We started our day out with a "left-overs" breakfast which was just as good the second time around! We then took a trip up to Natural Bridge State Park to look around and do some sight seeing and hiking. The majority of our group decided to take advantage of the beautiful scenery by riding the Sky Lift up to the top of Natural Bridge, while a few others decided to hike up to the top on one of the trails. Both ways of experiencing the scenery was beautiful and we were all amazed to see such beauty that's so well hidden off the beaten path.
After a morning of sight seeing we all ventured back to Rose's Restaurant for a delicious lunch and ice cream! We had a wonderful time of fellowship and laughter as we shared stories from our week in Nada. After lunch, Faith and Jerry headed to Stanton to pick up some supplies for the cookout we had planned for this evening and made sure to load up the van with some Ale-8 as well! The rest of the group decided to walk back to the motel from Rose's and use the time to do some souvenir shopping at a few of the local shops near the park. We used the rest of the afternoon to relax and catch up on some needed rest and relaxation after a long week in the heat.
Around four o'clock we all headed out in the van to the Nada Mission House to start our preparations for the community cookout that we were hosting. Jerry and Ed fired up the grill while the other team members began patting out the burgers and getting everything ready in the kitchen.
During this time we were able to take turns going to visit one of the local residents. She had asked that we come and see her new home, which she had saved for years to build and it was finally completed this year! It was a beautiful home and she was so proud of the hard work and sacrifice she had made and to see it finally come together was such a blessing.
Back at the Mission House everything came together smoothly for the cookout. By the time we started serving we had a line of about twenty people that had all come for the event. We had a wonderful spread of hamburgers, cheeseburgers, and hot dogs with all the toppings you could want: chili, onions, slaw, relish, mayonnaise, mustard, ketchup and on an on! It was a great time of fellowship and conversation with some of the local residents and their children.
When it was over, the team went to work cleaning up the Mission House for the next group that will be coming next week. We packed up the van and headed to Ms. Francis' home to say good-bye.
Afterwards we headed back to the motel. We had a time of prayer and reflection when we arrived at the motel and it was such a wonderful time of sharing and talking about the different ways that God revealed himself to each of us this week. As is the case with many mission trips, we all agreed that we had come hoping to make an impact on the people of this community as well as help with some of the more physically demanding things that needed to be completed, but we all felt that we had been blessed in the process of helping others. The hugs and gratitude in the faces of the people we worked with this week blessed each of us as we think about the ways that God used us in their lives, as well as the ways that God has used them in each of our lives.
Tomorrow morning we'll pack up the van and head back to Raleigh, but each of us will take a piece of Nada back with us, and we hope that we will be able to share those pieces with each of you! Thank you for all your prayers and support throughout this week. Please keep us in your prayers tomorrow as we travel back to North Carolina! God Bless!
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