Underground Class #1

Good bye for this summer. Stay tuned for news about Rock Island programs during the school year.

God be with them!

More pictures from School Store

Thanks again to Georgia Solloway for capturing the day in a way that's better than words!

Ready for School

Dear Lord, Turn these children's ear toward wisdom and their hearts toward understanding. Give them teachable spirits that call out for insight and searches for it as for hidden treasure. (Proverbs 2:2-4)

Smiles and Prayer

Dear Lord, You know our needs even before we ask you, and you promise to work in all things for the good of those who love you. Handpick each one of these children's teachers and surround them with classmates of your choosing. (Matthew 6:8 and Romans 8:28)

We are family

Many many thanks to Georgia Solloway for the pictures she took at the Student Store (all 149 of them)!

Twas the Night Before Student Store 2005

Members of the "Hopkins Connections Group" from Quail Springs have made it an annual event to assemble backpacks for the student store. They worked many hours on Sunday night and got their assembly line together quickly to assemble backpacks with crayons, folders, pencils, pens, slim markers, fat markers, scissors, pencil bags, index cards, tissue, etc. Each backpack, organized according to grade, has a tag attached to it from Cross & Crown promising to pray for the child and his or her school.

Please pray for the Student Store this week and for the children, parents and volunteers who will be blessed this week!

Take it with my blessing

Theft at construction sites is nothing new. Have you ever seen ladders hanging from large cranes at construction sites and wondered why they were hanging there? So they wouldn't get stolen overnight or over the weekend.

The crew building the Rock Island house has taken some measure to theft-proof the construction site as weeknight and weekend work continues. Lumber, ladders and tools were hoisted to the second floor. Lights were kept on all night. The front door was set as soon as the walls were enclosed so the door could be locked to make access to the second floor as difficult as possible.

Those measures didn't stop whoever was determined enough in the middle of the night to climb up there and steal the ladders, measuring tape, tools and even the lights from the site.

Paul prayed with the volunteers who came to help this weekend - prayed for the consciences of those who stole, prayed that God would reach their hearts, and prayed that if they really needed the equipment (for livlihood and not drug money) they would have it with a blessing.

Sometime Sunday, a couple of ladders, the measuring tape and other items were returned to the mission, left lying on the ground where the staff would surely see.

Paul admits that he had already gone to the store to replace some of John Davidson's equipment.

"I didn't wait on God long enough," he said.

Lesson learned for all of us.

Student Store Next Week

Crayons, pencils, notebooks, rulers, glue, pens and other school supplies are ready to be popped into brand new backpacks for children who come to the Cross & Crown Student Store next week, Aug 8 - 10. Thanks to the generosity of so many of you who have donated items and money for the project. There is still time to bless more children. The cost of each backpack, with supplies, is $27. THANK YOU.

Schools in Oklahoma City begin August 18, 2005. It's exciting to think of how proud and happy these kids will be sporting their new backpacks and supplies on the first day of school. Please pray for them as they begin a new school year! Pray for their safety and ability to learn. And also, pray for their teachers, teacher assistants, cafeteria workers, principal, secretary and all of the adults who work in the building that everyone is ready to go back to work (!), will be positive influences and encouragers to the students and will give all of the children a safe, positive and nurturing environment.