Dare Challenge Thanksgiving 2013 (Part 2)

December 4, 2013

Welcome to Part 2 of our Thanksgiving Celebration with the Dare Challenge guys.  You can find Part 1 here.

After the men (and the new couple from our church) had all arrived at our home, Steve gathered us in a big circle and we joined hands to pray. He asked each person to pray a sentence prayer, which was a wonderful way to start things off; in fact, I got downright teary eyed at some of the prayers.  

Here are a few examples:

1. Thank you for a second chance. 2.  I’m thankful for my family’s love and support.  3. Thank you for Dare Challenge. 4. Dear God, thank you for the support of my friends in this circle. 5. Thank you, Lord, that my dad let me come to Dare Challenge.  6. Thank you for new beginnings and for forgiveness. 

Nineteen different prayers—all straight from the heart. The whole day was worth it just to hear those prayers.

After we finished praying, we got right down to the business of eating. I quickly discovered that those guys could really pack it in!  (Which made me very happy since I love feeding people.)

02-DSC_7575

01-DSC_7573

It did my heart good to get to be a substitute mama for the day.

03-DSC_7576

Not only did the guys have big appetites they also had big hearts, hearts that were filled with gratitude. Each of them must have thanked us half a dozen times for inviting them to come—they were so appreciative of every small thing done for them.

From the moment they walked in, conversation and laughter flowed freely. It truly did have a family feel to it.

04-DSC_7580

Sarah was adopted as a substitute sister for the day and did a wonderful job of making conversation with a room full of guys she had never met before. She enjoyed their company so much and they treated her so sweetly and respectfully.

05-DSC_7581

When it came time for dessert,  Josh looked at the pie plates we had set out and said half jokingly, “Um, do you have anything bigger?”  So we got out a dinner plate for him and gave him an eating utensil for each hand. He was one happy camper.

06-DSC_7582

After dessert, everyone drifted into one room and we all started telling funny stories from our lives. Steve got up and regaled us with several of his Classics.

07-DSC_7585

I looked at all those smiling, relaxed, happy faces and thought, “Ahhhh.  Such a sweet sight.”

08-DSC_7587

10-DSC_7592

After the prayer and the food and the stories, we went outside for some badminton. . .

17-DSC_7679

13-DSC_7632

and corn hole.

14-DSC_7638

15-DSC_7660

When we came back in, a couple of the guys jumped in and started doing dishes. Dinner plates, dessert plates, serving dishes, pans, and goblets for 19 people?  That’s a lot of dishes!  

We were about to start a funny video in the living room and yet they were determined to keep cleaning up. I finally had to pull out my Stern Mama Voice and tell them to go sit down; otherwise, they would have kept right on working. Very impressive fellas, and very good dish washing skills!

18-DSC_7687

After watching a comedy video together. . .

19-DSC_7691

it was time to pose for a family photo. The adopted Smiths!

20-DSC_7700

Before the guys took off, we invited them to pack up all the left over food and desserts to take along with them. (Since our church paid for the food, we wanted to be sure they got it all.)

Also, I would just like to mention that when my mom–who is on a very limited income–heard what we were doing, she sent us a check to go toward the food expense. Thanks, Mom!

21-DSC_7707

 After doing some additional clean up, Sarah put on her comfy clothes and went up to our bed with Summer for a little post-Thanksgiving repose.  Summer is a Professional Reposer.

23-DSC_7714

As the evening settled down around us and the house became quiet once again, Steve, Sarah and I treasured the memories of the prayers, the stories, the gratitude and the laughter we had all shared together on that special day.

22-DSC_7711

 

 

Oh. And one more thing . . .

Just in case you might be wondering whether or not Dare Challenge really makes any sort of difference in peoples’ lives, take a quick look at the photo on the left. This is Austin Smith (one of our dinner guests), right before he entered the program. 

1-1269210_1383366928560016_786573510_o

These photos show him last year (as a student) then again this year as a staff member.

3-dare challenge 2013

I talked to Austin on the phone just a few minutes ago and asked him to sum up his story for me. This is what he said:

My parents raised me right, but when I had choices to make, I made the wrong ones. I wanted a taste of more than what I had and that led me to a lifestyle of  alcohol, women, and drugs. Although I chose death, God gave me life. He has turned my story and my life around and He is using them for good.

What an amazing transformation, one that has happened over and over and over through the ministry of Dare Challenge. 

I’ll close with a Dare Challenge Facebook post from the dad of one of the young men we hosted: 

Thank you so much for opening up your beautiful home to these young men on Thanksgiving. It helped us to know that our son was part of your family on this day. Thank you Dare Challenge and the Smith family.

 

If you’d be interested in helping Dare Challenge continue to change lives, you can make a tax-deductible contribution by going to the Dare Challenge website Just scroll halfway down the page till you see the Giving Button.

 

Share:
16 comments so far.

16 responses to “Dare Challenge Thanksgiving 2013 (Part 2)”

  1. Jojy Smith says:

    This post made me wish I were right there with these guys and having dinner with your family! I had a great dinner with my own family out here in California, but the warmth of Thanksgiving could be felt in these photos and those smiling faces! Wow!

  2. Courtney Hurd says:

    This post makes me so happy! As we celebrated with our family on Thanksgiving Day, I thought often about the Dare Challenge folks being in your home. What a gift to share a traditional meal and family love on the day of Thanksgiving!!

    • Becky says:

      Courtney,

      Thanks for the heart you have for these guys; in fact, thanks for the heart you have for so MANY people who need encouragement in one way or another. You are amazing!

  3. Mary H says:

    Becky, I have not had a chance to comment and/or read these posts until now. This is just so special. Someone else already said it but it fits – Beautiful! The comment you posted from the father of one of these young men, just melted my heart. Thank you, all of you Smithes!

  4. Eva says:

    I’m so moved each year by what you are doing to celebrate Thanksgivings and by the beauty of your adopted family for the day!

  5. Karen Lynch says:

    So wonderful I just got chill bumps! God has certainly worked through Dare to change lives. They were so blessed to have spent Thanksgiving in such a loving home . Everything just looked beautiful!

  6. Deborah Smith says:

    thank you for opening your home to the men of Dare Challenge and I love the story about my son.
    blessings
    Deborah Smith

  7. Suzanne says:

    The Smith family is such a blessing to everyone. Thank you for being the hands and feet of Christ EVERY day.

  8. Lesley says:

    Beautiful.

Thanks for contributing to this blog through your comments.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Twenty years.

It's hard to believe I've been blogging that long. Many of you have been following since the first word was written all those years ago. Thanks to both old-timers and newcomers for being part of our story.

My goal is for Smithellaneous is to be a place where strangers become friends.

You are welcome here.

Subscribe Here. (Please!)

Receive notifications when a new blog is posted. Other than that, I won\'t bug you. :-)

Join 310 other subscribers

Search Past Posts by Month/Year

Archives