08 Aug Summer LINK Myrtle Beach: All Good Things Must Come to and End
All good things must come to an end?or do they? This has been running through my mind over the course of the past week as Summer LINK is coming to an end. Many of the previous blogs talked about what we did that week or what the Lord has taught them that week; but I have the bittersweet privilege to write on what our God has done for us this summer.
Before I dive into the summer as a whole, I will look back at this week so you can experience our last week in Myrtle Beach. Lets begin with Sunday, July 28th. Early Sunday morning, the team woke up blessed for another day we could fellowship at Cornerstone. After worship, we had to say goodbye to Andrew as he left to help lead worship for his home churches youth group on their trip to Panama City, Florida. Thankfully, I was refocused to hear the sermon that would be brought by Paul Moore. He spoke on Psalm 41 and really pointed out how we can relate to the psalmist?s emotions. Moreover, he pointed out what a beautiful picture of the gospel Psalm 41 paints for us. It reminded me how Jesus was disliked and betrayed by men, but more than that, the Father ?turned his heel? against Jesus on the cross, so that we may dwell in the presence of the Lord forever. Sunday night?s prayer and praise was much different without Andrew (he usually would lead us in a few songs to accompany our prayer). We spent the majority of our time praying, but after we had the privilege to catch a few songs by KJ-52, who is labeled as a Christian rapper, at Ground Zero on the strip. It was definitely entertaining, but also encouraging to hear him testify to what the Lord has done for us in front of a crowd in the heart of Myrtle Beach.
Monday began a lot of lasts for the team as a whole. All of us that were still in town began our last week at work (second to last for Michelle). After work and a terrible storm that knocked the power out, we departed for our last official home night at the Hills from church. After some delicious jambalaya, we discussed ways to take the most home from summer LINK. It was great to hear advice from the Hills who spent time in different mission fields and can look back and see things that we may not notice yet. I am very thankful for them and other families that have contributed to our growth by opening up their homes and loving on us?. and letting us play with their chinchilla.
Tuesday held yet another day of work along with reflection night. God showed me a lot during this time to help me finalize details for leading bible study the following day. I spent my reflection time with James, which became customary for a few weeks. One thing I love about spending reflection time in the same place is the encouragement I get from pushing each other to answer questions and open up to each other.
Wednesday was the last day of work for James, Mackenzie, and myself. Clocking out that day had to be one of the weirdest feelings all summer. My mind was crowded with thoughts as I realized the reality of only having one more week of Summer LINK. Wednesday night, we attended a prayer meeting at Cornerstone and held our bible study afterwards.
Thursday was different for me. Why? It was very restful and I did not do very much. As my first day off from work, I was able to enjoy sleeping late and hanging out around the Sea Mist. However, that got old faster than I intended. So, to my roommates content, I cleaned our room pretty spotless. As others came home from work and my boredom subsided, we got ready to go to Chik-fil-a for dinner followed by gender night. James also had to leave on Thursday for a wedding, so we said our goodbyes to him. After quickly eating our chicken, Tim, Logan, and I rushed to Cornerstone to join in their men?s bible study on The Reason For God by Tim Keller. It was neat to hear from different men in the church and to see how they verbalize their beliefs in God. After the bible study, we did the next manliest thing possible?. .frozen yogurt. We ended the night with listening to open mic at Fresh Brewed Coffee House.
Friday was a lot more active for me. Logan and I woke up and went to market commons to walk around and see a movie. Then, we came by the Sea Mist and picked up Mackenzie for a nice trip to the YMCA to see Michelle in her workplace and get our exercise on. Next, on the agenda was a quick trip to Tanger, which included Hwy 55 for dinner and a whole lot of coupons. The night finished off with the beautiful sounds of Dustin Raley and friends, also at Fresh Brewed Coffee House. If you haven?t noticed, Fresh Brewed is a pretty happening place for Summer Linkers. Upon arrival at Fresh Brewed, we were reunited with Ryan, which was one of the greatest parts of the day.
On Saturday, my day away from the Sea Mist began with Lunch with Logan, Tim, and Ryan at Jimmyz Hibachi. The rest of the day was filled with preparing for the Cornerstone outreach cookout. The cookout was planned as a way to fellowship with members of the church and invite people who we have met over the course of the summer in hopes of them getting plugged into Cornerstone. The turnout was great! We enjoyed everything from food, games, swimming, to simply hanging out with each other. Praise the Lord for working there and allowing us to serve Cornerstone and the community in that way.
We have come full circle with Sunday again and only have a few days left of Summer LINK. Our last Sunday at Cornerstone Church was sad, but happy too. Wes Fondren preached on Psalm 29 and did a fantastic job. His sermon made me meditate on the glory of God in the smallest of things. The desire grew stronger to just look at what God has done and shout, ?Glory!? That is what our God deserves. Sunday night we had our last social and spent that time bowling, eating pizza, and watching a movie.
On Monday, we spent a half-day alone with the Lord at separate locations. I went to an old boat landing on the Waccamaw River that was absolutely beautiful. The Lord brought me much peace there and I had time to reflect a lot about the summer and what I can do to stay on mission after Summer LINK. Monday night we joined the Pauly?s at their house for yet another delicious dinner.
We mostly cleaned and packed on Tuesday, which brought about a sad reality that we had to leave. Thankfully, we had something to look forward to all day?.. the end of summer banquet! We got all cleaned up and in our best dress and had a nearly overwhelming dinner at Rioz Brazilian Steak House. We all overindulged in the all you can eat meat. Afterwards, we ended our last night together with some ice cream and prayer. I am grateful that God provided closure during the prayer and instilled a desire to carry on the mission at home.
That is enough about the week though. I noted that this privilege of writing the last blog is bittersweet. It is bitter because of summer LINK coming to an end yes, but the sweet part is what makes the summer worth it. What is sweet is that despite the community we have shared this summer as a team, community is not dictated by location! We are the body of Christ and we are as close together as we will ever be in Him. Just because we are leaving does not mean our work is done. It does not mean that this team is done. It does not mean that our mission is over. What it does mean is that we get to carry our work over into our lives outside of the close quarters of the Sea Mist and Myrtle Beach. We get to work together as the body of Christ in the upstate. We get to be on mission in our daily lives and have the privilege to use what we have learned this summer in those places. My prayer is that each of us would remember Summer LINK, and use it to foster community wherever we are and to labor for our growth and the growth of others. One of the things I have learned is that I cannot dictate who God is. He isn?t subject to location or my beliefs. He is God and He is everything He says He is, regardless of who believes it or not.
I am more than thankful for what the Lord has done this summer in growing each of us individually and as a team. Glory!
Psalm 29
1 ?Ascribe to the Lord, O heavenly beings,
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
2 Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness.
3 The voice of the Lord is over the waters;
the God of glory thunders,
the Lord, over many waters.
4 The voice of the Lord is powerful;
the voice of the Lord is full of majesty.
5 The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars;
the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He makes Lebanon to skip like a calf,
and Sirion like a young wild ox.
7 The voice of the Lord flashes forth flames of fire.
8 The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness;
the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.
9 The voice of the Lord makes the deer give birth
and strips the forests bare,
and in his temple all cry, ?Glory!?
10 The Lord sits enthroned over the flood;
the Lord sits enthroned as king forever.
11 May the Lord give strength to his people!
May the Lord bless his people with peace!?
H.A.G.S!!!!
Daniel Johnson