Update #5: Day 6, 10:30ish
Sorry for no update on Day 5 - that day was just busy from start to finish.
Brief recap on Louie's Midnight Breakfast: it was outstanding! It was hands down the best Louie's night of my Beach Reach history thus far, and it could take quite a bit to beat it. I was on the vans the whole night (meaning four hours of practically nonstop rides) and of the 16 rides we had, I can say that only two or three of the rides were marked by over intoxicated and out of control partiers. Everyone else was sober or reasonably sober and I had several great conversations - one of which where I got to utilize my apologetics training to help a backsliding brother to reconsider his faith! After having two days of Beach Reach Lite, it felt so good to finally jump into the real deal.
Yesterday afternoon a group of us went to the beach to talk with people around the sand sculpture. Truth be told, that was my least favorite part of the trip so far. It was unbelievably windy - so windy Amarillo would be jealous - so hearing people and talking to them were difficult. Second, while there were definitely conversations that took place, they were few and far between compared to the breakfasts and van rides. Most people were too busy drinking/dancing/flashing/ect to know we were even there, much less willing to stick around long enough to have a Gospel chat. I'm not gonna lie, I wish I had been on the vans (though I was told that not much happened there either).
Buddy's sermon last night rocked me extremely hard. Ever since the end of Panfork III, I have felt aimless and directionless with where I am going in life and what I am going to do with it. Buddy's sermon on Romans 15:18-21 showed me that the reason why I have felt aimless and directionless is because I have lost my ambition for the Gospel. Without the daily drive to make Christ known and minister to those who need to know Him, I have been feeling the despair of the never-ending college career, the well paying 8-6 M-F job, and, well, the despair of the daily grind in general. How I lost that ambition, I don't know, but at least I know now that it's not there and I can focus on getting it back: thankfully, the evening was only beginning.
This morning was the last morning for us to stay up at ungodly hours of the night - we sign off at midnight, and truth be told I have extremely mixed feelings about it. Last night/this morning was a great shift all around. My van ride conversations were awesome. None of them were outstanding or spectacular, but I was able to proclaim the Gospel both in conversations and when it came time to pray. When it came time to hit the prayer room, reports were pouring in of great conversations all night long. The usual Wednesday harvest wasn't there (usually Wednesday and Thursday are the days were the salvations usually pour in), but then again, this has been an extremely unusual Beach Reach to begin with, so at least the unusualness is consistent.
We are about to go eat lunch, give our rides for an hour or so, and then head to the beach to baptize disciples in the (freezing cold) ocean. Baptism time is definitely a major highlight of the trip - baptizing Beach Reachers who have never been baptized, and baptizing Spring Breakers who have become our brothers and sisters in Christ. We will also have worship on the beach in the evening, and immediately after that's over, we begin our final shift - and if tradition holds true, it will be the climatic final struggle that will leave lasting memories for years to come.
Update #4: Day 4, 21:00ish
"As the battle rages on and on
I face the things that put my faith to the test
When fallen angels won't leave me alone
Father, come and lay the demon to rest
When my sword has broken off in my hand
I see the dark futility of the flesh
When I'm about to fall, please help me stand
Father, come and lay the demon to rest"
- Theocracy, Laying the Demon to Rest
The newbies of this year have it lucky - this has been, so far, Little League Beach Reach. The weather has severely dampened the island population, meaning that the rides have been fewer and the situations less intense.
But for us tonight, this is where the fun really begins.
In less than an hour we begin our shift of the Midnight Breakfast at Louies. For those of you who know what I'm talking about, you already know how/what to pray. For those who don't…this is hands down the most chaotic night of the week. It's a massive operation. We will be talking with people as they come out of the club (usually extremely intoxicated) and taking them from there to where they are staying. It's pure war - but in a good way.
I feel great. I am on fire and ready to get the night underway, but I am totally nervous. Please pray that the Spirit would work through me to be able to to share Jesus and have good conversations in the midst of the madness and insanity. I don't do well around groups, drunk people, and especially groups of drunk people, so pray that God would override my weaknesses and that tonight would rock.
Update #3: Day 3 and 4, 3:30ish
Just got done with my first night and my first van ride shift. Gosh it was rough. I found myself in one of the most difficult positions I've ever been in on a van - and on one of the first rides!
We picked up a group from Louie's, and I am the only guy on my van (sans the driver). Three of the four guys that get on are drunk, but composed and polite. The fourth guy had to be a Top 5 Most Drunk Guys for me - the only rational sentence I got out of him was "Take your good news and shove it up your ass!" Soon the guy started to hope the rows and sit with the girls. He made it to the Door Mama row, and our driver (a powerful man of God) sat him back down and shut him up, but he tried getting physical with our girls. Soon I had no choice but to grip my knife and be prepared to spring it should he try to do something. He soon got off, and that was the end of it, but my gosh that seriously rattled me. God definitely wanted to throw me into the cold swimming pool for the van rides.
The rest of the night went alright. Tomorrow we have pancake breakfasts and hotline rides. The weather is supposed to change tomorrow afternoon so hopefully the activity will pick up.
Update #2: Day 2, 22:00ish
It has now become a tradition: fresh, grilled, shrimp fajitas from Pirates Landing. Three years, three plates, three food-coma naps. Lunch was a great time for the AC students to congregate and each lunch as a school, as we usually don't see each other much as the week goes on. A lot can happen in a year: the table we sat at was the same table we sat at last year, only with a different director and a new set of faces. A radically different AC in such a short time.
One nap later, we went back to Port Isabel for the first dinner with the ENTIRE Beach Reach Army. Not just AC, not just WTAMU - *all* the schools. There's quite a group this year! I reconnected with several acquaintances from across the state and from other schools, as well as with Jenny, the previous director of the AC BSM. Right off the bat we begin to give each other a hard time - just like old times. I dearly miss seeing her, but I was overjoyed to finally meet some of her new students and know that we share the common bond of Jenny Cummings, a
The night of community prayer is always a great time to shove the introvert side of you into the closet and let your pet extrovert out for a few hours. Tasked with meeting and praying with new people for roughly two hours is a safe warm up (of sorts) for the ministry of the next week. Humbling yourself together with brothers and sisters and bringing your requests before the Lord is one of the most beautiful things about the body of Christ. Part of our Gospel witness is our unity during the week -we are all here for the same thing, and the island knows that. We are not divided in our task - when we our, the message suffers.
This is the only night of normal sleep we will get on the island. We have church in the morning and then we begin canvasing the island with hotline information. By this time tomorrow night, I will either be in the prayer room or on the van sharing Christ. Either option sounds fine with me. /end update 2
Update #1: Day 2, 9:45ish
There is no update for Day 1, largely because the first day of the trip is a trip of nothing but travel. We left Canyon around 7:00 and arrived at our overnight condo at around 10:30, finishing with an average travel time of 15.5 hours. I still felt like crap, so I tried (mostly in vain) to get some sleep, but my sleep was less than restful. I tried to read Greg Koukl's Tactics - as is my custom for the ride down - but was not able to. There was plenty of classic rock and comedy to be found on my van, as well as a disproportionate amount of testosterone and nerdiness.
After a good night's sleep (something I have not had in days), we woke up to an overcast day with the Gulf of Mexico roaring at our back door. I woke up with enough time to get some Word study in, but then again, there is something to be said for taking some time to enjoy God's creation. The warm breeze, the sound of birds chirping, the chorus of crashing waves set against a cloudy backdrop - there will be plenty of opportunities to study the Word. At the moment, the holy thing to do was to observe and enjoy a sight that I only get to see once a year.
We are now in the process of showering and preparing for a glorious feast at a restaurant of Beach Reach fame: Pirate's Landing. All you seafood lovers, be jealous. /end update 1
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