So it's been 2 and a half weeks since we all moved in to The Philly Project. My last update ended with the beginning of the real hard work...
For the past two weeks we've moved all of the Project's belongings out of Mt. Airy Presbyterian Church about 20 minutes away from our new facility next door to Roxborough Pres. We loaded up 5 (overflowing) box truck loads and six 15-passenger vans with no seats in them all over the course of about 4 days. Among those loads there were 40 sets of oak bunk beds, upwards of 15 couches, 2 giant refrigerators, two 250+lb televisions, an insane amount of silverware, over 20 mattresses and box springs, and much, much more.
It was incredible to see God shine through everyone as we encouraged each other, sweat our butts off, and pushed ourselves to the limit. Since we completed the move we've been doing everything and anything to prepare the new building for the students which will arrive here this Friday the 14th.
One night this week (they all blend together) we went to the Milley's house for an awesome time of fellowship, good food, games, and conversations. It was a blessing to spend some time off site and be hosted and loved by such an awesome family. On Thursday night we went to Chuck's Kiloran's house for another awesome night of fellowship. All of these times are truly bringing the team closer together, even despite our competitive spirits when playing card games and the like.
During the preparation of the new building we've hung dry wall, spackeled, put together bunk beds, built walls, painted, and many other construction-y things. This work has doubled as our "worksite training". This week we'll meet the home owners that we'll be working at for the duration of the summer which I'm super pumped about.
Personal assignments. Hmm.. Let's chat about that for a second. Really, the first thing that comes to mind when I think of my personal assignment is the phrase "it's had its ups and downs".
The "ups":
I've made a hole through every wall that I needed to. One of my jobs has been to set up the sanctuary for the club time this summer. We had to run a cable back from both sides of the stage to the sound board on top of the balcony. We got one set completed early on, no problems. However, the other set of speakers we had to drill through 3 walls to get it back in order for it to stay out of the way. I, with the help of Scott at times, probably spent upwards of 4 or 5 hours trying to drill holes through the walls. The reason being that 2 of them had metal in them and it took quite some time to get through that as you can imagine.
Although this was incredibly difficult and time consuming, I classify it as an "up" because it is now completed. The sanctuary is borderline entirely set up and I'm super pumped about it. The sound system is LOUD and we have an incredible display of lights, too. It's been sweet to learn all about how to run cables, set up speakers, run a sound board and all that!
The "downs":
So the hardest and yet potentially the most fruitful part of my PA is to invite all the musicians to come into the project and play worship sets throughout the summer. This has proved to be extremely challenging, but also very cool in a way. Man, has God been teaching me patience. It's been really cool to connect with musicians that I've never met before. I'm really looking forward to meeting everyone and seeing how God really pulls the bands together this summer. One thing I know for sure is that whatever happens and whoever comes in, it wasn't me. This is just one of those things that I would be an absolute fool to take credit for putting together.
Prayer requests!
Group/staff unity as we continue to get to know each other
A focus on Christ in all things
The humility and willingness to serve as Jesus did
A desire to grow and to know God better
That I would trust God's ability to put bands together!
A thankful and grateful heart for all that God has blessed me with
Continued physical stamina and health
The students as they prepare for their trips to TPP
Boldness to step out in faith and spread the gospel
Sorry for the extensive list. Obviously there's more. If you'd like more specific, personal requests, you can contact me via Facebook or E-mail (hagerty.jp@gmail.com). Or if you have my number, just text me!
So once again if you're only interested in the update on the project, you can stop reading. The next part will be about what God has been revealing to me about His loving character.
So over the past few days I've been praying that God would just break my heart and tear down any walls that inhibit me from knowing him better. As a result, He has begun to show me more of His love. More of who He is. More of why I follow Him. Through multiple conversations that I've had with members of the staff, the interns, and interactions with one woman at the Paoli fair today, God has showed me what His love means.
There was a woman, Sheila, who was packing up her stuff getting ready to leave the fair. Anita mentioned to Jess and I that we should ask her if we could help at all, so we did. After breaking down Sheila's tent, we brought all of her boxes to her truck and loaded it up. We then prayed with her about some health and anxiety issues that she has been having. She must have said 'thank you' over 30 times in the 15 minutes that we met her. God truly used us to bless Sheila in this way. I am so thankful for the opportunity that we had to be able to do that, and especially for Anita and her active pursuit of that situation.
One of the coolest things that has been on my heart recently is the way in which the grace of Christ demands a response from us. Not in a lawful or obligation sort of way; but in a loving, reverent way. The notion that we are to serve out of the overflow of what Christ has done for us is, though cliché, very true. Admittedly, there were times this past week that I didn't feel like there was an overflow. That I was simply serving and "loving" out of obligation and habit. I also know that this will not be the only time that I will feel like this. Of course, God being who He is, poured into my life with displays of love, through His Word, and conversations. I know that He will continue to reveal Himself to me as I press in deeper to His Word and in worship.
It's been a crazy 2.5 weeks here. Pray that God will continue to teach me, mold me, and grow me into the follower of Christ that He desires me to be. He is good. Thank you for reading.
Pray for me.
