Hey relatives and friends! Bayley here to give you all the lowdown on what Brax and I have been up to recently. On Sunday, July 12th, Brax and I left the Mall of America parking lot on a beautiful coachbus to drive to the University of Tennessee campus in Knoxville, Tennessee for a covenant youth conference called CHIC (Covenant High In Christ) that happens only every 3 years. The bus took 23 hours to drive through Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky. We slept through Indiana, although hardly anyone actually slept. Braxton and I only got around 2-3 hours of sleep because of being uncomfortable, untimely pitstops, and a bumpy bus. But at long last, we arrived at UT around 11:00 a.m on Saturday morning (Tennessee time).
And what an amazing time we had: excursions, concerts, amazing/inspiring speakers, great calls to action. Braxton went white-water rafting and packed food for Feed My Starving Children (a ministry that brings food to starving families all over the world). I got to drive go-karts on the Nascar speedway and went shopping in a tiny town called Pideon Forge. Every night, there was an event called "Mainstage," where the entire CHIC community would hear famous Christian bands and speakers from all over the country, including a pastor from Minnesota! Brax and I saw live performances from David Crowder Band, Israel Howdin, FlyLeaf, Third Day, and the incredibly awesome CHIC band. We heard amazing sermons from pastors who build a church from the ground up or who have found the injustices of our country and came out successful. And lectures from men and woman who made it their passion to fight the injustice of slave and human trafficking.
I went to a lecture called "Slumdog Millionaire meets Slumdog Professor," and the man speaking told about his life growing up in the slums of India, and what he is doing now to help his country with his Ph. D. He told stories of childhood friends that would suddenly disappear from the slums, and never to be heard from until many years later where the child would return mentally damaged and physically weakened. He told us that children were, and still are, being kidnapped off of the streets or tricked into leaving their families for the promise of a better life and money to send home, but more often than not, the children are forced to work in some slave trade or human trafficking, never getting paid a penny. And they do not return home, until their master deems them "useless," where they are kicked out and left to find their own way home. After hearing all this, my blood was boiling, how can someone purchase a child of God? How can a human being treat a fellow human with so little...feeling?
But while this trip was extremely eye opening, it was also inspirational and hope lifting. Over 2,000 letters were written by CHIC students and leaders to their state senators about the importance of abolishing slavery and human trafficking. And in the span of 5 days, we prepared and packed 527, 896 meals for Feed My Starving Children! But what is even more amazing, is that in 1 single offering at Mainstage, the CHIC community donated $109, 327 for ministries in Thailand!!
About 6,000 high school students and their leaders came to CHIC this year from all the world: Canada, Mexico, El Salvador, Sweden, etc.. The entire experience was unforgettable and I am VERY thankful that I was able to spend so much time with Braxton before I leave for school. We left CHIC on Friday, July 17th at 9:00 a.m (Tennessee time). We had lunch in Kentucky and dinner in Illinios (where I rode a carousel for the 1st time in FOREVER!!!!). We got back to that MOA parking lot at 2:45 a.m, that's right, A.M!!! Mom, David, and the puppies (I call them "puppies") where they were waiting when we arrived and we quickly went home so Brax and I could sleep in our own beds, which we did, until noon. =)
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