Somewhere over some Ocean
After 26 hours of straight travel, 2 bus rides, 3 flights, 4 countries, 2 continents, and 2 hemispheres my team and I
arrived in Quito, Ecuador, all hoping that we would have the
opportunity to work in the jungle, but praying for God to place us
where He wanted us. Which led to a halfhearted prayer on my part
because I was praying that God make sure His will for for me to be in
the jungle… Funny how we humans do that sometimes…or is that just
me…? Well that is neither here nor there. After a few days of
getting acquainted with Inca Link, our ministry partners for the
month, we received the name of our location: El Carmen, Ecuador, and
to my disappointment it was not the jungle. Quickly remembering the
phrase that was constantly being tossed around by our Inca Link
brethren, “Choose joy,” I remembered that it was not about my
wants or desires, but God’s will. I’m not sure if you got the memo,
but His will trumps our wants and desires. So with one more day left
in the city before our squad parted ways to our different ministry
sites, we went out to enjoy the culture. It was an afternoon filled
with food, coffee, coffee, more coffee, random $3 nose piercings
(nothing says, “I’m ready to go do the Lords work!” like a $3
nose piercing at a hole-in-the-wall tattoo shop), and friends. A
perfect ending to our time together as a squad…
arrived in Quito, Ecuador, all hoping that we would have the
opportunity to work in the jungle, but praying for God to place us
where He wanted us. Which led to a halfhearted prayer on my part
because I was praying that God make sure His will for for me to be in
the jungle… Funny how we humans do that sometimes…or is that just
me…? Well that is neither here nor there. After a few days of
getting acquainted with Inca Link, our ministry partners for the
month, we received the name of our location: El Carmen, Ecuador, and
to my disappointment it was not the jungle. Quickly remembering the
phrase that was constantly being tossed around by our Inca Link
brethren, “Choose joy,” I remembered that it was not about my
wants or desires, but God’s will. I’m not sure if you got the memo,
but His will trumps our wants and desires. So with one more day left
in the city before our squad parted ways to our different ministry
sites, we went out to enjoy the culture. It was an afternoon filled
with food, coffee, coffee, more coffee, random $3 nose piercings
(nothing says, “I’m ready to go do the Lords work!” like a $3
nose piercing at a hole-in-the-wall tattoo shop), and friends. A
perfect ending to our time together as a squad…
Quito, Ecuador
Now I will be honest and say that my
travel to El Carmen… SUCKED. SOMETHING. AWFUL… After getting on the
bus me and my squadmate Jeff got kicked out of our seats by these two ladies because they got
their tickets before us and had the pleasure of assigned seats, I
could no longer get the fresh air that the window seat provided, sad
day. It was stuffy, cramped, and I was battling motion sickness the
entire trip. While my team and another were enjoying the scenery of
driving through the mountain range and jungle, I had my eyes closed,
listened to Michael Buble, and prayed that I wouldn’t be “that guy”
who pukes on the bus and ruins EVERYONE’S trip. Once arriving in El
Carmen, 6 long hours later, I felt a moment of relief because that
terrible bus ride was over. But then I took a moment to take in the
scenery…it was rainy, humid, and drab. I quickly found myself
missing the beautiful blue skies of the Dominican Republic, but had to
quickly remind myself what I came here for…that phrase that I heard
so much began to bounce around my head again, “Choose joy”.
travel to El Carmen… SUCKED. SOMETHING. AWFUL… After getting on the
bus me and my squadmate Jeff got kicked out of our seats by these two ladies because they got
their tickets before us and had the pleasure of assigned seats, I
could no longer get the fresh air that the window seat provided, sad
day. It was stuffy, cramped, and I was battling motion sickness the
entire trip. While my team and another were enjoying the scenery of
driving through the mountain range and jungle, I had my eyes closed,
listened to Michael Buble, and prayed that I wouldn’t be “that guy”
who pukes on the bus and ruins EVERYONE’S trip. Once arriving in El
Carmen, 6 long hours later, I felt a moment of relief because that
terrible bus ride was over. But then I took a moment to take in the
scenery…it was rainy, humid, and drab. I quickly found myself
missing the beautiful blue skies of the Dominican Republic, but had to
quickly remind myself what I came here for…that phrase that I heard
so much began to bounce around my head again, “Choose joy”.
El Carmen, Ecuador
Once we had the time to sit down with
Pastor Elmer and his wife Carmen, I started to see why we were here.
There was an instant connection and chemistry…my mood shifted and I
was able to catch a glimpse of how God might use us while we were
here. Elmer began to tell us his goal and vision for us while we
would be working together: going to in home bible studies, rehab
ministries, some construction projects, VBS, and something that I
DESIRED to do…something that I didn’t expect to hear…it caught me
so off guard that when I first heard it I had to go to my bag, grab
some q-tips, clean my ears out, sit back down, and ask him to repeat
himself. When I realized that my ears didn’t deceive, I felt God kiss
me on the forehead and say, “Son I hope you know what you are
asking for.”
Pastor Elmer and his wife Carmen, I started to see why we were here.
There was an instant connection and chemistry…my mood shifted and I
was able to catch a glimpse of how God might use us while we were
here. Elmer began to tell us his goal and vision for us while we
would be working together: going to in home bible studies, rehab
ministries, some construction projects, VBS, and something that I
DESIRED to do…something that I didn’t expect to hear…it caught me
so off guard that when I first heard it I had to go to my bag, grab
some q-tips, clean my ears out, sit back down, and ask him to repeat
himself. When I realized that my ears didn’t deceive, I felt God kiss
me on the forehead and say, “Son I hope you know what you are
asking for.”
TO BE CONTINUED…
