I can’t believe I am already in month 3 of the world race. We left 12/6 around 3pm and arrived yesterday, 12/8 sometime in the evening. I’ll let you do the math on that, It was a long way, but we finally made it to El Alto Bolivia where the elevation is 13,650 ft. As I write this I feel pretty terrible. I am tired and weak from very little sleep, and very little food. We are also trying to get use to the high elevation, I can’t even walk down the hall without feeling short of breath. Thankfully we have the next 2 days off to recuperate. We are living and doing ministry with the other mixed guy-girl team, Unwavering. Please keep both of our teams in your prayers as we battle elevation sickness and a new country where sickness is far more likely to happen.
You’re probably wondering why my blog is titled “The infamous bag crapper” and I would love to tell you, but I must warn that if you don’t like poop stories you might want to skip to the next paragraph. Every World Racer knows that the poop stories are real, travelers diarrhea is real, and well… What I didn’t know is that they are very strict about NOT pooping on buses. (These busses have bathrooms, you just aren’t allowed to poop for some reason). Our first bus ride was 24 hours long. They told us we would make stops, but that was a lie. When you gotta go, you gotta go. To spare details, I was in that position at 5am on the bus. My only option? Poop in a bag and throw it out the window. So, it happened. My biggest concern you might ask? I am from Oregon, and in Oregon we just don’t litter. Throwing the bag was the most difficult part of this experience. But wait, theres more. We get on the second bus, this one is roughly 18 hours long. Same deal, no pooping. Same deal, 5am and I must go. This time the bus was a little more rickety, I got thrown around, it was a challenge, but I made it. So, for a second time I made it happen, and out the window it went. My buddy Marissa told me a story of a dog who only goes to the bathroom in bushes, they called him “the infamous bush crapper” so basically that is how I became “the infamous bag crapper.” I decided to share this because my squad leader told me that I was her hero, I got a couple high fives, and I had the courtesy to follow the rules of the bus and spare the squad a stench that could have been present (you’re welcome, squad). So I felt like this might be worth sharing. This is where I would insert a cry/laugh emoji.
On a more spiritual note, Argentina was ridiculous. I feel like a spiritual fire was lit, and I cant wait to share some highlights with you all. Like I’ve said, ministry changed all the time and it ranged from many different kinds. We had been working with kids, which was not super life-giving to me personally just because I felt drained. I definitely needed to be lifted up spiritually, and thats exactly what God did.
We went to do evangelism with a missions team from a local church. I already shared about the free hugs, but after that they gave us a giant lunch and a woman prayed over us. It was a very emotional experience. The woman told me; “God will light your path. Even if you’ve done a lot, you are a very strong person and the spirit of the Lord is molding your purpose and character in your life—but its not what you’ve seen, thought, or planned, it is something different. God is going to break your structures and make you loose.” Sometimes we don’t always know what things mean when they are spoken over us, but all I know is that the Holy Spirit was speaking through this woman and I will never forget the emotions I felt in that moment.
Sometime later the YWAM base staff prayed over our teams and gave us words. Naida is one of the directors at the YWAM base, and she is the one that took our team to the indigenous tribe. She prayed over our team and prophesied over us. She told me; “There are things you’ve been working for, you are a flower and the Lord is watering you, pruning you, and taking care of you. Hard times will come, but in Asia you will bloom and you will flourish. You will speak words of wisdom, God will give you the words, don’t be afraid. People will get to know you more.” This was super encouraging as well, and I just cant wait to see how the Lord shapes me over the rest of the race.
After that we got the chance to go to a church that none of the YWAM staff had been to before. As it turned out, one of the school teachers who we worked with specifically requested that our team would come to their church and lead the youth group programs. Hanging out with kids ended up working out in my favor because this experience was one of my favorites. First we had the small kids, we did a skit about the prodigal son and I gave a message after that I prepared in about 10 minutes. Then, we had the older, high school age kids. We sat in a circle and shared about our mission on the world race. Some of us shared testimonies, and we answered their questions. After that we opened a time for worship and prayer. Immediately these young adults started flocking us for prayer. I prayed with a girl who opened up to me about some deep sin in her life, she bawled her eyes out as I prayed forgiveness and love over her. This was so life-giving for me. She ended up giving me a necklace that says “Amiga” on it. After that my team got together to sing a “traditional American song” for them, which ended up being Wagon Wheel and they loved it.
On our last day of ministry we got the option to go back to the church where we evangelized with the missions team for their Sunday morning service. This was probably the best decision I made, because the Holy Spirit was thick in this church. The moment the Pastors wife started praying I felt my whole body freeze up, and I started crying. I couldn’t even understand her, but I knew that the Holy Spirit was there and alive. The worship was overwhelming, I couldn’t even believe the amount of power that was present in this church. It doesn’t even stop there. The pastor invited us up to the front of the church, he prayed for us and again, he prophesied over us but there was a moment when he pointed straight at me and started speaking words over me. This church was loud and our translator was hard to understand, but roughly from what I heard, he said; “You were going through a hard time before this journey, but God wants…” and then he just went off about me getting lifted up and it was just overwhelming on so many levels.
Okay, last thing, but this was so powerful and such an amazing way to close our time in Argentina. After our last day of ministry on Sunday, we spent Monday and Tuesday having “Leadership Development Weekend” which is basically a time to hear messages from our squad mates, have quiet time, worship together, and wind down before moving on to the next country. On our last night my teammate RJ led us in a talk about identity, and he had each of us ask the Lord to reveal our true identity in Christ. He talked about the difference between being made in the image of God, and the likeness of God. The image of God is something that doesn’t change, that is in us ever since he created us. The likeness of God is different, it is more specific to each of us personally. For example, when the Lord says, “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church.” It is specific to Peter’s calling. Our whole squad was asked to do this. I shared my identity statement on Instagram and Facebook, but if you aren’t on those sites here it is;
“My name is Averi Deere Wing. I am so dear to my father, so dear that He named me Wisdom and crowed me with high honor. Apart from Him I am silent, but with Him I am bold and I have a voice that is heard. When I dance with Jesus He leads me to peace, fills me with passion, and He is the love of my life. I am never alone, Christ stands before me and fights for me. He carries me, He knows me, He loves me more than any man ever could, He loves me more than any man ever could, He loves me more than any man ever could. His intimacy belongs to me.”
You’re identity statement doesn’t have to be poetic, it doesn’t have to sound a certain way, it just has to speak truth to who God made you to be. Your identity statement changes in each season, this is mine for this season. I want to encourage my readers to ask the Lord to give you an identity statement and for you to speak it over yourself to start your day, and I promise you that it will change everything.
Thank you so much for reading,
God Bless!
Averi Wing
