With our time wrapping up in Ecuador I’ve been reflecting on this month and what I’ve learned.
This month for me was all about friendship.
But also so much more than that. Not just a month of new pals to share laughs and adventures with, but a month of really deeply understanding and experiencing the gift of friendship that Jesus wants for this whole universe.
He wants his Church, His bride, His body of believers that he has gifted with his very own spirit to all function as One.
Of course, after 10 months of living with a minimum of 6 incredible individuals to my left and right 24/7, I’ve come to really see the beauty of community. But after this month I felt led to really break down what Christian community looks like to those who may not completely understand.
This month was exceptionally different from some other months because we were surrounded by Americans. Like I said in my earlier blog, this month our ministry was CRU. (Campus crusade is a worldwide college ministry for those who aren’t familiar) Working with CRU was such a gift for me personally because without Cru at my university, and all the amazing people who poured into me from the organization while I was a student, I might not even be here on the mission field.
And the coolest twist of fate… a good friend who did Cru with me at UNC is here working on the Quito team! Essentially this month, my wonderful American friend, who I haven’t seen in almost a year, was my ministry coordinator, AKA my boss!
The Cru group we were partnered with was a team of 3 girls and 3 guys from America, a year out of college, just the same as my team. We created a fast friendship with each one of them.
We shared meals, salsa danced, laughed and worshipped in the apartment house church. The girls lavished us with love in the form of fresh baked scones, and home brewed kombucha. We felt welcomed and at home with each one of them.
So if that wasn’t enough excitement, we also had the guesthouse where we lived. It was a beautiful home outside the city owned by a mission organization. My team of 6 lived there alongside 40 Americans who have been taking a gap year to do mission work after High School.
Safe to say it was a packed house, full of energy and eager young kids hoping to become the best of friends at every moment.
When you have forty 18-year olds living in your space, looking up to your every move, and holding onto every word that comes out of your mouth, you really learn that ministry is 24/7. After long days of work in the city, we quickly had to learn how to love and listen from the overflow in our hearts that only comes from the Lord.
Something was so special about being surrounded by people who spoke our language, and understood our culture and where we came from. Especially after all of these months away.
It was beautiful getting to serve alongside the CRU team, while also simultaneously serving each other. We were able to share stories from the mission field, and mutually encourage each other. We were able to meet each other in a place of true understanding. After close to a year on the field there is nothing more refreshing than sitting down with a new face, who can say “me too”.
So while this month started with an overload of new American faces, these faces quickly became intertwined into our stories and our lives.
And that is what Jesus intended. To gather around a table with strangers, and leave with new family members.
Because when you have been blessed with the same spirit you start with a level of understanding. Understanding of the mission we all have been called to on this earth, and understanding of the love each human has been made for.
Each day for ministry we would go to the local university campuses in Quito to share the gospel, build relationships and find ways to get students plugged in with Cru.
Cru has a really awesome tool we would sometimes use to strike up spiritual conversations. There was a card deck of pictures and we would spread the photos out in front of the students. Then we would ask questions such as, “pick a photo that describes your life now” , or that “describes your dreams for the future”, or that “describes your experience with God and spirituality.” Almost every time students selected the card of a group of laughing smiling friends to describe their current life. But then as the conversation progressed they would reveal that while they are surrounded by friends, they often feel alone, sad, and misunderstood.
It was heart breaking to hear this over and over again because man! That was not God’s plan for friendship. We were able to tell students that there is more, and God really truly wants more for each of them.
He wants us to laugh and have fun, to hit the town salsa dancing, but to also serve each other in love. To cook dinner for friends expecting nothing in return, to share our struggles and to stand side by side praising Him for holding it all together. To carry the burdens of the other on a hard day because you know they will do it for you on your hard day.
This is the community He wants for each of us because life isn’t easy and we weren’t meant to do it all alone. He promised us salvation but He also promised us life to the full right here on earth. And a lot of that fullness of life is going to start by surrounding yourself with people who deeply connect to your spirit and are fighting for the same things.
So find those people and keep fighting for the friendships we were all created to enjoy. This journey has been teaching me that a stranger from any corner of the world is already family because of the spirit we share.
You just have to open your heart and arms to the gift the Lord is wanting each of us to receive. The gift of His Church. The tangible example of His great love.
(Below: My team and the Quito Cru team)
Update: After the most incredible month working with Cru in Quito we will be heading toward a slum community outside of Medellín Colombia at the end of this week. Pray for our safe travels as we enter into our final month on the race!
