It’s the Ellie’s! Today we started the day going to church and it was amazing as always to praise the lord! After church we had a lovely lunch at a local restaurant with many of the staff from Just one, the pastor and his family and our team! After lunch we got to work help clean Just Cafe and the offices at Just One. It feels good to help clean the place that has been so welcoming to us on our trip here. After cleaning, we headed back to church where we had the opportunity to lead Awana! There were many kids there today who were happy to learn some English and Spanish songs, do crafts, play games and learn about the love that God has for us! We taught them “whole world in His hands”, “this little light of mine”, and “Jesus loves me”. It was very fun to see the kids having fun and simply enjoying time away from their busy lives. After awana we had some time to reflect and reset at the hotel before heading to a late dinner. It was such a fun time to just talk, eat and be in community with those who we’ve built great relationships with here! We ended the night how we always do with a debrief and some fun team time before heading to bed to prepare for another big day of serving tomorrow. Gracias a dios por dejarnos estar aquí! (Thank you God for letting us be here!)
It has been a wonderful experience in East Africa! Today we started off the day at a local church and it was a beautiful way to start the day!
We then loaded in the van and took lunch on the road where our team felt true amani (peace) as the team all napped on the way! We arrived at an outdoor mini zoo where we were able to see porcupines, a zebra, gazelle, and hold snakes and turtles!
A few of us on the team also rode a camel! We then drove down a little bit and went to an old church/museum about slavery!
We drove back to say a hard goodbye to the girls as we finished up our first week with the first house and getting on a plane tomorrow to next location!
Today was the last full day we have in this country, kind of bitter-sweet honestly. I’m going to miss being here and having fun with the kids but I also miss home and friends and family and food. It’s been a great trip and I’m super thankful to be able to come and serve. It’s been tiring but also fulfilling and rewarding.
Today was a pretty chill day and I’m not complaining, which normally I like to fill my day but i’m so tired I didn’t care. I woke up super duper early at 7:15 and tried to go back to sleep but my body wasn’t cooperating and it doesn’t help that the sun blinds me every morning. So I got up and kinda just laid in bed for 2 hours, it was pretty fantastic. I finally decided to start getting ready at 9:15 for church. So I took a quick shower and shaved my face and threw on my church fit. I had to wake Graham up, somehow that dude was still sleeping at 9:30. We went down and ate breakfast which was actually pretty good, I had scrambled eggs, cinnamon rolls, and probably some sort of fruit I don’t remember to be honest.
Church was really good and the sermon was very powerful. I walked back with the girls from the girls home, they are so funny. They all call me “Kuya” which means “older brother” in Tagalog. I think that is super cool and I am going to miss all the connections and relationships we have made here.
We ate lunch and Khaycees family surprised her by showing up on the compound and brought some snacks. After lunch we had more free time so guess what I did? Took a nap and laid on the ground. I’m telling yall I’m just feeling extra sleepy today and yesterday, we’ve been go go go all week it’s super nice to just bum around.
At 3 we all got loaded up into vehicles with Azusa to go on excursions. I had no idea what was happening and everyone I asked didn’t know where we were going either. Farmer drove a truck and I sat in the back of the truck with Graham and Judah. I got some motion sickness but it was a cool experience. Ella was in a different car and she threw up on the way there so that’s no funzo hoping she’s feeling better now.
We got to the destination and overlooked the entire city and valley it was really awesome! We went to a restaurant and got to pick between gelato and coffee and cakes and fries and other things. We stayed for a while just hanging out with everyone.
I’m getting very sleepy writing this blog because I put it off and now it’s 11:55. It’s okay I’m almost done. We drove down the hill and got back to eat dinner. After dinner most of us went to the volleyball and basketball open gym happening down the road and had fun playing with the kids.
We got back and have been packing and talking with others who are staying on the compound.
I don’t know if I should wear pants on the plane tomorrow or shorts… that’s really bothering me so I’m gonna sleep on it. We fly out tomorrow afternoon and get back home late Monday night.
This trip has taught me so much and I am blessed to have been able to come and see God working through us helping this community. I’ve met so many great amazing people and bonded with my team and the other missionaries here. God is good and this has been an awesome experience.
Hello friends & family! It has been an eventful couple of days, on Saturday we made our trip from country #1 to country #2 bright and early in the morning. We arrived in this country safe and sound very surprised by the weather, it is very humid and hot here but nonetheless we came ready to serve. Today is our first full day of water filter distributions and with the hour we gained in time it feels like we have a lot more hours to work with. We started this morning with a group devotional at one of the churches we will frequent here in Central America which is called Templo Jehova bendice there we meet the Pastora who helps organize the houses we visit. After devotional we went on our way to start visiting the people the church has listed out, at our first house my team was able to pick coconuts from the lady’s home and yes, the coconut water was very fresh and yummy. After visiting some homes in the morning we made our way to lunch to our host church. Lunch was amazing especially because the person making the food was a chef, we got to experience some amazing local food which motivated us to get to work. We also got to experience some rain after lunch which was very pleasant since the humidity was getting intense. After getting fuel for our evening we got to visit some more houses and engaged in meaningful conversations with great people who wanted to learn more about the Lord. We wrapped up the day with some dinner at our host church and it was some very yummy local food. Back at the hotel a couple of us decided to go for a late night swim to wash off the very long, sweaty, and humid day. It was a blessed day and it’s been an amazing experience here in Central America so far.
We started our Saturday with another amazing breakfast and a devotion from Kenzie in the book of James. Our team was able to have a really good conversation about the riches of the world versus in Heaven and how that is reflected in the cultures we have experienced.
After breakfast when we arrived at the Courage house, our team was greeted by the girls who already had music playing and were so excited to begin the day. They are so joyful! After praying together, Marilyn read about Jesus, His death and resurrection and how one day He will return. Next was teaching by Presile and Carolina the last two Fruits of the Spirit, gentleness and self-control, to complete the VBS lessons.
Lunch today was a traditional banana soup with beef (it’s delicious) and a tortilla/pancake for dipping.
Since this was the team’s last day at this house location, we celebrated with a trip to the beach. It was so beautiful to see God’s creation with the girls as we all swam and played games on the shore. As the sun set we roasted hot dogs and s’mores for dinner. The night ended with worship all together before going to our hotel and the girls back to the house.
This evening was definitely bittersweet as we will part ways with the girls soon but it has been amazing to see how these girls love the Lord and see how each team member pours into them.
Thank you for all your prayers as we continue on with our trip!
We had our first full English Breakfast! Five of the team members liked the beans on toast! The spread was eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes, beans, toast, bacon, sausage, and hash browns. After our brunch we had an amazing time debriefing with the Canvas Team and talking about our two weeks serving. Then ended with prayer and got to lift one another up.
Then we went downtown and went to different charity shops and ate lunch at a very cute little cafe.
Friday afternoon was spent packing and napping while waiting for our dinner reservation at a tapas restaurant! The girls sat together and ate phenomenal crispy chicken, margarita pizza, and a Spanish tortilla! The boys had amazing pork belly, chicken, amazing fried shrimp, and chorizo pizza! To finish our meal we had Bischoff McFlurries at McDonald’s!
First week in Central America was a big success! We started our Sabbath day by having a slow morning where we were able to catch up on our sleep. Our team had the opportunity to visit the city with Just One Staff. We saw the Spanish Colonial architecture and we climbed to the top of the city’s cathedral clock. This is a medieval clock considered the oldest in America and the oldest gear clock in the world still in operation which was built in late 11th century. Our team also got to hear the bells ringing at the hour. We explored another town and got to visit more beautiful churches there. We then ended the night with very delicious tacos.
Day 12 in country was one of our most relaxing days yet, but the morning and evening were packed full of activity. We started off the day bright and early by meeting up with the Youth Lab Jr. leaders at YMC (where we’re staying). This is a group of teenagers and young adults who are dedicated to reaching people for Jesus. Every Saturday they go out to different neighborhoods and put on different activities and feedings for the kids. It was inspiring to see the sacrifice they made for the Gospel and how joyfully they served. Since Brooks was gone today, we tagged along with them to a community closer to our home base for our final feeding of the trip. We usually do a song or two at feedings before we serve the champorado and lugaw, but today we did much more singing and dancing. The kids also played a variation of freeze tag through the streets, which were mostly steep hills. Afterwards they had a chance to write down prayer request and post them on prayer boards so that the YL Jrs could pray for them. Most of these prayers were for family or protection, although there was at least one request for a tv.
As fun as it was to connect with the kids, we agreed that this feeding was one of the most difficult for our team. Personally, there were a few sick animals that made me feel pretty uncomfortable and in desperate need of hand sanitizer. It was extremely hot and a few of us had left our waters in the van only to discover that we would be walking back. Thankfully, the YL team knew some shortcuts so the walk back was better than expected.
I did have a kid splash me with dirty bath water though, but he was super cute so I couldn’t be mad at him.
The rest of the day was pretty relaxing because all of our energy was sapped from the long week. Most of us spent the afternoon napping, journaling, watching videos, or talking to other teams at the base. Farmer also picked up all of our laundry, except his – because they forgot to wash it – and mine because it was hidden. But thankfully we were able to find it.
After dinner that night we joined the team from World Race and our new friend Kaitlyn to drive to Cloud Nine (we managed to squeeze 17 people into a 12 person van). Cloud Nine is a lookout spot where we’d be able to see the entirety of the city. What we weren’t told was that we would need to climb up a wobbly wire bridge five stories up through the air to reach the lookout point. But despite the height (and multiple people bouncing on the bridge) everyone made it to the top. The view was incredible! It was dark so the entire city was lit up, and there was lightning flashing in the distance every few seconds. We stayed for a bit to take pictures, and then we headed back to base.
After a quick 7/11 run for some snacks, some of us stayed back to enjoy some karaoke with the boys and girls homes while Graham, Alec, Khaycee and Keilah went on an adventure to get some boba and Dominos pizza. Then we all came back for a time of connecting. I got to talk with a few of the girls we went to dinner with the other night, and it was fun to hear more about their lives and their dreams. It really shows how God is working through people and through KIDS to spread the Kingdom of God in this country.
We ended the day relaxing in our rooms, and Lauren, Graham and I went out and spent some time worshiping and talking with a few people from World Race. I also learned a few guitar chords which was neat. It’s been really fun to connect with them over the past few days.
Thank you all for continuing to lift us and this country up in prayer. God has been so faithful to show up and sustain us. Tomorrow we head into our final full day here, so we will be seeing you all soon!
Our team to Southern Africa has officially gotten on a plane to head to their ministry partner for the next two weeks! They have some long flights and layovers ahead of them so please be praying for them to get rest on the flights and arrive in Southern Africa refreshed and ready to go for a full week of ministry! We will update again when they get settled in their destination! 🙂
Happy Friday everyone! Our day started with Rebekah doing a fun lesson for the scholars about “being persistent in prayer”. After a delicious lunch of arroz con pollo, we had the awesome opportunity to learn about Lenca Pottery. The Lenca people are an indigenous community near the Just One facility. They create traditional pottery that has been made the same way for hundreds of years. Each of us has the chance to try making a piece of pottery on the wheel. Then we headed back to Just One, where Erin and Bella taught a lesson about “discovering and celebrating each person’s unique identity”. Followed by worship and a devotional led by Ely. We then ended the day playing games with the scholars. Sadly we also had to say bye to Sarah, who needed to head back to the States. She has been an incredible ambassador for Just One and a wonderful help for us while we are here. We miss you Sarah!
