Fellowship, Prayer, and Preparation

Hi from Katie Caldwell slash Monica Allen!!

We spent the day in L.A. at Cassie's uncle's church, which many of us visited two years ago on CARAVAN. It's exciting to be in the same place and yet be different people and a different group, shaped by two years and by this past week. After a week in the hot Vegas desert, it is hard to describe how refreshing it feels to be in a lush (and comfortable!) environment....particularly because the ocean is just a short walk away. Monica experienced a powerful sense of exhilaration upon seeing the water...and great grief at the realization that Sunnyvale has no ocean...prepare her parents--she may not come home. We celebrated our week of service and the new bonds we built with one another with a fun, relaxing, and sandy day on the beach. Lots of jumping in the waves, scaring Alan with sand crabs, and, if your name is Katie Caldwell, sunburn on the forehead and shins. In a sentence, it was a beautiful day of enjoying the gifts of fellowship God has bestowed upon us this week--with the added perk of being on the BEACH!

Last night, we spent a couple of hours in worship, communion, and prayer. As is done every year, advisors were available to pray with students who so desired. Unlike other years, however, not only were advisors praying for us, but we were praying for each other! The room was a festival of prayer--students prayed for one another over and over again as each individual traveled about the room praying for every person in his or her path. This CARAVAN's service projects were very centered around prayer, and last night was a testament to how much our prayerfulness as a community has developed. We had a very tangible sense of the spirit of God among us as we lifted up our praises for the past week and commissioned one another for what God has in store for us back home. We closed our evening of prayer and worship by singing "Testify to Love," which provided both a beautiful closing for our week of service and a powerful beginning of what is to come at home. Praise God for community, worship, prayer, and the BEACH!