Changes have happened in our team. Now Lorena, my best friend who is my age, and me are the team leaders! Our original leader, Desteni, got really sick from a misquito transmitted disease and had to return to Medellin. Another one of the students had malaria, and even though she got better it was too high a risk for her to go to the next location that is known for having malaria as well. So now we are a team of 5 people.
Lorena and I are so excited! God must have a lot of faith in us to let us be responsible for three weeks of outreach! It's going to be a good challenge for us. But we also need a lot of prayer so that we make good decisions and pastor our students well.
Last week and this week we have been in the same church. We are working with all age groups, but a lot with the youth. This week we're starting a city-wide youth group that the youth pastors of three different churches want to continue with after we leave. It's really exciting to start something that has so much potential and to get different churches working together!
God has been so faithful with us! Even though we've had some big challenges we've also really seen God do some cool things with us. One night we were suppose to have a church meeting, but we really didn't want to have it because Desteni was leaving and I was suppose to preach but hadn't practiced with the other girl who knows a bit of English. Maybe it wasn't the most missional minded thing to do, but we prayed for rain so that people wouldn't come and we would have more time to prepare. And it started raining, but then stopped and we were all frustrated and scrambling. Then it poured for a good two hours and only about 10 people came to the church, so we had a good time of worship and a devotional and that was all. God has been so good to give us rest when we need rest and strength when we need strength, creativity when we need creativity and always a lot of work for us to do. God is good.
Monday, May 28, 2007
Monday, May 14, 2007
The Middle of Nowhere
First of all, praise God that we have had coffee! It seems funny, but it really was like a gift from heaven these last two weeks. And, Des and I discovered that everyone of our teammates likes coffee... why we we made to work together!
BRIGADE: Our time at the brigade went better than I could have dreamed. We had so much impact in that community the three days we were there, it was so hard to leave. My evangelism team worked with many people in the community and left a lot of youth who had made the decision to live for Christ. There is a young pastor there who is conintuing to disciple them. Members from our team also worked in physical therapy, counseling and worship and all were equally pleased with their results.
Thank you to everyone who prayed for protection for us! We were more than protected, our first day there the military and the police ask how we were doing. The police added a special watch so someone was on duty 24-7 where we were working and they even let us use the police station bathrooms so we could shower. God was really looking out for us!
CHURCH 1: Though the first week was wonderful it was even better to be united working together as our team. The first week we did a "mini-campo escuela" for the youth and the second week we worked with families. Again, there was a community-wide response in both youth and families. Time at this church was also a good stretching for Desteni and I. We were both adjusting to our new positions as leaders after being students the last semester. And we both had more speaking responsibilities than we've ever had before (me with the youth and her with counseling families). But now we can say we've personally seen that God is faithful to do more in us than we can do ourselves.
This place we were in, it really is the middle-of-nowhere, otherwise known as El Palmar in Cordoba,Colombia. In this place they peal their own rice, kill their own meat, and take big homemade hats and machettes with them when walking more than 5 minutes out of town. They have more mangos than you can imagine; there are even different kinds of mangos, if you didn't know: cow mangos, heart mangos, sandle mangos, ect. There is no running water and electricity is sporatic. Where we stayed had a dirt floor and we slept in hammocks. I learned to rope cows (although it's easier to aim at the 8-year-olds teaching us), milk a cow, and ride a horse. I called my mom for mother's day/dad for his birthday from a cell phone hooked up to an antena and repeatedly had to interrupt them to chase the pigs out of the house. It was the experience of a life time! I can't help but smile at the memories and thank God that I get to live a life of adventure, it's the best kind!
Right now we're in a "city" for two weeks. Our first week will be working a lot with youth. The second week we'll be with a church plant that has a lot of new Christians. Please continue to pray for unity in our team and that we will bless the churches and communities.
Everyone who has prayed for us, thank you so much! So far on outreach we have been in awe at how God has been answering our prayers with much more than we even ask. We prayed for protection and we had the military and police as personal body guards. We've even asked God for little things we miss, like coffee and salad, and gotten them not just once, but every day afterwards. Please keep praying because, trust me, God hears!
BRIGADE: Our time at the brigade went better than I could have dreamed. We had so much impact in that community the three days we were there, it was so hard to leave. My evangelism team worked with many people in the community and left a lot of youth who had made the decision to live for Christ. There is a young pastor there who is conintuing to disciple them. Members from our team also worked in physical therapy, counseling and worship and all were equally pleased with their results.
Thank you to everyone who prayed for protection for us! We were more than protected, our first day there the military and the police ask how we were doing. The police added a special watch so someone was on duty 24-7 where we were working and they even let us use the police station bathrooms so we could shower. God was really looking out for us!
CHURCH 1: Though the first week was wonderful it was even better to be united working together as our team. The first week we did a "mini-campo escuela" for the youth and the second week we worked with families. Again, there was a community-wide response in both youth and families. Time at this church was also a good stretching for Desteni and I. We were both adjusting to our new positions as leaders after being students the last semester. And we both had more speaking responsibilities than we've ever had before (me with the youth and her with counseling families). But now we can say we've personally seen that God is faithful to do more in us than we can do ourselves.
This place we were in, it really is the middle-of-nowhere, otherwise known as El Palmar in Cordoba,Colombia. In this place they peal their own rice, kill their own meat, and take big homemade hats and machettes with them when walking more than 5 minutes out of town. They have more mangos than you can imagine; there are even different kinds of mangos, if you didn't know: cow mangos, heart mangos, sandle mangos, ect. There is no running water and electricity is sporatic. Where we stayed had a dirt floor and we slept in hammocks. I learned to rope cows (although it's easier to aim at the 8-year-olds teaching us), milk a cow, and ride a horse. I called my mom for mother's day/dad for his birthday from a cell phone hooked up to an antena and repeatedly had to interrupt them to chase the pigs out of the house. It was the experience of a life time! I can't help but smile at the memories and thank God that I get to live a life of adventure, it's the best kind!
Right now we're in a "city" for two weeks. Our first week will be working a lot with youth. The second week we'll be with a church plant that has a lot of new Christians. Please continue to pray for unity in our team and that we will bless the churches and communities.
Everyone who has prayed for us, thank you so much! So far on outreach we have been in awe at how God has been answering our prayers with much more than we even ask. We prayed for protection and we had the military and police as personal body guards. We've even asked God for little things we miss, like coffee and salad, and gotten them not just once, but every day afterwards. Please keep praying because, trust me, God hears!
Friday, April 20, 2007
Curtain's Up
Next Tuesday morning we're leaving for outreach in Cordaba. I'm so excited for outreach! It's so wonderful to have time just for evangelizing and blessing churches. The first week will be spent getting ready for the medical brigade and the first weekend having the medical brigade. After that we'll be spending about two weeks in each church. I don't know where we'll be for sure yet, hopefully it will all get finalized this weekend. Please pray for safety during the brigade and that God would help me lead evangelism and impacts.
And here's a little blurb about the people on my team, please be praying for all of us:
Desteni: our fearless, brave, strong leader! It'll be a bit of a stretch for her to lead, but it’s not her first time and she'll be great at it! The two of us have started a support group for our fellow coffee addicts (joking). She will also be my translator when it’s my turn to teach. And I’m her side kick for crazy, caffeinated escapades.
Lorena: my best friend who did her DTS with me. The two of us are assistant leaders for the outreach. She is a great teacher and leader but doesn't have a whole lot of confidence in her own abilities. When Desteni can’t be found Lorena is my side kick for crazy, nighttime drama!
Paula: professional student. She has many healthy problems: like in her knees and wrists. She's a bit shy, but hopefully she'll feel free to be her funny self with us. She’s the oldest, but doesn’t have much experience teaching or in front of people.
Claudia: professional student. At first we thought there might be problems having a leadership team younger than her, but she will be so helpful in counseling and teaching. She's also our resident physical therapist :)
Ingrid: 18-year old. Great girl who has shown she's willing to try to change when called out on things. Usually she’s up for a challenge, but she was really disappointed to be on our team because she had her heart set on a different place. I hope she clicks with our team even though they are no other girls her age, and that her attitude will change when we begin.
Juan Daniel: 19-year old. He's the best guy at drama and dance; he’s also a great worship leader and plays about 5 instruments, so I'm excited to have him. He's also got experience working with youth and will be great to help out and protect us girls. Pray that he doesn't get distracted by girls in the churches, a weak area for him, and that he can get the pastoring he needs from us three crazy, female leaders.
Pictures and updates coming when possible....
And here's a little blurb about the people on my team, please be praying for all of us:
Desteni: our fearless, brave, strong leader! It'll be a bit of a stretch for her to lead, but it’s not her first time and she'll be great at it! The two of us have started a support group for our fellow coffee addicts (joking). She will also be my translator when it’s my turn to teach. And I’m her side kick for crazy, caffeinated escapades.
Lorena: my best friend who did her DTS with me. The two of us are assistant leaders for the outreach. She is a great teacher and leader but doesn't have a whole lot of confidence in her own abilities. When Desteni can’t be found Lorena is my side kick for crazy, nighttime drama!
Paula: professional student. She has many healthy problems: like in her knees and wrists. She's a bit shy, but hopefully she'll feel free to be her funny self with us. She’s the oldest, but doesn’t have much experience teaching or in front of people.
Claudia: professional student. At first we thought there might be problems having a leadership team younger than her, but she will be so helpful in counseling and teaching. She's also our resident physical therapist :)
Ingrid: 18-year old. Great girl who has shown she's willing to try to change when called out on things. Usually she’s up for a challenge, but she was really disappointed to be on our team because she had her heart set on a different place. I hope she clicks with our team even though they are no other girls her age, and that her attitude will change when we begin.
Juan Daniel: 19-year old. He's the best guy at drama and dance; he’s also a great worship leader and plays about 5 instruments, so I'm excited to have him. He's also got experience working with youth and will be great to help out and protect us girls. Pray that he doesn't get distracted by girls in the churches, a weak area for him, and that he can get the pastoring he needs from us three crazy, female leaders.
Pictures and updates coming when possible....
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Outreach
Instead of rewriting the information here, please read what Desteni wrote about our time at the medical brigade and pray for us. And yes, we do ride in those canoes to get to the brigade:) What an adventure!
desteni.blogspot.com/
desteni.blogspot.com/
Sunday, April 8, 2007
NIKO (shhhhhh....)
I just spent my week at NIKO. It's a camp that I'm sworn to secrecy about for the most part. It's a leadership camp, but the entire time you have to work in team. It was difficult for some. For me it was a little challenging, but almost everything was stuff that I love to do. It was restful even though we were wet a most of the time. The funny thing that was a big lesson for me was having to eat sardines. I really hate fish: don't like looking at them, don't like smelling them, and have only eaten them a few times when force fed. They were all we had for lunch one day, and I took one bite a gagged. The guy on my team gave me this look like, “Rachel, are you serious? You have conquered in everything so far and you’re not going to eat this...” I did eat about 2/3 of my share without hating it! Good thing too, because my outreach is on the coast where we’re going to have to eat fish a lot.
It’s funny the ridiculous things we think we can’t do and let get in the way of good experiences. “Thoughts have consequences.” A 13-year-old girl on my team didn’t enjoy any of our walks and adventures because she thought we always walked too fast. She cried every time we went walking (which was a good portion of 4 of the 5 days). It brought our whole team down because we all had to be encouraging her instead of getting the opportunity to enjoy the beauty around us or feel victorious at what we were accomplishing. She was healthy and DID everything, but didn’t want to enjoy a minute of it. It made me think about what stupid little things I pridefully let get in the way of enjoying my experiences or my life.
I love living in Colombia, wouldn’t exchange my life for an instant. The things I get to do and the ways I’m stretched more than make up for the cold showers, different food and language difficulties. But would I allow a plate with a fish on it put me in a bad attitude and hurt the feelings of a host on outreach? It was such an important lesson for me. One little grateful “thanks” can immensely bless someone and one sour face can make a heart sink. I don’t want to be that stuck up girl, I want to make choices to make the most of my time for myself and for the people I effect. I need to spend time searching for more things in my life that I decide to let get to me, and for that ruin the opportunity in front of me. Not many people have the same challenges as me, but I’m sure you have challenges daily too. I hope you decide to be a conqueror, an adventurer, a joyful disciple.
EASTER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’m scandalized that they don’t really celebrate it. This was “holy week” but a big celebration is only for the Catholics. Most people were tired after NIKO and didn’t even go to church! Don’t worry... I got up and went to church. And my mom sent me and Desteni little egg candles that say “Happy Easter.” The two of us couldn’t help but be our crazy, American selves this morning:
We went out to the park and had an egg hunt. We got one of our friends to take the pictures, I think he was highly amused. For those of you who look at them, I know it’s hard to tell but we tried to spell “Happy Easter.” :) Hope you all had a wonderful time with God thinking about the new lives we can live.
It’s funny the ridiculous things we think we can’t do and let get in the way of good experiences. “Thoughts have consequences.” A 13-year-old girl on my team didn’t enjoy any of our walks and adventures because she thought we always walked too fast. She cried every time we went walking (which was a good portion of 4 of the 5 days). It brought our whole team down because we all had to be encouraging her instead of getting the opportunity to enjoy the beauty around us or feel victorious at what we were accomplishing. She was healthy and DID everything, but didn’t want to enjoy a minute of it. It made me think about what stupid little things I pridefully let get in the way of enjoying my experiences or my life.
I love living in Colombia, wouldn’t exchange my life for an instant. The things I get to do and the ways I’m stretched more than make up for the cold showers, different food and language difficulties. But would I allow a plate with a fish on it put me in a bad attitude and hurt the feelings of a host on outreach? It was such an important lesson for me. One little grateful “thanks” can immensely bless someone and one sour face can make a heart sink. I don’t want to be that stuck up girl, I want to make choices to make the most of my time for myself and for the people I effect. I need to spend time searching for more things in my life that I decide to let get to me, and for that ruin the opportunity in front of me. Not many people have the same challenges as me, but I’m sure you have challenges daily too. I hope you decide to be a conqueror, an adventurer, a joyful disciple.
EASTER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’m scandalized that they don’t really celebrate it. This was “holy week” but a big celebration is only for the Catholics. Most people were tired after NIKO and didn’t even go to church! Don’t worry... I got up and went to church. And my mom sent me and Desteni little egg candles that say “Happy Easter.” The two of us couldn’t help but be our crazy, American selves this morning:
We went out to the park and had an egg hunt. We got one of our friends to take the pictures, I think he was highly amused. For those of you who look at them, I know it’s hard to tell but we tried to spell “Happy Easter.” :) Hope you all had a wonderful time with God thinking about the new lives we can live.
Friday, March 23, 2007
Las Locas
I just ran like a wild woman to the kitchen to get two of my girls. I told them to come quick! And they came but dragging their feet wondering why I act like I'm on drugs sometimes. So I pulled them along with me and then ran outside into the rain. Now they're thinking I've finally gone insane and they should get back to work. But we went up on the roof and they got to enjoy the most beautiful rainbow ever with me! (I posted pictures) My girls asked if we have rainbows in the states, because that would be the only logical reason for me to be so excited about one. I've never see one so low, it's like it's right in the city. Even after a hard week God is still blessing us with his infinite beauty. I love his little gifts like rainbows!
Today we were assigned to our outreach groups. I'm going to the coast but first we're going to be working a week in a medical brigade. I am ecstatic for my team. I'm leading with my two best friends: Desteni and Lorena. I didn't believe it possible that I would get to be with both of them! I'm also with my crazy student that's like my sister and that smashed the cake in my face on my birthday. There are a total of three girl students, two guy students, and the three leaders. It is a wonderful group as far as worship, dancing, drama, teaching, and exciting/crazy adventures! O thank you God!
*** Someone has my camera right now, so I can't update my pictures. But if you want to see a baby picture please refer to my friend Desteni's site: desteni.blogspot.com/
Today we were assigned to our outreach groups. I'm going to the coast but first we're going to be working a week in a medical brigade. I am ecstatic for my team. I'm leading with my two best friends: Desteni and Lorena. I didn't believe it possible that I would get to be with both of them! I'm also with my crazy student that's like my sister and that smashed the cake in my face on my birthday. There are a total of three girl students, two guy students, and the three leaders. It is a wonderful group as far as worship, dancing, drama, teaching, and exciting/crazy adventures! O thank you God!
*** Someone has my camera right now, so I can't update my pictures. But if you want to see a baby picture please refer to my friend Desteni's site: desteni.blogspot.com/
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Emergency Prayer Request
Guys... our base needs prayer. Today I was on the bus coming back from my Spanish class and I just felt the weight loading on. When I enter our house I feel this emotionally high strung, warfare environment. Here are some of the immediate concerns:
• This weekend three of our underaged guys drank beer at a bar.
• We have two pretty serious couples within the students. They're not kidding anyone with the friendship act. The six months of the school is a time for knowing God, not for relationships. Today I talked with one the boys and he admitted that he had thought marrying this girl and had almost asked her at one point last week. I talked to him a lot about protecting his mind and be responsible with his thoughts and about the priority of the school. He promised me not to act on anything until the school is over... but it's still a present temptation and distraction. (Having a girlfriend/boyfriend from the school doesn't sound that horrible, but the students did make the commitment to stay single if they entered single for the duration of the school. And it's a dangerous thing because all of the students are having the same experiences and are growing so much in the same ways during the time of the school that it can heighten the emotions; but when the school is over they find out that it can't work and that discovery comes with pain and guilt for not focusing for the short time they were in the school. I want to protect my students from that experience and to help them get all they can out of the experience.)
• An overall rebellious attitude that makes it difficult for the students to accept correction from the staff.
• Disunity between different ministries at the base. Right now there seems a big division between King's Kids (that disciples with jr high and high school students and teaches them communications, dance and drama) and the schools.
Please keep us in your prayers. Right now it has exhausted the staff and we're wondering how we are going to make it on outreach. But we can depend on God to give us the strength we need. Our students need God to work in them too.
• This weekend three of our underaged guys drank beer at a bar.
• We have two pretty serious couples within the students. They're not kidding anyone with the friendship act. The six months of the school is a time for knowing God, not for relationships. Today I talked with one the boys and he admitted that he had thought marrying this girl and had almost asked her at one point last week. I talked to him a lot about protecting his mind and be responsible with his thoughts and about the priority of the school. He promised me not to act on anything until the school is over... but it's still a present temptation and distraction. (Having a girlfriend/boyfriend from the school doesn't sound that horrible, but the students did make the commitment to stay single if they entered single for the duration of the school. And it's a dangerous thing because all of the students are having the same experiences and are growing so much in the same ways during the time of the school that it can heighten the emotions; but when the school is over they find out that it can't work and that discovery comes with pain and guilt for not focusing for the short time they were in the school. I want to protect my students from that experience and to help them get all they can out of the experience.)
• An overall rebellious attitude that makes it difficult for the students to accept correction from the staff.
• Disunity between different ministries at the base. Right now there seems a big division between King's Kids (that disciples with jr high and high school students and teaches them communications, dance and drama) and the schools.
Please keep us in your prayers. Right now it has exhausted the staff and we're wondering how we are going to make it on outreach. But we can depend on God to give us the strength we need. Our students need God to work in them too.
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