Update on Kid's Day Out

No matter how many tactics satan tried to use to distract us from our goal, Kid's Day Out was a huge success. First obstacle-J. lost his job. No job means no money to purchase supplies. Obstacle #2-our church outreach was schedule for the same day, so many of our potential volunteers were not able to help after all. Obstacle #3-H1N1. Gabe ended up sick the day before the event. Carmen ended up sick during the event (still praying that she didn't infect anyone) and Logan got sick the morning after the event. All I can say is, God is the ultimate orchestrator and provider. I was not able to attend the event since no one wanted to stay home and watch a sick kid, but God provided just enough volunteers to get everything done. I would have loved to have gone, but God had a role for each of us and apparently my role was to organize the event and to cook and deliver the side dishes. I was remarkably ok with that. Afterall, J. and I had just talked about this being HIS ministry and if a ministry is really God's, it can go on without the people that started it. There were a total of 17 kids and 10 adults from Over the Rhine. They had a blast hiking with a nature scavenger hunt and meeting the farm animals (3 goats, a sheep, then chickens and rabbits). They met the horses and loved Dolly's cool tricks. They even got to help care for the horses and got a short ride. Fishing was fun, too, even with all of the tangled lines. (we probably could have used more volunteers with the fishing. maybe we will switch to cain poles in the future.) Several kids baited their own hook for the first time and two of them even got to hold a fish! These kids don't get to experience life outside of the city very often so this was an experience of a lifetime. I loved seeing the all of the photos of the days events, especially the expressions on the kids' faces. Along with the 27 people from OTR, we also had 7 coordinators at the event along with 3 helpers. We also had 17 people from our church come to hang out. I am really looking forward to our next event. It might even be an overnight. I am so thankful for everyone who helped make this event and this ministry a possibility. I am thankful to all who prayed and encouraged us. Without them, this would still be an impossible dream. I am thankful for those who donated supplies and money. The helped to make this a reality and touch the kids in practical ways. I am thankful to Nancy and her family for all of their hard work and for being there the day of the event to keep things running smoothly and for ministering to these kids from OTR. We definetly could not have done it without you. Your kids are leaders in the making. And I am especially thankful to Derek and Jessy for opening up their property to us and for going above and beyond by even purchasing animals for the kids to meet. They were more excited about this then we were, and that is how we know that God orchestrated this whole thing. This ministry belongs to God. I am so thankful to be a part of it. I can't wait to see what he does with it next!