Mission Possible 4 in Nashville, TN USA in July 2009

Prologue

Why was it so inviting?

• I'd be sleeping on a church floor for five days with nothing but the thin padding of my sleeping bag to comfort me.
• I had so much work to do for my marketing consulting and blogs to write for my UltimateWorkAtHomeDads.com website and wouldn't be near a computer to do it.
• I'd be surrounded with middle school kids, helping to guide them, lead them, drive them (and the more I drive the easier it is for me to fall asleep).
• I'd be away from my home, my wife, my bed, my air conditioning while cleaning driveways, feeding hungry people, walking around a rainy downtown area looking for "good" and stopping to pray.

Oh, sure… there were plenty of reasons to say NO, but still I was called to help, to lead, to grow, to be taught.

And so I went.

July 19 – July 25, 2009 (not getting to bed until 2:42 AM on Saturday – WAY after all the kids did, and I'll explain that in the Diary).

Here's what five seminary students can dream up to support Middle School students who are often left behind when it comes to service projects (because they aren't 16 years old, yet, and insurance won't allow them to handle the "heavy projects" seen in most mission trips).

Five churches (from near Atlanta, GA; Charlotte, NC; two near Nashville, TN; and Swarthmore, PA) gathering for service, fellowship, and meaningful lessons of faith.

So here it is… my personal video diary broken into 5 segments.

Do I expect you to watch it? Heck, NO.

Am I surprised that you are even HERE looking at this? For SURE!

Do I think you'll be MOVED if you get into the spirit and share the joys and tears I went through for this week? ABSOLUTELY.

When we make up our minds that it's time to change from "Success" to "Significance," we look for ways to pay back and pay forward.

In some small way this is one way I chose.

Best,

Charlie Seymour Jr
A Work At Home Dad since 1983, succeeding in this economy
Follow Charlie Seymour Jr On Twitter!

Charlie Seymour Jr – Learn More About Charlie at UltimateWorkAtHomeDads.com

Part 1. From Swarthmore To Nashville

• What are the lessons of the loaves and the fishes?
• How well can Middle School kids share their love with others?
• Why it was important for me to meet Janet Lytle Larner during our stop in Staunton, VA
• Why we go on trips like this to help the hungry, the poor, the homeless
• The lessons these kids can teach us as they take a week out of their vacations… lessons of service, caring, love, support
• Why an alarm clock is only a safety net for me, if I use it at all
• What the Widow's Mite story can teach us about giving, service, helping those disenfranchised

Part 2. Looking Ahead To
The Lessons Of The Week

• Secrets from the Prayer Garden behind the church
• Tuesday With Charlie – a preview of the day's activities
• What "washing feet" teaches us about serving others and how to do it
• Why we can't be the same after we serve others
• How to get people to know, like, and trust you
• From Success to Significance and why we turn inward at times like this
• What the "butterfly theory" can teach you
• The mysteries of seeing "it" in their eyes
• Why "pay it back; pay it forward" is so important
• The lessons of Second Harvest – HUGE warehouse of food, hope, spirit, need
• How the generosity of "business" helps
• Why you have to sit down when talking about immigration

Part 3. Wednesday's Preview

• Did the constant rain dampen our spirits?
• How Doug's lesson about helping touched my heart
• Why Quinton's outlook on life inspires
• What Nashville's Rescue Mission, Country Music Hall of Fame, and a Prayer Walk in the rain have in common

Part 4. Reflections on Wednesday

• The sun never came out – what did that do to our plans?
• How our "serving machine" was really "cooking" at the Nashville Rescue Mission
• What do the people we served look like and why were they there?
• Can this meal really feed the soul as well as the body?
• Why did Steven miss the Country Music Hall Of Fame?
• Does East Nashville, in the rain, have any beauty, hope, spirit?
• What do kids think about a Prayer Walk in the rain, and how do they express it in words and images?
• Will an experiment in Silence-For-An-Hour work? Will it speak loudly to our hearts?
• Can My Friends House get boys back on a clean path?
• What my Baby Boomer Bones were saying to me
• How powerful can touch be without any contact?

Part 5. Thoughts at 4:41 AM

• How many more circles under my eyes can I fit?
• What my sinuses were screaming to me
• Why the spirit of giving filled my head
• How My Friends House looked when we left – left it a bit nicer for the boys who find their right path there
• Could we really sweep up, wipe down, and display images on the walls?
• Small steps for food have big impact – how moving bus routes help feed the hungry
• Changing government to make gardening legal again
• The shifting problem of Dorrie's van – "I think I can, I think I can" might not be strong enough
• Combining worship, singing, the Lord's Supper to cap off the week
• How ONE sentence can uplift your neighbor as you put an arm on his/her shoulder

SO…

• What changed over the week?
• What impact on others did we have?
• How were everyone's eyes windows into their souls
• To where does our journey continue?

I can answer SOME of that… but YOU have to answer the rest.

Thanks for visiting. I hope you've gotten something out of this.

I know I have.