We don’t usually find out our ministry until the week before we head to a new country so most of the Race is not knowing what to expect. This month was not one we could have even guessed or imagined. We spent our mornings in Panama teaching Asian students at a Christian school while serving alongside our Indian host and Panamanian wife in the evenings. I’m almost positive that most of us weren’t even sure what a local from Panama looked like for the first week. With that being said, I wouldn’t trade this time for anything. We were able to experience multiple cultures within one area. My team and I were located on the outskirts of Panama City where one side of the street you will find that Hinduism is the predominant religion and on the other Islam is the predominant religion. Our host gave us a lesson on Hinduism and even took us to temples in the area. This month opened my eyes to other religions and beliefs. It gave me a whole new perspective on my own beliefs. (When you have to take world religion in college pay attention! I wish I could take it all over again.)
Our ministry this month started with sharing our stories and testimonies with the students at a nearby Christian school that our hosts teaches at. This was probably my favorite part about the month. While talking to one of the senior classes we were able to break off into smaller groups. I was able to share my story of walking through Boldness with a very timid student and she left already having more confidence. I saw the Lord so much through this time with the students even when you think they aren’t even listening they are still hearing about the Lord’s goodness. When we weren’t at the school we were working alongside our hosts to help kickstart the Navjeevan House of Prayer. We spent our days having conversations with locals and inviting them to church. We helped lead worship, prayer, bible studies, and gave sermons on Sunday’s.
This month was full of building relationships with strangers which might be my new favorite thing to do. We sat in Starbucks on our off days using wifi to talk to family. It would have been easy to never ask the workers names, that’s usually what I do, but the Lord opened our eyes. We met the sweetest employee there that ended up inviting us to his church one evening. Think about all the experiences and cool people we miss out on just passing them by. Ending this month with a full heart for God’s people and expecting to meet, and LOVE, so many more this year.
