Month 7,8, and 9 Ministry Update
Hello lovely supporters and followers of my world race journey!
I am now in month 9 in Honduras and have 71 days left on the field. Can you believe it!? I wanted to write you and give you a brief recap of my last 3 months. …I apologize it has been so long.
Month 7- Malaysia
The last time you heard from me, I was writing from Malaysia about how I didn’t want to write any more blogs (other than ministry updates). This still stands true, and Malaysia is an example of why communicating through blogs is so difficult. It is not a closed country to Christianity, but it’s close. Due to many cultural sensitivities and restrictions, I can not explicitly talk about what we were doing in the country on an online platform, I will however be happy to tell you all the specifics once I get home.
Month 7 my team and I lived in Penang, a small island located off the west coast of Malaysia. We lived in a section of town called Little India and got to get a feel for Indian culture. We were exposed to their music, dress, and food (butter chicken with garlic naan was a favorite). There were several ministry opportunities, so the team would split up to various locations. One was working at Just Caffe, a coffee shop that is connected to the Penang House of Prayer. I spent most of my time there serving lattes, making paninis, and building relationships with the employees and customers.
Another ministry we were involved with once a week was street outreach on Wednesday nights. We would partner with locals and go out into the streets to pray for people. The Holy Spirit showed up every time and we got to see healings, demons cast out, and people experience the Lord for the first time. It was amazing!
We also got the privilege to work with a refugee school located on the mainland. It was a primary school for Burmese children displaced from their home country.
Month 8- Nicaragua
The first week of Nicaragua was the Parent Vision Trip (PVT) where my parents got to come on the field for a week to come alongside and do ministry with me. It was an incredible week! We were in Isla de Ometepe, which is an island made up of two volcanoes surrounded by a massive lake. We lived and worked at a children’s refuge home called CICRIN (pronounced “see-creen”). My parents and I got to do several things to help out including upkeep around the property (sweeping sidewalks, raking leaves, and moping floors), construction of bathrooms at the school (digging the foundation, hauling dirt in wheelbarrows, and mixing concrete), and prayer walking out in the community. Mom and dad got to get a glimpse of what I have been learning over the past 7 months. It was a really special time for us to grow closer to the Lord as a family and see the work He is doing all over the world.
After my parents returned home, the entire squad (all 35 racers) came to CICRIN to spend the rest of the month. We continued to do prayer walks, construction, basic clean up, and working in the school.
Month 9- Honduras
And now here I am in Honduras! This month we are working with a Catholic organization called the Olancho Aid Foundation in Juticalpa, Honduras. Olancho Aid is a non-profit that helps to empower Honduran youth through education. They run and operate several schools in the area (a bilingual primary and high school, a monolingual high school, and a school for special needs kids). They are also involved in a clean water project that builds water purification stations for nearby villages.
Our team is split up between the high school and elementary school helping out with everything from teaching classes to filing papers to running workshops. I am at the high school with my teammate, Taylor. We have loved getting to know the students and staff and have built some amazing relationships that are going to be extremely difficult to leave at the end of the month.
…So that is my super brief update! I cannot wait to be home and tell you all in more detail the things the Lord is doing in these countries as well as in me. Please continue to pray for my team, my squad, and our time on the field over the next two months.
I will be flying to the States into Atlanta on November 20, just in time for turkey dinner with my family. It is going to be here before we know it. I greatly look forward to seeing you all again and cannot thank you enough for your continued support!
xx
Ali
