Workcamp 2009 is finally here! This morning we met at the church for a 10AM send-off service. We had a great turn out as 57 of you came to wish us well. Diane Millick led the service and Jack Decker was there yielding his trusty guitar and inspirational prayer. Knowing you are back home supporting and praying for us aides our confidence as we venture into the world to spread the Good News. Thank you!

We left the church and headed to the middle of nowhere. PA… Actually, our first stop was at Maize Quest in New Park, PA. Here we experienced a few team building events including a Geocaching course where we used GPS units to find buried buckets. The only downside, poison ivy was everywhere! Darlene and Donna, no worries the boys have not been engulfed by the vile weed… The team consisting of Jackie, Steph, Lauren, Jess, and Papa H found themselves walking through an 8 foot high cornfield not able to see 3 feet in front of themselves. Thank goodness for that GPS! We also enjoyed some pedal carts, slide, a variety of mazes, and a labyrinth. It was a great afternoon that started preparing them for the week that lie ahead.

After some well deserved ice cream, we departed Maize Quest around 5:30PM and headed toward our first night’s accommodations in Shepherdstown, WV. The back roads along the Mason-Dixon line are extremely narrow and often unpaved but provide some amazing scenery. It’s tough not to feel God’s presence in such country! 2 and a half hours after our departure from Maize Quest, we arrived here at Shepherdstown Presbyterian. A church similar to Faith Presbyterian in both physical and congregational size, this congregation dates to the 1790’s. Plus, they have a shower so we were able to wash the poison ivy oils off of us! We were welcomed with open arms and look forward to attending tomorrow morning’s 10:15 service. It is amazing how willing our brothers and sisters in Christ are to open their homes to us.

While this year’s workcamp is billed as the Martinsburg, WV camp, the location of the church, Covenant Baptist, we will call our home for a week is 10 miles east in Shepherdstown, WV. We passed the church on the way in and are very excited to have only a 2 mile drive tomorrow. We look forward to meeting our fellow campers, continuing to grow as a group, and begin our spiritual journey though Luke 4. We hope you will join us on this journey and we’ll check in again tomorrow. Until then, keep the Faith!