The Father loves blessing His children, and I’m in the process of learning to accept the gifts He ever so sweetly gives.
When our squad arrived in Chile, we had something called Leadership Development Weekend. It was a two-day event of worship, hearing our leadership pour our their wisdom, and listening to what our fellow squad mates had to share from the Lord. The Squad Leaders from my squad never cease to blow my mind with all they have to say; they are always mindful with their words and they crave to share what the Lord has placed in them. Colby Elizabeth and Melanie, three of my squamates, also shared their hearts with us over this weekend. We heard from Colby about his sweet pursuit with the Father, Elizabeth shared about her fun relationship with Jesus as her friend, and Melanie told us about confirmation in hearing the Lord’s voice. I was also asked to share my heart during this weekend about hearing from the Lord in visions and pictures. This is something I’m extremely passionate about, and am so thankful I was able to open up with 40 of the greatest people I know. Leadership Development Weekend was a time of sharing wisdom and love, but also a sweet time of rest to fill up our tanks for a new country and time of ministry.
My team of 8 women, Priceless in Him, is loving life here in Chile. We are split up into four groups of two for our living situations: each group of two is staying with a Chilean family! My teammate Kaitie and I are living with a family of 5, the Aguirre family! Marcelo and Carla are the parents, Isidora is their 16 year old daughter, and Benjamin (11) and Mateo (9) are the sons. It’s quite the party with them and we wouldn’t have it any other way. Each morning we are greeted with a hug and kiss on the cheek from each family member, per Chilean culture. The Aguirre family loves to sing and play music which as you all know, I am ALL ABOUT. We have a lot of fun evenings with this for sure! Benjamin, Mateo, Kaitie and I love to play ping pong and soccer in the yard even though Kaitie and I get beat every time.
This family loves to bless us in every way they can. To give you some insight, Marcelo barbecued for us on our first day with them while Carla hand made empanadas. This meal alone showed me their generous spirit right from the start. They always make sure we always have more than enough food, the perfect amount of sleep, and unlimited love. One morning, Carla made Kaitie and I a bundt cake for breakfast.
Yes, a BUNDT CAKE, for breakfast.
This may seem silly, but she was so excited about it! (As were Kaitie and I!) She worked on that cake and made it from scratch just to serve us. That just blew my mind.
This moment was the moment it hit me though.
I signed up for the World Race to serve. Why on earth am I being served so generously in the process?
These thoughts raced through my mind. I never expected to have such generous love poured out to me in casual everyday things like barbecues, cakes, ping pong, and my own bedroom. The Father loves blessing His children with little things that have a big impact. I know this and have seen it through my life. Yet now, I’m struggling to actually accept it. I know the Father sees my smile and feels the joy I have when I am given these gifts, I just need to get to the point now of praising Him for them and accepting them with humility.
This is a process and I know I’m not there yet, but one thing for sure I’m going to dig deep into what the Father has to say. I would appreciate your prayers in this time, but I urge you to pray hard for our host dad Marcelo! He has a job interview today, and we are praying that if this is the right thing for him that the answer would be clear. He has been out of work for four months now and is the main financial provider in the home. YET, he serves us in every way he can.
Thank you all for loving on me as always. I am still in need of some funds to be able to stay on the field! If you feel led to donate or know anyone who would be interested, click the orange ‘donate’ button at the top of my blog! The Lord provides, can I get an amen?!
Here’s a photo of Kaitie, myself, Mateo, and Benjamin.
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Here’s what I’ve been jammin to!
“Hay Ana Nube (There is a Cloud)” by Elevation Worship
“Open Space” by Housefires
…and the entire La La Land Soundtrack.
LOVE YOU ALL!
