Y’all this week and a half has been epic!! Arriving at training camp I had all the nerves. I was in full on panic mode as we drove up to Adventure In Missions in Gainesville, GA. I was instantly calmed by the Holy Spirit. I could feel the presence of the Lord in every face that I meet. Meeting my squad has been one of the greatest experiences. Each member brings their own unique vibrance to life. It creates for an amazing dynamic. The most interesting part about my squad is……I am the only male on my team! YES, that means I live with 20 wild, yet amazing woman. Let’s just say, it has been an adjustment after living with Charles and Heath in Charleston this past year. However, I’m ready for this wild and unique challenge the Lord has presented me with.
Training Camp:
Training Camp was unlike anything I have ever been apart of in my life. I learned how to sit with spirit of God as well as how to truly hear the voice of God. These are tow things that I am not very good at in my walk with Christ! My mind moves at a million miles per hour and sitting with the presence of the the Lord is new for me. A motto I learned at training camp that I encourage all to live out is: LIFE IS MINISTRY, MINISTRY IS LIFE. I learned what this looks like in the field. What it looks like to live this out. I am excited to begin living this out in the field.
So, the most interesting part about training camp had to be the food! Each day was inspired by a different culture. From Asian Fu, to Eating with our hands on Africa day, to eating tons of Rice on Latin America day. One of my favorite parts had to be meeting other members of the other semesters squads. Getting to know and connect with people who are going out into other nations was incredible! We left Gainesville very early Sunday morning prepared. We as a squad felt ready to take on the world and spread the gospel to the nations!!
Travel Day and Week 1:
Those of you who don’t know me, you are unaware of the fact that I LOVE TO TRAVEL!! I enjoy every aspect of it, my favorite part are the logistics. I swear I could be a travel agent, I truly feel at home in airports. We boarded out plane from Atlanta to Ft. Lauderdale ready to get to Quito. A little fear of being stuck in Ft. Lauderdale because of the hurricane crossed our minds! However, God is good and we got out without a delay!! Hallelujah!! We arrived in Quito at 1am….central time! It was a very long and wild day! Monday and Tuesday consisted of doing light work around Casa Blanca (the beautiful home we have the privilege of staying at) getting used to the altitude. Quito is the highest capital city in the world! We are staying at 10,000ft, which for me who lives at sea level most of the year, this was an adjustment! I am still getting used to the altitude each day! We found a Coffee shop that is about 2min walk from our home! The best part about it…..the coffee is 75 cents!! Wednesday and Thursday consisted of us going and working with a local ministry called Pan de Vida (Bread of Life). These two days consisted of lots of cleaning and a whole days worth of painting. I love to paint, so getting to bless this ministry was incredible! This ministries soul focus is to spread the gospel by doing outreach and partnership with the community! We are going back and continuing to work with them at the beginning of next week!
We get two off days during the week and one of them is today! I am currently sitting in a little coffee shop in historic Quito with a few of my squad members! The barista Pedro has been incredibly nice to us, he speaks English. We were able to talk to him about what we are doing here in Ecuador and how we plan to bring the gospel to this country! It’s days like today that fill me up the most in life! It’s spending time in little coffee shops around the world that bring me joy! I am thankful for the team members that are with me and how we pour into each other! God is so amazing. I look up every few seconds and it hits me each time….I am in Ecuador! I am not sure the feeling of excitement or adventure will ever fade as long as I am on this earth! God is so good and so big! I ask for continued prayer as we live life here in Quito! I ask for prayer for unity as a squad and for Pan de Vida! I ask that everyone prays for the ministry of Pan de Vida and that they continue to bless Lord in all they do! Thank you to all who are praying for me and my squad! God Bless!
-Ben
