all the right places

so KRUP.

New Orleans was an amazing experience; the trip was above and beyond, but coming home was even better!

For Spring Break, InterVarsity (Multi-Ethnic, Asian American Christian Fellowship, Athlete's Chapter) from Boston University, Mass. College of Pharmacy, and Mass. Art took a trip down to Louisiana to do some service for areas in need. As you all know, Hurricane Katrina hit a few years back; although many citizens of New Orleans have moved back home, there are still many families who have not returned, and there is still a lot of work to be done in that city. Just from Boston University, our group was about 60 people, half of students who were non-Christians. After the trip, that percentage changed. We took at 27+ hour bus ride down and a 27+ hour bus ride back. During our travels, we were able to bond with our friends and spend quality time with each other :)

I worked with Habitat for Humanities along with many other students. We painted a school building on Monday and finished earlier than anyone would have expected. That was definitely rewarding. Then Tuesday through Friday we worked on a house - putting in all the interior walls, the exterior wall, the dry wall, the tyvek white paper, and the framing of the roof. so in the end:

Our daily schedule went something like this:
6:30 wake up/breakfast/pack lunch
7:20 leave for worksite
7:40 begin working
11:30 lunch break
12:30 resume working
3:00 return to church
3:30 free time
6:30 dinner time
8:00 community time
10:30 quiet time
11:00 bed time

When I said that coming home was even better, I meant that during the trip, I sort of lost sight of God and the work He was doing. I was distracted by everything going on - all the activities, all the new people to meet. I had expected a lot to come out of this trip because of the testimonies from previous trips. However, I was greatly discouraged one day, when my friend told me she thought community time was boring. Community time was one of the main "outreach" portions of the trip - we got to look specifically at a Bible passage and one of the staff/leaders would help us reflect on it. By the end of the trip, things were looking brighter, but I still did not see what God was doing. Finally returning to Boston, I was able to talk to some of my friends and reflect on the trip with them. I was shocked to find out how much God had listened to our prayers and how He actually had been working along us. About 4 non-Christians who went on the trip showed interest in Christianity and our fellowships on campus. Two of them are my somewhat close friends. The other two are people I met at KRUP and people who I will continue to try and keep in touch with.

I guess God had been doing His part. As always, He never lets us down. My friend and I have been meeting on a daily basis to talk about how we can bring out friends closer to God and to just spend quality time with God. It is really helpful to have an accountability partner at college because there is so much chaos, that sometimes we forget and fall back on our own. I am so thankful that I went to New Orleans. The trip definitely helped me grow closer to many people and it also opened my eyes to what is going on in our own country. My eyes were opened to the injustice. How can our government just abandon and disregard New Orleans when there is so much work still to be done? In many neighborhoods, every other house is in tact with inhabitants, while the rest are still untouched since the hurricane hit.



I think I will really consider returning next year to help out again. God has truly given me a heart to serve those in need and serve places in need. I know that He has a plan for New Orleans, and I know that one day, He will recreate it and restore the city with it's inhabitants and joy. Every neighborhood will be brand new and families will return to where their great-great-great grandparents grew up.