I
heard about a man who was an executive who did a lot of business traveling. One
day when he was on a flight, he commented to himself, “I cannot believe this flight crew. They are the
most attentive, responsive flight crew that I’ve ever seen." So, toward the end of the flight, he
stopped one of the flight crew members and said, “Excuse me, I don’t mean to
bother you, but I fly a lot, and I have never seen a flight crew like this. You
are the most engaged, enthusiastic, service-oriented flight crew I’ve ever seen.”
The
female flight attendant got a little smile on her face as she bent down and
whispered to him, “Thank you, sir, but for that you can thank the woman seated
back there in 12B.” She paused, nodded her head slightly towards seat 12B, and
continued: “You see, sir, the woman in seat 12B is the head supervisor for all
of the flight attendants for our airline. And she’s on our flight!”
When
we really know that Jesus is in our midst, that he is “on our flight,” it has a
profound way of changing the way we serve other people. Well, Jesus was on our
flight Sunday and it made our service a beautiful thing.
I was so proud of our church.
There were hundreds of believers swarming over the Belmont
Hills Elementary School Sunday, March 17, cleaning, painting, building,
landscaping, coordinating and delivering throughout the day. Young and old,
black and white, working side by side in the name of Jesus. I believe God was
honored by our service. Not only this, but we had scores of preschoolers back on
campus working under the direction of Miss Cindi and senior adults undergirding
the whole effort with prayer under the direction of Pastor Chuck.
It was a great day all around. This was the largest FIA
group we’ve had (approximately 700 among the several churches) and the smallest
project-footprint. More than 100 people worked all day Saturday just getting
ready for us to arrive! The project wasn’t small by any means, but the
footprint in which it all transpired was relatively small. So—we got up close
and personal with all the other believers serving here in Smyrna!
Many thanks to Carole Fouts for her organizational acumen,
our incredibly competent Team Captains, and many, many volunteers. It was a
sight to behold and a wonderful day to remember.
To God be the glory!
Here’s a recap of this year’s activity:
FIA 2013 Work
Projects at Belmont Hills Elementary School
Cafeteria:
3 murals
Awning redone
Bear Claw Café (sign, flooring and
patio furniture)
2—36ft valances for wall of windows
Artwork on valances
Cafeteria completely painted and blue
highlight line added
Cleaning baseboards
Main Hallway
Blue border
Bathrooms
Cleaned, Bear claw murals in all
Whole school
Baseboards, walls and windows cleaned
Playground Equipment
Power washed and painted
Basketball Court
Lines painted, spectator benches built
and installed
Central Courtyard
Installed paver pathway
Office area
Bookshelves built and painted
Principal office makeover
Dance Studio
6 wall murals
1st Grade
Courtyard
Block walls painted
Mural painted
Flowers installed
Bird bath and seat added
Mulched area
Fence door
Nature trail area
2 bridges built and installed
Water drainage re-directed
Path mulched
All woods cleared and cleaned out
All trimmings mulched and installed
Teachers’ Workroom
Total Makeover—Cabinets built, murals
created, paint, shelving)
Teachers’ Lounge
Area created with furniture, walls
painted, organized
Conference Room
Walls painted
Wall to wall book shelves built and
painted
Landscaping
Areas mulched and trees pruned and
flowers and shrubs planted
Hallway Murals
Picnic Tables built
All Property picked
up and trash containers filled
Painting and more
painting. Misc. small repair projects
Parking and child
care provided
Food and water
distribution for vol. and registration team
On-Campus prayer
warriors undergirding project throughout the day
Preschoolers served our Police and Fireworkers
Preschoolers served our Police and Fireworkers
