"Enough With The Honking!" and Other Various Missives

Even though Bruce has decided that he is destined to live here and make it on the big screen (or at least be a male model,) he does admit there is one thing about LA that could make it a deal breaker.....The Car Horns!.... *insert omnious music* I can honestly say that there is no other place on this earth in which drivers become so overcome with fits of twitching that cause continuous force to the center of any available steering wheel within ten feet. Honking occurs so much that I suppose the locals must consider the noise to be background music. I can't say that I felt the same as I was the recipient of a cacophany and other interesting gestures today while attempting to start my bike uphill from a stoplight. And tonight, while riding to Target, the group discovered that it is a requirement for all drivers in LA to have psychic powers. It seems that every individual can predict when a red light will suddenly turn green and expect to be moving forward before that change happens. The above has probably been the largest culture shock for me of the entire trip.

However, that has only been a small part of the day. This morning began the implementation of a new schedule for the team. Together we had all decided to try a longer, more involved field work time, beginning today. After breakfast, each small group ventured out to their areas via bicycle and spent the hours until 6ish meeting people in the area, making new relationships, eating lunch, enjoying the beach, and deciding on a spiritual quiet time to recharge. Thomas, Luke, and I were excited to have a more personal discussion with Tony B. that included some of his goals and beliefs in life. We feel that he is much more receptive towards us now that we have separated ourselves from the random tourists that flock the beach every day, showing genuine interest in the area and the people.

After eating lunch in an almost secret nook of businesses that we found and spendng some time chilling on the beach, we frequented Cafe Collage again. While there, Thomas, Luke, and I decided that as a small group we would work through 2 Corinthians in the afternoons, both for our benefit and to attract meaningful discussion among the customers there. With that plan intact, we made our way back to the church for some individual quiet time/naps. We felt as though our new schedule took a lot of the pressure off of us time-wise and that our day was a success. I can only leave you with one afterthought: I thought I would add that "Bistro" in LA = "bar." (We found that out the hard way....)

During our team time, Kelsey, Josh, and Bruce discussed their day scoping out a larger area of Santa Monica and looking for alternative ways to reach the locals. A good portion of their time, however, was spent on brainstorming and idea-making for an amazing opportunity that has just been handed to us. Jonathan Stockstill recently mentioned an enormous celebration soon to occur in the area (10,000 people to put things into perspective...). What an awesome way to make an impact on the community! We are gratefully asking for prayer in this undertaking as we search for ideas and resources.

The night ended with basketball and a bonfire in the church parking lot (Thanks a ton, Steven!). And what's a bonfire without ooey gooey s'mores?! It was a great way for the everyone who is involved directly with the church on a daily basis to kick back and hang out for a while. And we even have hopes for a moon bounce in the future...that will be a fun blog entry I'm sure!

Thanks and love to you all!
Storm