YAY!!!

So...Just thought I would write and tell everyone that there have been 2 more kids to accept the gift of salvation!! So...that is 4 total kids that have been lead to Christ by the Kids Connection team! We have had 2 great weeks with the kids! It is so great to see them getting excited about Jesus and to just see them smile! The kids have been learning so much!

We had been staying with a wonderful older couple and they have been such a blessing to us all! Helen is the name of the older lady and she totally reminds me of my Greek, food pushing grandmother who's name is also Helen! LOL...but she has been a total doll! She woke up the other morning and made us apple, cinnamon pancakes and they were delish! But she is soooo cute! She is also a really creative lady and she has some of the coolest thing that she made displayed in her house! There is a really cool poem in the bathroom! LOL...but it is a really good poem! It is called "Do You Have the Time?" and goes a little like this:

Do You Have the Time?

I knelt to pray, but not for long,

I had too much to do.

I had to hurry and get to work,

For the bills were coming due.

So I knelt and said a hurried prayer,

And jumped up off my knees.

My Christian duty was now done,

My soul could rest at ease.

All day long I had no time,

To spread a word of cheer,

No time to speak of Christ to friends,

They'd laugh at me I'd fear.

No time, no time, too much to do,

That was my constant cry.

No time to give to souls in need,

But at Last, the time to die.

I went before the Lord, I came,

I stood with downcast eyes.

For in His hands, God held a book,

It was the book of life.

God looked into the book and said,

"Your name I can not find.

I once was going to write it down,

But never found the time..."

I just love that poem! It really says a lot! You know if we don't start acting like Christians then how do we expect to get to heaven?? God deserves a lot more time than we (myself included) give him! So...today...just take a while and listen and talk to God! Take time from your busy day to just relax and enjoy what God gave you! Think of everything you have and give thanks to God for that!

Anyways...Keep praying for me and the girls as we minister to kids all over south carolina! We have just settled into our new house we are staying at! VBS also started tonight...but yeah! I will post more later!

Just remember....Give God thanks! And talk to Him, b/c you can't have a relationship with out talking to someone! And all God wants is a relationship! It isn't too much to ask for the large price he payed!

Amazing the ways God works isn't it!

So...I am going to share with you the amazing story of my day yesterday!

It started off quite ruff...and it pretty much stunk...literally! We were at the trailer park setting up the tent. Then, I just happened to step in a massive pile of dog crap and got it all over both of my shoes! It was gross! So I was pretty much aggravated at that...so then my day just got worse and worse because it was my turn to lead the bible study. We had split the children into groups since the beginning of the week...and so the first group I had was the older girls...and the paid attention...but it was my first group of the day and I was kinda nervous as to what to say and so they weren't as responsive as I would have hoped. So I got a little discouraged about that...and then the boy group came! They were pretty much not wanting to listen at all and they didn't want to hear the story...so I got really even more discouraged about that and stuff...so then when it came to the little girls group, they understood some of the story...but they were kind of distracted with the toys in the house and stuff...so i didn't really get a chance to talk about much with them. So then we were done for the morning at the trailer park...and I was still very upset and discouraged with a mixture of being a little aggravated at the behavior of the boys and not doing a good enough job myself at making it interesting and clear for the different ages to understand. So i left feeling pretty crappy.

Then, we went over to the house of the leader of the trailer park ministry. Her name is Christy. So, we ate lunch at her house...and on the ride to the apartment complexes I just took a minute to pray for the next group and pray that people would be responsive to the message that I was presenting about salvation. We had a lot of kids who were really curious about all the stories and things we were saying...and so, I told the bible story, then we explained how to become a christian, explained how to ask Jesus into our hearts and we answered any questions they had (and they were very curious and had quite a few!). Then we did an activity with it, where we made boats by folding paper. When they finished their boats, I told them to write their names on the outside of the boats and on the inside write 'yes' if they wanted to accept Jesus into their hearts and pray the prayer, 'no' if they weren't ready or if they didn't want to, and to put a check mark if they already had accepted christ. So...we got a good number of check marks and all the rest were answered with a 'yes'! So we were all excited...and so some of us pulled a couple of kids aside and we talked with them...and 2 of them were lead to Christ that day!!!! And I was one of the lucky and priviledged ones of the day to get to lead a girl named courtney to Christ! She had been very curious about everything we had been saying all week long! So...I just thank God that she was curious...and i thank him also for preparing her heart and answering my prayers about her! See...I had been praying for God to prepare her and he totally did! Also...a little boy we call 'little D', was one of the ones who got lead to Christ by a girl on my team named Kayla! He had been super responsive to everything that happened! We gave each of the children, who made decision, bibles to keep and 'little D' brought his bible with him today and was very excited about it! He also went to the lady in charge of the apartment mission stuff, Mrs. Becky, and met her at her house from 9:30 to the time we got there at 2:30...and he sat at her house reading, studying and highlighting scripture...for literally hours!!! We were super stoked...and yesterday God answered my prayers and helped me to have a wonderful day! So it started out litterally crappy...and God turned it around and made it a beautiful day full of excitement and all the encouragement I needed! So anyways...today is thursday and everything went well yet again...and so tomorrow is our last day with the kids here...and we have kind of put together a couple of special activities for them! So...I hope everything goes well with all of that! Anyways...I will talk with you guys more later and keep you updated! Just know that God is good...and He WILL answer prayers in the way that will be best for you! In Jeremiah 29:11 God tells us,"I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future." So there you have it folks...God is on your side and with him all things are possible...He tells us that in Philippians 4:13! It says,"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." So just learn to trust him more, as I will also try to do...and know that he answers prayers in his time and his way! He knows what is best for you! He wont let you down!

Anyways...love to all! More blogging later!

Have a blessed day and a wonderful weekend! Spend your time wisely!

Well hello to all everyone! Hope all is well with you! I miss you all!



Anyways....for all you out there who dont know....I am training for my summer missions positions with Kids Connection! We are a traveling team of four girls, going around and doing Vacation Bible Schools (VBS) and other various evangelistic activities with children! We have been pretty busy so far, just learning everything we will have to do this summer! Sunday, technically yesterday, we arrived to our first place of missions...Columbia! And actually in my previous blog i told you all my schedule....I also told you it was tentative and that it could change...and it did! LOL...I don't really know what changed...but they told us that our schedule was a little different now! I will post that one later!



Anyways...we have been staying at Camp La Vida for the past couple days so we could do our training, and there are other counselors for the camp doing training at the same time. I met some of the counselors of the all girls camp and they are awesome! I cant wait to hear later what all God has done at this Camp.



During our training this week we have had various people come and teach us things we will need to know on our missions trip...so we had this cute little old couple who came in and taught us plate spinning, balloon making, face painting, rope tricks, etc.! They were sooo funny and they were like the cutest little old people I have ever seen! LOL...but it is cool to see how they have just do what God wanted them to do, and keep on doing it even with their old factor. I just hope that i am the same way when i get old! They actually told us that they had 2 houses in...Costa Rica I think it was...and they used those houses for missionaries that would come from all over! It was really cool b/c they said that they sold one of the houses and are in the process of selling the other one...but they sold it to people who would continue to let missionaries come and use it! They are such amazing servants of God!



Also...we had to put together a small childrens bible story for yesterday's church service and my teammates and I did it on having a solid rock foundation on God! This story in Mathew Ch.7 tells about story, told by Jesus, about 2 different men who built houses. One man built his house on sand and the other man built his on a solid rock foundation. The story goes on to say that when a huge storm came it washed away the house built on sand...but the house on the rock stayed strong! This story is supposed to represent our lives. It means when the storms of life start to beat down on you, will you be weakened and fall or will you hold on to Jesus with all your might and stand strong? What are you building your house on? rock or sand?



So...anyways...I have to go to bed now! We start our first project tomorrow morning at a trailer park! I am so excited! But we will be really busy so just keep praying for our kids connection group! We will need a lot of prayer power and help from God to make it through this HOT and active summer!

Thanks! Love to all!

Eleni

Ok guys! I leave tomorrow...ok...today if you want to get technical! LOL...but a lot of people have been asking me where I will be traveling to this summer and so I decided to post my shedule that we were given.

Tentative Schedule:

June 8-15 Columbia, SC

June 15-29 Summerville, SC

June 29-July 3 Chesterfield, SC

July 3-July 6 4th of July break

July 6-13 Elgin, SC

July 13-20 Laurens, SC

July 20-July 27 Lake City, SC

July 27-August 1 Little River, SC


So there you have it folks! My schedule...well at least that is the rough draft. I mean when someone says tentative then it is like the disclamer...meaning that these dates are subject to changing so be flexible! LOL!

Anyways...I am super excited to see how God is going to use me this summer! I am ready to be a beacon for His light to shine through! I will need all of you who read my blog to please just keep me in your prayers! Also I would like you all to pray for all the other missionaries on the field this summer! Pray that they will let God use them and that they will stay safe! The devil is going to start trying to hit us all hard so that we can't go on doing God's work...so also pray for strength for all of us missionaries! Just pray too that God will prepare the hearts of those who we are going to come in contact with this summer...and that they will have an open mind and an open heart! Also, I was at youth group tonight and it was open mic night...meaning that anyone could get up on stage and share how God was working in their lives or just give words of encouragement, etc....and pretty much they are all just trying to seek God and stop living for the world and start living for him! So if you guys would just pray for them and for perseverance so that when the hard times come, and they will come, that the devil wont be able to push them down...b/c the closer you get to God the more of a threat you are to the devil and so he will try to bring you down more and more!

I like this verse:

Romans 12:2
"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind...."

If you aren't living for God....the Perfect, Holy and Loving God who created you, then who are you living for??
Yourself?

We are flawed people by nature! Romans 3:23 says,"...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God..." This means that no one is perfect and that we all make mistakes...but God is sent His Son to die on a cross to bear our sins! He die for you and me!

Why not give all your troubles to the amazing all powerful God of the universe! Die to yourself and start to live again in Him! He died for you...and all He asks is that you live for Him!

Anyways...as a last remark, ask yourself...are you so on fire for God that the devil knows your name?


Check ya later,
Eleni