Back From the Middle of the World

How do you try to describe something that was experienced but not fully understood?  How do you put to words something that goes deeper than the mind can comprehend?  We use words that cannot even come close in doing those experiences justice.  I find myself struggling with this very thing as I come back from my missions trip to Ecuador.  "How was your trip?"  "Amazing.  So good.  Life changing.  I loved it."  But how can any of those statements really describe what happened,  not only on the trip but also in my heart?  So as I continue to process all that the Lord did in and through me, I find that the best way to share with others is by telling stories.  Although it feels, in a way, shallow compared to what really happened, I know it is a necessary in helping to keep those experiences alive in me.  And of course, I want to share with everyone about my incredible time in Ecuador!
The second week of the trip continued on with just as much diversity as the first week.  At times, this was difficult for me.  I just wanted to stay wherever we were at because I loved it so much and I wanted to invest time there.  But then we would go to another place or ministry and I would love that one just as much.  So even though it was hard going from one place to the next, I ended up being blessed by every place we went to.  The Lord was also teaching me about embracing wherever I am, not worrying about whether or not I'm in the right place or doing the right thing.  He taught me to love on whoever is in front of me.  Things don't always happen as we would like them to, but as we learn to abandon ourselves to simply love, we get the most out of every moment that we possibly can.
We did a lot of children's ministry that week.  We went to a home for kids with special needs.  Such a beautiful experience.  One of the girls had just had her 15th birthday, so we brought in a full blown party to celebrate her.  Balloons, silly string, music, dancing, cake, and songs.  That, my friends, is ministry at it's finest.  We had no agenda in going there but to celebrate each of these kids by being with them and bringing smiles to their faces.  These kids never got visitors, so for them, those couple of hours were a treat.
Another day we went to a Christian school in a poorer community in Quito.  This community had experienced a lot of traumatic experiences the past year with gangs molesting children on an on going basis.  Our team wanted to bring some type of hope and restoration so decided to do some street art for and about the kids.  This piece of art was to remind the community of who these kids really were and who they could become.  It was "El Futuro", the future pasted before the communities eyes.  We also got to work with the kids doing different workshops on healing and the prophetic.  These kids were so beautiful and it was such a fun time pouring into such worthy investments.
One of my favorite things that we did was pouring into the workers and directors of the different ministries.  I absolutely love getting to minister to those people who are constantly pouring their lives out for others.  Seeing them get touched by the Holy Spirit as we spoke words of life, destiny, and encouragement over them was an absolute highlight for me.  One particular day, we got to minister to our translators and the leaders of the Global Children's Movement - the ministry that we were partnered with.  After a few short minutes of splitting everyone up into groups and spreading out in the room, the room became this beautiful mess of intense prayer and prophesy, tears of deep emotion, hearts in love with Jesus put on display.  I loved it!  As I participated and later just stepped back and watched, I became so overwhelmed by the goodness of God that was evident everywhere.  I felt led to dance as God was stirring in my spirit to release something over these beautiful people.  I don't know exactly what it was that He was having me release, but I really felt like He was doing something in the spirit as I danced.
The last piece that I want to share about is some of the more evangelistic ministry that we did.  Now, let me start off by saying that I have never seen evangelism as my thing.  Of course I know that we are all called to evangelize and spread the Gospel, but I also know that that looks different according to each person's calling.  So for me, evangelism doesn't normally look like approaching strangers on the street.  So needless to say, I wasn't jumping up and down when we were going to do evangelism.  But as we went, the Lord was so gracious.  Although I was stretched, it felt easy and natural to share the love of Jesus with people.  We went to Plaza Fosh, the red-light district in downtown Quito.  We were hoping to minister to prostitutes, but unfortunately it was pouring rain that night and none of the girls were out.  But we still went out and saw God move regardless of the contrary weather.  My group got to talk to a bunch of different drug dealers on the street.  We started out simply offering hot chocolate that we had in a thermos.  From there we asked them if the had pain in their bodies and if we could pray for them.  We saw a women healed of stomach pain and another women healed of an intense head ache.  I got to speak to one lady about hearing the voice of God and we prayed for her to feel God's presence.  We talked to one man who wanted healing for his heart.  He said that he knew that he wasn't right spiritually and that he wanted to be. We got to pray with him for salvation and he felt God's presence over his body like an energy!  Another day we went into a maternity hospital for women who couldn't afford a doctor.  For this reason, many of the babies had issues.  It was incredible being there in a room of 30 women and having the opportunity to pray for each of them.  So many were touched by God's love and peace as we prayed over some pretty scary situations.  One lady had just had a C-section because of twins and was in intense pain where the surgery was done.  We prayed for her a couple of times and the pain completely left.  She was in tears as she praised the Lord and thanked us for coming.  We also got to speak to her about what an incredible mother she was going to be and the destinies that her children had.  I was blown away at the fact that we could even be there.  I kept thinking, "there is no way I could ever do this in the states!"  So the favor and open doors that we had while we were there was amazing.
So in coming back, I have a lot to think about.  I mean A LOT to think about - processing through what God did on the trip, processing through my Bethel experience as it comes to a close, trying to get clarity on what I'm doing over the summer, and then considering different internships for the fall.  Aye aye aye!  But I'm trying not to think too much, because most of what the Lord is doing in my life right now is deep things in my spirit.  The mind can't comprehend the spirit, so it gets frustrated when it tries.  So even though there is so much transition I am going through at the moment, I cling to God's goodness and His ever abiding presence.  I feel Him in the midst of the craziness and I know that I have nothing to worry about.  I am so undone by Him and what He has done over the past month in my life.  So why should I worry or why should I freak out?  He so intimately knows me and what it is I need.
Thank you all for your prayers!
Oh and PS I got 180 mosquito bites on my legs!  Just thought I should add that in somewhere.

Adventure is out there!

Hello from South America!!! It has been one full week since we set out on this grand adventure. I feel like Carl and Russel on Pixar's UP, traveling in South America with Paradise Falls as their "mission". Their adventure didn't turn out at all as they planned; they encountered so many mishaps on the way, yet every setback along the road actually made it the beautiful story that it is. Although I didn't get to travel via balloons attached to my house and I have yet to meet a snipe... my own story has taught me similar lessons. It's so easy to get caught up in what my "mission" is and how my picture perfect experience looks like, but often when that happens, I can miss many valuable experiences that are happening all around me. We talk about how the Cross was always Jesus's mission, but if that's the only thing he was ever focused on, the blind man would never have been healed, the dead girl would never have been raised, the crowds would never have been fed... He could have come, gone straight to the Cross and got it over with as fast as possible. But He didn't. He embraced every moment and what the Father had for Him in that moment.

I think the hardest moment to hold onto that truth was when I had already missed the first day of going out and was listening to the doctor tell me the news: I have a throat infection and  will have to stay at home for at least two days, but if I'm not better by the, it could be to tonsillitis. Noooooooo!!!!!!!! :( Of course I was declaring healing over myself and having all of my team surround me and agree. But the reality was, I was stuck at home. But what started as a disappointment and lots of frustration, turned into a day of blessings. I was able to able to rest, connect with my host sister (who was also stuck at home with an infection), got incredible quality time with Holy Spirit, and got to process through what God is doing in my heart. But then, surprise surprise, I felt so good the next day that I was able to go with the team.

Every day has been completely different. It's been like trying a sample chocolate box, so many different flavors of ministries here in Quito, Ecuador and all so uniquely beautiful!  One day we spent doing construction and cleaning at Casa de mis Suenos - House of my Dreams. This is a new ministry that is starting that will be a home for girls coming out of sex trafficking. It was an amazing opportunity to get to pour into a place that is going to be so full of new life and hope for these girls. Another day we spent at a feeding center. The people who ran the ministry had faithfully fed 100 kids every day from this village. Their servants hearts blew me away! We did VBS style meeting with the kids, teaching them about their importance and identity in Christ. I came so alive in that setting, playing with the kids, singing Spanish songs, eating with the people, helping in the kitchen. It made me think of Juarez and all my trips with IFM.

My favorite day so far, I went with a group from the team way out into the country to a town called Ambato. We went to visit a house of 6 elderly brothers and sisters. They had lived there their whole lives, having been abandoned by everyone else because of mental disabilities. Of the 6, only two can speak and communicate to a degree, only three can walk, and only one can work in the garden. No one is there to take care of them. They wear clothes that would be better to throw away but we didn't because they are so attached to their clothes from wearing the same ones for months on end. They live in houses that are full of filth from living with their farm animals. It was such a tragic situation but these people were so beautiful. It was such an honor to be able to go in, deep clean their house, shake out their clothes and bedding, shower them, cut her their hair, trim their nails, and then sit and smile with them. The love they have for each other will forever stay with me. Although we didn't see any healing when we prayed for them, I could see the joy and the life in their eyes. I know Jesus is constantly with them, taking care of them, holding their dear wrinkled hands in His own. His heart is for the least of these and these people truly were. The other part of the team had an incredible day of hearings and over 15 people getting saved and experiencing the presence of God! I rejoice in their testimony and wish I could have been there, but I wouldn't have traded this day for anything in the world.

I am now spending two days in the rain Forrest. Hasta luego!