I am so excited to finally have time to post a blog update about our ministry in Puerto Rico! Yay!
This month in Puerto Rico my team, team Fire Starters, has been partnered with team Salmo 45:11.
***Team Fire Starters and Salmo 45:11 in the van after getting picked up from the airport. We’re on our way to our host site!***
As some of you may already know, I am part of the larger Y-squad which was broken into seven smaller teams.This month, our two teams are working together in Arecibo at our host church, Inglesia Viva (life church) and in the surrounding communities and the other five teams were divided among two other ministry locations in Puerto Rico.
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We will all come together again on the 31st as we begin our journey to our next country, the Dominican Republic (DR) where the entire squad will be living and serving together at a new ministry location.
This month in Arecibo, however, has been viewed through the eyes of twelve different people. All who have experienced many of the same things but have experienced them differently. So, to get the different perspectives, I encourage you to check out my other teammates blogs as well – – – Justin Geisheimer, Casey Murry, Cassandra Rios, Jaide Penney, and Cathy Curry along with all of team Salmo 45:11. With that spread, you have a lot to choose from, so enjoy as you see how God is moving from the perspective of young adults who simply seek to learn more about the heart of the Father and to be His hands and feet.
**Team Fire Starters at the beach on a “free day” **Both teams together**
Our ministry host this month is Pastor Peter, the Pastor of Inglesia Viva. He has a wonderful smile and loves with the heart of the Father — that’s a gracious, unconditional love. Anytime we are doing work, he is working right along side of us. On our free days, when he can see that we’re tired, he offers to carry our back packs for us or if we need to get to a place that has WiFi, he drives us in a 15 passenger van while either singing Spanish praise songs or teaching us short but sweet life lessons. He cares about us so much and it’s evident in his smiles, his hugs, his laughs, and his actions. He’ll even jump in during a game of Ninja, making outrageous ninja-esque sounds when it’s his turn to make a move—and sometimes when it’s not his turn.
**Pastor Peter; we were standing in line to get food when this horse drawn carriage pulled up in San Juan. Pastor Peter, being silly, slowly inched towards the horse, smiling and instructing us to take a picture of him by this horse and carriage. **
He is also the one who is in charge of finding us ministry opportunities. He alone has been a huge blessing this month.
Our ministry opportunities this month has called for us to do a lot of manual labor including clearing out brush and tree limbs that the pastor has hacked down with a machete or two, sorting through a rock and dirt pile then moving it five feet over, painting, and more painting, cleaning a nearly unlivable house of a newly widowed precious daughter of God, and spending time with a newly widowed son who is still trying to figure out what to do with all of the love that he once was able to lavish upon his best friend. We’ve also spent time with the youth who attend Iglesia Viva, spoken in front of the church, took part in leading praise and worship, all while trying to figure out how to be ourselves and how to love others and sometimes without using our words because some of us can’t speak the language. I’ve been growing a lot in learning how to love without using words and Pastor Peter, who speaks only Spanish, has been a great example on how to do just that.
*Ali, Justin, and Cathy about to begin worship*
***Both teams with our squad leaders spending time with some of our Puerto-Rican family at a Sunday evening cookout! (1/26)
**This is our new and dear friend, Ida. We’ve all fallen in love with her gentle spirit and sweet smile. She is one of the people who had allowed us to help her in cleaning up her home. Her husband passed away around 5 months ago. Please lift her up in prayer that she would continue to have people lavish love upon her and that she would find joy and peace in the Father. <3
So, to those of you who have been praying for us, thank you. We have been incredibly blessed this month to be a part of Inglesia Viva and we’ve even unofficially adopted Pastor Peter as our Puerto Rican Dad.
More updates are to come soon!
With the love of the Father as best as I understand it right now,
Sabrina
