Did you Know that Alaskans eat more ice cream per capita than any other state in the United States?

I was kind of surprised to hear that...who would want to eat ice cream when it's 20 below! Well, that's a fact and I'm also contributing a lot to their ice cream consumption, just this summer.

On Monday, Mrs. Nancy and I drove to LaVerne Griffin Camp in Wasilla to help register all of the youth coming in for Native Youth Camp. We spent 8 hours there, collecting money and handing out t-shirts and bags. It is amazing to me that these kids are traveling so far to come to camp. The focus for the camp is on purity and their verse is Romans 12:1-2. We registered 55 students and 22 counselors. The majority of those attending had to make 2 different flights, just to get to Anchorage!! They played the game, "Have you ever..." with the kids as they arrived and it was very interesting to see what all they had done. One was, "Have you ever shot a moose?" and more than half of the students had!! Another was, "Have you ever been shot at?" and again, a good portion of the kids had been! Village life is SO different from anything most Americans are accustomed to. This was some of the kids first time to drive on a paved road and fly in a plane! It is wonderful to see Native people stepping up to lead other Natives in their walk with the Lord. This is SO important because they can relate well and they know the best ways to reach them. That night was the first night of their camp and many students came forward to accept Christ as their personal Lord and Savior!! It was amazing to see the Native people broken before the Lord. Please pray that the rest of their week goes well and that the youth are able to take what they've learned back to their villages.

On Tuesday I stayed at the Baldwins and worked on articles and such. That night I helped outside with the deck and used an electric sander for the first time...pretty neat!!!

Yesterday I worked in the office for most of the day and then we went to one of the parks in the downtown Mountain View area where Grandview Baptist Church is doing ministry. They have a ministry called GraceWorks that I interviewed them about. It was refreshing to see so much church involvement in the inner city area. Last night we had my mom's salmon for dinner and I made two batches of strawberry cookies :)

The ladies at the office seemed to really enjoy them today. I have a lot of writing to do still and not much time left here, so I've got to get busy. Tonight we are going to a Native funeral and tomorrow the office is closed, so I'll probably be working/relaxing around the house.

I'll be home in 9 days!

Fairbanks. North Pole. Delta Junction.

I'm going back to July 19th to update you on my adventures in the Fairbanks area. On Saturday Mr. Dave picked me up from Ms. Sylvia's, where I stayed the night on Friday. When he went to start the van that morning, for some reason it wouldn't start, so I steered it back, while they pushed...and we left it parked in the alley behind her house. Then we drove Ms. Sylvia's truck to the Baldwins and I followed Mr. Dave back, driving their stick shift Subaru. I was very thankful that God gave us all green lights and that I didn't have to worry about stopping at all! Ms. Sylvia lives in downtown Anchorage, so there are quite a few lights to go thru. So, we ended up driving the Subaru to Fairbanks and Mr. Dave didn't get to pick up their 4-wheeler(since we couldn't pull the trailer on the car) from Fairbanks, like he planned, but we had a very good trip on Saturday. We stopped at Wal-Mike's and saw a reindeer they had tied up and then we also stopped in at the hotel on the hill outside Healy. Later, we stopped in Nenana. It was a neat little place where we saw a fishwheel and where the Nenana Ice Classic is held. After a long trip, we finally arrived in Fairbanks around 4:30 p.m. and went to their Fred Meyer to meet Ms. Nancy and their family. We took their little 3 yr. old grandson, David Howard, to the pipeline and that was pretty interesting! That night we went to Wendy's and the movies with their two older grandson's and their parents. The Dark Knight was an awful movie though...the Joker was really creepy and the movie was too dark for me.

Then on Sunday we went to University church and then just relaxed at their son's house all afternoon on Sunday. They were watching motorcycle races and I dozed off on their couch a few times...haha!

On Monday morning we left early and drove to North Pole for the very last World Changers event of the summer. It's neat that I was able to attend every single World Changers in Alaska! We made it for their breakfast and sendoff at 7 a.m. that morning and I was also able to interview Pastor McCoy. He was in a serious hunting incident in which he was mauled by a bear. He has used his experience as a platform to share the Gospel. I couldn't even tell by his appearance that he had been attacked, which was amazing to me! After we finished up at First Baptist North Pole, we headed to Santa Claus house where I got to see the reindeer :) I was in the Christmas spirit all day long after visiting there. They had all kinds of ornaments and everything Christmas-y there! Mr. Dave took me by the North Pole post office and to the McDonald's in North Pole while we were there. Everything in the whole town is decorated for Christmas and their is a 'North Pole' that is striped and has been dropped at the geographical North Pole! I really loved seeing the town of North Pole, but we had to head back to Fairbanks for lunch. We went to Food Factory with James and Zach for lunch and then played around at their house that afternoon. I played with little David and then helped mow their lawn. That night I interviewed Mr. Howard and Mrs. Judy Zach, who are their in-laws. They lead the Chinese Church that the Baldwins worked with while they were missionaries in Fairbanks at University Church. It was wonderful hearing about how God is working through their ministry. They told me one particular story about how their were only 5 students at their meeting one Sunday, so they began praying that God would send more Chinese students their way. Before they were done with that meeting, two new Chinese students had arrived! God is using the Zach's as they serve in Fairbanks and has recently sent them about 25 new Chinese students. They teach ESL(English as a Second Language) along with many other courses and then have a service every Friday night for them.

On Tuesday I was really cold! They told me that Fairbanks would be warm, but it was even cooler than Anchorage. That morning it was 47 and I had to have some hot chocolate to warm me up! Their grand kids (wearing shorts) laughed at me when I told them I was cold, but they have never lived anywhere but Alaska. We made the trip to Delta Junction on Tuesday, which is about 3 hrs, one way. This normally wouldn't seem too long, but when you're traveling with a three year old, it does! When we arrived in Delta Junction we were getting hungry, so we stopped at the Buffalo Center Diner where I tried buffalo for the first time!! I had a burger and it was very tasty! Then we went to Camp Baldwin, which is named after Dave and Nancy Baldwin, who I've stayed with the entire summer. I enjoyed seeing the camp and meeting the summer missionaries who have served as staff their all summer. I also met Hugh Long, who's from Plant City, and is serving as an interim pastor in Tok, Alaska! What a small world! The camp was very simple, but a great place for students to get away and enjoy the outdoors. I interviewed two of the men who pastor local churches and help run Camp Baldwin. On the drive back I sat by David Howard, their 3 yr. old grandson. He fell asleep and his head was flopping down out of his car seat, so I held his head up with my hand for most of the drive. We watched 'Cheaper By the Dozen' on the drive back and then stopped at the 'Knotty Shop'. The trees here have huge knots on them and this place used the knotted wood to make all kinds of animals, such as mosquitoes and moose. I had some delicious ice cream here and then we drove the rest of the way back to Fairbanks. On our way back we stopped at Northern Power Sports, where their son, Davey Baldwin works. He sells four-wheelers, Arctic Cats and all kinds of toys for the men up here. He has had an awesome season at Tanacross, racing his motorcycle and may come out as the number one driver this season! That night I made cheesy potatoes for dinner and then we went back to the Zach's home, where we stayed the whole time while we were in Fairbanks.

On Wednesday Mr. Dave and I drove back to Anchorage and I washed my clothes and packed for Ms. Sylvia's. He took me to IHOP and dropped me off with Ms. Sylvia and her mom and then we went back to their place. Then on Thursday I drove to the office in the rain, in the stick shift Subaru. I was extremely proud of myself and very excited that I hadn't stalled out once! I've gotten used to driving manual and it isn't a problem at all for me anymore. I might even consider purchasing a manual vehicle one day...we'll see! Well, I worked in the office all day from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursday and that night we went to Village Inn for dinner. Mrs. Rylander, Sylvia's mom, is 91 years old and they go out for dinner every single night. She is a very nice lady and pretty sharp for her age. They have their downstairs apartment for missionaries to stay in and allowed me to stay there for 3 nights. On Friday the Alaska Baptist Convention office is closed, so Ms. Sylvia took me around town! That morning we went to Ms. Judy's (just retired from the ABC office) and dug up some of her raspberry bushes, to plant in their yard. I shoveled dirt and helped plant them. Then we had lunch and headed to the University of Alaska Anchorage bookstore. I enjoyed looking around and picked up a copy of their newspaper. After that we went to the Alaska Zoo, which is located right down the road from the office! I enjoyed seeing the grizzly bears, polar bears, reindeer, caribou, dall sheep and the other native Alaskan animals. After our day around town, we went to IHOP for dinner, where we saw Mr. Dave again. He just couldn't get away from me, even on his day off, haha, well I did get to get the package my parents had sent from him. That evening, Ms. Sylvia and I 'plundered' through some old Alaska Baptist historical documents. It was so neat to see documents and newsletters from the 1950's and 1960's, when Alaska had just become a state! Ms. Sylvia and her mother have the best stories about Alaska and Anchorage since they lived through the earthquake and were here even before Alaska was a state!

On Saturday I washed my sheets and towels and packed up my things. Ms. Nancy flew back in from Fairbanks, so I moved back into my room at the Baldwins that afternoon. I ended up just relaxing all afternoon. I ran across the 'Love's Enduring Promise' movie series on the Hallmark channel and watched them ALL day! I love those movies by Janette Oke SO much! I did help make a peach cobbler and we had veggies for dinner.

Today we drove to Palmer for church. We had a nice drive and ate at 'The Noisy Goose' for lunch. It's one of the many, neat little 'Alaskana' places Mr. Dave has treated me to this summer! We didn't get back from church until around 3 p.m., but had a good afternoon. We toured the Palmer Visitor Center and even saw a moose on the drive home. Tonight I mowed the lawn and it really needed it...the grass was almost a foot tall and I'm not exaggerating!! It took me a very long time to mow it with the push, electric cord mower, and the men in the neighborhood were all laughing at me because I went in circles and wrapped the cord all the way around their tree and ended up having to turn off the mower and unwrap it all! Haha...I love just giving some amusement and entertainment for the community. I also couldn't believe that Hannah, the young neighbor girl, was outside in her two-piece swim suit while it was 60 degrees! I was freezing and they also got a kick out of it when I told them that just looking at her in her swimsuit made me cold :) After I finished the lawn, I did some painting, so now my pant legs are green and I have blue paint streaks all over my white shirt! I think it's time for me to clean up, pack and get some sleep!

Tomorrow I'm going to Alaska Native Camp to help with registration and interview some leaders there. Please pray that this week of camp goes smoothly and that the Native youth who attend will be open to the Gospel. Many of the youth coming to LaVerne Griffin Camp this week have NEVER traveled on paved road or been in a big city. They are traveling a long way from villages across the state. Ms. Nancy tells me that it is pretty routy, so please pray that I'll respond to the youth in a Christlike manner. I am beginning to be a little overwhelmed with all of the writing I have to do before I head home, so also pray that I'll be able to finish everything I need to. I will be on the plane, headed for Tampa in 12 days, so I'm going to strive to make the most of the rest of my time here in Alaska :) I hope you are doing well and look forward to seeing you soon! Sending my love.....God bless!!

Salmon Frenzy on the Kenai

I've been so busy lately, but I'm finally settling back down in Anchorage. So, I'm a little behind on my blogging, but I'll try to catch you up. Going back a little....on Monday, July 14, I worked in the office and was planning on staying with the summer missionaries in Anchorage since Mrs. Nancy had flown to Fairbanks. Instead, I stayed with the Stewart’s that night. I was up really late watching the T3(Training Teens Today) video and just hanging out with their family, so I planned on sleeping a little later the next morning.
To my surprise, I was awakened by a phone call at 8:30 a.m. the next morning from Spring (a USC2-two yr. missionary) asking me to be at Brenda Crim’s house by 9 a.m. It was a good thing that I had all of my things packed because Mr. Dave came over and I was at the house just after 9, but of course, they weren’t ready to go yet. We ran errands most of the day and even got a little lost in Anchorage. We bought tons of food from Costco and then picked up the Salmon Frenzy t-shirts from UPS.
We ended up leaving for the Kenai around 4 p.m. and getting there around 7:30 p.m on Tuesday. There was SO much to do when we got there! The team from Mobberly Baptist in Texas, was with us that night, so that was helpful, but the next day it was just the three of us. Myself, Sara and Spring stayed in the parsonage of the church that night and did a lot of preparation while there. On Tuesday and Wednesday we set up a total of 140 sleeping bags, pillows and air mattresses. Thankfully, the air mattresses self-inflated, but it was still a huge task for 3 ladies. Especially when you consider that the beds were set up in 4 different locations, some of which that were 30 minutes away. We worked on this project and distributing the food to all of the different locations the entirety of these two days. On Wednesday night, all of the teams arrived, some didn’t get there until 2 or 3 a.m. though. I stayed up till about that time to try and help one of the GO-Now missionary gals get here contact solution. Wednesday and Thursday night I stayed at First Baptist Kenai (the same place I stayed with the T3 girls) and had a great time! On Wednesday morning we woke up early and cooked breakfast for everyone at FBC Kenai. I cooked the sausage and did the dishes. While I was there, I spent a good deal of my time playing with Ty, Brenda Crim’s nephew. We played Foosball and tic-tac toe. He was a fun little kid, who told me all about his quail hunting and other stuff. That night everyone from all of the teams (140 people) went out to the beach to prayer-walk for Salmon Frenzy. It was very cold and rainy, but we had a good time and sought refuge under our big circus tent.
After hours and hours of preparation, Salmon Frenzy finally really began on Friday, the day I had to leave. I got to be involved with a lot of it on Friday too. They made 500 hot dogs to give out, along with hot chocolate and water. The main goal of Salmon Frenzy was to minister to those fishing (dip-netting) for salmon on the Kenai. There were throngs of people lined up side by side, with their waders and all their fishing gear on, standing along the shore, waiting for a nice run of fish. It is a cold, long, tiring process, but people want to get their alotted 35 fish, if they can. Each salmon weighs about 15-40 lbs, so this is a lot of fish and major work. They have to haul the fish up shore, clean them, and then go back to fish some more. Around 11 a.m. on Friday, Mr. Dave came in to pick me up and we headed back to Anchorage. We stopped at Sal’s Klondike Diner one last time for lunch. Also on our way back we stopped at a huge chainsaw carving event. There were tons of men and women carving huge wood figures with their chainsaws! It was very neat to see and the intricate detail was amazing! The picture to the left is one of these wood carvings. When we got back to Anchorage I washed all my clothes, helped shovel the last bit of gravel off of the trailer, and packed for Fairbanks. I stayed with Ms. Sylvia on Friday, July 18, and she took me out to a trail behind the airport to walk and shoot pictures, before we headed back to her place. She has such a nice home and is the primary care giver for her mother, who’s in her 90’s. I stayed in her apartment downstairs, which is very nice. It has a full kitchen, washer/dryer, TV and computer…all of the amenities!

Seward and Soldotna Trip

After being in the office for a long, 9 hour day on Wednesday, I was ready for our trip on Thursday!

I woke up at 5:30 a.m. on Thursday to get a shower and finish packing. We met Ms. Debra(secretary in ABC office) and her son Adam at Fred Meyer(the Wal-Mart of Alaska) at 7 a.m. Mrs. Nancy and I rode in Mrs. Debra's Tahoe and Adam rode with Mr. Dave. There was a grizzly bear that had swam over and was running across the mud flats along the way...I was sad that I missed seeing it. We stopped twice on the way to Seward, first for coffee and donuts and then at Moose Pass. After about 3 hours, we made it to the Seward Sea Life Center. I had been here before with my family in 2000 and vividly remembered most of it. I had the best time watching the puffins and sea lions! The puffins swim/fly under water and are so much fun to watch! After we finished at the Sea Life center, we went to Ray's Waterfront restaurant. It was fine dining with a lovely waterfront view. I had halibut to eat and it was lightly battered and delicious! We stopped at Exit Glacier on our drive to Soldotna, which I had also visited on my first trip to Alaska. The glacier has receded quite a bit since the last time I visited, so we had a much longer hike this time. It was about a mile and a half, so not bad. It was a gorgeous day, so we enjoyed it. Then we said our goodbyes to Ms. Debra and Adam and were on our way to T3 in Soldotna. When we arrived they had a nice steak dinner for us and I stayed for the worship service. I stayed with about 25 or 30 girls at First Baptist Kenai that night. We didn't get to the church until midnight and it didn't get the least bit quiet until 2 am! The girls were up all night, as they would be at any youth function. It was great to see the students using their individual talents to lead. Some churches only sent a few students, but these students may ultimately have a major impact on their youth groups!

On Friday we headed for the church at 8 a.m. and had a delicious strawberry pancake breakfast. I recited my Romans Road along with the rest of students, in order to get breakfast. I just sat in groups, interviewed students and adults and hung out with the college students from East Texas Baptist University. After Mr. Dave gave a little speech, we headed to lunch with Levi and Sherry, who pastor FBC Soldotna. I had a delicious fajita, which I also had for dinner(leftovers). They were a very nice couple and I interviewed them about various things and the ministries their church offered. After lunch we stopped by the Kenai River and visitor center, where I got my picture, nose to nose, with a bear! We headed back for the evening worship services, that the students put on and then drove back to Anchorage. On the way home we saw a bear. It was dead on the side of the road and some men were loading it in the back of their truck. We finally got back to the Baldwins house at around 11 p.m.

I got to sleep in late on Saturday...it was absolutely wonderful! When I woke up we went to Fred Meyer and Costco for groceries. I made wraps for lunch and then washed their van and car. It was a nice day again and I was comfortable in shorts and barefoot! When I finished with the vehicles, I mowed the lawn and helped paint. The deck is about halfway complete...we only have the steps and side rail to go.

On Sunday, Mr. Dave preached at FBC Anchorage, for the morning and evening services. This was my first time to hear him speak and he did a wonderful job. Their neighbors came to church with us and then came over for lunch. She has a daughter my age, so her and her friend were there. We had a great time and grilled burgers.

Today I'm working in the Convention office. Just catching up on articles and I'll head to the Kenai on Wednesday for Salmon Frenzy, where Alaska residents can dip-net salmon. We aren't allowed to be involved with the fishing, so we'll be giving out free food and helping with the event. I'll also interview those involved and take pictures. There are supposed to be over 150 people there on different mission teams to help, so I'm looking forward to it.

North for the Fourth

7/3
After indulging myself in a delicious lunch at Golden Corral for Ms. Judy Rice’s retirement, I finished my packing and preparation for my trip to Kotzebue. We bought 10 lbs. of frozen hamburger meat and that was placed in my carry on luggage. I also had toiletry supplies(toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, etc.) packed in my bags to give out at the church’s fourth of July event. We left for the airport at 3:45 p.m. on July 3 and I boarded the plane for Kotzebue at 5:20 p.m. While going through security they stopped me and dug through my bag, since they thought all the meat looked suspicious. Later, I also noticed where they had even left a note saying that they had also searched my checked luggage. I had a good flight and landed in Kotzebue around 7:20 p.m. We disembarked from the back of the plane and walked across the tarmac to the tiny little airport. I was thrilled about being 22 miles north of the Arctic Circle and about 220 miles from Russia! As I entered the small airport, I was greeting by John Forrester (pastor at First Baptist Kotzebue) and Paul Moore (pastor of GA team). We waited on my luggage in the tiny little room with the rest of the people who were on my flight. So many people had shipped boxes and coolers of alcohol, since none is sold in Kotzebue and it was a big weekend. It was sad to see that people would go so far just to have alcohol. Pastor John told me that some people would sell it for double and even triple the price they had paid for it. I got my luggage with no problem and then hopped into the van with about 6 other ladies and the pastors. We headed straight out for the Tundra, driving right across the runway I had just flown in on! It was gorgeous on the Tundra, but the mosquitoes ate us up while we were out there. We also saw many wind mills used for power and tons of bush planes. As I walked across the Tundra, I could tell that the ground wasn’t very firm, but rather ‘squishy’. This was because of the permafrost that was still deep below us. After our adventures on the Tundra concluded, we headed back to the church. There was a mission team of about 20 from GA that were also there for the fourth, who were also staying in the basement of the church. I met my distant cousin, Stephanie Deal, and walked with a group along the Arctic Ocean, handing out fliers for the kids events that would be held at the church. As we walked along the Arctic, we saw a group of people butchering a seal on the shore. The woman was using a Ulu knife to cut it, while the children rinsed the meat in the ocean. After that, they hung the seal on a rack to dry it out. I stayed in a small, Sunday school room, on an air mattress for the three nights I was in Kotzebue.

7/4
Four days, four flights, four people sleeping in the room with me, and lots of time on four-wheelers! These are just a few of the fours describing my trip to Kotzebue. We had such a great fourth of July, but it was also a lot of work. I was going non-stop from 7:30 a.m. until 10 p.m. Every thing began with a delicious pancake and sausage breakfast and then we watched the parade. Miss Arctic Circle and the town’s police and firemen were all a part and they threw out a ton of candy. Then the preparation for the 4th began! I rode in the back of the truck, holding on to two bags of balloons, which we put in the storage unit. The church rented two storage units. One was used for the balloons and the ‘Bible in a bucket’ ministry, while the other was used for the free sno-cones. This was a huge community 4th of July celebration, similar to a fair (except no rides or games). During the celebration, I took pictures and talked with many of the Native people in line to get their 5 gallon buckets. This event was very beneficial to the community because no one else at the entire festival was offering anything for free, only the church. The Native people I spoke with told me how they would use their bucket to store seal oil or wild berries. After I finished with my interviewing, I began making sno-cones. I scooped hundreds of sno-cones and the church ended up giving out about 1,000 free sno-cones! I then headed over and helped with the face painting. I had a delicious deep-fried Snickers bar and a PB and J sandwich for lunch. The prices of things at the festival were simply outrageous! They were selling McDonald’s cheeseburgers for $6, a meal was $15! All of which had to be shipped in because there are no fast food restaurants in Kotzebue. That afternoon I spent time with the youth pastor’s children. We fished and collected rocks. They were the sweetest little kids and the little girl had me sit by her at dinner. She had blonde curly hair and blue eyes and I asked her, “What is the most fun thing that you’ve done today?” She responded, “Meeting you was the best thing!” After a delicious dinner, we headed back out to the festival area and watched the snowmobiles race on the water!! It was a very dangerous feat because if they went down, the snowmobile was destroyed. That night we walked to the elementary school for the Eskimo dancing and Eskimo games. The dances told their Native stories, such as fishing and hunting. Their games consisted of the high kick and other unique events. We sat in the gymnasium of the school in utter fascination of the games for about 4 ½ hours! The Eskimo children made me smile and really touched my heart, they were so adorable.

7/5
There was only one shower for the team to use, so I woke up at 6 a.m. so that I’d be sure to get one. I ate breakfast and we left for the airport around 7:30 a.m. I was very excited, but a little nervous, as we were about to fly in a bush plane to the village of Shungnak. I took my Dramamine, but ended up not needing it. They asked me how much I weighed and then we headed back to board the plane. Mrs. Bonnie(from GA), Pastor John and I were headed to the village! The pilot on the way to Shungnak let me sit in the co-pilot seat and wear the headset. He told me all about his adventures in Alaska and flew us in areas where the National Forestry Association did not permit us to go. It was wonderful, he flew us down about 1,000 ft. above the sand dunes!! We stopped in the village of Ambler on our way both times and then landed in Shungnak. Each landing strip was gravel and at the end there was a big shed. Our transportation was waiting…Aaron and Hannah on the 4-wheeler pulling the buggy behind them. They drove us to the church and we met up with the rest of their team, who were also from GA and there to help with a VBS. Spring, who I had met at the convention office, was there too. She grew up in Kotzebue and is very respected by the Native people. We made towers of Babel out of marshmallows to help the team prepare for their VBS and then we visited the village store. They had quite a variety, but the prices were outrageous, over $8 for a bag of chips! We played with the Native kids all afternoon and they were so much fun…I carried one little girl all the way back from the store. One of the little girls was deaf. It is hard for me to imagine how difficult it would be living in a village and being deaf too. After lunch, Spring, M.A. and myself then went around on the 4-wheeler, visiting some of the elders in the village. One couple we visited fed us sheefish, which he had caught that morning and wild berries they had picked. The berries were small and tart and very different from blueberries, but I enjoyed trying them. The man told us the funniest story. He said “I kept receiving calls from this man who wanted me to buy bulbs, so I finally told him, I am Eskimo man…I don’t need light bulbs…they will burn my house down!” He was joking that he lived in an igloo, so that the man would quit calling, and he did! Aaron gave Mrs. Bonnie and I the tour of Shungnak. It was not a big place, only about 200 live there, but it was so gorgeous. He even took us across the river to the sand bar on the 4 wheeler. This was when I was riding on the front of the 4-wheeler, so that was really neat! We spent most of the day there on the 4-wheeler and used the radio a lot. That is the main form of communication for the village. They announce birthdays, fish for sale, and even when our flight was coming in. That afternoon we flew back to Kotzebue, but had a different pilot who flew very high up. The ride was kind of rough and one Native woman in the back got sick on the flight. We landed back in Kotzebue around 5:30 p.m. and I bought flat bread (with icing) from a woman who was selling it in the airport. She was also selling huge jars of pickled beluga whale for $50. Mrs. Terri, John’s wife, picked us up from the airport and took us back to the church. Emily, the youth pastor’s daughter, was waiting on me when I got back. I read her Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Clifford’s first Christmas and then we had dinner. After dinner, I braved up the courage to take the Polar Bear Plunge. There were5 or 6 others who also got in the Arctic Ocean with me. The stipulations for receiving a ‘Polar Bear Plunge’ certificate are that you have to get your head wet too! I did and it wasn’t too bad, a little bit cooler than spring water. I went inside, played Uno for awhile and then showered. That night I talked with Pastor John a lot about his ministry in Kotzebue. He really shared his heart and a lot about how God is working in the lives of the Native people there. It amazed me to hear about the winters there and how no one would come to take the position of pastor in Kotzebue for two and a half years. John said, “If I don’t tell the Eskimo people about Christ, who will?” and accepted the call. John and Terri are doing whatever it takes to reach the people of Kotzebue and the other surrounding villages. Things are extremely expensive there, but they know God will provide. I watched the sunset around midnight there on Saturday, which was so gorgeous!

On Sunday, Pastor Paul Moore, from Georgia spoke and the whole church was invited for lunch afterwards. I packed my things up and flew back to Anchorage Sunday afternoon. I sat by a woman from Nome on the way back and she had all kinds of neat stories about the Iditarod. It is hard for me to imagine what it’s like in the winter. They have enormous amounts of snow and some days of 24 hours of darkness.
On Monday I worked in the office from 8 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. and then on Tuesday we made the trip to Healy for the World Changers. We were gone all day yesterday, but I got lots of good information from the pastor of Morning Star Baptist Church and from Bubba. We stopped at the Alaska Veterans Memorial, outside of Denali. It was neat to see how the Eskimo men helped fight and they simply carried a little satchel, while our men carried huge backpacks! The Eskimo people still today live off of the land, many just don’t understand that the Lord created everything that they thrive off of.

Please pray for the people of Kotzebue, for John and Terri, and Matt and Tammy.
Please pray for the villages of Kiana, Ambler, Shungnak, Kobuk and Kivalina.
I will be traveling to Seward and Soldotna on Thursday and Friday, so please pray for continued safety in travel. I'm excited about visiting the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward tomorrow...check it out at http://www.alaskasealife.org/

Day 32 of Alaska

It's so hard to believe how fast my summer is flying by. I have experienced so many new things and have learned so much! I've been on an 8-hr. raft ride, a 5-hr. glacier cruise and I've covered so much of Alaska! I have eaten moose and seen so much wildlife! I've also learned to drive stick shift, which was a big accomplishment for me. At the end of the summer I know I will be astounded when I calculate how many miles I've traveled because Alaska is such a huge state! I've already traveled to Tok, Valdez, and Nikiski. It is also such a different place here. Every day I'm amazed at how late people stay out. The kids in the neighborhood are always outside playing...even at 10 and 11 p.m. This is mainly because it is still light outside, so they are enjoying their time in the sun. Their are two seasons in Alaska...winter and construction. It's very true too. Everyone is busy building during the summer, the Baldwins included. The deck outside is coming along well...not too much to go. I've painted quite a bit this week because Mrs. Nancy has all of it painted before it's put up on the house.

The churches are also unique and not at all like those in the 'Bible Belt'. The majority of the churches run about 100 people or less. The largest Baptist church in the state runs 300. That pales in comparison to the size of Bell Shoals, but I've realized that small churches are also influential. I've been amazed to see how God works in the small churches and their communities. Lighthouse Community Church really reaches out to their community in the neatest ways. Bubba, their cook, prepared breakfast for the local public school kids every day for the past 9 years. He cooks for a lot of community events as well as for three of the World Changer events.

We attended Grandview Baptist Church on Sunday and saw the same couple from Auburndale, FL, for the 3rd time. First they were at First Baptist Tok, First Baptist Valdez and then Grandview. It was kind of neat...who knows, we may see them again! Then on Sunday night we attended First Native Baptist Church. Mrs. Nancy and I were the only ones other than the pastor in the worship center and it was already 6 p.m.(the time it started). The pastor asked me if I could sing or play the piano. I told him I could play the piano a little, and he replied, "Well, you may be leading worship tonight." Their weren't many in attendance, probably 10 or so, and it was simply an informal share/worship time. So, I shared my testimony and a few verses, along with some others who shared. Then we sang hymns for the rest of the time. Individuals simply called out the number of their favorite hymns and the lady leading would turn there and we would sing! It is interesting to see how the Native people worship and live. I'm learning so much about their culture and will experience even more of it this weekend.
I leave for Kotzebue, a Native village of about 3,000, on Thursday night. I'm flying solo this trip, but am really looking forward to it. The next two days I'll be packing and preparing, as I'll have to bring everything I need for three nights with me on the plane (sleeping bag, pillow, food, etc.) I will be on a Alaska Airlines Boeing 737, so no worries about me being on a tiny little plane. I will be helping with their 4th of July 'Bible in a Bucket' giveaway along with interviewing the pastors there.

We had a lot of their family over for a cookout last night, which was fun! I've been playing with their 3 yr. old grandson, David, most of the day. David and his mom(their daughter-in-law) are here for the next few nights, so I'm camping out in their library in the basement for awhile. It's quite exciting, actually. I'm surrounded by thousands of books(covering all four walls around me!)...and mainly all Christian literature. One entire bookshelf of just different versions of Bibles! And I also see both of the "Then Sings My Soul" books that I got Granny and Mom for Mother's Day this year. I wish I could read all of the books in their library, but that would take years. Right now I'm reading Leota's Garden, by Francine Rivers, and it is really a page turner. I got it on Sunday and I'm already 300 pgs. into it...it's a great read!

Isaiah 40 is a great chapter that has been particulary encouraging to me lately.

Verses 3-5
"A voice of one calling: 'In the desert prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it."

Verses 29-31
"Even youths grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

The illustration of the mountains being made low is hard for me to fathom, but still amazes me. And the eagles here are so gorgeous as they fly and it is great to know that God will renew our strength and allow us to soar!