Photography – Friday – 4.1.16

Day 5 was a home day. We had two things we did on campus- we made brochures of our trip and we did one last photo contest.

Mr. Williams brought Paradise Donuts for us to eat while we worked on our travel brochures. We had to use our pictures from the trip to make a brochure for people to visit Pensacola. Then Mr. Williams and Mr. Rupp judged the brochures. Eden Allen came in first for the grand prize of the week, with Blake Punch second, and Brianna Daly and Kali Arcemont tied for third. EVERYONE did on an awesome job on these brochures!

The last part of our spring term we took pictures of the track and cars from the Mach 5 racing club. This was a lot more fun than expected. We had to take a still shot and an action shot. Probably, the best part of this was the action shots with the lights off, and long shutter speeds. This created the really cool effect of the long trailing lights. We had one last photo contest and there were lots of winners. We were all winners by being able to take a lot of pictures this week in a variety of locations, using different types of photography, and really learning how to use our cameras better.

Middle School Home Team – Friday – 4.1.16

Today we took our adventure down to Atlanta one final time. This time we had a very educational and eye opening experience at the Martin Luther Jr. museum. Once we parked there was a little bit of hesitancy expressed by a few students because we were in an area of Atlanta that was outside of their comfort zone. However, after walking through the museum and watching the video that really explained the purpose for why Dr. King did what he did, the students were able to gain a new perspective. Some of the takeaways as stated by the students were they didn’t know Dr. King faced the life threats and that his house was bombed trying to take out his family. One student stated that he noticed that when he got a phone call one night telling him to back down from going to Montgomery to speak that he would be risking his life. His response to that threat was to go to Jesus with the burden he felt to give him the strength to overcome his fear and lead all the others well. The Martin Luther King Jr. Museum really helped our students gain a new understanding of ways to handle conflict in a peaceful and godly manner that wouldn’t typically be noticed if we were in any other setting.

After the museum we stepped across the street to walk through the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church where Dr. King and his father both served as Pastor. We then walked by the tomb of Dr. King and his wife Coretta Scott King. Across from the tomb was the eternal flame that represented the lasting impact the King family had on the community.

We ended our journey of the Martin Luther King Jr. experience and we traveled just a few minutes up the road to the world famous Gladys Knight’s Chicken and Waffles restaurant. The popular item on the menu was of course the chicken and waffles, or as it was written in the menu “midnight train.” Myson was almost in tears because this was the part of the entire week he was looking forward to the most. This was a great experience for everyone. Highly recommended!

We finished the day with a round of putt putt at Mountasia. We weren’t able to ride the go-carts because they didn’t open the track till 3 o’clock. However the round of putt putt became very competitive. Buck, Rebecca, Danny, and Logan played in one group with Mrs. Poplin and Coach Poplin tagging along. The other group had Will, Myson, Zak, and Morgan. Buck came out on top but the others were very close.

This week was a blast! The 13 students that took part in this trip walked away with more than an experience. They were able to build new friendships and see people in ways they would not have perceived them before. The moments of this week were only temporary, but the memories of Spring Term 2016 will last. To God be the glory for all He has done, is doing, and will do through the week of Spring Term at North Cobb Christian School!

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Proverbs 31:30 – Friday – 4.1.16

Today was the last day of our trip together. It was the final day that all twelve of us ninth grade girls would officially be on our Proverbs 31:30 Spring Term group. But that was not the point of this spring term. It doesn’t matter that we aren’t on the trip anymore and that we aren’t going on fun excursions together, we are still Proverbs 31 young women.

I have developed such a close bond with the girls and teachers on this trip and can say with certainty that the others did as well. We have a Godly sisterhood in each other, one that revolves around the word of God and depends on the unity of all of the members. Today we would have gone hiking and sure, it would have probably been fun and we could have a few laughs and enjoy ourselves, but I thank God that we did something entirely different.

After a brief trip to the nail salon to glam up our fingers, we spent the rest of the day at Coach Sanders’ house. One goal that we had had for the week was to memorize Proverbs 31:10-30. To be quite honest it was a little stressful to get up in front of everyone and recite twenty verses, but it wasn’t about the recitation. It wasn’t about the fluidity or the speed or the pauses or the slip-ups. It was about so much more: knowing how to be a Godly woman. As long as we knew what God wanted for us in the verses and carried them with us in our hearts, it certainly didn’t matter that someone mixed a few lines around.

After the verses, we were all given a rose and told that there was a perfect, special someone made for each and every one of us. We got wooden planks artfully painted with “she is more precious than jewels” on the front. Both teachers wrote thoughtful, individualized letters for every single girl that were so wonderful and heartwarming.

Then came the final (and in my opinion the most important) part of the day. A plain pink balloon was handed to every girl as we sat in a circle together. The purpose of this balloon was to load onto it all of our fears, our insecurities, and anything weighing down on our hearts. We went around the circle and everyone, even the teachers, opened up to reveal what was a weight in their lives. This time was so important to me. Not only was I able to talk freely with these ladies, but I was able to hear from each one of them and I learned so much about them. After having a great talk (and shedding a few needed tears) we prayed together and went out onto the porch. There, we stood in a circle and held out the balloons that held our fears and problems and anything that kept us from praising the Lord as much as we should. And then together, we let them go. Like a flock of round pink birds, the balloons drifted off into the clouds. We had all offered our fears up to God.

I wasn’t sad when we boarded the bus together or even when we arrived at the school. I knew that all of us had a special friendship now. We promised to one another that no matter what, we wouldn’t let go of the bond we formed. So farewell, Proverbs Spring Term Trip, thank you for the great memories and bringing us closer to God. Thank you for the lessons and the knowledge of being Christian women. And finally, thank you so much for the wonderful girls I got to share the week with. Hannah, Caitlin, Shaye, Katie, Alex, Casey, Avery, Lindsay, Erika, Haley, Kate, Mrs. Sanders and Mrs. Cochran, thank you so much for everything. I look forward to our future together, knowing that no matter what, this trip impacted us all.

Goodbye, Spring Term 2016 and Hello to whatever the Lord plans for us. It’s been a good one… It truly has.

~ Kylie Tobey

Local Missions/History – Friday – 4.1.16

Today was our last day together as a group! We loaded the bus right at eight o’clock and headed to Powder Springs. There, we met Pastor Kwame Frimpong, who is a Baptist missionary who started the Powerhouse International Church. This church reaches out to immigrants from central and eastern Africa.

We then helped Pastor Frimpong pass out flyers inviting people to a community event hosted by the church. We went door-to-door in about 6-8 different neighborhoods. We hope that this was a blessing to Pastor Frimpong who does this by himself every month!

After easily getting in our 10,000 steps, we went to lunch before heading back to school! We’ve had a great week and we are so grateful for the opportunities we have had! Thanks for following along with us!

Xtreme Men – Friday – 4.1.16

Today was a great time for the final day of Xtreme Men! We started our day with a trip to Daddy’s Country Kitchen and everyone had the country breakfast buffet! This was a great way to supply energy for the long day we had planned!

After breakfast we finished up our devotion on Psalm 16. We looked at Psalm 16:9-11… “Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure. For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,or let your holy one see corruption. You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” There was so much for us to dive into with these verses. Ultimately, we wrapped up our discussion on being Xtreme Men of Xtreme joy, and today we learned that we can have real, lasting joy in the presence of God. In summary, we learned that Xtreme Men seek Xtreme joy in God’s presence. Today we talked about real practical ways to seek this joy in God’s presence… particularly we saw ways to see this presence and joy in prayer and in God’s Word. As David says in Psalm 16 this is the “the path of life” and the way of “fullness of joy”! Sometimes it is so easy for us to turn prayer and Scripture study and meditation into a chore or homework instead of a way of hearing the voice of God and entering into God’s presence… But, that is the MOST Xtreme thing that any man could ever do… to seek and run hard after the God and His joyous presence!

After devotion we were able to finish up our service with the City of Acworth. We were able to dig up old shrubs on main street to make the bush beds look more clean and presentable for Acworth Art Fest. The City of Acworth Parks and Recreation Department was so thankful for the help and service we gave this week! Please join us in continuing to pray for the Acworth Art Fest,  and specifically praying that people would see the greatness of God in His creation!

Today we finished up our Xtreme sports and activities by going to an indoor trampoline park! We had a GREAT time playing trampoline tag, dunk contests, flip contests, and extreme trampoline dodgeball! We were able to play all kinds of of trampoline dodgeball games and the students had a blast… it’s amazing how much of a sweat you can work up jumping for 3 hours!

Here is a video of today’s fun! https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6a3j5KAeIvWMGMzY2VlX0tqdUk/view?usp=sharing

Overall the Xtreme Men trip was a blast! We were so blessed to serve the City of Acworth and prepare the city for a beautiful welcome of the Acworth Art Fest. It was also so great to see students dive into Psalm 16 and discuss the Xtreme joy we can have in God gifts, the saints, creation, and God presence! It was also so much fun to participate in so many Xtreme sports and activities this week as we laughed together, competed together, and challenged and encouraged each other.

Sadly, the photos from today were deleted from my phone on accident… but please refer to the video above to see our fun adventures!

Mr. Ty Faulk

Local Missions/Cobb – Friday – 4.1.16

Local Missions: Cobb County has had a great week of discovering the treasures in our own community. Mr. Shaffer saved some of his favorite spots for last!

We started the day with a visit to Ms. Orefice’s kindergarten class, who had been faithfully praying for our team. The Lower Schoolers sat on the carpet and listened to the Upper Schoolers tell some stories about our week. Everyone was relieved and grateful that the kindergarteners’ prayers had protected us from all the ghosts, like Florence, living in the old houses we visited (see Wednesday’s post). The kindergarteners paired off with the big kids to exchange more stories and draw pictures together. Brooklyn from Ms. Orefice’s class led us in another sweet prayer before we headed out to the bus for our next excursion.

We took a short ride down Old 41 to the Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History in downtown Kennesaw. The railroad tracks in use today follow the same path as the Western & Atlantic line that was so crucial to the development of the South in the 1800s. Several cargo trains delayed the bus, and their whistles interrupted the docent’s tour, so we definitely felt the presence of the railway. We learned about one of the most thrilling episodes in the Civil War, which played out only yards away from the museum – the Great Locomotive Chase. Yankees (a group now called Andrew’s Raiders) snuck into the Confederate camp at Big Shanty (the old name for Kennesaw) and stole a locomotive called the General. As they took off toward Chattanooga, they left obstructions on the track and cut the telegraph wires. The train’s conductor, William Fuller, took the theft as an assault on his professional pride, and he chased the train on foot with a couple of companions. They commandeered a pushcart and two other locomotives to catch up to the General. At the climax of the chase, Fuller and his friends had flagged down the Texas, which was south-bound, but Fuller and his friends drove the train backwards to catch Andrew’s Raiders, when the General literally ran out of steam. The General itself is on display, and it is quite impressive!

The Southern Museum had other neat things, like clothing and playing cards from the 19th century. We learned that all babies, even boys, wore dresses in that era, because it made it easier to change their diapers! Lucy Park tapped out her name in Morse code on an old telegraph machine, and we saw how one engine could power a whole section of a factory in the exhibit on the Glover Machine Works (same Glover as Glover Park in Marietta Square). One of the coolest items on display was a boxcar given to the United States as a gift from France after World War II. French people filled 49 train boxcars with tokens of gratitude – paintings, dresses, you name it – and gave one to each state and the District of Columbia (Alaska and Hawaii weren’t states yet). Georgia’s boxcar is really well preserved, and it serves as a reminder of the lengths to which the American and French people will go to serve one another.

After the museum, we enjoyed a lovely picnic in Smith-Gilbert Gardens. This was a private home and garden, but now it is open to the public. There were so many gorgeous blooms to brighten our afternoon. Bonsai trees, koi pond, perennials, fine sculptures… there was too much to see! After we took a guided tour, we got to let out our inner-child and play with bubbles. We thanked the Lord and the staff at Smith-Gilbert by pulling weeds at the end of the day.

All week we saw such rich treasures here in our own corner of the world. Cobb County has more to offer than most of us realized. Now that we are better acquainted with the roots of our community, we are all better equipped to serve it, love it, and claim more of it for God’s glory.

“For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep…” (Acts 13:36).

Kate Seat

Student Reactions

“I loved getting to go to the garden today! It was extremely beautiful and it was so much fun playing with bubbles!”
-Anna Lineberry

“My favorite part about today was getting to pray and be with the little kids, as well as touring the garden with my friends!”
-Hunter Norman

*See more pictures in the Local Missions/Cobb album on the NCCS Facebook page -https://www.facebook.com/NorthCobbChristianSchool/

Local Missions/Atlanta – Friday – 4.1.16

Our final day of Spring Term began with a great devotional from Mrs. Jarvis. She reminded us that we are responsible for our actions and decisions. After our devotional and prayer, we headed back to downtown Atlanta for the College Football Hall of Fame. The students were able to choose their favorite college team and then have a customized trip through the hall. Some tried their skills at throwing and kicking the football on the playing field while others showcased their speaking skills at the sports desk as a guest announcer. After everyone had finished at the College Football Hall of Fame, we grabbed a quick lunch at Chick-fil-A and headed to the Atlanta Zoo. The weather was perfect, and the animals were active today. Chase and Ronny tried to pick up some part-time work as impromptu guides, but it did not quite work out for them. After visiting with the animals and riding the train and carousel a few times, it was time to set our course for the trip back to North Cobb Christian School. This week has been full of adventure and loaded with laughter. This group of students was amazing. I hope they will share all of their stories with you because they are too numerous to fit into this blog. Thank you for supporting us in this spring term, I hope that each life has been changed a little for the better, I know mine has.

Mrs. Kim Kammerdiener

Haiti – Friday – 4.1.16

Happy Friday from Haiti! It was such a treat to walk in to the breakfast area early this morning and see one of our young men up early reading his Bible and doing his team devotional for the day. I have noticed so many of our kids reading their Bibles during downtime. The HUGE benefit of walking through the villages this week has been that we have been driven to prayer and to devouring God’s Word so that we will be ready for any questions that come. Mrs. Timms really challenged us in her devotional Monday evening to get to know God and to spend time just reading His word. What a treasure to see our kids diving in!

Everyone was excited at breakfast as today was our beach day. Breakfast was quite popular as we had French toast, fruit, and cereal. After a good round of both bug spray and sunscreen, we were officially on our way! We drove around 45 minutes to the Wahoo Bay Beach Club where we would spend the better part of the day. We took a lot of pictures at the beach with the beautiful Haitian scenery behind us. Our kids were really impressed with how nice the resort is and could see why tourism had once been such a rich part of Haiti’s economy. We all look forward to the day when more people are able to appreciate the beauty of this island!

After the pictures our kids quickly jumped in to play beach volleyball, kayak, water trampoline, and just hang out. Mrs. Timms and I went out on the paddleboards to show the kids how it’s done and then we gladly handed those over to the kids, happy to walk away with no debilitating or embarrassing injuries! We felt certain either of those outcomes would have certainly made this way to social media! The team played in the water for a few hours and then we had lunch.

Lunch was an authentic Haitian meal with rice and beans, roasted chicken, tomatoes, and slaw. We ate in the open air restaurant and everyone made plans for their afternoon activities. Most of the kids hung out at the pool for the afternoon catching up on wifi, sharing pictures, and relaxing. This was a great way for us to begin the transition back to the United States as we were able to have time to rest and process what we have experienced this week. Lots of great conversations took place today!

We just arrived back at camp and have some downtime before dinner. Most of the kids are packing and getting organized for our early ride to the airport tomorrow. We have a few that got a little pink today…but we have plenty of aloe! After dinner tonight we will close our time on this beautiful country with a time of worship by Graham Richmond and Austin Geter that have led us so well this week. Austin will share our team devotion for tonight and we will reveal our prayer partners that we have been praying for all week. We have passed lots of notes around to our prayer partners and everyone is curious who has been praying for them.

We will hop on the bus around 4am tomorrow to begin our journey back to Atlanta leaving a piece of our hearts here in Haiti. Our prayer is that the Lord would continue the work He has done in our hearts for the days, weeks, and months to come. We have been challenged this week to live in such a way that every man, woman, and child would know Jesus Christ.

We look forward to seeing our awesome family and friends at the Atlanta airport tomorrow around noon. After an incredible Spring Term, we are officially ready for Spring Break!

Thanks for praying us home!
NCCS ST16 Haiti Team

NCCS Freshman Reese Ballard

I feel like this week has changed my whole perspective on life. At first, I thought I needed to get through this trip then enjoy a relaxing spring break, but now that the week is over, I would do it all again in a heartbeat. I made great relationships with people down in Haiti. It amazes me that the children and families here have absolutely nothing and are on fire for Jesus. It gives you a new perspective on how God views the world as a whole as well. You would think He is a God of just the USA but he loves all countries equally. I remember a woman we prayed for and we asked what her prayer requests were. She stated, “I want to live a good life and I want to make enough money to support my family.” Just when we started to pray, she interrupted and said, “I am also very hungry.” This opened my eyes to how much we have and how much we should give more than receive. I feel like God has done powerful things this week in Haiti and He is not done yet.

*More pictures posted in the Haiti album on the NCCS Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/NorthCobbChristianSchool/

Forensics – Friday – 4.1.16

Today we went took a bus to the Youth Detention Center (YDC) to drop off bibles with highlighted verses so that the teenagers can have a chance to learn about God and come close to him. After we left from the YDC we went for an amazing lunch at Henry’s Restaurant in downtown Acworth. After we finished lunch we took the bus back to the school and we got to hear Kit Cummings speak. Kit Cummings is a professional in Prison Ministry; he is very well known and has gone to some of the worst prisons around the world to speak to the inmates. He spoke to us about some of his experiences in prison ministry and he also talked about his ideas. His main idea is Peace, he told us about how he went to a prison and spoke to some of the higher gang leaders that were being held in the prison. He challenged them to stay violence-free for 40 days in one of the most violent prisons, some of those inmates listened and it was spread through the prison by some of the changed gang leaders. One of Kit Cummings other ideas was about dreams and how through some “mysterious” way they seem to end up coming true because of an occurrence of many unlikely things working together. Kit Cummings was a very moving speaker and he gave us the challenge to become part of the movement to bring peace through our lives. That is what we did to today on our final day of Forensics spring term 2016.

Ethan Masson

Appalachia – Friday – 4.1.16

Red Bird Team #1

Today was a perfect last day! We headed out at our usual time and were actually finished by lunch. Today was all about finishing touches—putting up the last few bits of shingles, making sure all the details were in order, and cleaning up before we headed out. The kids were so excited about the final product. They thought it was the best roof they have ever seen. Kevin and Coach King thought it looked rather normal, which, given the circumstances, is probably more than we could ask for! A few of them said they were ready to go build their own roof now when they get home.

As a small surprise for the Wombles, we also were able to get them a doorknob for an inside door that was missing one and rebuild the steps leading to their front porch. This actually could not have had any more perfect timing, as Theresa said that the porch steps were actually the next thing they were going to try to fix. As we finished clean up, we took a second to say our goodbye’s to the Wombles. They thanked us over and over again for blessing them. They blessed us so much more though! Blaine Luca had the excellent idea of surprising them with a small wooden cross that was purchased at the camp Craft Store. Theresa asked to pray over us before we left for blessings and safe travels. We then prayed over them for God’s continued faithfulness and provision.

Andrea Browning

Red Bird Team #2

What an honor God gave us to be able to finish up serving the Messer Family today!  Their almost totally new Bathroom is ready to go: floor –  done, wood paneling – up, new hot water heater – installed, new toilet – ready to go, bathroom sink – re-installed, washer and dryer – re-installed.  Bottom line, though, was that so much of what was done was not even seen – under the layers of flooring, inside the layer of paneling, under the mobile home and more importantly, in the heart of a precious 7 year old who experienced the love of Jesus!  These last 2 days he was picked up early in order to spend time with us.  What a joy and honor to reflect Christ to a world in need this spring term – thank you, Jesus!

Closing Service

We ended the evening with a worship and communion service. Spending some intentional time remembering that the whole purpose of this trip was to glorify Christ and His love was the perfect way to end a week of hard work. As I reflect on the week and what Red Bird Mission does in this area of Kentucky, I realize that our students have had the opportunity to get a glimpse of the true Church in action. It should be like this all the time—taking care of our brothers and sisters in need with joyful abandon. I know we will not forget this week and the perspective shift we received, but I pray that God continues to hold these lessons near to our hearts as we head back home. I pray we will be the hands and feet of Christ just as readily and regularly in our own community as well.

Debbie Brink