Saturday, June 17:
LTIA 2006 is underway!!! Thank you for your patience with us in getting this website running. Technical difficulties doesn’t quite describe what we’ve experienced so far this week!
So, to start things off, we have quite a diverse group this year. Arkansas , Illinois , Colorado , Alaska , Ohio , and the country of TEXAS are all represented here this year in D.C. We have 24 students, 2 interns, and 9 staff experiencing LTIA in all its splendor!
The first day was interesting to say the least. Most of us experienced airport delays, to say the least. From bad weather to plane malfunctions, lost luggage, and even a broken terminal ramp, we surprisingly all made it safe and sound by…eh…11:30 pm Saturday night! Most students, however, were welcomed on time and heard the first of many intense LTIA lectures. The night was ended with one of those great “get-to-know” you games that everyone surprisingly loves! The latecomers (6 Fayetteville-ains) were welcomed to the LI building by turned out lights, locked doors, and snoring acquaintances. But we, the 6 very tired airport patrons, all arrived safely and for that we are thankful, especially due to my personal intense fear of flying J
Sunday, June 18th:
Sunday morning is one of the highlights of LTIA every summer. We are blessed to join Crossroads Baptist Church in Virginia for Sunday morning services, led by Pastor Baldwin. The Sunday school, the choir, the loving welcome, and the smiling faces are unbelievably amazing every single time. However, the message is indescribable. This Sunday’s message was taken from the minor prophet of Joel. The main emphasis of the message was that God asks us to rend our hearts, and not our garments. He wants realness from the hearts of His children. He wants us to be broken hearted, and willing to give it all for Him. When we rend our garments, the world sees it, and they may be proud or impressed for the moment, but it means nothing to God unless it is met with that earnest heart. God’s presence was there. You could feel it. I think it got us all praying that God would “un-desensitize” us and brings us back to His feet. We wander so far away and get so caught up that we forget what we’re missing. I so strongly desire to be in constant fear of losing that close relationship with Christ. I thank the Lord for LTIA. It just seems to be such a powerful reminder every year of what we’re up against and what we’re needed for during this short life.
Also on Sunday night, we took a three hour tour of the monuments in our nation’s capitol. It’s a long walk, but such a great time for everyone to get to know each other. Bro. Ken Francis and Bro. Jim Love always give us interesting facts about our country’s Biblical heritage and the spiritual warfare we are up against today. It was sobering to walk through the war memorials, especially because it’s Father’s Day and the memories of lives that lie within those walls are at times unbearable. But it was a beautiful, clear night here in the District of Columbia . The metros are always an adventure and we took so many pictures that my 1 GIG memory card read “FULL”. Hah…hope you all are ready to be shown a million pictures of the same 30 people over and over!!! (Speaking of pictures, check out the pictures page later today for some good shots of the tour.) Happy Father’s Day to all those who didn’t hear from their children today. We thought about you, I promise! We love you and we thank each one of you for allowing us, your children, to be raised in such an environment and country that we are able to experience what this week and what God’s presence has to offer! More to come tomorrow…
Monday, June 19th:
This morning, everyone walked into the room looking a little more rested than yesterday. We started off the day with thoughts on the evidence for God and His resurrection. The three lectures were taught by Dr. Pat Briney and Bro. Ken Francis. During these lectures, the questions posed are “Is there a God?” and “Which God is the real God?” These questions will lay the foundation for upcoming lectures on evidence for creation and the world famous presentation of Dr. Evolution.
And then came lunch…mmmm J Today we had Chick-fil-A. Never has food tasted so good. After lunch, we headed off to the Museum of American History , running only about an hour late. We RAN from the Smithsonian to the next item on our agenda – Concerned Women for America . CWA is one of the leading organizations in the nation dealing with restoring traditional family values. Wendy Wright, the president of CWA, spoke with us about how she got involved with politics and the organization. She has such an amazing testimony because she saw the need for a leader in the political arena and went for it. Bob Wright and Dr. Janice Crouse also spoke with us about current issues concerning homosexuality, abortion, cohabitation, and sex trafficking. Being at CWA always brings things into light. Not only did they let us know what conditions are worsening, but they encouraged us by telling us that teen pregnancy has decreased and abstinence among teens has increased in the last few years. We really appreciate CWA taking the time to speak with us each summer. It’s one of those places that remind you that as an individual, you can change the entire world if you have a willing and determined heart.
As we were leaving CWA, still an hour behind time, the rain came down! Due to the fact that girls do not enjoy having their hair sopping wet, we all tied Wal-Mart sacks around our head as we marched through town. The guys were most likely embarrassed, but we just held our heads down and kept walking! And our hair looked great the rest of the day J We came back to LI and ate dinner. Tonight we ate Chinese food (also known by some as cat and dog) and it was tasty.
The night continued as LI gave lectures on campaigning and the LTIA Advanced Program (comprised of 4 students, 2 interns, and 2 staff) met to begin planning for the “Great Debate”.
We ended off the day with a unbelievable round of Mafia. Never has the game gone so slow and had at least 5 people understood what was going on, it might have been fun!!! But it was a good day today, and we really enjoyed the rain. However, the lack of sleep is not enjoyable. So on that note, I will be writing more tomorrow
Tuesday, June 20th:
This morning came too quickly. The lack of sleep I am experiencing is remarkable. However, today we press on. Today we experienced the one and only, Dr. Evolution--also known as Dr. Pat Briney on…eh…humanistic steroids. We learned the arguments against evolution and the evidence for creation. These lectures are always enlightening, and usually too much to take in at once. Slowly but surely, it begins to click.
After lunch, prepared delicately and lovingly by Blimpie’s, we headed off to one of the most sobering places I have personally experienced. The Holocaust Museum is overwhelming. Trying to make sense of the history of it, you can’t help but realize the spiritual attack that was underway. When you look at the pictures or read the stories, it’s unreal to me how much hate was formed in the hearts and minds of the Nazis. Not only does this museum make us realize how lucky we are, but it also reminds us all that this could be us. Are we going to stand strong? Are we willing to go through that for our faith, for our Savior? Just a thought to ponder…
After the Holocaust, we went on a little sightseeing tour. We stopped by the Supreme Court, the Library of Congress, and then headed on the Capitol to meet with dignitaries. Senator Brownback from Kansas met us on the steps, spoke with us about his ideas about certain issues, answered some questions, and even took a picture with our group. We really enjoyed our time with him, though the temperature was near boiling point, and the Capitol steps much like a stovetop. Next on the list was meeting with Congressman Boozman from Arkansas . A few of us are a bit fond of the ol’ guy, and we can always count on him to meet up with us in D.C. He also spoke with us, answered questions, and took a picture. Time with Boozman won’t stop there though, because he is the one who will be taking us on our night tour of the Capitol building tomorrow night.
After getting a little burned and crispy in the sun, and after a wonderful day filled with new experiences, we came back here to LI to eat yet again. Water and food was exactly what we wanted. After we ate, rested, and cooled off, LTIA students were presented with another lecture from LI staff. The Advanced Program went elsewhere to work on the “Great Debate”. The night was ended with a birthday party for Susan Skaggs, a student from Ohio . *Happy Birthday Susan* All in all, it was a great day. Tiring, and hot, but so much fun! We are looking forward to another Congressman tomorrow and the night tour. I’ll keep you updated!!!
Wednesday June 21st:
This is the fifth day in our nation’s capitol. Today was another busy, yet exciting day. The day started out with lectures on evidence for inspiration. This is such a dynamic lecture because most of the information on the correct version of the Bible has never been heard by the students. Next we learned about secular humanism and how it’s on the rise in America .
For lunch, we ate some chicken and fries. Pretty good, let me tell you. The food has been amazing. I’m going to have to buy an extra plane ticket home for the extra space I’ll be taking up.
Our adventure after lunch consisted of going to visit with Congressman Chabot from Ohio . However, when we arrived, they told us it was going to be about 45 minutes before he was ready to see us. So why not go walking?!?!?! It is, after all, only 128 degrees outside. Hah. We only walked across the street and amazingly enough, there stood the Library of Congress. We hung out there for a while before going back to visit with Chabot. He was so wonderful to us. He is genuinely nice and personable and was more than willing to answer any questions. But soon enough, that had ended and it was time to do what? Yes, that’s right walking. We did some metro surfing and headed back to LI to stuff our faces.
Lasagna, salad, and rolls awaited us on the banquet table. Besides a few stains, it was very enjoyable. After dinner, we were to go on a night tour of the Capitol with Boozman. Little did we know how awesome it was going to be.
I’ve been to the Capitol a few times before. But this time, it was truly amazing. Boozman got to take us through the underground tunnel into the Capitol. This summer he got us in to see the old Senate Chamber and the old Supreme Court room. We looked around, took a bijillion photos and were so thankful for the awesome things we were able to see. But then Boozman told us he had one more treat for us. We got on the escalator, left our purses and cameras on the table and walked right into the House floor. You know, the c-span room, the State of the Union address room. It was so incredible. Boozman explained every part of the room as we sat in the seats and were awed. He even told us a story about when he fell out of his chair. We got to look at the gas masks that are under every seat and Phillip even found out what “the buttons” were for. After we were done at the Capitol, Boozman was nice enough to walk us to the Metro. We walked and talked and talked some more. Never has our tour been so amazing. And never before has Boozman connected with us on such a personal level. We really enjoyed that time and it inspired me to come back as an intern in his office. I’ll keep you updated. Anyone have any connections????
We got back at about 10:30 and went straight to bed. I know tomorrow will hold more great experiences, and I will be here to let you know all about them!
