There have been many stories from the Camino and unfortunately, I am unable to share all of them! Here are a couple that have impacted my heart and that I can’t stop sharing or thinking about:
September 10, 2017
I met a woman named Paula from Columbia. We ended up staying at the same hostel and we just started talking. I asked her about why she was on the Camino and she said that she was looking for something more. My heart knew she was looking for God. She asked me, “why are you on the Camino?” and I got to explain our mission to 11 different countries and how we are here to love those around us and to help them know and grow in their faith in Jesus.
I continued and asked her if I could show her what changed my life. I opened my Bible showed her the verses from Romans that lays out the Good News:
Romans 3:23
“For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.”
Romans 6:23
“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 5:8
“But God demonstrates his love of us in this, while we were still sinners Christ died for us.”
Romans 10:9
“If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart God raised him from the dead you will be saved.”
Ephesians 2:8-9
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith— and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”
I got to explain each of the verses and really the heart of the gospel and why Jesus died for us. It was amazing to see how receptive her heart was to what I had to share. I remember telling her, “You can accept Jesus into your life as your Lord and Savior and He will come in and change you from the inside out.” I challenged her to pray that as she was going to bed.
After that, I asked if I could pray for her. I remember praying specifically that the door would be opened and that she would feel the Holy Spirit’s presences in her and that she would know and grow in her faith. When I stopped praying she looked up and said, “wow, I’ve never felt this way in my life.” She continued to say, “I feel like something is right here (pointing to her neck/throat) and it needs to come out.” I asked her if I could pray again and I commanded anything that was not of God to come out. In short, she said thank you and was extremely blessed and then I decided went to bed.
In the morning I met her for breakfast around 8:00am. She told me that last night after I prayed for her, about 45 minutes later, she went into the bathroom and coughed up mucus. She said she felt so much better after that and she slept peacefully all night! It was like the Lord placed a deep sleep over her. We ended up talking more as the morning went on. I showed her how she can study the Bible for herself. She was taking pictures of everything and hungry for more. I asked her if she prayed to let Jesus be the Lord of her life as she went to sleep. Her response was simple, “yes.”
Tamara and I prayer for her and sent her out the door to hike around 10:30am. Never knowing if we would see her again, but knowing she was loved, encouraged, and empowered to go out for the day.
Paula and I reading the Bible and understanding how to have a relationship with God.
Approximately 3 days later, Tamara was praying specifically for freedom for Paula. Literally, a minute later we come around the corner and she was right there! We walked with her the rest of the day and let conversation flow naturally.
We told her the story of how Tamara was praying for her and boom, she shows up. I got to explain how the Holy Spirit promoted Tamara to pray for her and so when we came around the corner you would be right there.
She then asked me, “Who is the Holy Spirit and how does it work?” This opened the door for discipleship. Tamara and I tag teamed the question of how we receive the Holy Spirit and how we are able to access his power. We shared Scripture that came to mind such as:
Ephesians 1:13-14
“…the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the promised Holy Spirit, who he promised long ago. The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people…”
Romans 8:2
“And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.”
These are just a couple of verses. We also used examples and heart knowledge from various parts of the Bible (John 15, Galatians 5, Acts, Romans, Matthew, etc). After the conversation we believe God has filled her and is able to work in her and through her. She was so thankful for it all and we know that God’s had is on her no matter where Paula goes.
This is just one story that has happened over the course of the last couple of days.
God has been on the move wherever we have gone. One day on September 14, we ran into a couple from the United States – Monte & Jenise ?
We walked together all day and instead of taking the shorter 18 kilometer route, we took a longer route by accident and went 26 kilometers. Monte and Jenise made the hike go so fast. We got coffee and ended up sharing about our mission with them. We saw their eyes open and hearts inspired and we were so thankful to have the opportunity to share.
I learned so much from Monte about business desires as he is an entrepreneur and a inventor at heart. He is very wise and Connie and I picked his brain about his life and business ventures.
One of the things that I will always remember from the Camino is when we hit the 20 kilometer mark, Jenise was hurting. I offered to take her pack as I only brought my light one. I put in on my back and my pack in the front. As soon as I took it, she started to tear up. Her heart was touched with love! God used me to extend His love to her through simply taking the weight, and I was tremendously blessed to do it.
We ended up hiking the rest of the day together and when we got to our hostel, Jenise and Monte expressed how they would like to pay for our housing. I was shocked! I felt totally blessed and so thankful. I got to talk to them a little more that day and got to pray with them before they left. I thought to myself, I really hope we see them again.
The very next day after the hike, we were debriefing with our team when we found them! We instantly started a conversation. Somehow we got on the subject of food and it just so happens that our kitchen in our hostel wasn’t working that night. Jenise instantly invited us to cook over at her apartment. Talk about God’s provision and blessing!
When we started cooking, Monte and Jenise and the two other couples that they were with decided they were going out to eat. They told us, “invite your whole team over here and make yourself at home.” I was amazed. We literally had an amazing night together as a squad and saw God open doors out of no where.
When they came back from their dinner out, I talked to Jenise one more time. And she expressed her thankfulness to me again for taking her pack. She said, “You know what? when you took my pack, my shins that have been hurting for the last couple of days stopped hurting and they haven’t hurt since.” INCREDIBLE! God used love to heal and it wasn’t something I knew about or prayed for. All I can say is Jesus is AWESOME!
I have learned so much on this Camino and these are just a couple of my favorite stories. I have seen God’s had directly at work in the lives around me. And even though it is challenging to meet and connect with new people every day, it seems like God highlights people and new relationships are formed.
For example, I met a missionary from Madrid named Paul. This conversation simply saying, “Hola, (realizing he spoke English) where are you from?” Making a few connections here and there, I found that his Tyler and my brother Ben were both at the same small university in St. Paul, Minnesota. Paul has been living overseas for many years, but has been in Madrid for the last 11 years. Paul lived along with us for 48 hours and became a really good friend to us. He became a living example to me of what it means to remain faithful and follow the Lord. Paul blessed our group so much and has provided wisdom that I will keep with me in the years to come. I felt like I was being discipled my a modern day Paul, however, he would say thats too great of a title to take and would probably scold me for even saying it (haha).
Overall, personally I am doing well. I appreciate the encouragement and support so much and your prayer have been going a long way. We are going to make it to Santiago tomorrow. We have walked approximately 350 kilometers or 218 miles. I have grown so much closer to my team and understanding who they are and how they operate. I have been weak and seen God give me strength through my weakness. I have been blessed to encounter God as my provider. I have embraced the uncomfortable and have learned to live off of 1 pair of cloths and my Bible. I have been looking for ways to be thankful instead of complain. I have experienced joy in the journey and not just in the destination.
Thanks for caring and loving me well, here are the answers to prayer requests.
Prayer #1: I’m hiking The Great Comino de Santiago with my team. We start tomorrow (September 2nd) and will be hiking 18 miles the first day! Please pray for strength and endurance for me team.
Answer #1:
I can’t tell you the strength and the endurance God has provided throughout this trip. The first day was tough as we went over beautiful hills, areas with fog and pigs, rain, and cold wind like in North Dakota. The 2nd day I felt like I could barely walk, and the 3rd day was not much better. However, we took a travel day after that and my legs started to adjust as God provided what we needed.
Currently, we finished the hiking portion and were doing around 120 kilometers a week. It was marathon after marathon of walking. Through the difficult we relied on the Lord, encouraged each other, and love the people around us. Because of our weakness, He was strong and we were able to relate to others sharing the same pain. It really reminded me of Romans 12:15-16 “Be happy with those who are happy and weep with those we weep. I’ve in harmony with each other…” Being able to endure the distance, the pain, and the discomfort and enjoying the journey.
Prayer #2: BIG PRAYER: God has shown me an opportunity to abandon my stuff for 21 days while we hike. I only am taking on change of cloths, my Bible, and my blow up pillow. I will be suffering this month in order to gain a greater perspective. Please pray for this process and that the Lord would change me and use it in my life in incredible ways! Also, for health and no sickness for my team.
Answer #2:
First my team and I are healthy as can be. There is no sickness, the only minor issues are aches and pains in legs, feet, and shoulders. Melanie’s foot has been hurting, so she decided to bus forward and take it easy so that she could be good to hike in the future.
Now as far as the suffering part, wow the first week was difficult. I found myself complaining, hurting and hungry. I started asking the Lord to be my provider and instead of complaining turning to thankfulness. I found myself getting up in the morning and trying to find things to be thankful for and that brought a lot of joy! I can honestly say my life has been changed drastically and here is how:
-I feel comfortable living with 2 sets of cloths (which I accidentally left at my last hostel yesterday so now I only have 1)
-I’m comfortable sleeping in hostels or on the ground
-I have seen God as the provider for food, lodging, and even coffee (James 4:2-3 “Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God or it. And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong…”)
-I have been given strength especially in my weakness and when I’m hurting
-I have been able to serve people by carrying their packs and taking some of their weight (Galatians 6:2, “Share each other’s burdens and in this way obey the law of Christ.”)
-Even when I have nothing to give the Holy Spirit always has something to give
This prayer was answered and I am so thankful my heart accepted the challenge to embrace these things in my life!
Prayer #3: For spiritual conversations on this journey. Everyone who is hiking here has come for a reason and are searching for something. Often times people have the idea that they can be forgiven of their sins by walking. Help us to enter into to those motives and be able to share the Good News of Jesus with those we meet.
Answer #3:
I have had more conversations this month with people that I ever thought I would. My first thought was “I am going to be walking this alone and I won’t have the chance to use my gifts and pour out to those around me.” God proved that wrong so fast. I have been able to share with different people almost every day. Some have even stuck with us for as much as 3 days in a row. I have not only been able to share Jesus’ love with people, but I have been able to disciple those around me. Spiritual conversations happened so often whether it was with a stranger I met on the trail or a teammate that was walking with me. This Camino has been encouraging in so many ways!
4. More understanding of what the Lord is saying. Both in advance and in the moment.
Answer #4:
God spoke pretty clear to me each day. He is revealing desires in my heart and the ability to accomplish them as my life goes on. He has shown me so many things in the moment and I am blessed to follow His promptings and see the impact it has on people. God is speaking to me in advance about my future and what ministry looks like. I’ve realized more and more how important prayer is and I will continue to pray for people because it is a way they can experience God in reality and be touched by His love.
Thank you for praying, if you have any questions for me or have been praying in a specific way and you want more details, please email me: [email protected]
I would love to share more details with you. I may not get back to you instantly, but I promise I will answer your questions.
Prayer Requests I have now:
1. We have our first debrief in Mijas, Spain on the 24th of September. We will be able to have time to process more of what has happened from the past 2 months of ministry. Pray that it would be a time to be reunified as a group. That my team would be refreshed and on the same page as we head to Morocco.
2. God would continue to use me even now as our ministry on the Camino is coming to an end. Whether its to minister to my team, those around me that I have met, or those I haven’t even met yet.
3. For my teammate Megan, her dad died a couple days ago now and she ended up flying home to be with him. Pray for the family and for wisdom to know if she should come back out and join the team or not.
4. Endurance and to keep my eyes focused on Christ. To continue to press in to the gifts the Lord has given me and to grow in knowledge and faith daily.
If you have any feedback on how I can better communicate what has happened or have any questions please do not hesitate to email me. I would love to hear from you. Thanks for all the comments and for letting me know your listening. This can be a lonely journey, yet because of your partnership I am so encouraged.
