Lakeshore 2015: In Retrospect

Friday at Lakeshore went too quickly for me to fit in a blog post so I will wrap things up here. The ministry team spent the morning distributing fliers, the kitchen team was busy preparing for the Friday night dinner, and the construction crew were finishing clean-up and miscellaneous projects around the camp. The dinner and service that night went well. The turnout was not as high as previous years, which could be due to the unusually cold weather. The kitchen crew did an excellent job at coordinating the meal and serving our guests. Pastor Don's message was very moving as he recounted the history of the Lakeshore Baptist church buildings, and then used that as an opportunity to share the Gospel.

After the service we all pitched in to help the kitchen crew clean the Mercy House and church building.  It had been announced that there would be s'mores and singing around the campfire when these tasks were completed, so that added an extra level of incentive! We enjoyed a wonderful time of fellowship together on our last Lakeshore evening. It is hard to describe the bonds formed during the week. Although there were people I didn't have the opportunity to talk with much, I felt like we had all become a family. It was definitely hard to say goodbye and know that we would not be meeting again at Lakeshore next year.

This year was a challenge from a media perspective because it was somewhat anti-climactic after last year. In previous years, our goals have been impressive from even a worldly standard. From working through the night to set the church foundation to battling unusual hard weather while siding the building last year, our goals have been remarkable even to those outside our group.

Our vision for this year was much less concrete. While we established a goal for the week, clearing out and demolishing a building does not carry the same level of weight as digging through Mississippi mud to set the pilings for a new structure. Spending the week cleaning, organizing, and finishing many small projects is not impressive like building homes in the community. Our vision this year has been described as anti-climactic, and that is true in some ways. After the culmination of so much labor in the first worship service last Sunday, it was tempting to think our work was done. But this year, our task was not the grand beginning of something, but rather the quiet work of closure to a project nearly completed. We have spent years working in "crisis" mode as the community struggled to survive and heal after Hurricane Katrina. And finally, they are moving into a new phase of normalcy. While it has been true in previous years, our position as support to the local church was especially evident this year as we worked with the goal of leaving them with a clean and organized church grounds. The week was a good reminder that the work of the kingdom is not often remarkable in the eyes of the world, because we live for eternity, not for this temporary life. It was with sadness that we prepared the church area for our final departure, but we were also filled with great joy for this congregation as they are beginning to move forward into a new phase of church life. Though we will not see them every January, we continue to pray that God blesses their faithful service for the kingdom. And we look forward to spending eternity with our brothers and sisters in Christ, serving our Lord together.

Lakeshore 2015: Thursday

Thursday was a very productive day here at Lakeshore. The "shell" is officially gone. The old foundation area will be turned into a parking lot for the new building. The bonfire is burning continuously as we try to dispose of all the scrap wood from the shell. 

The ministry team covered a lot of ground yesterday, although at the cost of our frozen extremities. While the sun was out and we were moving, it didn't feel too bad, but later in the day as it became cloudy, it became more difficult to stay warm! We've gone through many nearby neighborhoods, and even had to order more fliers on Wednesday night.

The kitchen crew got a break last night as we all went out to dinner.  I think everyone enjoyed the good eatings of the coast. It seemed impossible that there would be that much fried seafood in one place! 

So now our focus is on the dinner and service tonight, along with cleaning and doing miscellaneous projects on the church grounds. Those on the construction teams who worked themselves out of a job are now busy tackling the list of tasks compiled by Laszlo and Glenn King. We are also working through the logistics of making a meal in the kitchen, serving it at the Mercy House, and then guiding people to the church building for the service. 

The challenge of our last day here is to remain engaged in the work. It is tempting to start focusing on our departure tomorrow before our job is completed. At this point everyone is running low on sleep and it is harder to stay motivated than on the first day. So please pray that God would give us the grace to remain faithful until the end. 

Lakeshore 2015: Monday

The first working day of Lakeshore was very successful! God answered our prayers for safety and productivity as the crew began demolition on the old church building, which has been renamed the "Shell." The work went faster than expected, and as one person commented, it is the first time we've heard Laszlo say that we are ahead of schedule.

Last night during our evening worship service, there was a time of public thanksgiving from the various crews. The mission teams spent the day distributing fliers at businesses along the interstate not far from Lakeshore. We had some very positive interactions with several people. It was encouraging to see what an impact Pastor Don has had in this community. People recounted stories of how Lakeshore Baptist helped them in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Others mentioned that they donate to the Mercy House. The new building has garnered a lot of attention from the community, and many people spoke of how they've been watching the progress here.

I was on a missions team with someone from Connecticut, and we were commenting on how different the public reception is towards religion. Up north people are openly antagonistic towards the church. It would not work very well to hand out fliers for a church dinner. But here most people at least nominally acknowledge Christianity. So while that means we receive a more positive reception, it poses other challenges. It can be difficult to distinguish between those we meet who are truly believers, and those who claim Christianity in name only. After returning from our tasks on Monday, we were discussing how people need a personal connection in order to participate in something. Many people will not attend an event simply by seeing a flier somewhere. It usually takes a one-on-one conversation for someone to become interested enough to attend. So for the rest of this week we are going to focus on reaching the immediate community of Lakeshore by going door-to-door and talking to individuals. We hope to make some personal contacts in this way.

The construction team made a lot of progress yesterday, more than expected. For those on the missions team, we saw the start of their work in the morning, and then when we returned late afternoon, we couldn't believe how much they had accomplished. We will posting pictures soon so that you can also see the progress!

There are a lot of younger people in the construction crew this year. I think the organizers were a bit concerned about having so many high school and college age workers with less experience at Lakeshore. Over the weekend there was a lot of emphasis on teamwork, following instructions, and team safety. It was wonderful to hear a highly positive report from the team leaders last night. They noted that it is a rare thing to see young people work together with so much peace, unity, and diligence. God has truly been good in giving us all the grace needed to be successful at our tasks.


After a humid and sticky Saturday, the weather has been cooling down. Today is supposed to be the warmest day of the week, with a high of around 60 degrees. It is getting down in the 30s, and maybe even 20's at night. I think this is ideal for the construction crews, since their physical activity keeps them warm. For others who aren't quite as active, it seems a bit colder! I am thankful for the winter wear I brought "just in case." As we trek across frost-covered boards at 5.45am, every layer I can add is appreciated. The sun is shining brightly today, so that will definitely help keep things warm.

Please pray for continued safety for the work crews today. Since yesterday went so "swimmingly," (the word used by someone in our devotions this morning, for which I am very grateful, as I am now not the only person I know who uses that word), it will be tempting to be more careless today. So pray that God would keep us all alert and on-task so that we can achieve even more for His glory.

A Lakeshore Sabbath

Saturday was a time of physical preparation as everyone arrived at Lakeshore and gathered their teams and equipment. Today was a time of spiritual preparation for the week as we spent time worshipping and hearing the Word. This Sunday at Lakeshore was very special because it was the first time for the Lakeshore church to meet in their new building. They had intended to begin using it earlier, but God had other plans, so we were able to be with them on this historic day.

Some rain had come through the area last night, but this Sabbath day opened bright and clear,  though a bit cooler than yesterday. We had a later breakfast, at 8am, after which we headed over to the church for a Sunday School message from Pastor Vandermeulen. He spent the time emphasizing the importance of hearing the Word preached. This was an excellent introduction to the service. With the excitement of Pastor Don preaching in this beautiful structure, after 9 years of meeting in a quonset hut, it would be easy to be distracted from the real significance of the service. So Pastor Vandermeulen's emphasis on preaching as the very Word of Christ was a good refocusing for us. 

The service was such an encouragement as we worshipped together with the congregation and community of Lakeshore. Pastor Don's enthusiasm and joy in preaching the Gospel was a blessing to us as well. He had also invited some members of the community to celebrate this occasion with us, and after the service we provided a luncheon at the Mercy House for all those who attended the service. It was a further opportunity to encourage fellowship, especially amongst the Lakeshore church members and visitors. 

After the luncheon was concluded, the young people went down to the beach for a couple hours. The weather had been slowly been cooling down through the day, and by mid afternoon it was a bit chilly. This did not deter some of the adventurous kids from venturing out into the water! Others walked on the beach and played games. We then returned to the Lakeshore camp, had dinner, and went back to the church for an evening service. After the service ended, we had an administrative meeting. After the day of rest and refreshment, we recapped the plans for Monday morning, and Laszlo again reviewed the focus for our week. It was good to be reminded of why we are here and what we plan to accomplish. 

There were some smaller team meetings after the general meeting, and then the youth gathered for their nightly time of singing and discussion. Everyone is gearing up to hit the ground running bright and early tomorrow morning. For most of us, bright and early means 5.15am. For those on the kitchen crew, this means 4.30 or 4.45am. Whenever I begin complaining, even just to myself, about the early wake-up times, I remember the kitchen crew and am instead thankful that they are so faithful in providing us food all week! 

Sunday morning at Lakeshore

Folks gathering for service

The walk to the new building is a bit muddy right now!

In case you weren't sure what exactly mud puddles look like...

Pastor Don and others before Sunday School

Pastor Don introducing Pastor Vandermeulen

This was certainly an appropriate hymn for us to sing today!

Fellowship after the service

We were all very happy that Pastor Mitch was able to come visit today!

After the service, the guests were escorted across the street to the Mercy House

Lunch provided by the Lakeshore kitchen crew

They also sang some beautiful hymns for us during the meal

Fun at the beach!

We even got some live music!

Dinner preparations

Lakeshore 2015

We closed Lakeshore 2014 without a clear idea of what this year would hold. At that point, we were not sure if the church would need us to return again or if this project was officially finished. Well, throughout the year it became evident that there was still a place for our participation at Lakeshore Baptist.

So here we are, commencing the 10th year of the Lakeshore Project! 

This year is notable for the lack of Arctic weather. While some of us traveling from the north experienced some delays due to a snow storm, we were greeted with wonderfully warm weather in Lakeshore. The famous Mississippi mud is definitely not frozen this year! The temperatures have been in the 60's today, with some occasionally rain.  

Our focus last year was on the closing of one phase and the beginning of another for Lakeshore Baptist. We will be giving closure to that transition this year as we begin taking down the temporary structures, including the quonset hut which has served as the church building for the last 9 years. Rather than having several major and prominent projects this year, our focus will be on finishing our work well and tying up the loose ends of our work here. We are here to support God's kingdom work here among the people of Lakeshore. As the church moves to this new building, we are helping establish a new beginning for this congregation. This new facility will open up many new opportunities for the church to reach the community with the Gospel. We are honored to be here and participate in Lakeshore Baptist's new beginning.

The exterior of the new building

The youth meeting tonight. We were enjoying the warm weather by meeting outside!