Last H2O of '06

Hey All!
I can’t believe that it is already time to count another year gone for H2O’s! The fact that we won’t be meeting again until next year is really, really weird!! I think that most of us would agree that ’06 was a pretty good year, but at the same time I am excited to see what ’07(!) holds.
Well I think that Ice Diamond is going to post about volleyball, so I will start with dodge-ball.

Dodge-ball is yet another new addition to our meetings, but was a lot of fun. It was really easy because we were in the gym this time, so we didn’t have to chase balls all over the place. We had a couple of different ways that we played, with pretty basic rules. The first few games we split into two teams and went at it. That was fun, if a little chaotic, and everyone had a great time.

The second round of games each team choose a secret "Goliath" and the goal of the other team was get that person out because then the whole team was out. In the case of piture above, poor Suzannah was our Goliath, and also left out there all by herself at the end. I guess that we as her bodygaurds didn't do to good of a job.

We also added the rule that every time someone on your team caught a ball thrown by the opposition, one of your teammates that had been out got to come back in.

(Is it my turn yet?)
This made for a longer, more interesting game. The last round of all, we played girls against guys. Because there where twice as many guys as gals, all of the fellows had to play with their right hand behind their back the whole game. (Left hand for James :)




That was pretty exciting, and also pretty well matched. It came down to Shield Maiden against Mr Competitive. This 1 on 1 lasted for a little while, and then Shield Maiden caught a ball thrown by Mr Competitive and that was the end fo the game. Over all it was a blast, and I think we will be playing it again.

After dodge-ball we had dinner. It was sort of pot-luck style this time, everyone bringing something different to share. Other than that, nothing really whack-o happened. It is after all hard to be really crazy when you are eating.
Strider shared about his trip to the gulf cost after Katrina this time. It was incredible to see how much "trash and distruction" :) was still there. I guess it hadn’t hit home with me how wide spread the devastation was, but when you see it pictures it really looks like a war zone. They stayed at a church in one of the Sunday school rooms while they were there, and spent their time re-wiring some houses that the church there knew about. One of the ladies they helped had not been to church since her husbands death several years earlier, but after they worked on her house and invited her to come she did. Strider asks that we would pray for her to come into a relationship with the Lord.Prayer and worship time was shorter than we wanted it to be, but it was still really good. We also spent some time sharing what was on some of our hearts, and some of the things the Lord has been showing us lately. The overall tone was that we need to remember that people are watching us all the time. We are a constant witness, people look at us and see a difference. We as Christians need to make sure that what they see is something better than what they have. Also that we need to have a measure of grace and gentleness when talking with a non-believer. Not that we should accept any sin as right, or condone immoral behavior, but that we should hate the sin and love the person. This is often a hard balance to find. To stand for what you believe, and yet to show that Lord's love to everyone. This is an area that needs a lot of prayer for each individual situation, that the Lord would help each of us as the need arises. There where, of course, many other prayer requests so I thought I would list them here so that we can all continue to lift them to the Lord. The Purresslly's grandpa as he is having memory problems, and that he would see the need to slow down a little and let the family help with some things. The Purvis' grandma as she is now home from the hospital, but not doing very well. They ask that everyone would pray for her to be at peace. Mrs. Whitaker, she has a very bad infection that the doctors can't pin point and is having trouble eating anything. A friend of the Smiths named Ken Noblett who is in the hospital with pneumonia, as well as a broken back and an internal infection that they can't seem to locate. James, he has decided that the Lord is calling him to become a Navy SEAL, and also for his family as they come to grips with this realization. Paule and Mary Papez, Mary will be undergoing a major surgery right after Thanksgiving. She does not have much chance of making it through, but can't live without having it. Neither of them are Christians. Please pray for both of them. Suzan Cramer, Joy boss. She lost both her son and her husband last year and is very bitter towards a lot of people. Pray that she would see the forgiveness and peace that the Lord offers. Also for Joy, that she would be able to have the right words at the right time. Josh Burks, he fell off of a scaffold and broke one of his heels and badly bruised the other. He has to be off of his feet completely for at least two weeks.
Amanda and Ducan's grandparents, their grandma has cancer that is beyond cures, but kind of lives in denial of the fact. Also for their grandpa as he is having a tough time with all of this, especially the fact that he can't control it in any way.
Mr. Storer, he is trying to make a decision on a slight job change that would give him scheduled work hours, but is not sure what the Lord's will is yet.
The people that Strider and his dad and friends worked with in the Gulf Coast.
The Cameron family, Mrs. Cameron's brother died very suddenly Saturday. The funeral was Tuesday. Prayers for the whole family during this time.
All of our group that is away from home, especially over the holiday season.
These are all that I can remember, but if there are any more let me know and I will get them on here, or you can leave them as a comment. Please keep these people in mind and pray for them. Never underestimate the power of prayer!
Well I think that is all for now. If any of you have something to add, let us know!
God Bless,
Niyad