I am in love with it here!
___ has been absolutely amazing with breathtaking views Check out my Facebook soon for more photos!
After our 5 day debrief in the beginning of the month and 5 more days of squad leader training, we were finally able to meet up with our teams and start ministry.
I am spending this month with Team Branded and Team Torch
This ministry consists of so many areas but mainly trekking through the hills and mountains to reach the people who live there.
When myself and the other female squad leaders met up with the two teams, we jumped right into ministry.
So far we:
*Visited a school-even though the children were on holiday that day, we were able to speak with the Principle and pray for him, the children and the school.
*Went to a home for children and women who were exploited, previously in brothels, saved from sex trafficking etc. We met with this lady who talked about the foundation and then she gave us a tour. We were able to meet a few women who were in Track 2. They have been in the program for a year and are able to now make an income using their trade like making jewelry and blankets. They were so sweet.
Then we went to the upper level where the younger women were in training. They were in a classroom type setting and all seemed so young. We did introductions, I shared about The World Race and some encouragement and then two girls shared their stories. We had to leave so we ended with a prayer and goodbye hugs which brought the whole room to tears. This is such a beautiful place and organization full of HOPE. I wish we had more time with these girls. Definitely an organization I would want to focus more on in the future.
God saved those girls and continues to restore them. In these moments, you can truly see Gods presence and love.
*We walked through this beautiful valley to a leper colony. In many places in the world, people who suffer with or have suffered with leprosy are shunned from society and put into their own community away from everything. Even as early as the Old Testament in the Bible days, they are seen as untouchables. The views were amazing to reach this community and I felt so much peace.
Once we reached the gated in community, we were greeted with so many smiles and gentle hearts. We didn’t have much time here either but we made the most of what we had. We split into groups of three and walked around the community, spending time with the people there, praying for them and just loving them.
I am really bad with names but pictured below is this adorable woman who I fell in love with. She was so kind and had such a gentle spirit. She radiated joy with such positive energy. Though the language barrier is tough, we tried our best to interpret what she was saying. When in doubt…DANCE. This made her and this other old man laugh and smile so it was worth my embarrassing dance moves haha.
I didn’t want to leave but this small trip had a great impact on me.
We then had lunch with the Pastor, who also suffered from leprosy and sang some worship songs in his church. I was able to hold his hand while we prayed. I am a people person if you havn’t realized already so being able to hold people’s hands, just showing them how much I care means so much to me.
*We went on our first mini trek experience up a steep strenuous hill. Our purpose was to get to the top and intercede for the people here, specifically for the city below. Prayer is so powerful and I have found a new passion for intercessory prayer.
Random story: On the way, we took some breaks for water and snacks. One time, as we started walking again I looked down and I saw a lot of red liquid near my toe. I honestly thought it was a red skittle melted since I was just eating them and I couldn’t remember feeling any pain. Then as we looked more into it, it was my blood. We searched for a scrape but there was none. Our host dad told us that it was from a leech. How gross!
Video of Trek is included.
*On our off day some of us took a flight to see Mount Everest from the Sky! Honestly, how beautiful!!! Now I want to add Hiking to base camp to my bucket list. I have so much more respect for those who even try to climb Everest.
*Then we headed to a different town to spend time in the village there. It is so quiet, so peaceful and full of so much beauty. I am meant for village life, I swear. I am thriving and just appreciating Gods beauty so much including the beautiful faces of ___.
Here we have:
-Joined locals at their fellowship meeting under a small hut in the dark. We were able to share testimonies and an encouraging word.
-We visited families in the nearby villages
-We trekked through the nearby hills (when I say hills picture basically mountains. They just call them hills here because they have the Himalayan’s to compare them too) which closely resembled Jurassic Park. We hiked to a waterfall where we got to spend some girl time and enjoying the fresh water. Then we separated into two teams to reach two different groups of people that were living in the hills. The group I was with spent time with a husband and wife and their mother. Pictures below. They were so excited for our visit.
After spending some time with them, we were able to share about who were are and about what HE has done in our lives. They are hopeful and were happy we shared with them. The rest is in God’s hands. But this was such a sweet special moment.
Besides the giant spiders in our squatty pottie stalls and all the frogs hopping around us in our sleeping area, I love it here in ___ and love being able to see so much of it!
Oh and how did I forget…I found a piggy nearby! I pet him whenever I have the chance.
We are here in this one town for a few more days and then head to a different area. This is where the real trekking starts to spend time with the people in the mountains! I am so excited.
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Love you all
Kristen
