PVT, wowie what an amazing experience. I am still trying to form how I feel about PVT as I write this. The reunion I was just able to have with my parents after a long 7 months was amazing and full of tears. Since I am not able to really put down into words how I feel about PVT other then it was amazing I asked my mom to write a little piece on how PVT was for her. Enjoy!
“My husband and I went on our Parent Vision Trip in Quito, Ecuador. To be honest my main motivation was not spiritual but solely to see and hug my daughter after being separated for seven months. In the end the trip was so much more than spending time with Izzy but being with her made all the other
activities even better.
My favorite parts of the trip were the people we met. It was wonderful to meet and connect with other Race parents. No one understands you quite like people who have experienced the same thing as you. At Launch I didn’t really want to meet other parents. I was dealing with my own excitement/grief over my kid leaving and I didn’t have the emotional space to put into new relationships. By the seventh month I was ready. Another one of my favorite’s was listening to the Racer’s testimonies. It is balm to a parent’s heart to hear how the Lord has been at work in their lives. Parenting is hard sometimes and everyone needs encouragement. The testimonies were great encouragement. Also meeting the couple who runs the AIM base in Quito and a few of their partner ministry leaders was a real treat. They are all special people through whom the Lord is working. It blessed me to meet the people who will be leading the kids during their last months of the Race and to hear their visions. My time with all these people blessed my soul.
I have to mention the sightseeing because I don’t know that I would have ever visited Ecuador if it wasn’t for PVT. I may never have experienced the labor to breathe at such a high altitude either! Quito was a treat to visit and enjoy. There are many one of kind activities to experience and of course they were all made even better by doing them with my racer.
Last summer God started showing me how my personal comfort was an idol and sometime around the new year he started telling me to dream big. I coached myself before PVT by telling myself I would go along with whatever came my way on the trip. Before I even left my house I had two physical symptoms that made traveling very uncomfortable. My symptoms disappeared upon arrival. There were several opportunities on the trip to give up comfort and I knew the Lord was at work in my life as he walked beside me. God used visiting the different ministries and just being around the ministry of WR to
encourage me in mine. He gave me new ideas and spurred me on towards the future. He is a big God and wants us to dream big. I am home now encouraged and ready to walk towards bigger things.” -Andrea Oliver my mom 🙂
P.s I am in Ecuador!!!! So many mixed emotions being here in my last country before I head home…
P.s.s sorry it has been so long since I posted a blog, wifi has been a little hard to come by since being here in Ecuador
