Final day

Hello Everyone!

Sorry it's taken so long to post about the final day. Our Charlotte crew made it back safely and we all had an absolute blast. What we would love to do is tell you a little bit about Mrs. Charlotte Blue.

Now you've seen Mrs. Blue on this blog before.

Mrs. Blue is a resident of Baltimore and actually lives in the neighborhood right next to Stillwater. She's a deacon at her church and she loves the Lord. As our students were walking around the neighborhood handing out fliers, they came across the house of Mrs. Blue. One of the leaders, Chelsea, explained what they were doing and about the VBS that Stillwater was holding that week!

From there the kids moved on, walking up the street and handing out more fliers. On their way back, Cheslea and the group of students stopped back by Mrs. Blue's house and asked if they could pray for her. What they didn't know is that Mrs. Blue was about to go to the doctor's office. On a prior visit, the doctors told her that they found a mass that they needed to test for cancer, as well as a possibility of gall stones. Chelsea and the students prayed fiercely for the doctor's wisdom and for peace for Mrs. Blue.

The next day something incredible happened. Mrs. Blue walked over to the church and told us that during her visit the previous day the doctors gave her some incredible news. The mass was gone! Her gall bladder checked out completely fine! They told her she was perfectly healthy!

This whole experience was an incredible privilege to be a part of; things like this are proof that God is indeed at work in the city of Baltimore!

Thanks again to all who prayed for our trip this past week - we felt it. The Lord blessed us as a group with friendships (old and new) and abilities to reach the kids in Baltimore. But we have one request - please don't stop here. Baltimore and other cities in the US need the Lord. We all do! Please continue to pray for the people at Stillwater EFCA. Their mission is a tough one ahead but we know that with God's help, anything is possible.

So for one last time we say goodbye and God Bless for all who were involved in our BUMP Baltimore 2011. We can't wait for 2012!

VBS Day 3!

Thursday was also the 3rd day of VBS. We had an ABSOLUTE BLAST! More and more kids came, and more and more of them brought friends. We were also able to facilitate a teens group and an adults group, this is huge. Being able to minister to all age groups is a great desire for, not only BUMP, but also Stillmeadow EFCA. Throughout the week, we've seen so many more kids smiling and having a good time. It will be a challenge saying goodbye, but we are confident in the Lord that this happiness will continue and spread through the surrounding neighborhoods.

Our students from Church at Charlotte, regardless of how tired they were, have had so much energy! It's contagious! We are so blessed to have these students here, it's such an answer to prayer that God has sent these kids students that will bless and love on them.

Tonight is the last night of VBS. We can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for us!

Pimlico

Thursday was a special day. Many hearts were opened and changed in our group of students from Church at Charlotte. We were given the incredible opportunity to go deep into the heart of Baltimore to do some cleaning and praying. Pimlico, at one point in time, was considered to be the most dangerous part of Baltimore. But thankfully, through the work of many prayers and the Grace of the Lord, it is being redeemed and restored from the inside out. Our new friends, Pastor Brooks and Brother Curtis, have such a fire to reach out to these people in Pimlico. They have changed many lives and it was an honor to be able to walk beside them in the Lord to reach these people. We will forever cherish that time and the memories. No photos were taken in Pimlico because we wanted to focus on the experience; we wanted to make sure nothing was distracting the leaders and kids from seeing the community as God sees it, in love and in mercy. We can't wait for our students to return and spread the stories we heard in the Pimlico neighborhood.

From there, we went to Druid Park. A beaufitul reservoir in a restoring area of Baltimore. This allowed us to walk around and see the entire city of Baltimore from a higher point, making it easier to see everything. From here, we prayed. Prayed for the Lord to redeem this city and to save the people in it. It was an honor to be able to walk deep in the city to know what exactly to pray for; to pray for the people and government of Baltimore.

We thank Brother Curtis and Pastor Brooks for the incredible opportunity that they gave us on Thursday. We know that it will be a memory forever cherished by our staff and students.