More pictures of our trip to Sisseton, SD

Wednesday - Last Day of Mission Trip

On Wednesday, we packed all the school supplies, hackey sacks, and VBS booklets donated by the Christ Community VBS kids into backpacks for each Dakota Church VBS kid. The kids here at Sisseton LOVED their backpack full of stuff -- they wore them around the church for an hour before they were picked up! :)

The theme for our last day of VBS was "Fishers of Men". The younger children really enjoyed being "caught" in a fishing net as part of the fun.









Of course, games were a huge hit with the older kids. We played quite a few AWANA games plus baseball. They were thrilled to do just about anything with our men.











It was time to clean up "camp", say our good-byes, and head back to Rochester. It is hard to summarize how much our coming to Sisseton might affect the Dakota Alliance Church and their community. You do see some real encouraging things going on within families and the church and then, on the other hand, you feel like you can never do enough to make a dent in the cultural "normalcy" that is pervasive without Jesus. It's not unlike our community of Rochester -- we probably just have more income. We're all lost without the Savior.

However, we do know for sure how much this missions trip affects us, the people of CCC, that go. We saw tears shed by CCC kids (& adults -- the blog editor being one :) because it was time to leave and we didn't want to go. The friendships we made with the children & adults at Sisseton are so precious. Serving together, even in 90 degree heat & high humidity, bonds us tightly and makes you want to come back.

If you want to know more about our experiences, we'd love to share -- just ask us!

Tuesday Activities

Tuesday morning was our 2nd day of VBS. It went much more smoothly today as we enlisted the dads to help with some of the older boys. They were full of mischievous energy at times and needed the extra "attention" from a father-figure. ;) It was interesting to see that by the end of VBS, they were basking in the extra attention & really enjoyed it.



In the afternoon, several projects were going on simultaneously --- great progress was happening with the picnic shelter, another "team" was finishing a painting project at a woman's house, others were cleaning up the landscaping & doing tree trimming, etc.









We invited the women of Dakota Alliance Church to join us for supper & a special women's gathering where we had fun playing a group game, sharing a devotional, and then making a craft from "rug hooking" supplies. It was a great day!

Monday - VBS & projects

Whew -- it was a scorcher outside today -- higher humidity & very warm temps. But it didn't dim our enthusiasm (too much) for our first day of VBS. We had about 20 kids show up which is probably 12-14 more than the number that usually come on Sunday morning. Sharing in worship time, listening to a Bible story, trying out some AWANA games, and making a tye-dye shirt for craft time took up most of the morning. We had alot of time to play with the kids and get to know their names, etc. It was especially fun to hear two little boys hop out of their mother's car & say, "Is this where we'll hear about that man, Jesus? I hope so -- I like him." Another 7 yr old quipped: "He died though." We told him, "Yes, He did. But he came back to life again." "Well, how did He do that?" This was all in the first 30 seconds of being here. The interesting thing is that their mom has never taken them to church, but somehow they have had the seeds of the Gospel planted. We're praying that the little contact we're having with these kids will continue to plant seeds that will sprout in their future.

We served a meal for all the VBS kids & any adults that came back to pick them up later. It hopefully gave us time to visit with the significant people in their lives.








<--- Tye-dye project --->

The afternoon was filled with continuing the "shelter" project on the church property. We made great progress on that. We also prepared for tomorrow's VBS and noon meal.
























This evening, our men were invited to a Men's Cook-Out at a gentlemen's home who attends the Sisseton Alliance Church. They're having a good time of fellowship & relaxing after working hard in the hot sun all afternoon.

Sunday Activities

Today, the Lord's Day, we enjoyed two worship services -- one at the Sisseton Alliance Church at 10:30 am and the second one at the Dakota Alliance Church at noon. The Sisseton Alliance Church is a small church of mostly white attendees and the Dakota Church is mostly Native Americans. Our group probably doubled the attendance numbers in both churches. We definitely couldn't just "disappear in the crowd". :) One of our little guys, Ben Reider, told his mommy, "I really liked Sunday School today -- both times!"


Our very own music team led worship at the Native American church. We also shared a potluck dinner together where we once again were treated to Indian fry bread among other very good dishes. It's great to have extra time to build relationships.








This evening, we held our first campfire on the Dakota church property. It was great to sing campfire songs together and enjoy some of Tim Dunkelburger's world-famous campfire donuts. These are requested yearly by the Dakota church people.

Evening Activities - Meal & Concert in Park

Feeding the entire team as well as friends from the Dakota Alliance Church is a daunting task. Jerry & Shelly Carr are preparing wonderful meals for all of us -- including a picnic in the city park this evening.




Our own band performed a concert in the park & led everyone in worship -- with a little help from our very own little be-bop girls downfront. We had friends from both C&MA churches in attendance as well as a group of Sisseton kids on the fringes listening. It feels great to be the feet & hands of Jesus & to make new friends here.

Of course, what we enjoy the most is just spending time with the people. We have lots of opportunities to enjoy new friendships.