What a Wonderful Maker...

The past week has just left me absolutely amazed. God has really made Himself known to me more so than usual. He has proven faithful to complete the work He has started here in his city. I have heard story after story about different locals coming to Christ in past years and it is amazing to see this trend continuing through this summer project. In fact, today at church a woman came up to me & said, "I wouldn't be here if it weren't for Campus Crusade for Christ." It is truly a blessing to be able to partake in something that is so precious to my Savior, and I am completely overwhelmed and grateful.

My first five days here have been a great experience. I am so glad that I have been able to work along side the staff to prepare the Peter Pan Motel and get to know eight other students as well. The staff's heart for God, their dedication and their sacrifice has really touched me. To know they are giving up their summers to help me grow in my walk with God and train me to share Christ's love is just unbelievable.

Yesterday we started our day early by jogging down to the cliffs where there is a little lighthouse and a BEAUTIFUL view of the coastline. I really enjoyed exploring the flowers and plants here on the way. I cannot wait to go back soon with my camera. The Warf is also the site of many surfing tournaments and we got to see about 50 surfers preparing for their competition this morning. Oh and there was a small cliff-wrapped beach where people bring their dogs to run. We saw some adorable dogs, even two gorgeous huskies. Once we returned to the motel, we finished preparing the Peter Pan and then had the rest of the afternoon and night free.  So I headed out with the student girls--Bev, Lara, Jessica & Lauren--to hit up the memorial day sales in downtown Santa Cruz. It was my first trip downtown and, boy was it unlike anything I've ever seen. There were surf shops galore. Clothing stores here sale toboggans and bathing suits in June. Gotta love SC weather; warm in the day and freezing at night. A local gave us directions to a cheap but delicious Mexican restaurant so we met up with the student guys and had dinner there. I would guess I walked/ran close to 7 or 8 miles today; it was great. We played several games afterwards and just had a blast enjoying each others company.

Today we split up and attended church in the morning. We will be helping with the children's ministries at three churches while we are here this summer--I'm excited. I ended up in the group going to Santa Cruz Bible Church and that is where I will attend for the rest of the summer. I think I'm really going to enjoy it. The rest of the day was spent in rest, relaxation, and time with the Lord, and it was culminated with a fantastic dinner. I was really able to have some quality time with the girls here today; we're already getting really close and the project hasn't really even started yet! :)

Thank you again for your prayers. Preparation has been flawless and nobody has gotten hurt. The team is working together great and I really sense that God is preparing us to do great things for Him this summer. The rest of the students are traveling now and arriving throughout the day tomorrow so if you happen to be reading this, please take a minute to pray for their safety. I am extremely excited to meet the 51 other students God has led to this Summer Project!

To God be the glory!
Ashley

PS. Hope you enjoyed the pictures! The photos are of the Boardwalk where we'll be working. I tried to upload two pictures showing the hard work we did this week, but did not have any luck. Hopefully I can post them soon. It's pretty impressive!