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mission trip to the jersey shore, day 2


greetings from the hot and muggy state of new jersey once again!  day two took us back to our worksite, after a much better night's sleep.  our site has a great deal of yard work needed, so we were able to clean up the yard, which included Steve trying to break a pickup-truck cab cover with a sledge hammer (i presume it washed into the yard during the storm).  we were able to get a hold of a lawn mower, which Mary used to cut the grass, some of which was at least two feet long.


while that was happening, others were inside working on the ceramic tile flooring, as well as continued work on the drywall.  a couple of us had to make a lengthy trip to the store to purchase some needed materials, including 5 doors and a window for the home.  when lunch arrived, we took a much needed break!




we continued to work throughout the afternoon, albeit with several obstacles and difficulties, which we handled to the best of our ability.  these kinds of trips - doing this kind of work - is almost always an exercise in dealing with one obstacle after another, and just trying to demonstrate the love of Jesus through it all.  we are learning first hand that our first objective isn't to lay tile and grout and sand and paint, but to show love and share the Gospel of Jesus by our actions.  all the rest is just details.  we are working on it!


we had a wonderful evening back at our host site in toms river.  some friends of mine from clinton united methodist in clinton, new jersey drove down the 85 miles to bring us a delicious spaghetti and meat balls supper, and sat and talked with us for a really enjoyable evening.  we are so grateful for their kindness and love, and really enjoyed the time spent with them.

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