Archers, Now I Need Your Bows

First off, Christopher and Wayne are working over hard to meet the soon coming deadline they are facing and that as we all know can be as much fun as getting your face caught in a hand-cranked workbench vice. So, please, pray for rest, for inspiration, for peace. If you don't have a lot of time to pray for the dangerous duo, just ask Jesus to hang out with them in a tangible way for the next seven days. :-D

He'll know what they need and when.


And second, archers, I need your prayers this week. His Way Christian Bookstore partners with Operation Christmas Child (A division of Samaritan's Purse) every year for one week. This year it's November 16th through November 23rd.

The larger locations, Ellicott City &Glenburnie, are actually Operation Christmas Child collection centers where they have tractor trailer trucks leave the cargo portions of the truck behind the store to be filled with shoe boxes.

Eldersburg, is a Operation Christmas Child relay center where we take the shoe boxes in and then have to transport them 30 minutes down to Ellicott City where the truck is waiting.

The praise all ready is that churches and individuals are calling and letting us know how many boxes they are bringing! This is inordinately helpful because we know to make certain there is space in the back room.

Monday November 16th Eldersburg will be getting 300+ boxes which have to be logged, counted, stored, then packed into my parent's van, and taken to Ellicott City.

Our biggest obstacle so far is that in Eldersburg, I only have the one volunteer, my mom, to run the boxes. Now staff will take some when we move from EB to EC but the bulk of the moving last year fell on my parents and it is a lot of work. So this year, we desperately need more volunteers. Ellicott City and Glenburnie desperately need volunteers too, to help crate the shoe boxes and pack the trucks.  It's the beginning of the week and everyone at the stores is feeling excited and swamped at the same time.

Last year we took in over 11,000 shoe boxes and this year the store's goal is 12,000+.

The employees are going to be exhausted from working on the trucks and taking in the boxes as well as doing their normal stuff and tempers get short when people are tired, backs and arms ache from being used, and spirits get deflated when the seemingly insurmountable wall of shoe boxes grows every hour. Everyone at the stores will be under stress to serve our customers AND Operation Christmas Child to our fullest capacity.  Here are some specific things that you can aim for as you put arrows on string for us:

1) His PRESENCE

We need Jesus be with each staff member every moment of every day during this week, at the store and at home and every place along the way. It is  hard to be Christ-like during normal days for us (yeah, His Way's full of a whole bunch of forgiven sinners, just like the church ;) )  and with the added stress I know our flesh-nature is going to be hissing and spitting and struggling to get out and be UGLY. So pray that Christ be in us, and for us, behind us and a head of us.

We know that the enemy of our souls isn't going to be happy about this, because of the great opportunities for the Gospel that are attached to these little boxes full of love and hope. Which leads to request #2.

2) His PROTECTION

There are so many ways that people can get hurt getting on and off the truck, carrying too many boxes, being out in the cold, and driving from location to location. Every year it seems we have minor injuries and once or twice there's been a major catastrophe for someone who is working on the truck. So pray for wisdom in how to do what we need to do, and protection from accidents both for the staff and for the amazing volunteers that have pledged to come and help us out.

3) His PROVISION

Every year, families either forget to put the $7.00 needed to pay for the shoebox shipping, or can't afford the shipping and leave it out. Every year so far, we've had other people come and leave checks for shipping or for Samaritan's Purse and every year it evens itself out. However, this year is harder than the years before have been on everyone and all ready there are signs that we may end up sending boxes unpaid for to the Sorting Centers. This isn't a world shattering thing, but it does mean that Samaritan's Purse winds up using money that could go somewhere else to send shoe boxes. So pray that the Lord impress on people's hearts to give what they can afford to give, and that our 12,000+ boxes go down all paid up and ready to ship!

Keep checking back here, I'll have photos during the week and hopefully tonight or tomorrow I'll have the Restorer Standings posted and a new assignment up!

Scribe~