The church has been doing a series of 'mission Sundays', highlighting different countries Victory Rd. members have taken mission trips to in the past couple of years. This Sunday was Nicaragua, and there was going to be a meal fund-raiser after church for the next Nicaragua trip, coming up this summer. The youth music group led the music service, and Bro. Earl had Bro. Nick preach, since the majority of the church hadn't heard him since he's been here as youth pastor, replacing Bro. Mike. There was a little pain there too, though, thinking of Bro. Mike's family being 'replaced'. But I try not to let myself think about that, and in that way especially. Bro. Nick and his wife, Lydia, and two little girls are such a sweet young family and have seemed to fit right in. He and Lydia are about Austin's age actually, so they have almost seemed to form a link, blending us who used to be the 'college group' (but are fast growing too old to be 'college' anymore) into the positions and roles in the church usually thought of as adult ones, that we have been trying to help fill.
Anyway, since it was going to be a somewhat irregular Sunday, with a meal after the morning service and our 'evening' service being moved up to the afternoon right after lunch, I suppose Bro. Earl thought this would be a good time to have Bro. Nick preach in front of the whole church for the first time.
I don't know if he was nervous, or was afraid to go too long, or what, but he preached a very fitting - and very short - sermon. When we went back up onto the platform to play for the closing hymn, Law caught my eye and with an amused quirk at the corners of his mouth whispered, "Ten minutes." So it had been even shorter than I realized! But Bro. Nick had packed alot into that little bit of time, speaking on 'unity in a church', in a serious but compassionate manner.
Lunch afterward in the gym was delicious and enjoyable, and the money raised went to those who hope to go on this summer's mission trip to Nicaragua. Trissy and I sat with Lindy to eat and it was nice to 'catch up' - we seem to be going in different directions alot at church, and she's one of our closest friends. The little visit was nice.
Somehow people seem to gather in random groups along the rows of tables whenever there is a meal. I don't know why, but those who usually hang around each other at other times, seem to break up and branch out and spend time visiting with others, or smaller groups among ourselves, when we eat together. And that seems appropriate somehow, to be building relationships and nourishing our souls as we nourish our bodies.
After the afternoon service, we all dispersed to our respective residences. But there was going to be a 'Superbowl party' for the youth later in the evening. I'm not into football at all myself (I didn't even know when the Superbowl was, much less who was playing, and I didn't care either), but I wanted to go, for the fellowship and friendship with the other people there. Besides, Bro. Nick had asked Trissy and me if we were coming to help with, in his words, "crowd control" :) . At the time, I wondered how many kids he was expecting to show up, and how unruly he was expecting them to be! I hoped our kids would show him that his fears were unfounded.
In the end, basically no one watched the game, which I though was both funny and appropriate; but we had a great time just spending good time together! The 'party' was held in the fellowship hall across the street from the church, attached to the gym. Someone had fixed hotdogs, and everybody that came was asked to bring a snack or desert or something. Austin's aunt was there with her daughter and her daughter's friend (who both come to Victory Rd. alot, and also went with us to Strength To Stand), and she was teaching Ava how to make sausage balls and bread pudding in the kitchen where some of the adults and older youth were gathered talking and snacking.
As people got their hotdogs, they would come and go, sit in the chairs facing the screen that had been hung to project the game onto, or wander around talking to each other, but hardly anyone was actually paying attention to the game.
I sat for a few minutes, but there was no one to talk to near me, so I went back to the kitchen and stood eating and listening to Lydia, Trissy, and Ava discuss the practice of healthy, economical menu and grocery shopping ideas. I watched a couple of different ladies spread more food on the already-crowded cabinet, and chatted with Nicole and her mom.
I noticed some of the young people were beginning to migrate to the gym in the back, so when I finished my hotdog, I wandered back to see what they were doing.
Somebody had gotten the roller skates out of the long wooden foot locker against the wall. A couple of brave beginners were trying their wings as a couple of veterans and daredevils were flying around the big room. There were two or three just wandering around chatting, and a few kids on Rip-Stiks cruising in and out doing circles and figure-eights among the slower ones. It was a fun, energetic, wholesome picture.
For the rest of the evening I pretty much stayed in the gym. And what a wonderful time!
A few of the little individual incidents and special moments:
-Tasting Piper's pumpkin bread/cake and Ava's sausage balls (both so yummy!)
-Abigail and another of the teenage girls teasing me that Piper would be offended if I didn't take one of her brownies too
-Getting used to roller skates again (instead of roller blades)
-Being around, talking to, and building a stronger friendship with Joy
-Law and young Dolan finding a couple of sheets somewhere and tying them on as capes as they whizzed around the gym on roller skates and Rip-Stiks
-People sharing their Rip-Stiks with whoever wanted to ride at the moment
-Nicole's mom roller skating
-Trissy taking pictures for me
-Everyone (who was in the gym at the moment) pausing and gathering for a minute so Lydia could take our picture:
What a crazy bunch :) ! And how I love every one of them!
-Brave Lindsay trying to learn how to roller skate, Law stopping to try to help her, then calling me over, saying, "Kyrie, show Lindsay how to roller skate" when it wasn't working
-Playing ping-pong with Piper, then later Autumn
-Standing with Piper, waiting on Trissy to get her roller skates tied, while Law did figure-eights around us on a Rip-Stik
-Nicole's Southern, 'country' husband learning to Rip-Stik with cowboy boots on - 'I've always done everything else with boots on!'
-Law taking my place at ping-pong with Autumn when I was tired, me teasingly asking if I could give him my paddle and ball and have his Rip-Stick, then correcting myself and saying, 'Well, not have of course, just use' and him responding seriously, 'You can actually take it and keep it at your house - I don't really have anywhere to ride it at mine'. (!) I didn't of course, but it gave me such a good feeling that he would offer.
-Bro. Nick and Lydia's 3-year-old and another little girl sitting side by side on a skateboard by the wall, watching the action and singling Joy out to cheer for, calling, "Go Joy!" at the top of their tiny lungs as she circled the gym on her Rip-Stik
-Various people playing frisbee and basketball among everything else
-The game of Spoons going on in the fellowship hall in the front, with those who weren't in the gym
-Toby and Lindy 'racing' on their Rip-Stiks
-Sweet Piper trying to learn how to Rip-Stik, and me trying to teach her when I was just beginning to get the hang of it myself, running sideways in front of her as she held my hands for balance saying, "You better not let go Kyrie!"
-Playing ping-pong with my 'brown-eyed boy', then with Abigail as the evening went on and most of the younger teenagers had gone
-Trissy and Lydia calmly sitting and talking in chairs against the wall; easy-going, fun-loving Lydia with her baby in her arms and her foot propped on a skateboard
-Piper bringing Abigail and me each a glass of water as we played our game of ping-pong
-The fun still going on (though at a slower pace) as Trissy and I said goodnight and headed for our house
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