Life in Europe was pretty sweet. The culture, the food, the faces, the way of life were so much more familiar than anywhere else we traveled to this year. It felt like we were truly on our way home!
But then we took a hard left.
Enter: Morocco. It was a tough one.
Our travel to Morocco began with an 18 hour bus ride from Santiago to Tarifa, Spain. Then we immediately hopped on an hour-long ferry ride that dropped us off in Tangier, Morocco. Full disclosure: I had no idea how close Spain and Morocco were until this trip. I could practically swim the distance!
As soon as I stepped off of that boat and onto Moroccan soil, it hit me hard. It felt like we had gone backwards in so many ways. Within the first hour of being in Morocco, I had a complete emotional breakdown. It was cold and rainy, and my feet were soaked. A few of us were walking around town trying to find an ATM so I could pay the hostel. We were being followed by a few men and stared at by what felt like every single person in town all at once. Then I heard the call to prayer blasting over the loud speaker from the mosque. That’s when I lost it. I did my best to hide them, but the tears were enormous. I quietly muttered through my sobs, “Lord, I can’t do this anymore.”
After 48 hours in Tangier, we hopped on an overnight train that took us to our final assignment in Marrakech.
I cried every day for the first six days in Morocco. Man, was I stressed! Anxiety was starting to consume me. I couldn’t sleep. I lost my appetite. I was listening to all sorts of lies from the enemy.
Basically, month 11 started out with me being caught up in my own self (once again…). It didn’t take long though for the Holy Spirit’s conviction to grab my attention. Not long after our arrival to Marrakech, the Lord ever so gently reminded me that I am to remain thankful in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18). So, I got my mess together, cracked open my Bible, and started pulling out any and all Scripture that points us to gratitude. Every single day after that, I had a “thankfulness verse of the day”, and I listed out things for which I am thankful. Every single day was a battle in Morocco, and every single day I had to put on my armor (Ephesians 6:10-18).
So, yes, Morocco was tough; but the Lord certainly blessed us in the midst of the difficulties.
My team and I did about 3 weeks of ministry in Marrakech. We prayed a lot, volunteered at an orphanage, got super involved at the international church in town, had some get-togethers for the young ladies of the church, and poured into our hosts as much as we could.
My personal highlight of Morocco was most definitely our hosts. Oh my goodness, they are the most wonderful people! I mean, they were a straight blessing from the Lord! People I will never forget. For safety reasons, I can’t really give many details or names, so I’ll just say this: there are some AWESOME warriors for Christ in Morocco. They all encouraged my heart so much. The Lord used them to remind me that He had me in Morocco for a reason. It is my sincere hope and prayer that I was able to encourage all of them as much as they encouraged me. I am eternally grateful for these brothers and sisters in Christ! They made the trip to Morocco worth it!
1 Corinthians 12: the body of Christ is an incredible thing!
