Hello friends!
Preface: This blog is long and covers many topics, because a lot has happened, and it’s near impossible to boil it down to one point. So, feel free to skip to whichever most interests you:
1. Team building in month one
2. Paris ministry wrap-up
3. El Camino ministry so far
1. Team building in month one
My team spent our first 3 weeks on the World Race in Paris. We had just learned about a week before leaving the States who out of the 24 people on our squad would be a part of each smaller team of 6. These are the 5 other people that I will spend most of the World Race with. This meant that in the midst of our outreach ministry in Paris, we were also getting to know each other more, and figuring out how to function well as a team. We all come from different states and backgrounds, with different passions, desires, and expectations of our time on the Race. We spent time in Paris talking about our goals and vision as a team, to help us grow in unity so that we aren’t operating as individuals who happen to be traveling together, but as a team with common purpose and values.
We developed a “tag line” of sorts to help define our year together… Fearless Fellowship. If we can be in community together where there is trust and brotherly love, then we are in fearless fellowship, and we can invite others into this fearless community where they feel safe and valued. Jesus said that the world will know we are His disciples by the way we love each other. We also decided that our team values are Love, Vulnerability, Freedom, Discipline, and Truth. These values act as a plumb line for us to come back to throughout the year if/when we things get difficult and we stray away from team unity. They also are values that we can look at to help us grow in our walk with Christ together… what does it look like to love more fully? How can we hold each other accountable to having discipline in our lives (spiritual disciplines like reading the Word, or even things like eating well and exercising). At the same time, we will speak the truth in love to each other, and spur each other on to more freedom in Christ. All of these concepts are meant to help us grow together as a team throughout the year, and I’m glad we talked about this in month one.
My team: Bradley, Ross, Eli, Emily, Kiana, me, and our alumni World Race team leader Patrick
2. Paris ministry wrap-up
I’ve shared a bit about the outreach ministry in Paris in some previous blogs, but I’d like to give a brief overview. I was most surprised by two things. One, that I was able to have conversations with so many Muslim men about Jesus. I had in-depth, one-on-one conversations with I think at least 10 Muslim men, and even coffee with some to talk about the Quran vs. the Bible. God opened so many doors. At the refugee camp, many of the men were surprised that we were there to sit and talk with them. A few became frustrated because we weren’t offering food or water. We knew that other organizations were offering help for physical needs, but we had discovered that it was not common for the refugees to have visitors like us. We were trying to show them that they matter, and possibly help bring comfort by our smiles and conversation. To those that would listen, I told them that God sees them and knows their situation, and that He sent us to tell them how much He loves them. I shared parts of my testimony, and how there is hope in Jesus, and shared the Gospel. It was difficult because they are Muslim and don’t believe that Jesus is the Son of God. But I believe that these men were truly interested in what I had to say even if they didn’t agree, and I trust that God will use those conversations I had with them as part of a broader picture of His pursuit of each of their hearts.
Having coffee and talking about the Bible and Quran with some new friends in Paris.
So many other outreach ministry opportunities came up, from conversations with neighbors, to conversations at parks, to worship under a bridge with refugees, to God giving my team specific images of people to find and then finding them and telling them about Christ. Also, basically every day we were able to minister to each other as a team, and spent time in prayer, worship, and reading the Bible.
Under a bridge in Paris, singing about Jesus
I also had the chance to join a sex trafficking ministry in Paris for two nights. I could write forever about my feelings and thoughts on this subject, but for those who know me, you surely know how passionate I am to see victims of trafficking know Christ. That said, I’ll just describe what happened. I went with some other women from my squad, and we were able to talk with the women for at least 15 minutes. This was very strange for me, because in Vegas, I had a minute or less with sex trafficking victims in casinos to share that God loves them and we were there to help them… because most times their pimp was watching them. But in Paris, at least at this corner, the pimps didn’t seem to mind that there was a group of women talking to their girls. We were even able to have a quick Bible study with them and ask them what they thought about certain verses, or what they thought about God’s faithfulness to them. Most of these women believe they are cursed, and that this is their lot in life. We were able to share God’s truth with them. The next night I was able to be a part of a group of us who stayed back to pray for our squad-mates who were out talking to the women. I believe prayer is the absolute most important part of any ministry, and it was a privilege to pray for my squad-mates and the trafficked women. This was just a glimpse into this long-term sex trafficking ministry in Paris. It encouraged me to see that there are people all over the world who God has given a burden to reach the same people that He’s given me a burden for.
Also, one of the most fun things I did in Paris was to go to a local dancing spot by the Seine River. My teammate Emily made this video! It’s nice to have fun with my team while we’re out here.
3. El Camino ministry so far
We are in Spain now, hiking the famous El Camino. We’ve been hiking for about a week now. The Camino lends itself to days long conversations with the same people. I’ve seen many of the same people on the trail, or at hostels and albergues along the way. I’ve talked with people about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. I’ve talked with people about the youth of today, and about their families, and about how their country views America, and about guitar and country music. I’ve talked politics and I’ve reveled at the beauty of God’s creation with complete strangers. Each day is different. Each day I find myself exhausted. So far we have walked anywhere from 12 to 20 miles a day. 20 miles! Sometimes we hike through mountains in the cold and rain, and sometimes it’s so hot and you get sunburned. The blisters on my feet are so painful to walk on each day and really are a terrible sight to look at… but it reminds me of that verse “how beautiful are the feet of those who bring the Good News” (Romans 10:15). In God’s upside down Kingdom, blistered feet are beautiful… and walking miles on the Camino becomes an opportunity to meet people where they are at in life and be human with them, while carrying the love of Christ in my heart to share with them, whatever that may look like for each individual.
Most of the people that I have met have recently retired, or recently left a job. Travelers on the Camino are called pilgrims. You always walk towards Santiago, where legend has it that the remains of the apostle James are buried. About half of the travelers I’ve met identify as Catholic. I have yet to meet someone who has said they are doing the pilgrimage as some kind of tradition or obligation… I believe most of the people choose to hike the Camino to get away from the world and find more of themselves. It’s a spiritual or personal growth journey for most, and they ask themselves questions like “What is my next step when I return?” “What do I believe is important in life?” “Who do I want to be?”. In many ways I feel like a fake pilgrim, because my motivation for doing the Camino is not the same as the typical pilgrim’s. But it is a privilege to walk along side some of them as they are on this personal or spiritual growth journey, and share about the love of God and the forgiveness and hope found in Christ. I believe that every person on the Camino is searching for answers, peace, or satisfaction of some kind, and I have the privilege of being someone who can tell them about the endless treasures available to them in Christ, if they don’t already know.
We have about a week and a half left of walking the Camino. This has also been a time for us to grow together as a team, and learn how to overcome challenges and differences together. Please pray for more open doors, and energy and physical well being for my team! Thank you!
No better feeling than reaching your albergue!
Thank you for reading! Sometimes I wish I were a more colorful writer, so I can help you picture what it’s like on the Race. But for now, at least I hope you enjoy hearing plainly about what God is doing through my team and I.
Blessings,
Elaine
