Wow, I guess that last post didn’t make it. I made a post from my phone as soon as we landed in Philadelphia, but it appears that it did not go through. That makes me sad, but either way we made it home safely and all is well. I am sure everyone is sharing their experiences with those closest to them.
-Kolby
Well, it has been an amazing trip. It is hard to believe that this trip is just a mere 12 hours away from being completed. We just pray that the lessons learned are not completed.We had an awesome time last night when each person in the group shared a short testimony of how the trip has impacted their lives. The team was out past 11:00 just sharing about what God had done during these 9 days.
The team will be leaving in a few hours, heading toward Montego Bay and the airport. We will stop for lunch and also to shop for any last minute items that we just have to have. So, this will be the last blog post before we land in Philadelphia. As soon as we land in Philadelphia there will be a post on this blog immediately.
Once we arrive back in Philadelphia, the updates will not end. I’ll keep adding our videos from the week, testimonies, and more photos that couldn’t be added. Last night I tried adding photos when it told me that I had reached the 1000 picture limit, so when I get home where the internet is fast (the internet is incredibly slow here) I will go through and delete some of the pictures and add others.
Thanks so much for following the trip, we truly had a great time and God worked in ways we never expected.
-Kolby
From Grant Morris:
Today we visited the infirmary which is a nursing home located in St. Ann’s. There we met a lady by the name of Ms. Iris. Ms. Iris is legally blind, but is still one of the happiest, most outgoing person out there. Singerman played songs on his guitar while the group sang to Ms. Iris.
We also visited several homeless people under a bridge. We took them pizza for lunch, sang and worshipped with them. Before we left we gathered around them and had a prayer. It is really really amazing to see how these people live and what they go through in their everyday lives. Now that this trip is just about complete, it has taught me a lot about my life that I didn’t know before. I learned that everyone, no matter what they look like, are still capable of being loved. I also learned that there are a lot of things in my life that I take for granted. The Jamaican people live in 12′ by 12′ houses and are just tickled to death to have what they have, but yet we complain when the heater breaks or the tav gets shut off. It has just been an incredible experience.
From Tim Lee:
Today’s soccer event at Hilltop Juvenile detention center was a wonderful experience for all. We were not sure what we were getting into and Pastor Tim had ran his mouth that we would wipe up our opponents!
The game was hard fought and the Jamaican youth soccer was very physical. The home team had the advantage of knowing the pitch, with its stone wall, rock areas, and long skinny cement block running through the middle. Hilltop used the uniforms that we had donated, a ball Nike provided for us to take. They also played in barefoot. Our team ranged from 14 years old to late 40’s in age, but we played a solid game at 0-0 at half-time. The second half saw us go down by two goals as our numerous counter attacks failed to produce a goal.
At the end, the two teams circled up, alternating Jamaican, American. In this tight circle I shared my testimony and word of encouragement using soccer as an analogy to life. These prisoners have played the 1st half of their life and imprisonment is halftime. The second half begins when they get released and if they change their tactics and approach to life, their second half can prove to be more successful. They can come back groom a deficit to go ahead with success. If they win, Jesus will present them a trophy of eternal life.
What a great game, great experience, and great testimony of vulnerability was shown. Pastor Tim is contemplating excommunicating those of us who lost the game! 
It seems as if we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Just one more night after tonight and we are home. It seems hard to believe to trip is almost over.
Today we started off by dividing the group into two groups. Pastor Mark and Billy along with a group of team members ministered at Faith Tabernacle, the church of Pastor Wayne Barclay who was very instrumental in organizing our trip. The team presented drama and the Word. Pastor Tim along with the rest of the team members ministered with song, drama and the Word to First Assembly with Pastor Franklin.
In the afternoon we spent time relaxing and seeing Ocho Rios from the water. We took a boat tour out in the water, swam and snorkeled, just relaxing from the week’s work. Everyone had an excellent time.
After dinner at the villas our team had a meeting discussing Monday’s events along with testimonies from the team and a song by Hopeton, a neighborhood child we have come to know very well.
Thanks for your support! Keep us in prayer as we wrap up our time here. Pray that we continue to have an impact until the very last moment.
-Kolby
Check out the videos page for the God of This City human video!
From “Pasta” Tim Dukes:
On Friday night we headed down to the clock tower for a street meeting. The clock tower area is the center of town. We set up a stage and sound system. As our team began to arrive in our bright orange team shirts, we began to worship. Usually in this type of setting people will watch for a few moments and then move on. You often have a new crowd every fifteen minutes. However, this meeting was so different. As people started filling the clock tower area, they just stayed. Many of them were there for over two hours. Suddenly the area that is a place of drug trade and prostitution became of place of praise. Our worship team began to worship and the entire area began to sing. It was absolutely amazing. As our team performed drama, shared testimonies and preached, people responded expressing their need for God. Our team prayed and laid hands on people. One time during the the street meeting as Travis was playing a solo on the drums, break dancers put on a show for us. The night was exciting but more important, it changed the destiny of a lot of people in Ocho Rios. I am amazed at how God moves. There was such a strong presence of God that filled the area. You will hear many personal testimonies from our team about this experience.
Today was our day of rest. Everyone gladly began the day by sleeping in until 8:00. For the morning, everyone ventured to the local craft market where souvenirs run rampant with expert salesmen looking for any gullible and willing person to walk by. After everyone had their thrill of purchasing all of the standard Jamaican goods, the larger part of the group spent the early afternoon climbing Dunn’s River falls, a large waterfall. The rest of the group spent the afternoon resting at the beach or in their room.
Tonight we had yet another street meeting. This time the street meeting was just outside the gates of Teen Challenge. All of the people from the community were invited as well as several people from the street meeting on Friday night. Similarly, song, drama and testimony brought people out and brought people into the Kingdom. After the street meeting, a meal was hosted at a nearby church for all attending the street meeting. We setup a screen to show pictures of all the work all week long. Everyone really seemed to enjoy seeing the photos. We truly had a great time doing what we love to do, just show these people the love that has been shown to us. No matter if we love these people with our construction skills, song, drama, time, word, or even a simple hug, these people love to be loved.
Please continue to pray for us as our team is sharing in two different churches tomorrow. I thank you for your support!
-Kolby
Let me start off with what happened yesterday, Friday. The construction crew continued with their work in the morning blessing the people of the Milford are with a larger and more structured place to live. The students ministered to Iona High School with song drama and the Word. Several students raised their hands signifying that they wanted to accept Jesus as their Lord and savior. Jay, John and I also continued the computer class, teaching 6 of the Teen Challenge students how to work with and interact with a computer. They are making great progress in learning the basics of typing, the mouse and learning to change font size and style.
In the afternoon, the girls went to minister to the girls there. They took pictures of all the girls and blessed them with a printed copy and allowed them to decorate a frame however they choose. The girls really seemed to enjoy the pictures.
Friday night our entire team met at the center of Ocho Rios to setup and have a street meeting filled with drama, testimony and song. Thousands of people were within the sound of our voices. It is difficult to describe exactly how things happened. As the music rang through the streets, crowds gathered to hear what was going on. Many people came to the front to accept Christ or prayer. After they prayed, the team member would have them fill out a connection card so a local church can stay in contact with them. It was an excellent time where God really moved in the hearts of the people. In addition to our team’s testimonies and musicians, Kanut (Kenneth), who was saved last year at the street meeting and baptized during our trip, shared a song and testimony telling of what God had done in his life. Singer Man, a local musician also shared a song before the crowd. It was a great time that truly blessed our team as well as the people of Ocho Rios.