Alright, I gotta be real… writing blogs is not my thing. I have so many stories and have witnessed a lot of amazing things, but for some reason I really struggle to sit down and write about it. Maybe it’s because I want to stay completely present where I am, maybe it’s a lack of creative ideas, or maybe it’s just laziness, I’m not totally sure. What I do know is that you all have been so supportive and encouraging throughout this entire trip and it really isn’t asking much of me to keep you informed about what’s happening, so I’m sorry for dropping the ball the last couple of months, but with that being said here I am writing an update, praise the Lord!
The last few months have been really good, but I’d be lying if I said they have been easy. I’ve had some painful and challenging times, but God has showed up and moved in ways I couldn’t even imagine. The lessons I’ve learned and the constant love I feel from my Father far outweigh any circumstantial struggles I may encounter. That is something I want the entire world to know, that we have a Heavenly Father whose love and presence overpower even the most painful struggles we may walk through. All we have to do is be loved by Him, it’s really that simple!
Okay, let’s start with Costa Rica. I spent this month in the mountains outside of San Jose and it was great! It was very different than any month I have had on this trip. We were isolated from just about everything, and after seven months of constant community outreach it was a nice change of pace. Our living situation was unique to say the least. We lived in a shed which was typically used as storage for our host’s tools and supplies. It was a tight squeeze, but we made it work. Our ministry was very host-focused. Our host’s name was Edgar, we all love him a whole lot. He runs a leadership school and is in the process of starting a discipleship program. He and his wife were moving houses so we helped a lot with that, we worked on his garden which helps support local pastors, and helped him plan and dream about what he wants his discipleship school to be. We also served with a local church and nearby school. God is using Edgar to do big things in his community and I am confident that he will change a lot of lives. He is also a prophet and God used him to speak a lot of encouragement into my life. I am super thankful for our time serving with him.
Next we went to Panama, this was a fun month. We were in a small town named Rio Sereno and were partnered with a family who runs a coffee farm and supplies coffee to churches in the US. Yeah, we got to work on a coffee farm in Panama! Our days consisted of a lot of hard work on the farm. We planted coffee plants, roasted and sorted beans, pulled a lot of weeds, and a bunch of other random things around the property. The highlight of this month was our relationship with our “Panamanian Father.” His name is Enoc, and he made our month unforgettable. He treated us like family from the moment we met him. He is one of the most loving people I have ever met, and also one of the craziest/goofiest. We were constantly laughing and having fun with Enoc, and it made it a lot easier to do the hard work when we knew we were not only supporting a great cause but also this amazing man and his family. He taught me a lot about being a servant-leader and what it means to love unconditionally. He and his family will always have a special place in my heart.
And now we’re in Colombia! We are working with a ministry named ‘Ciudad Refugio’ or ‘City of Refuge.’ This ministry does a lot of different things, all of which are super powerful. Our main focus is the men and women in their restoration program. These men and women live at the foundation and are in a program that is helping them recover from addiction and disciple them to live a life walking with Jesus. Their stories are powerful and such a testimony of God’s faithfulness and constant pursuit of all of us. The foundation also runs a homeless shelter every night for men in the surrounding area. On any given night there are about 100 men sleeping on the bottom floor of the building. They are provided a mat to sleep on, food, and they get to hear a brief message each night from one of the men in the program who was in their shoes not too long ago. We also have been able to do some outreach to people on the streets, specifically streets that are home to people who are struggling with drug addictions. This has been extremely eye-opening and it has been an experience I will never forget. We are here for one more week and then travel to Ecuador for our final month of the race! Since the work we are doing here is pretty sensitive I do not have many pictures, but here’s one from the field trip we took with the men in the program.
As we near the end of this amazing trip, I’m feeling a little bit of every emotion. I am excited to come back home, but I also am cherishing every moment of this trip. I’m happy, sad, excited, focused, you name it and I’m probably feeling it. Please be praying for our squad as we close out our time in Colombia and move into Ecuador. We couldn’t do any of this without your prayers, love, and support. I appreciate you all more than I can put into words. Love y’all!
