Chiefs & Princesses at K-Kountry

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

There is some exciting news at K-Kountry!  For the first time ever, each tribe (Cherokee, Choctaw, Kiowa, Kickapoo) will have an elected high school chief or princess from K-2 who will lead, encourage, and support you (the kamper) in your competition at kamp.  K-1 and K-2 have always had Chiefs and Princesses…but now K-Kountry joins the mix.

This past weekend, all of the K-Kountry Chiefs & Princesses were in Branson for a awesome weekend of planning, praying, and preparing for the best summer ever at K-Kountry!

Chiefs and Princesses (2010)

We are so excited to have these awesome Chiefs & Princesses at K-Kountry this summer.  Can’t wait for you to meet them.

Ecuador Mission Trip - Final Videos

Monday, March 22, 2010

Here is a final video from our trip to Ecuador.  There are some neat testamonies at the end:



We took almost 500 photos.  Here is a photo jornal of the best:



To view all of the pictures from Ecuador, go here.

Ecuador Mission Trip - Day 6

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Today was our last full day here in Ecuador and it's one we will never forget.  We spent all morning at a school loving on kids and playing soccer.  The school was located in a very poor part of town, so it was fun to see the smiles that our team brought to the kids faces.   After playing for hours, we got to feed all 300 kids.  Compassion International supports most of the kids at this school, so it was fun to see this incredible ministry in action.  

Tonight, a local pastor and his wife prepared an authentic Ecuadorian dinner for our team.  It was a great way to end our time here in Ecuador.

A video journal from our day:


Pictures of the Day:









You know...our team came on this trip to be a blessing to the people of Ecuador but we find ourselves as the blessed ones as we leave this beautiful country.  It has been a life-changing trip and really fun to watch the Lord open up the guys eyes and hearts to God's Kingdom.  The Creator we serve and love transcends culture, language, and social class.  It is one thing to see it on the TV, but it is another thing to see it, taste it, hear it, and feel it.  We are so grateful for how the Lord used us and changed us at the same time. Praise God! 

We are headed home tomorrow morning.  Our bus leaves at 4:00am so we are going to bed!  Thanks again for praying for our trip.  God is good!

Ecuador Mission Trip - Day 5

It was another great day in Ecuador.  The Lord continues to do neat things here.  The memories are plentiful.  The friendships  are rich.  The Lord's provision is evident.  We spent all morning at a Compassion school painting classrooms and serving.  It is always an adventure to paint with middle school kids!

After a quick lunch, we went to go see the Equator north of Quito.  It was really fascinating and the guys loved it.  Who would of thought that we would get a science lesson out of our trip?  Lots of memories at the Equator today!

We capped off the day by watching the movie "End of the Spear" which took place here in Ecuador and is such an incredible picture of the Gospel.  

A video re-cap:


Pictures from today:








Tomorrow is our last full day here in Ecuador and we plan to pack a ton into it.  We will spend most of the day at a local school playing with kids and sharing the hope of Jesus!  We have arranged a truly Ecuadorian meal tomorrow night at a local ministers house to cap off the week.  The boys are hoping to try Guinea Pig...but I think they are all talk at this point.  We'll see....

Thanks for staying updated on our journey here in Ecuador!

Ecuador Mission Trip - Day 4

Monday, March 15, 2010

Wow!  Today was a great day here in Ecuador.  We left early in the morning for the Indian Market in Ortavalo and it was really fun.  Lots of color, smells, sounds, and bartering going on.  It will be a fun memory.

We spent the rest of the afternoon at a rural church up in the Andes.   It was an incredible experience to interact with these people and see their true dependence on the Lord.  There is something really neat about worshiping with other nationalities in different languages.  It was a life changing experience for all of us.  We even got to tell the I'm 3rd story!  Here is a video re-cap:


Pictures of the day:








We are back in Quito now and will be heading to a school tomorrow to doing some painting.  In the afternoon, we will visit the equator and get a little science lesson.  Should be awesome!

Keep praying for our trip.  It has been so fun to see the Lord changing our lives during this trip!

Ecuador Mission Trip - Day 3

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Tonight, we are in the middle of nowhere and we have wireless internet...go figure!   We are currently on an overnight trip north of Quito visiting the Quencha Indians and having a great time.   It took us awhile to get here, but once we arrived this morning, we have been off and running.  Here is a little preview from our day:


Some pictures from the day:









Tomorrow is Sunday, so we are heading over the the native Indian Market to pick up some goods and then off to an Ecuadorian church in the afternoon.  We will finish our day with a drive back to Quito.  

We will continue to keep you posted on our journey!

Ecuador Mission Trip - Day 2

Friday, March 12, 2010

Well...we are having a blast here in Ecuador.  Today was our first full day here and it was packed full of sun, kids, paint, Jesus, volcanos, and guacamole.  We spent most of our day at the Carpungo school where we played with the kids.  After lunch, we found ourselves doing a little painting around the school to help them out.  The sun was out and shining so the sunscreen was in full effect today.  After leaving the school, we headed to the mountains and took a gondola to the top of an active volcano.  It was a really fun experience with incredible views...not to mention cool temperatures at 14,000 feet.  We capped off the day with an authentic Ecuadorian meal.  We were hungry and ready for bed.  Here is a video recap of the day...



Here are some pictures from today:










It has been really fun to watch the boys catching the vision for loving on the people of Ecuador.  It was only day 2, but we have had some great discussions at night of how the Lord is working in our lives here.

Tomorrow, we are headed 2 hours north of Quito to Otavalo.  We will be there for the next two days working with a rural school, visiting some waterfalls, shopping at an Indian Market, and going to an Ecuadorian church on Sunday.  We will travel back to Quito on Sunday night.  I'm not sure what our internet access will be like the next 48 hours, so it might be Sunday night before we get anything posted.

Until then, keep praying for us.  We sure appreciate it.

Ecuador Mission Trip - Day 1

Thursday, March 11, 2010

After a day and a half of traveling through multiple airports, we have made it to Ecuador.  Everybody is excited to be here and soaking it all in.  It is a beautiful country with incredible weather so far.   Once we got to Quito, we got situated at the guest house we're staying at and let the guys adjust to the altitude.  We even were able to fit in a soccer game before dinner.  After a great night, we are hitting the sack because we have some tired boys.  Here is a little recap of the day...


Tomorrow, we are off to a school north of Quito to do some painting and activities with the kids.  Everybody is chomping at the bit to get out and do ministry with the people of Ecuador.  Visiting the volcano here in Ecuador is also on the schedule tomorrow, so we'll keep you posted here at barn13.com

Headed to Ecuador

Thursday, March 4, 2010

In just a few days, Austin and Sparky are headed south to Ecuador with 10 Kanakuk kampers on a 7 day Mission Trip.  It should be an awesome trip.

 

Keep checking back to Barn 13.com for updates, pictures, and more!

A Kanakuk Summer is Coming…

The snow is melting and the temperature is climbing around Kanakuk…and you know what that means?  Summer is coming.  We are counting down the days until summer and cannot wait to see what the Lord is going to do.

Message From The Sparks’

Can’t wait to see you this summer!

www.kanakuk.com