...and here we are

We finally made it to Slovakia yesterday--the first group arrived mid-morning and the second group of us arrived last night around 6:00.  One thing is for sure, an extremely prolonged journey makes the arrival that much sweeter :)

Today was the first day of camp for us (the second for the Slovaks) at the DEPO.  We started off with an opening program which included a camp song & a Bible story with a skit.  After that, the kids headed off to english lessons with some of our ladies.  The rest of the morning we hung out, played some foosball and ping pong, made bracelets, and other fun things.

This afternoon we headed to a local park and played games with the kids and tried to recruit more kids to come play with us so that they get plugged into the program at the DEPO.  Plugging kids in means getting kids connected to the our missionaries here, and ultimately plugging their parents in to hopefully share the Gospel with them.

It was a great day, and we are looking forward to tomorrow--we're really hoping that we are all caught up on sleep in the morning!

Here's some straight-out-of-the-camera shots to give you a feel for how things went today:

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this would be ham flavored popcorn--quite the hit over here

RoseAnn finally got to see her grandbaby

finishing up after english lessons

choosing crafts

Ben got in on the bracelet making action too

Ben 

check out our snazzy bracelets w/ Ivanka

Bradley wanted a bracelet too

We managed to get a little olympic watching in too!

The Never-ending Journey

The fun journey continues! We have officially been on our traveling journey for 29 hours and have traveled in an actual airplane a total of 40 minutes...that's right, we're only in Washington D.C.! We were able to catch our flight here this morning and had a 10 hour layover. Our evening flight to Vienna, after several delays, has been further delayed until noon tomorrow. Luckily our airline has agreed to get us a hotel for the night.

So needless to say, there has been A LOT of time in Dulles airport today. Though not the most fun place, we've had plenty laughs, played plenty of Phase 10, read a lot, may have seem RoseAnn dance, and walked through Gates B + C MANY times! Now, we are waiting to get a hotel reservation and to actually get on a plane to Europe tomorrow.

We are all very tired (running on about 2-3 hours of sleep), but in good spirits and definitely ready to get to Bratislava.

In the meantime, let me ask you to pray alongside us for several specific things:

1. A flight and to arrive in Slovakia very soon.

2. Rest for our team. We REALLY need this tonight to be ready and prepared for whatever tomorrow holds (tomorrow could hold anything at this point;)

3. Patience. I asked the whole team what to ask y'all to pray for and this was the number one request (airlines can be difficult!)

4. Monday @ the DEPO; our original plan was to work a camp all week with the kids at the DEPO, but as of now, it doesn't look like we will make it in time for Monday's camp. Pray that we will make it for the camp or that another plan will work out well to fill the slot.

5. That we will do the work the Lord has planned for this week. We are convinced that the Lord either has some kingdom work for us to do in the airport or Satan is trying his best to keep us from getting to Slovakia on time. Whichever is true, we believe the Lord's mission WILL be accomplished and ask that you pray our hearts will be right and prepared for that work.

Thank y'all! Hopefully next time I blog we will be in Bratislava (or at least outside of the U.S.)!

A lil' delay

Hey everyone! So we've hit a little bump in the road tonight on our way to Slovakia. Our flight to Washington D.C. was cancelled due to the storms we've been experiencing tonight.

So we are staying in a hotel near the airport and will be flying out at 6am tomorrow morning and catching a flight to Europe tomorrow evening. We are all safe though and glad to have a bed to sleep in tonight as opposed to a nice airport bench :).

Needless to say, we're still on our way to Slovakia...just arriving a day late;)

Sleep tight, y'all!

Slovakia 2012

Hey RBC (and other friends and family stumbling upon this blog:), the Ridgecrest mission team is heading out to Bratislava, Slovakia this Friday, July 27.  We are all very excited and ready to go!

Here's this year's team:

Ben Francis
Rae Francis
Jordan Garnett
Amy Daughtridge
Sarah Daughtridge
Kayla Terry
Donnie Palmer
RoseAnn Palmer
Caitlin Morris
Bradley Morris

We ask that, as we go, you be in prayer for a few specific things:

1. That Christ Will Be Glorified.  In the Slovaks' lives, our lives, and in the work we are given the opportunity to do.

2. The Slovak People.  Pray that their hearts will be open and receptive to the Gospel.

3. Team Unity.  Pray that our team will be united throughout the ten days we are gone so that we can be an accurate reflection of the Gospel.

4. The Holloways + The Palmers.  These are our career missionaries in Slovakia.  Pray that they will be energized and encouraged throughout the year as they build relationships and share the Gospel with the Slovaks.


Thanks so much in advance for your love, support, and prayers as we go---we treasure your prayers so much!

Check this blog often for updates as we are gone on our trip.