Okay, the second part of that title isn’t really relevant, but I’m excited and wanted to share this moment with you all.
They say that there are two types of Racers.. The ones that pack a TON and drop their stuff as they go and the ones that hardly pack at all and end up leaving the Race with full packs. I’m the first type. After a team-intervention and a large giving-away pile, I’m pretty sure I’ve dropped 15-20 lbs. The small stuff really add up when it comes to backpacking. Life is good and my shoulders feel GREAT.
Anyways, we’re in Ecuador!
We safely arrived in the country on the 4th! Lemme tell ya, it was a fun journey getting there. We left Pasto, Colombia around 6:00 in the morning and got to the border to leave Colombia at 8:30. After a few hours of standing with two heavy packs, we finally got to the border to enter Ecuador (more standing, more heavy packs.. but we were halfway there)! We finally finished around 2:30 and took a bus-ride to Quito, arriving at 11:30. When we got to our hostel, the owner came out and said that it was too late for us to check-in, so we had 20 backpackers out in front of his hostel trying to figure out where to stay for the night. We decided to go to the bus terminal, because we had to stay in Banos the next day, anyways. At 2:30 in the morning, we took another bus ride and arrived at our hostel around 6:00 am. The feeling of finally laying in a bed was incredible.
I learned a lot from this travel day:
1. I learned more about finding joy in every circumstance. My squad and I all felt so much peace and were able to laugh throughout it all.
2. Through my squad’s response, I learned more about who we all were as a group and about the people that I am working alongside this year. Everyone handled the 25+ hours of travel SO well, and even the situation where we couldn’t get into our hostel. This year, God has placed me into a family that has the faith to not worry about the small things and an incredible amount of joy and patience.
3. Be understanding in all situations. I didn’t mention this above, but a huge reason why the line to cross the border was so long was because there are so many Venezuelans currently fleeing their country. The government is corrupt and it could take up to 20 years to be restored. A lot of Venezuelans were coming from behind a fence and cutting through the line. We had talked with some of the people that were trying to abandon their home country and everything they had known for a better life and God definitely used that situation to broaden my perspective when it came to something as simple as waiting in line for a couple of extra hours. There was a reason behind it and it was definitely more important than my wants and needs.
What daily life looks like
Each day is a new journey of praying into what God has for us and trusting in HIS guidance and provision. Our squad split up into four teams of five and we all have spread throughout Ecuador to pursue God’s calling for each of us. Our team will have a different team facilitator for each day and we follow whatever that person has on their heart. We usually wake up and will pray and ask the Lord what He has for us for that day. It can look like something as simple as worshipping and prayer walking or diving into new relationships with locals of the area. God has a new agenda each day and I am learning so much from relying completely on His voice to orchestrate my every moment. It has been both challenging and rewarding, and I feel as though my faith in His voice has increased so much in this short month.
Moving around a lot
That’s probably been one of the most challenging aspects of the Race, so far. Fusion is the World Race route that moves around the most, I would say, because of the strong emphasis on listening to God’s voice- but this is great because if God wants us to go, I definitely want us to follow His lead and obey. We’ve moved around quite a bit just because we’ve done so much within the month. We had our training camp in Medellin, stayed with a missionary family in Medellin, met Johanna in Manizales, stayed in Cali- a halfway point to Pasto, went to Pasto to meet the squad to cross the border, stayed in Banos for debrief, another missionary home in Banos, and stayed in Guayaquil for a few days before finally staying in Canoa- a small beach town that I’m currently at for the next three weeks. I’ve become pretty familiar with bus stations and Ubers, but I wouldn’t change it for the world. God has packed so much into this past month and He’s done incredible works and growth in my team and those around us.
Johanna:
Here’s a testimony from Colombia for you all! This is by far my favorite one so far. Last year, I was in Costa Rica for three months for a Passport trip through Adventures in Missions. While doing ministry in a brothel, I was praying for the Lord to lead me to someone to talk to and He led me to someone who is now a sweet friend, Johanna. I found out that she was working in Costa Rica but lived in Colombia. A few girls on my team and I would hang out with her and a couple of her friends. Since meeting her, I felt like God was telling me that I would see her again within the next year, but in her home country. I thought that was crazy! Why would I be in Colombia anytime soon? But GOD knew what He was doing. Because the Fusion route is “unscripted” and without ministry contacts, we are required to find lodging in each country where we are in. After my team prayed about where to go, I contacted Johanna and found out that she lives halfway to Cali from Medellín, which couldn’t have been more perfect because our team. We spent three days with Johanna and we couldn’t have asked for a better time. She was been such an encouragement to my team and I. Johanna radiates the LOVE and JOY of Christ. The ways that she exalts Him to those that she comes across is incredible.. and she is a warrior of PRAYER. She would take us from house to house to pray for people. It was such a cool experience and it was great because my new team had a better understanding of who I was through that. Johanna was amazed that last year, God would send someone to Costa Rica to tell her how loved and cherished she was.. And He did it AGAIN, a year later. So many prayers from this past year were being answered within those few days and I am amazed at the fact that I got to see her again, stay in her home, meet her friends and family, and further develop my friendship with her. There are no coincidences when it comes to our God- He is SO intentional when it comes to us and He definitely showed me that through our time with our friend.
What I learned about Colombia
Colombia has always had a reputation for drugs, poverty, and crime. Every time the small country had been mentioned, sentences followed along that said, “You must be careful. It’s dangerous.” Though this is true to some degree, my squad and I saw Colombia last month the way that God sees it: A country that carries a warm culture and welcomes many with open arms. Every time we’ve had to find lodging, the Lord showed up in some way through the gift of hospitality that the people of this country carries. We’ve been taken in by “strangers” and have been given food, housing, and long-lasting friendships. We would walk along the streets and somehow connections would arise; we’ve been told by people that we had come across that our home is theirs, even though we had only known them for a few minutes. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve seen the hard parts of Colombia, too. But the good trumps all else because God’s in it. Our month in Colombia showed me to run into the fire when God tells you to- no matter what has been spoken about the flames. That He will not only guide and protect us, but send us the sweetest memories along the way. In all, I’ve learned that Colombians aren’t afraid to be intentional with others and I will always remember the country for that.
Ecuador
We are now in Canoa! As mentioned above, it’s a small beach town (basically a village) that welcomes many tourists and backpackers, mainly from Europe and the states. It reminds me a lot of Jaco, but I am really surprised at the amount of tourists that come in due to it’s small size. It’s a beautiful and organic community, not having much done to the sidewalks or roads. Most of it is sand and there are mainly just campsites, hostels, and areas for food. Lots of surfing, too!
When we were praying about where to go, God highlighted Canoa to me. It didn’t look like much online, but something about it stood out. After talking with a women in Banos, my team and I discovered that Canoa was effected by an earthquake in 2016 and the aftermath is still very apparent. There’s a lot of damage that is still done to the town and a lot of the locals are still in the process of restoring their homes and businesses. People from all over the world have come to help out, but finances are a huge struggle here and prices have skyrocketed due to this. We have been able to talk with some of the locals about the earthquake and how it’s affected their lives, which I will share in another blog post. God has broken my heart for this town and the people that have been affected by the storm. There is no doubt in my mind that He’s going to do so much in these next few weeks.
How to Pray:
As my team and I are serving Canoa for the next three weeks, pray for the people that we will encounter and have already. Pray that the Lord will use us or others to help provide all that they need in order for a new life, whether it’s encouragement or construction help, etc. Pray that we can be LIGHT to them and this town. Pray that God will continue to restore Canoa and will spark exponential growth.
Pray for the Venezuelans that are fleeing their countries and those that are unable to leave, but are desperate for new life. Pray that God provides all of their needs and that His will be done in their lives. Pray that they look to HIM for peace and comfort.
I have $2,600 left to raise in two weeks!
If you could pray for this, that would be great! I would absolutely love to continue this work that God has called me to on the World Race and in order to do this, I have to fundraise $17,400 by April. I’m over halfway there; God is so faithful!! There’s no doubt in my mind that He’ll provide. If you want to partner with me, you can go to the homepage on my blog and donate one-time, monthly, or bi-monthly. 🙂
THANK YOU!
Thank you guys so much for getting me to this point! I appreciate you all so much and I can’t wait to continue to share this journey with you all. Feel free to message me if you have any questions, need prayer, or just want to talk! I want to share this journey with you guys not only through blog posts, but personally, as well. Love you all!
