Youth Blog Entry: Sunday

Ryan Powers


The day began with a select few who aspired to get up around 5 a.m. to eat beignets, which if you have never had eaten before is pretty much a fluffy doughnut with the texture of a funnel cake and covered with powdered sugar, at the Cafe du Monde. Absolutely worth getting up for; the cafe is open 24/7 and serves nothing but beignets and their special coffee served black or my personal favorite, Cafe au Lait.

Later that morning, we motivated the rest of the group to get up and started to transfer our items to the bus. Around the same time just a few blocks down an old gutted building was scheduled to be imploded at 8 a.m. and we were able to only see the small dust clouds rise above the city skyline. After we watched the implosion we head down for the last time to the Mercedes-Benz Superdome for worship and conclusion. The message was great and the communion was wild (all 38,000 were given communion)! 


After the service, we hugged and embraced the friends that we meet had met and become closer to and left the majestic city of New Orleans. It saddened me that we were leaving but I was still happy to be heading home.

Youth Blog Entries: Saturday

Part I
Taylor Bauman

This morning we woke up and walked to the Superdome to get our instructions for our day of justice out in the city! We were so thankful there was no rain like the previous two days. We arrived at the Superdome early so to pass the time, we played card games. When we were inside we had to find our group by bus number and then that followed with a mini worship service complete with some awesome music.

We headed to our bus with our group for the day which included other churches from New York, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Our leader for the day was Mary, who attends school at the University of Alabama. She was very nice and funny!

We soon arrived at a small Lutheran church. We gathered in the small sanctuary and ate our lunch. The beautiful wooden pews had water marks from when it was flooded during Katrina. We split into groups and helped pick up trash in the neighborhood. As it turns out we had been bused to a rain site and we weren't where we were actually supposed to be, but we still were able to make a difference.

Part II
Kelsey Carter

For our second part of our day of justice, we helped the American Red Cross and Homeland Security with handing out flyers in a Vietnamese neighborhood in East New Orleans. As it turns out, this was our original location all along. We went go door-to-door in groups of two or three handing out pamphlets and talking with the people who lived there. These documents contiained important evacuation information should there ever be another hurricane like Katrina. The Red Cross also has a program in place where you can sign up to be evacuated if you don't have a vehicle or a way out of the city. The people we spoke with shared amazing stories of hardships and hope with us. God touched us through the stories they told and the strength and faith they possessed.

After we returned, we grabbed a quick bite to eat and headed back to the Superdome for a fun filled night! We sung, we danced, we worshipped, we prayed, and the highlight of it all was ending the night with a concert by Switchfoot.

Youth Blog Entries: Friday

Part I
Megan Morris

Today was our practice peacemaking day. We went to the convention center first thing in the morning and enjoyed a fun and upbeat worship service. We got to sing a bunch of a songs and also heard a great sermon. After worship there were a number of activities set up for us all over the convention center. From photo booths to necklace making to zip lining, there was a little something for everyone. There were so many activities that it surely made for an interesting and unique morning for everyone.

There were people from all over the country at this event which was great for meeting new people! Overall, we had a great morning, completely different than anything we had done so far.

Part II
Reagan Eadie

After leaving the convention center, we went back to the hotel to recharge and relax. Then we went out for an early dinner and had lots of fun watching the sports bloopers that were on TV at the restaurant and chatting with one another. Not to mention the excellent food!

We headed to the Superdome which had a great light show, inspirational speakers and a great finish with balloons and all of us singing "hallelujah." It was a great start to the evening! Lastly, we went to a fun dance to finish off the night with community life. It was a fun day filled with praise, fun and laughter.

Youth Blog Entries: Thursday

Thursday - Part I
Kelly Chadwick

Today we woke up and had a huge worship service with the youth and adults from all around the Virginia Synod. We broke into small groups to practice the seven marks of discipleship - Give, Study, Pray, Invite, Worship, Encourage, Serve. I got to know a lot of new people and were led in worship by Bishop Mauney, who preached to us. And always a favorite, leading us in music was Dave Delaney! We then walked, in the rain, to have a nice sit-down lunch at Gordon Biersch and fed our bellies, dried out and relaxed!

Thursday - Part II
Lynn Chang

After a great lunch, we decided to go back to the hotel. We talked about how we should adjust our plans and schedule for the rest of the day in New Orleans, and what the rest of the day is going to look like. We went back to our rooms and had about an hour of free time before we would have to leave to go to the Superdome. 

At the Superdome, we arrived early to see some singers perform with the house band. All of the songs sounded pretty good. There were many performances and the background of the music was awesome. We heard someone talk about Jesus Christ and religion in many different countries involving many different people. We talked about love, peace, and other things that could be used to describe Christianity. 

After the Superdome, around 9 p.m., we gathered in a ballroom at a hotel for a dance party. It was a great time over there. The place was awesome and pretty. After that we headed back to the hotel, discussed our plans for Friday, and were in our rooms.

Lunch at Gordon Biersch!

After our morning of discipleship and worship with the Virginia Synod, we are enjoying a nice sit down lunch together!

Youth Blog Entries: Wednesday

Wednesday Part I
Aaron Bock

We had a good breakfast and met up to receive our backpacks with Bibles and T-shirts from the Gathering. Around 10:30 we left for the French Market. We tried some really hot hot sauce (called voodoo sauce) which proved to be intense! The French Market had lots of home-grown and homemade crafts and stuff.

We shopped until 12:45 and then headed to check out Bourbon Street. I grabbed lunch at a place called Willy's Chicken Shack. They had the most amazing BBQ sauce and chicken and a few of us ate there. We then headed back to the hotel for some free time.

Wednesday Part II
Ben McAfee

Upon returning to the hotel we had around a two-hour break. Many took the opportunity to test out the pool and sauna, which from what I heard was brilliant. After we settled in and got used to hotel, we were able to meet a few friends from previous Va Synod events. We eventually moseyed on over and we had a discussion on what the night will amount to.

From there we hiked to the Superdome, aka the , and heard great Christian contporary rock and rap. We listened to speakers who discussed their faith and beliefs. But, as New Orleans often has, there was a large thunderstorm. The Gathering leaders decided to hold us in the dome until the weather cleared up enough for us to be safe to head home. For about 45+ minutes we wondered the mosh pit meeting people for all over the country; from Wisconsin and Alaska and New York. And soon, what might have been a boring time spent sitting became a blessing of new firends and new people.

Finally we we were freed to head to our hotels. BUT IT WAS STILL RAINING!!! I, personally, am fine with a small shower or two. But this, although not cats and dogs, was still enough to bring on the uncertenty and fear. We hadn't even made it to the road when Peace broke apart. Some went on ahead and others heald back. Ryan, the amazing leader that he is, although not at the head, was leading the lagging section. He had his phone out with a flashing light so that we all knew where he was, and he did really well at picking a good path and at waiting for others to catch up. But it was 11 o'clock at night in the middle of a storm, in New Orleans. We then saw someone lying in the street. It was a girl, from what we heard at the time, she was still breathing and waiting for an ambulance after being hit by a car. I would like to ask for prayers for her, her familly, and her church.

We caught up with each other and all met back at the hotel safe and sound. We had 15 minuets to relax, dry off, and collect ourselves. When the time was up we met back at Rich and Jennie's room for the Final Fifteen, to discuss the day and how tomorrow looks as well as having cabin conversations.

Wednesday updates!

Here are some photos from today in New Orleans!

Update: on the floor at the Superdome for opening night of the Gathering!