Ecuador 2015

It's a bit blurry - but a few days ago I came home
from some of the best days of my life.

 

Early fall, God had laid on my heart to go the Ecuador, again.
By myself.
Without Mike or Hana.

Who would have thought that it would have
turned out the way it did.

I love serving in the mission field. There is something vulnerable in going into another country and not knowing
what God is going to do.

Vulnerable, scary, crazy, challenging, uncomfortable and well,
you get the picture.

 

I had a hard time understanding how I was going to leave my baby girl for 10 days which turned into actually almost 12 days! 12 days...  and not see her. Will she remember me?

Will she be mad? Will she cry? Will she think I abandoned her?

 

Will I survive? Will I cry? Will I cry all the time?

 

But God had a plan.

 

My baby girl was just fine with her amazing dad and she did miss me and I did cry but we are doing just fine.

 

Many things happened on this trip. I could share about the food, which was amazing. Ok we even had a pig roast -  yup and it was amazing. Dad would have been super impressed.  The hostel, which was next door to this great bakery,  the drives on our bus, which I had my eyes closed a few times, the scenery, which took my breath away. The work project which was amazing and we got our roof done!!

 We are hoping to have the children's home done by Christmas!

 

  But you can all see that on my social media.:)  

 

 There are other things that had happened during this trip.

 

First

Healing was found.

 

I learned to trust again. I learned to trust God again.

Slowly and every so gently God whispered in my ear - its' OK.  You can trust me.

I learned to forgive and move on.

As I spent days with people I love, God showed me it will be OK and its OK to be honest and vulnerable and to enter into a place of forgiveness.

I grieved, I laughed and I healed.

 

Second

I found what I was created for.

 

There were days that were the best days of my life. It's because I allowed myself to be whom God created me to be. I was not afraid, oh yes I would have been anxious and maybe nervous but I ran with it. I headed into the call and God was waiting for me there.

Being able to minister to women - hearing their stories, praying with them, encouraging them, sharing God's hope and peace with them.

Their stories will be forever etched on my heart.

Yes, those were the days that God used me in a mighty way.
Those are the days I felt alive.

 

Third

Friendships were made

 

I spend days with people that I love. People that I left. New People that I am getting to know. It was a time of realizing  that I am loved and also a time for me to show how much I love the people God has called me to serve with. 

It was a time of bonding, and deep connections with new people  in the most unusual places.

And these connections will not be broken.  

No matter where I am living God has a plan and
relationships are a part of it.

 

Fourth

I was stretched

 

I do not like mornings, but somehow there,  the mornings came easy for me. Even if the coffee was not what I had imagined, it was OK. The work was hard, whether it was physical or mental, it was hard. We cried a lot, my translator and I. But I know God was at work, and we persevered and we not only made it we were changed by it.

 

Fifth

I obeyed

 

The call was loud. To go. And I obeyed and will forever be changed. I am so glad that I went. So glad that I met the people that I had met. So glad that God used us all in a mighty way.
Obeying may be hard but it's part of our call.

We will forever be changed if we obey. I'm glad I listened.

 

I pray that you may find that call and pursue it and never let go.

God is good. All the time.

 

Pastor Tasha