Well 2,100 miles, a busted tire, way too many bathroom breaks, and 25 tired team members later and we are back from New Orleans. It was a terrific week, and one in which I was blessed to see the Body of Christ from 7 different churches, nearly as many schools, and ages that ranged from 15 to ummm much older, come together as one team to serve and love others.
One new experience that I can now add to my missions resume is fleeing a potential hurricane. Due to Tropical Storm Barry forming in the Gulf and the already flooded Mississippi River, Crossroads staff felt it was best that we depart a day early, missing Barry’s landfall by a good 30 hours or better. Fortunately, it seems that New Orleans missed the worst of Barry, and our friends from Crossroads who stayed behind to weather the storm were safe and dry!
I have tons of stories I could share from the trip, but instead I’ve asked several of our trip participants to share their own perspective in this month’s Spotlight. I hope you read these testimonies about what God did in and through our group while serving in New Orleans and are as blessed by what these students and adults had to say as I was.
It’s good to be back in Ohio and continuing preparations for a new year of ministry. Even as I write these words, I find myself getting excited about meeting the class of 2023 in just a little over a month! We’ve already been in contact with quite a few students who we met through our involvement with Bobcat Student Orientation, but this is all just the beginning.
As many of you may already know, ROC’s big outreach event at the beginning of the semester is our
annual Cookie Outreach! Here is where you, your friends, and you church can get involved and help us to reach out to students as they move in later next month. Simply bake cookies, place 2-3 in each bag, and deliver them to us / Athens Church of Christ (785 West Union St) and we will hand them out to students as they arrive on campus and use them to invite other people to participate in faith community. It’s a super simple, but powerful way, to demonstrate to other people that they matter to us and Christ!
As always we want to thank you for your support of the ministry of ROC. Your prayers, support, and encouragement, allow us to experience and demonstrate the kingdom of God on campus and all around the world.
With Great Gratitude,
-Dodger
Make sure you click the link below to check out some of the highlights from our week on the Mission Field in New Orleans!
