Aug 29, 2014

Home Again

For almost a month now Titus and I have been back home in Michigan.
I did a wonderful job blogging during the last few weeks of camp, huh? :) Camp was amazing, & definitely needed for us. I especially needed the study through Philippians 2, because it exposed how little I truly love people and how incredibly arrogant and prideful I am in the face of God.
He is definitely continuing to work in me in these areas and it has been so amazing to experience God's faithful love and patience.

Since being back home we have had a ton of downtime, which has been great! But we have also had the blessing of having some adventures :)

One of the first weekends we were home, we went to downtown Detroit to explore Eastern Market. Eastern Market is a six-block public/open market that has been in existence since 1891! There were so many wonderful veggies, fruits, & local products. I highly recommend it if you are ever in the area.


That same day, we went over to Belle Isle; back in its hay-day it was absolutely gorgeous! It is still gorgeous, but there are parts of it that have sadly been neglected. It has a rich history that is worth reading :) 


Belle Isle Conservatory (Beautiful greenhouse!)


The James Scott Fountain on the Island (Which is funny, because Titus' middle name is James...:)


I love this man of mine who is up for anything!


The oldest aquarium in America!


The Belle Isle zoo was all blocked off; it closed in the early two-thousands. It was most recently used in one of the scenes of the 2011 movie "Real Steel." I SOOOOO wanted to go in and get pictures, but even I will admit that probably isn't the best idea. But you can see more pictures on this blog-post


After exploring the island, we set off for another abandoned site: Detroit's Central Station. This too was completely blocked off, but such a gorgeous building! You need to see pictures of the inside...so sad. Check them out here.
There are talks of renovations happening soon, but no one knows for sure. 

One hint of renewal came as we turned away from the station and were walking back to our car; in the small grassy field there were dozens of people gather...homeless. Suddenly I felt very conspicuous, similar to when I have traveled abroad to third world countries. These decaying, crumbling buildings are kind of cool to me...exploring urban decay seems like an adventure. For these people, this is the state of so much of their city right now. Rich history and beautiful areas falling into a state of unrest and ruin. I felt guilt. My heart goes out to so many who suffer daily all over the world while I get to enjoy my comfortable life.
As we got closer, we saw that about half of the people had matching shirts and were not only bringing hot meals, but also just talking with individuals. Not in a condescending way either, but in a loving, caring way.  We didn't want to intrude, but we did look up their ministry when we got home & found that this is something they do often.

God has given Titus & I such a deep burden for the people of Detroit, and recently we have been so encouraged not only to hear of and see so many people with the same burden, but also to hear so many stories of people whose lives are being transformed by the power of the gospel. Often I get overwhelmed by the enormity of the issues and broken lives, but I have been learning that God does not ever get overwhelmed, and He works in individuals...patiently and personally. And when whole communities of individuals are being transformed, whole communities and cities are transformed and there are areas in Detroit where that is happening.

God has not left Detroit; Pray for Detroit!