i know it's been a long while but this is what's in me tonight thinking about Mission trip#1 I don't know what else to call it since it's off to Guyana in two weeks- I can't believe 2 weeks. Any way the Philly Jersey shore trip was awesome- and tiring. I am so proud of the pleasant hill kids. They tackled the trip and survived I think even better for it. I think it surprised most of them that there are rednecks in South Jersey- Ha and that they kids from the SC Ridge could start conversations with complete strangers, and share their faith.we went to Atlantic city philly, and ocean city doing a little sight seing, and also surveys - passing out free water, and just plain street evangelism- Atlantic city was awesome- one student got to lead a lady toChrist, and so many seeds were plannted. the people on the board walk, and casino hotel( yes we went into the showboat- now get up off the floor- ha) were so open. Philly was just plain hard for every one, but actually fun. some of my kids really had awesome conversations, and ocean scity was spiritually cold- i think because the peopl all live nice lives, and don't really think they need a relationship with Christ more then their cultural one.What I left with from the trip is that so many people have no clue what they believe and they select what feels good to them at the time. One really supper nice lady at Ocean City said "I'm roman catholic But I don't like hell so there is no hell , and I Believe God reincarnates us for a second chance." I said ok so Hitler got a second chance( implying that he was unrepentive before his death- which probably is the case)- and she said yes. Now I have a great friend who is catholic and I know she doesn't believe in reincarnation so I asked the lady, is this something that the church teaches you? and she said "oh no- but that's what I feel." That's all she had was a feeling- nothing else to back it up. Now a lot of people say it's all relative in nature, but I say there are absolutes. I can say I believe that the extremist Islamic groups want peace and will tolerate me being a westerner, and a devote Christian, but I'm not willing to walk into the middle of one of their anti American meetings and suspect to come out unharmed in any way. I have some proof from around the world that it may be dangerous. Here this women said she was a devote catholic, but decided to add to her doctrine to make her self feel better.Yes, God created us to have a will filled with the fruit of our evaluations, but 2+2 = 4 regardless if I say it equals 9.I could handle this women's theory if she had presented that she had struggled with it, that she sought out answers, and eventually form this conclusion. I still would not have accepted it, but at least I would not be puzzled in sadness. I really had nothing to say to her. Her mind was made up to ease her conscious, never realizing she had placed a new age theory in her proclaimed christianity. People do not know what they believe, nor do they actually care