TEAM #26 – ELMIRA COLLEGE  April 10-18, 2014

by Michael J. Miller, Jr   5/14/14

11 Young ladies found more than they expected

We are here. And Mike you said to do what? Tear off a roof???????

The ceilings were filled with dust and pigeon feathers.

Tearing off the roof was only the beginning of the work load.

Hosting an Elmira College team was a first for Border Buddies. We have always wanted to expand into new areas and we found it through our own local college. Hosting an all-girl team is a first for us and we were excited in taking this on. This team of young ladies worked like one unit, lived together as sisters of the faith, and never complained about the heat, the work, or what God was going to do with their lives. When they arrived I always give a brief meeting of the Do’s and Don’ts. While I was giving this I told them that God was going to stretch them to new levels in their faith. They made faces and I wasn’t sure what they meant but I knew what God was telling me, as you will read in my last report. In the second photo was the mission for this team in removing the entire roof. It started out in removing the ceilings and electrical work as seen in the 3^rd photo. Then we started into the roofing itself and the trusses. These young ladies tore down the entire roof in 2 days and had the school looking like a bomb went off. The worked on shoveling broken bricks and concrete into the back of truck to be hauled away. The blessing was that almost every day our conversation would lead us to sitting down and talking about the Lord and Holy Spirit. There were so many questions swirling in the minds of these young ladies. They were hungry for something much more profound and the Lord was using these times to move in their hearts. I told them the work is one thing but it isn’t the most important thing. Every team asks me, “Mike are we accomplishing a lot?” I always answer it isn’t a matter of what I think that needs to be done but what the Lord is doing with you. That is much more important to us. This is what short-term missions are about. The Change that comes forth.