A little collection of memories I have the Lord to thank for that I haven’t mentioned anywhere yet.
Ukraine
I gave it away and the Lord gave it back
I use to have this little bracelet with four pictures that help explain the Gospel (one of my absolutely favorite things to do). I had it until Ukraine. I was down at the bottom of a 7 ft gutter, waiting for my “brother roommate” Sasha to throw a fishing line dow for me to attach a gift to for a waiting VBS child.
One of the leaders wandered down my way and we started talking. He mentioned my bracelet, how much he like it. Instantly knew the Lord was asking me to give it to him.
I passed it to the guy to his delight but was confused. “Wasn’t I suppose to share the Gospel? Why are you taking one of the tools to do that away from me? This is like my easiest in nowadays. Definitely not the only way but it opens the door to a bigger conversation. I ask someone about their jewelry and they ask about mine and I get to share the Gospel. I’m stoked for what you’ll do with this kid and this bracelet but what’s your plan for me.”
Fast forward two countries. Bulgaria. As we’re packing to leave for Vietnam, one of my teammates mentions a teacher at her school gave her a bracelet for me.
Wouldn’t you know, it’s the exact bracelet I gave away and this time in purple. wow God. How I can trust even with such little things, knowing you’ll provide in your timing.
Poland
Satisfied?
I sat down next to a girl reading a book outside a church in the city square of Krakow.
Waiting for my teammates to return from grabbing food in the market up ahead and checking out the church to the right.
I asked, “What are you reading?”
That’s all it took to start a conversation with this incredibly sweet and open Ukrainian girl who’d been working in the city.
She asked me, “Have you ever felt satisfied?”
Which opened a sweet door to talk about the brokenness of the world and the satisfaction I’ve found in God. We talked about the Gospel.
Greece
I got trapped in an underwater cave for like a quarter of a second.
My friends Hunter, Matt and I were jumping off cliffs near our campsite by the beach. Our Romanian host took us to Greece for our “Adventure Days” at the beginning of the month.
Hunter spotted a cave and after some carefully (or impulsively, I never really know with him) examination, he dove down, swam through it and popped out of an air hole in it. As he climbed out, exclaiming how fun it was, it motivated Matt and I to want to give it a try.
I’m all about adventure and getting comfortable doing uncomfortable things but also try to be wise about the risks I make. So totally watched Hunter do it a few times and watied until Matt also had mastered it before pursuing it.
Dove down, swam through and on my way up, nearly at the surface and out of breathe… my suit snagged on a rock.
Not an issue either of the guys had because they didn’t have fabric on their chest.
It was only for a split second. Enough time though for me to kick and thrash a lil’ excessively to get myself free.
My head emerges from the air hole. deep breath. Lift myself up and onto the costal rock. Stand up. Throw my arms in the air triumphantly.
And… I’m bleeding. The water made it look way worse than it was. I hobble back to our site and like 5 different people get to work with Neosporin cleaning my salty wounds.
All in all, sick story, I’m fine (praise the Lord) and I got around to telling my mom like 3 months after the fact.
Romania
A Mountain & A Spoon
A Mountain
At the beginning of the month, in Brasov, there’s a mountain that has a Hollywood-esque sign with the city name on top of it. From the hostel it took about 3 hours round trip to hike it.
One morning, Brie and I woke up at like 4 am to hike together before our morning session. I love talking and hanging out with Brie.
There was a moment on some muddy ground about halfway up where I slipped and Brie grabbed me and kept me from slipping down the slope to our right. In that moment she stopped me from falling in a very literal sense but she does that all the time in a spiritual and mental sense. She holds me accountable, challenges me to grow and keeps me from slipping down slippery slopes of untrue thoughts.
Her awareness and appreciation for good lighting has changed my perspective. On that hike, Brie pointed out these little patches of light on our path. They were captivating and unique. Without her, I would of just walked right though, took notice of other incredible things in God’s creation but missed the light.
After our 3 hour hike, we made it back just in time. I ran to a shower and Brie snagged the two of us breakfast and we made it just in time to our morning session with the squad.
A Spoon
Our Romanian host picked us up in Brasov and we drove in a couple vans to his city, Dragonest-Olt. On the way, we stopped in a grocery store to snag some lunch.
After obtaining some food, my friend Hunter, Megan O, and I were wandering the aisles trying to find an effective way to spend the remaining money in our food budget. It wasn’t much, less than a dollar USD and it didn’t buy much. Hunter was hunting for deodorant but wasn’t successful in finding what he was looking for.
Then we found ourselves in the cutlery aisle.
Forks, knives & spoons galore.
Megan mentioned how much Brie loves spoon. So we bought her a spoon.
I got to pass it off to her in the parking lot. She loved it. Our host saw this and was excited too. He promised to get me something as a reward for giving someone a gift. I refused, deflected that it wasn’t just me behind the purchase and that I so didn’t need a reward.
Fast forward to our last week. We’re in a grocery store again and our host is asking what I want. I say I don’t want anything. He offers again… and again. I keep dancing around saying no. He off handedly asks, “Do you approach God this way?” Like do I not ask God for things or accept gifts from him. Which didn’t seem big in the moment but led to months of deconstructing whether that was true of me.
Turns out, I really don’t ask God for things. Or at least I hadn’t been.
And I’m still figuring it out. I’m navigating between God as some genie in the sky that I bring wishes to hoping he’ll grant my every whim and being so pridefully self sufficient and not trusting the Him that I don’t bring my needs or wants to the Lord. And it all started with a spoon for Brie.
Bulgaria
On the Blacklist of the Sofia Metro?
Very much value being on time. To get to the missionary kid school I taught at, you had to take a bus and then the metro and then walk a bit.
The first day, my teammate Summer and I set out with plenty of time so if we missed the bus or the metro we could still get to school on time.
We got there on time.
We got there very very very early.
Like a solid 45 minutes early.
So we sat on the metro platform where we’d meet another teacher to walk us to school and read. We read and read and read.
About a half hour in. A security guard walks up and starts asking a few questions. Kind, empathetic and curious. Or at least we guess so because she only spoke Bulgarian.
Thankfully a kind stranger stopped and translated for us. Which praise the Lord, we would’ve been in a much more confusing pickle if he hadn’t.
Apparently they had been watching us on the security cameras. We’d been in the same spot for a long time so they had questions. This kind security guard ended up checking our IDs and disappeared.
We didn’t know if we should stay or go and then our teacher friend appeared and off we went to school. Summer and I might be on a blacklist somewhere in the internal system of the Sofia Metro System but we have really no idea.
Vietnam
Gospel at the Cafe
It was like a breathe of fresh air. Like deep breathe on a cold morning that kind of pierces your lungs in a good way.
Talking about Jesus while teaching English to a waiter. He asked me about it.
You see, in Vietnam, it’s illegal to share the Gospel.
You see, in Vietnam, my team didn’t have a host. No assigned church or leader or missionary who would give our time structure and purpose. We were asked to ask the Lord. Great, good and stretching. Also hard, hard and sometimes a little less hard.
You see, in Vietnam, I started the month confused, biter, and jet lagged. Confused and bitter that my team didn’t get to work with a branch of my college ministry from back in the States in Vietnam. Jet lagged because the jump from Europe to SE Asia crosses a whole lot of time zones.
You see, in Vietnam, the Lord had a plan even if I didn’t. The Lord was in control and the more I learned to trust and lean into his plan the more I saw all the ways he was providing.
And so, one night at a cafe. Amidst business vocabulary and “how many siblings do you have?” we talked about the Creator of the universe. We talked about sin and love and redemption and grace.
All the things I had been burning to talk about, like fire shut up in my bones, without a real clear way or plan on my end, the Lord had the best plan.
I remember walking home that night with a smile so wide.
If you saw me that night walking across the Dragon Bridge you probably would’ve guesses I was in love. I was. I am. With Jesus.
Like who else would meet me right where I’m at, open doors and trust me to obey his will for me even when my sinful fleshy nature has a bent toward bitterness and self entitlement.
Cambodia
Surprise Started with a Shirt
posted this on Instagram but still an incredible story I want to share.
Step 1: Pick up a random shirt off the free table, with some Khmer (Cambodian) writing on it for “Ezra Library Cafe” in Siemp Riemp (about 5 hours away from Battambang).
Step 2: Talk with squadmates upon arriving to Battambang at the end of the month. Someone did ministry with Ezra cafe. The place from my shirt!
Step 3: Go on an adventure with Betzaida to the cafe.
Step 4: Spend a couple hours there.
Step 5: Betzaida beckons me over to the Lord of the Rings section, knowing I started reading those books on the Race.
Step 6: Pick up my favorite book, “The Hobbit” and remark, “Wow, this looks really familiar.”
Step 7: Open the cover and find my first and last name. Flip to the back and find some notes in Bulgarian I took when the missionary kids were teaching me a bit of the language.
Step 8: Thank the Lord for the squamate that donated my book so that now, my favorite book (other than the Bible) is in a really cool library in Cambodia (that I have the shirt from… which I got for free).
Thailand
Out of Context Quotes
“I’m thinking about Thai race cars right now but I don’t know if they’re a thing.”
[to class of seniors in high school]
“Who remembers what state I’m from”
“New York”
“Noooo…. not New York.”
“…Mexico!”
“No, that’s not in the United States…”
“Who. Is. The. Converse. Queen?!”
“Ambiguity.” ?
“Foggy morning with pretty girls”
Over halfway done with the Race and so incredibly blessed. ??Don’t have it all figured it out but trusting and leaning into Jesus.
Thank you.
Caitlyn Louise
