Wow! The month I had in Chile was absolutely incredible! Between evangelism, church small groups, outreach, serving, and anything else we could get our hands on, I had the best experience. At first, I thought it would be difficult because I didn’t know Spanish hardly at all, but let me tell you, these people in Los Andes, Chile are absolutely the most loving people!
With a language barrier, it can be difficult to get close to someone because there is no common ground. You can place yourself on the outside before you even give them a chance, but that’s not what I did. I literally threw myself at every opportunity to meet more people. Being able to attend small groups, church on Sunday, youth on Saturday, evangelize all around the area whether at the hospital, local square, or even just on our walks around the town, I was never far from an experience.
One thing that made it easy for me was our host, Ruben. Ruben was the pastor of the church we were working with and he, hands down, was one of my favorite people! He challenged me to get to know the community, the church people, and to seek out those we have yet to meet. He helped me with my Spanish as I, in return, helped him with his English. We traveled to Santiago one day for some adventure time and he continued to push me to practice my Spanish. I got to order his food, ice cream, and even ask to pay. While these all are small things, to me, he helped me push past the language barrier and practice even when I felt like I wasn’t worthy. And that’s the thing, we need people in our lives to push us past our comfort zones.
It could have been so easy for me to fall back and say, “Sorry, I don’t know Spanish.” Or even, “Lo siento, no entiendo mucho Español, solo hablo un poco Español,” and to have left it at that, but that wasn’t an option here. Ruben slowly began teaching me how to say common objects, and even verbs that would go with the objects. He was patient, and very helpful when I didn’t know a word. And let me tell you, I didn’t know a lot of things!! I remember when we were on our way back from a day full of fun in Santiago, he began asking me questions in Spanish and having me translate them. Needless to say, I didn’t do that bad! And I was in shock at how much I really knew.
So each time we went somewhere, I was practicing what little Spanish I did know. And with that, people began to help me as well, or even practice their English with me! You see, when we put ourselves out there and try the hard things, we get rewarded in return for the efforts that we put in. I think back to the first week in Argentina when I didn’t know any Spanish, and I remember being so overwhelmed because I felt like this wall was build up between me and the family, and somehow I had to figure out how to climb it. But that is absolutely not the case! So many people want to talk to you, and me, because we are different than them. They have so many questions about what it is that I am doing in their country, and why it is I left my family for an entire year. With this, I have found so much joy in learning a new language. So much so that I really want to learn Spanish abroad to be able to use it to learn more about different cultures and to be able to share the gospel with them!
So, what have I been learning while in South America? Some of the really big points so far have been:
- Just as much as I want to communicate with others, they want to communicate with me
- The same grace I extend to someone trying to speak English is the same grace I get back when I try and speak Spanish
- When you put yourself in vulnerable places, people return your vulnerability with their personal stories
- Patience is key when speaking another language, as well as being confident enough to say that you don’t understand something
- People want someone to listen to them, so when you take the time to recognize someone, Jesus always shows up and makes sure they feel loved
- The seeds in South America are ready to be harvested, but they need more hands and feet to reach out and be Christ to them
These past 3 months have been absolutely incredible! Thank you all who have been praying for me! I definitely feel a difference here, and I have to say that I’m quite in love with this continent and all that it entails.
With that being said, please be in prayer for all of South America, especially Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Ecuador as they are in a crisis right now. I don’t know all the details of what is going on, but I did have a couple people reach out to say how bad the riots and military issues have become. Specifically in Chile many people have lost their lives to a divide in the poverty line. Please be in prayer that these people would have an encounter with Jesus and that the riots would cease over night!
Thank you so much for reading this! XOXO
