And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast.
1 Peter 5:10
Hey Y’all!
Thanks for checking in with my blog and sorry it’s been quiet on here the past month or so. Today’s post will give you a recap of what has been going on with me in the field lately.
For starters, I made a little video of our time in South Africa during July. Take a look and see all the fun we had!
At the end of July we left Africa and traveled for over 60 hours before finally making it to our ministry site in Nicaragua. I think one of my favorite parts of being in Central America is that after seven months of constantly wondering what time it is at home, I am pleased to finally only be two hours behind EDT.
I spent the first days in Nicaragua getting some much-needed R&R with our squad leaders, Steph and Sara. Then it was time to dive into ministry for the month. For August my new team, Spice Girls, as well as team, BBAMM, were partnered with REAP Granada. This is one of the best ministry hosts I have had all year. Scott and Jen Espisito, who have amazing hearts for the Lord and for the people of Granada, started REAP Granada about two and a half years ago. We lived at their home and got to spend a lot of time getting to know them. This was one of my favorite parts of this month.
Ministry looked a little bit different everyday. The Espisitos recently purchased about 70 acres of land to make into a farm to make the ministry self-sustainable in the future, so we did a lot of work there this month. We planted hundreds of lime trees, always in blazing hot temperatures. Unfortunately (or maybe not so unfortunately) I had a parasite so I stayed home and made crafts more than I worked in the field. We went to the local prison each week to have Bible study with the prisoners and pass out food. We played sports each Saturday morning and throughout the week we did went to feeding programs where we passed out food to kids and helped with a Bible lesson and activities. Here’s one of my favorite photos of the month. My friend, Aly, snapped this during one of the feeding program days.
At the end of my third week in Nicaragua, my parents, and nine other racers’ parents got to come for a visit for a few days. This was the best ever. It’s hard for my to explain how much joy it brought me to spend time with my parents after not seeing them for eight months. Not only did we get to spend time together, they also got to experience what I have been doing this year. They slept in a dorm room in a hostel, which was hilarious. They helped plant trees on the farm. We visited a volcano and a crater lake for an adventure day. It was a short visit and a part of me wished they could have packed me in their suitcase when they left, but then you wouldn’t get to read this awesome post 🙂
After my parents left, we had debrief, complete with team changes. My new team is Team Banditos and includes Mercy (Team Leader), Tori T, Beth C., Maggie, Rebecca, Simeon, and me. Starting at midnight on September 1st, we took a 24-hour journey to Parramos, Guatemala, where my team is serving with a ministry called Loving Arms, this month. We are involved in a variety of ministry this month. Everything from painting a school to teaching English to local kids. We also have made friends with our five and seven year-old neighbors. It rains everyday, but I am not complaining, as I love the wet and cooler weather after the scorching heat of Nicaragua.
Sometimes I have to do a double take when I look at the calendar and see September written. I can’t believe I am in month nine of this adventure. If nothing else, I am feeling tired. But at the same time, I am confident in the Lord’s plans for the final three months of this adventure. Please pray with me as I ask the Lord for strength, endurance, and for more of Him to be revealed to me in the home stretch.
With Love,
Callie
