Missions Trip to Quebec - 2008

Sunday was a wonderful day!  We had a good morning service, and there were 4 people there, besides our team and the Teachouts, and their summer intern, Aaron.  Pastor V. preached a good message on how God prepares people ahead of time for assignments He wants them to accomplish.

Stephanie and Lauren play a duet in the Sunday morning service.

Teri Pate gives her testimony in the Sunday morning service.

Our Team sings a hymn in French, in the morning service.

Mark H. and Mark P. play a duet in the morning service.

Pastor V. preaches the Sunday morning service, with Pastor Teachout translating in French.

Eric Scarborough giving a testimony in the Sunday Evening Concert.

Kevin and Eric H. playing a trumpet duet in the Concert.

Pam gives a testimony in the Sunday Evening Concert.

Members and visitors listening to the Sunday Evening Concert.

Pastor Teachout and Pastor V. fellowshipping after the Sunday Evening Concert.

Mark H. coloring a picture with 4 year old Laura Teachout.

Some of the young people and others from the church, at the fellowship after the Evening Concert.

 At 9:20pm, we drove our three vans across the border, into the US, and the crossing went very smoothly!!!  Thank you for praying for that!  There was not even a glitch! Praise the Lord!  We continued to drive into the night to Burlington, VT.  We arrived there at 2:00am, Monday morning, at our motel, and split up into our rooms, and crashed out for the rest of the night.

Read more on the next blog about our trip home….

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Saturday, we spent most of the day working around the church, cleaning, and preparing for the church services, and practicing for the concert on Sunday evening. We all had specific jobs to do, and we all got them done.

In the evening, we had a Youth Rally at the church. We had 3 young adults come from another church, and a college age young man from the Teachout’s church come, besides our own youth. It was an encouragement to these young people, even though there were not any unsaved youth there.

At the Youth Rally, we all ate hot dogs, and then had a short program in the church auditorium with Pastor Teachout. Then, the young people, and some of the men went out to the bamboo woods behind the church, and in front of the river, to play paintball. They used slingshots to shoot balls of paint at each other. They seemed to have a great time, but this activity is very messy and dirty, especially out in the wet woods and mud. It had rained most of the day, so it was very muddy! After they finished that, they came back to the church, and some of them ended up, clothes and all, in the above ground swimming pool! They were very cold, but Pastor Teachout lit a fire, and they stood around the fire and roasted marshmellows to warm up! The young people had fun, and enjoyed getting to know each other!

As this is being written, it is 8:21pm Sunday evening, and we are fellowshipping with the church people after our concert. Praise the Lord, it went very well, and you will be updated Monday about the day.

NEWSFLASH*******************************

As for now, please pray for us tonight. We are leaving Quebec at around 9:30pm or so, and we are driving thru the night to Burlington, VT. We will check into a hotel/motel around 2:30AM, or so, and will sleep in late Monday morning. We then have to be at the airport by 11:00AM to board our first plane of the day. Pray for safety on the roads, and for smoothness in crossing the border into the USA. Then pray for great sleep for all of us, and safety on the planes on Monday. Thank you all for your prayers! We love you and will try to blog more for you on Monday with pictures added. Until Monday….

ADDITIONAL NOTE:  8/12/08—- Pictures will be added to this blog as soon as we get them. Check back later for some fun pictures of the Youth Rally!!!!  You won’t want to miss them!

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Today, we all continued to finish up work that needed to be done around the church. Jennifer, Stephanie, and Lauren worked on sorting Sunday School materials for Jennifer Teachout, so she could keep the items she wanted to use for Sunday School use.

Jennifer, Lauren, and Stephanie with the materials they worked on.

David, Laura, and Isaac Teachout

The guys continued to work on drywall downstairs, outdoor work, and woodpile cleanup, etc. The other ladies cleaned up inside.

Eric S., Eric H. and Mark P. work on the woodpile.

Kevin works on the drywall downstairs in the church basement.

Pastor V. and Mark H. work in the church basement.

Around noon, we left in our vans with the Teachouts for the Parliament Building near Old Quebec City. We ate lunch at the Parliament Building, and then took a tour of it. Our lunch was very nice, served on formal china, with white table cloths and crystal goblets. We would have dressed up a little more for the lunch, but we were going to be out late, and the weather was supposed to be cold and wet that evening, so we tried to dress as warmly as we could.

Our Team at the Parliament Bldg.

Inside one of the session rooms in the Parliament Bldg.

After the tour at the Parliament Building, we walked along the very thick brick and stone wall into Old Quebec City. This area is sooooo neat, with lots of little shops, LOTS of flowers, cafe’s, bistros, etc. The streets were brick and cobblestone, and it looked like a picture out of centuries-old France or England!

Street in Old Quebec.

Eric H., Eric S., and Pastor V. try to stay dry in their matching outfits!

It rained most of the day while we were there, but finally the rain stopped later in the evening. We divided up into groups and went our separate ways, as we were able to sight-see and shop for souvenirs, etc. Each group ate dinner at their leisure, at various cafe’s, and we enjoyed the sights, shops and Old World atmosphere.

At 8:00 pm, we met back at the statue of Samuel de Champlain, an explorer, who discovered Quebec in 1608, among other things. Quebec is celebrating its 400th birthday this year! Then we walked to the Ferry, and took a Ferry Boat ride on the St. Lawrence River. It was dark, so you could see Old Quebec all lit up at night, and the Chateau Frontenac, an architecturally-incredible hotel built between 1890 and 1920. It was a gorgeous sight!!

Our Team in Old Quebec, with the Chateau Frontenac hotel high in the background!

Pastor Teachout took us to a Park called the Plains of Abraham, the battlefields where the French and the British fought over Quebec (the British won), and later the USA failed to win the battle against the British for control of Quebec. After we saw the Plains of Abraham, at 10:30pm, we went up to a restaurant that was 22 floors high. At the top, we could see the whole city lit up, at night, and the restaurant slowly turned as we ate the most delicious French and Quebecan desserts of all various kinds! What a treat!!! We were all so tired on the way home, and our feet hurt from walking so much, but it was well worth the experience!

Following Pastor V's example, all our guys sporting their new French look

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On Thursday, we drove all three of our vans quite a distance north of town. We stopped at a few different places and Ray Teachout and several others delivered some Gospel of John/Romans booklets to some people there. One of the ladies they visited was a Catholic Nun. Pray that God will work in her heart and bring her to salvation.

Missionary Ray Teachout and Mark Pate making a visit with prospective visitor.

We then drove to Baie-St. Paul, a very quaint, picturesque town, with a lot of art and cultural atomosphere. There was a park in the center of town where we were planning to do an outdoor concert, so that we could pass out tracts and Gospel of John booklets. But, the spot that would have worked well for the concert, was also right next to the Catholic church, so Ray Teachout did not feel it would be a good idea to do the concert. So, we ended up not doing the concert.

Beautiful old barn w/ purple wildflowers.

Driving through a coastal town.

Shipped wreck boat at Baie-St. Paul.

Then, we continued on down the road, about another 1 1/2 hours or so, on a scenic route to our destination. Along the way, there were beautiful cottages, lots of flowers, and much of the scenery was like looking at mountains, driving up and down very high hills, with lakes, flowers, cottages, and chalets, etc. The lakes were glistening in the little bit of sun we got, and there were beautiful Catholic churches in every town, although, they looked more like protestant churches with tall steeples. We ended up in a coastal town, which would lead us to our excursion–Whale Watching on a Boat!

Lauren, Mark, Mark and Stephanie on the whale watching cruise.

Menke Whale near the side of the boat.

The whale watching trip was very neat, and we saw lots of whales out on the St. Lawrence River, where it opens up into a larger body of water. The weather was somewhat cloudy, with a little sun peaking out of the clouds, but it did not rain, thankfully. The air was cool, but not as cold as we thought it would be, which made it so much nicer for us all!

St. Lawrence River, with lighthouse in the background, and a whale feeding in the water.

On the way home, we stopped at a little restaurant, and ate dinner. Some of us ordered Poutine, which is what we also had earlier in the week, for one of our meals.

Team Devotions

It was a very nice, but long day, and we enjoyed the excursion of wonderful scenery and whale watching, quite an experience that may be once in a lifetime for some of the team!

Please continue to pray for the concert coming up on Sunday evening, for many visitors to come, and for them to be saved.

Team at Baie-St. Paul with David and Isaac Teachout.

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Here is an update for you on the outdoor concerts we did last night:

Praise the Lord!! We have felt your prayers! We drove to a mobile home park that had a little cafe/store with a raised wooden deck. (It made a great place for the brass ensemble to set up and play!) Ray Teachout had called ahead and asked the owner if we could give a brass concert. The owner thought that was a great idea, so we went over there, (fairly close to the church), and there were people there waiting for us! They had some chairs all set up, and they were waiting to here the concert! We passed out some invitations to the Sunday concert, and several people were responsive to us. During the outdoor concert, a train went by, and a couple of very loud vehicles sped by us, which made it impossible to hear the brass instruments a few times, but they kept on playing, and we just prayed that the Lord would keep the noise and distractions away. And He did!

Concert at the Mobile Home Park.

Today, we all drove in our 3 vans to another area of town. We split up into teams of two, and one person covered one side of the street, and the other covered the other side of the street. We passed out booklets of Romans and the Gospel of John, and a gospel tract, and an invitation to our Concert on Sunday.

Mark P, Jennifer Olt, and Eric S. distribute Gospel booklets and invitations.

The responses we got were mixed. Mostly, people were friendly and took the booklets, or we left them on the door steps. A few times, people would refuse the booklets, and say “no thanks” in french. People are so saturated with their Catholic background, even if they don’t practice Catholicism actively. It is part of their heritage, and culture, not just their religious background. So, any literature that looks like it is not Catholic seems like it comes from a cult, to them. Anyway, hopefully, people will at least read the invitation to the concerts on Sunday. We were able to pass out just under 700 booklets and invitations!

This afternoon, some of us went to a Walmart about 30 minutes away.  Quite a few of us did not bring warm enough clothing for tomorrow’s excursion trip, so we picked up some extra sweatshirts, and gloves, etc.

Tonight, the Wednesday Bible Study and Prayer Time went well.  Eric Scarborough preached a message on prayer.  Mark Pate and Stephanie each played solos, and the brass played a song.   There was a new couple there, who were visiting from Maine.

Directional Sign of various streets in Quebec.

Well, this is all for tonight!  Stay tuned to tomorrow, although we will be out of town most of the day.

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Today has been another work day, much like Monday. The drywall crew is continuing to work in the Prophet’s Chamber, and the Nursery, putting up drywall, and trimming out the edges. An electrical crew is here today, also, getting the electrical wiring installed in the new bathrooms, etc.

Pastor V. and Mark H. work on the ceiling.

The outdoor crew of everyone else besides Pastor V., Kevin and Mark H. Everyone dug in the dirt, leveled out dirt, moved rocks, sowed winter rye seed over the dirt, and watered the seed. Thankfully, the sun has actually come out from behind the clouds today. We an see some blue sky, and it has warmed up a little bit. It is so nice to see the sun!

The yard crew sowing winter rye for the fall season.Mark P. and Eric Scarborough lift a boulder onto the trailer to be moved.

This afternoon, Pastor V. has taken the Teachouts to look for a van. Everyone else has resumed their posts.

Stephanie and Lauren and Jennifer Olt painting a fence.

Teri and Claire are babysitting the Teachout children, and Pam is blogging and inserting literature into the Gospel of John and Romans booklets.

Tonight we have another concert in the park, and will be passing out more invitations to the Sunday Concert. Pray that many people will come to the concert tonight, and will also come to the concert on Sunday, and hear the gospel.

Sign in front of the church, announcing our Concert on Sunday.Eric and Teri in the kitchen preparing for a meal.

Until tomorrow…..

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Today we all worked on several projects assigned to us, or otherwise volunteered for. The first crew was Pastor V, Kevin, and Mark Heinold. They did sheetrock work on the prophet’s chamber, to get that finished for when the Teachouts have other visiting pastors or missionaries stay with them.

Drywall crew Kevin and Pastor V. add 2X4s to the ceiling.

Eric H. makes a hole in the wall for plumbing.

Pam preparing labels for Gospels of John and Romans booklets, with Teri Pate looking on.

Claire labels booklets for distribution.

The second group was Claire and Pam. They worked on making corrections to, and labeling the booklets of, the Gospel of John and Romans. They corrected and labeled 1500 booklets today!

Stephanie, Lauren, and Eric S. moving a dirt pile.

Landscaping crew leveling dirt and pulling weeds.

The third crew was Eric Scarborough, Jennifer Olt, Mark Pate, Lauren, Stephanie, and Eric Haines, & Teri Pate. They did a lot of hard dirty work outside in the back yard. They shoveled damp, wet, dirt from one place to another, leveling out dirt, and will plant grass seed on a downward slope, so that it won’t be just be mud when it rains. The Teachouts would like to put a picnic table & volleyball court out there to provide more opportunities for outdoor use for the church people and for themselves. The group has worked very hard today, and everything is looking great!

Eric Haines and Teri have also been working hard at feeding us meals, which is very appreciated!

Mark and Mark enjoying cheese steak sub sandwiches for lunch.

Last night, we gave Ray and Jennifer Teachout their gifts from Faith Baptist Church! They were very appreciative, and will enjoy their new van, a new computer, and new bicycles for the 3 children! We will be doing some shopping this week to pick out their new van, the computer, and the bikes.

Tonight, we will be going to a park, and having a concert there, if it doesn’t rain. It has been cloudy since we got here, and has rained off and on. The ones not playing the brass will be handing out tracts and invitations to the final concert next Sunday. Please pray that the Lord will hold back the wind and rain, and that many people will come to the concert.

Outdoor Concert on Orleans Island.

Until tomorrow……

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Well, we finally arrived at our destination……..at 2:00am!!! During our road trip to Quebec City, we stopped at a Burger King, which was the only restaurant we recognized or could find. It was the largest Burger King we had ever seen! The interior design was very nicely done, and it didn’t look like a fast food restaurant at all. Their food was mostly the same, but somewhat different than in America. We got to the church, and unloaded our luggage.

The boys slept in the church basement, and the girls slept in the Teachouts’ house basement, next door. Most of us got about 4 1/2 hours of sleep. We were all so tired, that those sleeping bags never looked quite so good before! Sunday morning, the brass played a couple of songs in the service, and Stephanie and Lauren played a duet. Pastor V. preached a very good message, which was translated by Ray Teachout. I think there were about 5 regular church members in the service, besides our team, and the Teachouts. This is a normal Sunday attendance for them, although, sometimes they get other visitors, too.

We then had lunch with the church people, at the church. It was hotdogs and sweet corn, all you can eat! After lunch, we cleaned up, and went to visit the Basilica. This is a beautiful, and architecturally fantastic old Catholic church. It is dedicated to Sainte Anne, who is supposed to be Mary’s mother, according to Catholic teaching. There were many people there, sitting in the pews, praying, and lighting candles for their loved ones who have died. There was even one woman who was kneeling, and walking on her knees from the pews up to the front of the church. As she was going, she was praying, with her eyes held fast on the statue of Mary, and holding her rosary. It was all so sad to see so many people there, and this woman on her knees, too, somehow thinking that their ritualistic pilgrimages, and works would get their prayers answered and their souls saved.

OUR TEAM at THE BASILICA

After we saw the Basilica, Eric, Teri, Jennifer & Pastor V. went grocery shopping, so that we would have food to eat for a few days. The rest of us came back to the church to take greatly needed naps!

Tonight, the church service was preached by Eric Scarborough, translated by Ray Teachout.

The brass did a couple of songs, and there were 6 visitors in the service, one whom was a first-timer!! Three of the visitors were unsaved, so they were able to hear the gospel in the service. Praise the Lord!!

After the evening service, we ate hamburgers and poutine, a dish that is special to Quebec. Poutine is basically french fries, with brown gravy and large cheese curds on top. It sounds weird, but it is actually pretty tasty!

We will be having team devotions at 10:30pm tonight. Then, hopefully, we can all get a really good night’s sleep. Until later…..Bon Soir!

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Mark enjoying his Bible reading.

 

Eric Haines, Eric Scarborough, and Pastor V watch as our flight gets more and more delayed.

We all got to the airport by 5:20am.   (I think I got 2 1/2 hours sleep!)  We made it to Atlanta fine.  We made it to Baltimore fine.  I think a few of us even got a little nap on the way there.  Now we are waiting, in Baltimore, for our plane to get here from Orlando.  We learned when we got here, that our plane had been delayed by two hours.  A few minutes ago, we found out that our plane has been delayed 30 more minutes.  Just now, we have learned that the plane has been delayed 10 more minutes. 

Kevin is on his way directly from Pensacola to Quebec City.  We were supposed to meet him there, but now that he will beat us there, Ray Teachout will be picking him up from the airport. 

There is a very fair chance we may not make it to Quebec City by tonight.  This is okay, if this is how the Lord wills it for us.  Pastor V. told us from the beginning that we must be flexible, and flexible we are!

Mark Pate, Mark Heinold, Stephanie, and Lauren are enjoying some quiz games while we are waiting. This is also great “bonding” time for them, (like they have never bonded before!)

Claire has taken some photos of the group, so you can see what we are up to on our day of traveling!  Please be in prayer for us, for safety, that we will keep a positive spirit, and that we will get as good of a night’s sleep as possible, wherever we may be!

—Pam

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Tonight is the last night for our Missions Trip Meetings.  We will be finalizing plans, schedules, and packing bedding and other team necessities.  We will have to try to keep our luggage under a certain weight, which will be very difficult.  We are very excited about going, and this week will be spent by each of us, getting ready for this trip. 

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