It has been a week since I left the United States and came to Colombia, the first stop on this year long journey I am now embarking on. It is no longer a dream, a desire, or a future thought. Instead, here I am. The Lord has already been at work, our squad has been busy with ministry and adventure, and I have been on a roller coaster ride of thoughts and emotions.
I have to keep reminding myself that this is actually happening for real. Sometimes I just forget I am in Colombia. Luckily, this is a good thing. I am surrounded by such amazing squadmates and teammates it is like we are already just a big family doing life. Everything is comfortable in a sense with these people, even being pushed out of your comfort zone. I also don’t think “it” has really hit me yet either. This is fun, but see me in month 3-5 when I realize this is not just a long vacay or shorter mission where I will be home soon. As of right now, I am just embracing the peace that God has so generously surrounded me with. No sense in looking for fear, homesickness, or other emotions that might hinder my ministry if they aren’t here on their own.
However..
this is not to say there has been nothing to get used to. This is very obviously not America. The people drive like crazy here, weaving in and out, and every stoplight someone is either break dancing, trying to sell you something, or cleaning your window for a tip even though your Uber driver very obviously said no. The food is lots of bread. I know we made a lot of “let’s get this bread” jokes as a squad, but God was not about to let those jokes go unnoticed lol. We live in the top floor of a bakery. You HAVE to eat all the food served to you, and it’s sometimes too much filling food (bread, rice). My kingdom for an avocado or banana! I chose the live off wifi option, so there is no contact to the outside world for most of the week. Which, even if I did have a phone plan, you can’t have your phone out because it will likely get taken if you aren’t careful. The living situation is cozy, 30 girls sharing one bathroom and snuggling in every corner for bed space. There are rats in the laundry room (and optional extra shower) the size of cats. People get up at 5am and honk car horns until 1am. Two blocks down from our host, there is a street that, when you take even just one step in, you lose your breath. The darkness and oppression is severe. Every door and window in all of Medellin has bars over them. There is barbed wire on some fences and doorways. There are a lot of homeless people. There is a huge population of drug addicts. And the definition of “freedom” is very different than the godly one we live by.
I wouldn’t have it any other way at the moment though.
The Lord is mysterious. All of that said, He is already working through us. Homeless people taken in to the shelter and coming to church, drug addictions being broken or worked through, salvations happening in the dead of night while a group stays back praying on the roof for our other team warriors on the ground bringing God’s freedom and love. Kids who have never experienced Jesus are not only seeing the Father, but are also being loved on the way they deserve! There was even a church service for the people at the homeless shelter where one of my squadmates, Whitney, spoke on building a house on solid rock and gave pieces of her testimony throughout. Then Lauren, another squadie, gave her testimony at the end. There was a common thread of hopelessness treated by the love of the Father, so the pastor came up and said I wasn’t going to do this, but I now feel I should ask for those of you struggling with suicidal thoughts to come up and be prayed for. Multiple came and the Spirit was thick surrounding that room and those people. Then they reached out and asked some of us to lead them in a song…in Spanish. So far, we had only learned one song in Spanish. Wanna guess which one? Amazingly, the Lord knew ahead of time that we would need it.
It was Break Every Chain. And BOY were there chains broken and falling off that night. Thank you Jesus!
So, like the title of this blog insinuates, I had no idea just how to sum up or what to include to describe the wonder and emotion that this first week brought me in Colombia. And so far, it’s been kind of all over the place. But I do know one thing for sure. The Lord is still working. It doesn’t always feel the way we expect it to. It doesn’t always look as neat, smell as sweet, or feel comfortable or full of goosebumps. The work of the Lord is strange. Sometimes its being sweaty and ringing doorbells and dealing with the language barrier. Sometimes, its giving up all of your baby wipes to your squamates because there is no more TP. Sometimes, it’s holding your tongue and allowing someone else to speak their truth so they felt heard. Sometimes, it is praying on a roof for hours so that the rest of your team is protected and empowered when speaking to people who live in wickedness. However, the work of the Lord is always good. It is important and it bears fruit. I am very thankful to have a part in it.
For now, this is my update. Hopefully my mind will settle and I can soon put some more concise and better sounding words on a page to describe ministry, Colombia, and my feelings. But, as of now, this is all I have. I am safe, I am doing well, and this is actually happening people.
To all those who helped get me here, THANK YOU! We are doing it. Dang.
