Gatlinburg 2010 Post #11

Post #11: Saturday, July 3rd    12:15PM

All great adventures must come to an end, and now is the time for ours to do so.  As I type this post, we're coming down I-75 South, we just crossed the state line back into Georgia (can I get an Amen).  As happy as I am to finally sleep in my bed again, we all hate to see this adventure end so quickly.  This week has been an incredible experience.  We've grown so much closer as a Youth Group and learned a lot about working together for one common purpose.

This week has been filled with so many memorable experiences, from building porches to rafting down the Pigeon River.  We have stories from this week that we will never forget, such as the day that Randy and Jack killed a Copperhead with a a pair of clippers and the prank that Adrienne and Rachael played on us, making us think that Rachael had gotten her cartilage pierced without her parents' permission (magnetic earring, Jack almost had a heart attack).  This adventure has been one that we will never forget. 

As we sat in our circle after worship on Thursday night, we focused on how lucky we are to have such an amazing youth group.  Many people our age aren't lucky enough to have a strong youth group like we have.  Without this strong support system, many of us would not be nearly as far along in our relationship with Christ as we are now.  We are so lucky to have a youth leader like Jack that (as one of our TEAMEffort leaders said) has given up everything to serve Christ through youth ministry.  We are also very lucky to have a church that supports us in our efforts to better ourselves and our world through trips such as this.  Without these things and the everlasting love of our Savior Jesus Christ, none of this would have ever been possible.

Finally, I want to say a huge thank you to all of you that have been praying for us, thinking about us, and following us on this blog.  Your support means so much and without you,  we would not have ever been able to accomplish so much this week.

To wrap this series of posts up, I'll say this: We Serve a BIG God.  We serve a God that has taken a youth group with a very uncertain future and transformed it into one that is excited about what he has for us and how we all fit into his perfect plan.  We serve a God that will never give us more than we can handle and always supplies us with the things that we need to build his Kingdom.  We serve a God that "in all things protects those who love him and been called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28).

Thank you for being the amazing support group that you are, we can't wait to share our experiences and pictures with you.  We love you!

From the Hilltop,
Hunter Odom
Hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28            

Gatlinburg 2010 Post #10

Post #10: Friday, July 2nd    7:30PM

Hello from beautiful Gatlinburg, Tennessee (seriously, we're actually here this time)!  We are having a blast today as we rest after this long week. After a very late and crazy night (ever heard of star tripping?), it's a very good thing that we weren't on a worksite today.  This morning, we visited The Knoxville Zoo.  We had a great time seeing all the animals and exhibits.  A favorite of everyone was George the Gibbon, a energetic little monkey that put on a show for everyone. Also, did I mention that I rode a camel?  After cooling off with a slushie, we all loaded back into the buses and headed headed for Gatlinburg.

We've spent the afternoon walking down the strip in Gatlinburg, visiting all the shops and attractions.  If you've never been to Gatlinburg, let me just tell you this: COMPLETE TOURIST TRAP. There are some crazy stores in this town. By far though, the best store I've been in was the Nantahala Outdoor Center, 3 stories of outdoor gear. Chacos, Nalgene, North Face, Columbia, the whole nine yards, all in one store. After sitting in Jack's amazing outdoor nylon hammock on Wednesday, I bought one for myself. We are now sitting in Blaine's, a restaurant on the strip in Gatlinburg. After dinner, we will be heading back to Seymour to go to sleep (and maybe a little more star tripping).

We leave tomorrow morning to come back to Richmond Hill. I'm not looking forward to the ride home, but I'm ready to sleep in my bead again, even of only for 3 nights. We had to the Florida Keys on Tuesday! Anyway, we love y'all, see you soon!

From Gatlinburg, Tennessee,
Hunter Odom
Hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Gatlinburg 2010 Post #9

Post #9: Thursday, July 1st    6:45

What an amazing afternoon!  We just finished an incredible 5 mile Whitewater trip down the Pigeon River.  We went with a company called Appalachian Whitewater Rafting Inc.  They were awesome!  The trip was great, but the best part was the guiding staff.  They were friendly, hilarious, and great at what they were doing.  While we were on the bus on the way to the put-in site, we knew that it was going to be a great trip.  They were great, what a wonderful way to spend an afternoon!

We are now on the pad, heading back to camp for the TEAMEffort closing service at 8PM.  We're a little crunched for time, so dinner is going to have to wait.  After the service and dinner, we're excited to be able to spend some more time with the other youth groups at the camp.  Lights out has been pushed back a good bit, so that we can hang out with them.  It doesn't matter though, I think we're all going to sleep VERY WELL tonight.

Tomorrow will include a trip to the zoo in Knoxville and an evening in Gatlinburg.  Thanks to all of you that are following us on this adventure that the Lord has blessed us with!  We love you!

From the Tennessee Mountains,
Hunter Odom
Hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Gatlinburg 2010 Post #8

Post #8: Thursday, July 1st     12:00PM

The working portion of our mission trip ended just a few minutes ago!  We are now on the way to pick up lunch and then head to the Whitewater Rafting Outpost.  We will be rafting the Pigeon River.  It consists of mainly level 3 and 4 rapids.  After rafting, we will have to rush back to Seymour for the 8PM closing worship service.  That probably means that dinner will be very, very late.

We had a great time on the worksite this morning.  We put a skirt around the entire mobile home and replaced the tire swing for the kids.  We also finished painting the shed and putting the handrail on the steps.  We had a difficult time saying goodbye to the families that we've been spending this week with, but we know that we've impacted their lives in a big way, just by being here and sharing the love of Christ with them.

Now that we're finished with all the work, it's time for some rest.  Off we go to the Pigeon River!  We love and miss y'all, and we'll see you soon!

From the Tennessee Mountains,
Hunter Odom
Hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28

Gatlinburg 2010 Post #7

Post #7: Wednesday, June 30th    5:00PM

We had yet another incredible time on the worksite today!  The porch on the back of the mobile home is now completely finished!  The owners love it and already enjoyed coffee on the porch this morning.  Also, we put another coat of coolant on the top of the trailer.  After all this was finished, we started another project on the front side of the house.  We replaced the front porch and the steps, all in one day!  At the other worksite, we replaced the front steps and are in the process of painting the shed in the back.

Tomorrow will be our last day of work, it will only be a half day.  We have the afternoon off.  On the worksite tomorrow, we will mainly be cleaning up and finishing the paint job on the shed.  After that, we will come back to the dorms, shower, and then head back out for an evening of whitewater rafting on the Pigeon River!

The most exciting part of today was the teamwork that was shown by all of our team members today.  On Monday and Tuesday, most of the guys concentrated on building the porch, but today, everyone got in on the action.  The girls that wanted to help build the front porch had trouble at first (mostly with nails), but the guys jumped in and helped them get it right.  When others would have become impatient, our team members supported each other and got the job done.  

Last night in Chapel, we discussed a passage from Exodus 17 in which the Israelites were at war with the Amalekites.  During the battle, Moses stood on the mountain watching with his arms raised to the heavens.  When his hands were raised, the Israelites were winning the battle, but when he lowered them, the Amalekites were winning.  Moses began to grow tired and his arms began to lower.  Seeing this,  Aaron and Hur went over to Moses and held his arms up.  This really describes the kind of spirit that our team had on the worksite today.  We worked together, supporting each other, so that we could accomplish the work of the Lord.

From the Tennessee Mountains, 
Hunter Odom
hunter2444@coastalnow.net
Romans 8:28


P.S.: I'm now able to post updates without going to McDonalds!  Thanks to Griffen,  one of our TEAMEffort leaders, I have internet access for posting!  We miss y'all!  Leave comments!  :)