spots. This week we will have two work groups at a home sight where they are and will be installing sheet-rock, insulation, and soffit vinyl siding as well as painting. There is a a lot of work to do on this house's interior and exterior.

A third team was put on lot clearing duty today. They own a few connected lots on a block in the neighborhood that they hope to eventually turn into a park. A large portion of this lot is over grown and littered with bottles, tile, wood, and brick. The machinery (and those that operate it) they have to keep their lots maintained gets beet up by the debris. This was my group and we worked hard to clear the lot, making a The Great Memphis Wall of Old Bottles and even cutting down a dead tree. There is more work to be done on this lot tomorrow but we will get it done.

The last group was stationed at the youth center. They spent part of the day interacting with the youth and children of the area through sports and games. The rest of the time was spent working to build a computer desk for the group.

After work we got some refreshing Sonic and headed back to Germantown where we had a great meal of salad, sausage, macaroni and cheese, and pork n beans. It was great. Let me take some time to let you know that Cindy Ellis and Linda Jennings are working so hard everyday from before sun up until well after sun down to make sure all of our youth and adults have plenty of food. They are going far and above the call of duty and we appreciate them.

Because of a scheduled men's basketball game, we had worship out at the park again. Tonight we talked about how old negro spirituals influenced blues music. We listened to a rendition of "Wade in the Water" and then talked about the effects of slavery, the residual effects of slavery, and how we can be enslaved by sin. Our challenge for tomorrow is to take advantage of the freedom given to us by Jesus by not being enslaved by sin which controls us.

I am looking forward to getting back out there tomorrow....after a good night of sleep.

I am having a little trouble with the photobucket site, but I will attempt to have some pictures up tomorrow.

Blessings to you and good night!
-Nick