Adventures Part 1: Walking

Photography by Elizabeth Holmes (pre fall)

Once upon a time there was a young girl (some might call her a lady now, but she still thought of herself as a girl) who never seemed to have a boring life. Even when she tried her hardest to be as normal as possible, adventure still swooped in. Don't get me wrong, she loved adventures.
For example: once she was in Spain on a three month missions trip. During one of those weeks she and the others on her team went for a walk. Well OK so it was more of a trek. This trek lasted six days and they went 120 Km (75 mi). Originally this trek was for pilgrims who wanted to walk and visit the place where St. James is said to be buried and their past sins are said to be forgiven, now people will do  it for whatever reason. Each day had different difficulties, but she was infatuated with the scenery, and she was also determined to make it. The trail went through cities and towns, through forests and meadows, through hills, mountains, and even a small bog. Everywhere they went, they followed these sea shells that indicated the direction of the path.

Photography by Elizabeth Holmes

On the second day of the walk, they were crossing the bog on a wooden bridge. It was 6 am and still dark out. As she was walking, she tripped all of the sudden. when she fell, she hit her knees first, and continued, in all that momentum, to fall to her face. Her forehead was hit pretty hard, and it pealed the first layer of skin off. It wasn't deep, no blood, but her forehead was swelling just a little bit. It was also that day that God provided a decent backpack for her so that she would be able to finish the Camino. Each day that she walked her adventure got both easier and harder. Easier: her muscles and her feet were getting used to walking. She was tired, but not ever tired enough to stop. But it got harder with the hills, and the length of the days.
One day, she took off her socks and shoes, that Keisha, the dearest angel, traded with her for the day, and saw that one toe was completely open. People compared it to blood sausage. Thankfully God sent the team a German doctor. Because they had Germans on the team, they were able to have their feet wrapped and bandaged, blisters popped, and if we needed it, knees and ankles taped.

Photography by Elizabeth Holmes

As they walked on, encouragement came in many different forms. Sometimes, Erin would pray with her. Other times, Jeser would talk to her, tell her a story of experiences and big things God has done in his life, or God would remind her of Iowa and show her fields of corn.
Other times, she and several others would sing hymns, kid songs, and even take a blast to the past and do 90's songs.
Still others carried her backpack up the hard mountains and hills. They would either carry their own up first then come back down, or in one case, Johannes (Austria) carried three backpacks up the hardest mountain the team faced. Now that's encouragement!
God also always brought to mind the scripture that she needed at the moments she needed. Isaiah 40:27-31 continuously came to mind, especially the part about rising up on wings like eagles and soaring. Before she knew it, she was standing smack-dab in front of the world's most beautiful cathedral (or so she thinks.)

So to those who spend months worrying about something they think they can't do, to those who forget how big the God that lives inside of them is, and to those who fear failure and never get up and do anything, I say, "Greater is He who is in us, than he who is in the world!" God wants to use you. He wants to do big things, but He'll only use you if you let Him.

Me and Rachel Breaux's backpack  Also,
Keisha's shoes. Bless her. 

"How beautiful on the mount are the feet
of those who bring good news"

Or maybe not so beautiful.

One night we also camped out! 

On the last day of the walk, God gave us an everlasting promise

And she made it!

Erin and Eli's feet.

Santiago!

And so they finally all made it! 

Too Close for Comfort...Except God's Comfort

Nervous is a very over used word... unless you're about to embark on a 6 day hike going through northern Spain. What's there to be nervous about? Well, let's see... 1) I'm nervous about making it all six days. 2) I'm nervous about having a back pack that's too heavy. 3) I'm nervous about talking to people about my faith.
Wait, isn't that why I'm here? Yes, it is, but that doesn't mean that I don't get nervous. So this post is short simply to ask for prayer.
Tomorrow we begin walking 120 Km for 6 days on the Camino to Santiago with 9 girls from all over the world who came from the Transform conference in Rome. If you don't know what the camino is, it's a pilgrimage that people take in hopes of getting their sins forgiven and earning their salvation. The town of Santiago is said to have St. James' bones as tradition says he was buried there. The purpose for us going is that we might be able to talk to these people and show them God's gift of forgiveness. This walk is world famous so we will all probably get to meet people who speak our own language.

I know God will use us, I know that He will give us the strength that we need, I know that He is always with us. He promises this in His Word.

Pray for us as we embark on this journey.
1) Pray that we would grow spiritually ourselves as God uses every situation to teach us and not just have us teach.
2) Pray that we would be sensitive to the Holy Spirit's moving as we are there to talk to people. Pray also that we would trust Him fully for His words and not our own.
3) Pray that we would be sensitive to each other's needs.
4) Pray that we would lean on Him for strength and that He would keep us going each day and each step.
5) Praise God for the big things He's going to do, and has already done to prepare the hearts that are going to hear the good news.


Also today was our last day that we got to see our team member of 2 months, Thomas. It's been so good to have him and we will miss him dearly. Thank you, Thomas, for all you did these past 2 months!

Breaking Chains

I have to admit that this is one of the hardest posts for me. But God has put it on my heart to share it with you, and I pray that this will be for His glory. 

I always was a little confused. 

Identity is so important for everyone. It is made of many things: where you’re from, your family, your age, what you do, what you believe, your culture, and so much more. My identity is not an easy thing to explain. Because I’m a daughter of missionaries, I was born and grew up in Colombia till the age of 14. What’s hard is that my passports and other documents (emphasis on the last ‘s’) say that I am a Colombian, but they also say I am an American. I grew up in and with two cultures: that of my parents, and the Colombian culture. On top of all that, both of my brothers and my sister were born in Peru, so not even they can say they have the same identity I have.

Because I am the daughter of strong Christians I always heard about God and Jesus and what He did for me on the cross. At the age of five I prayed “the sinner’s prayer”. I asked God to forgive me, and told Him that I wanted Him to live in my heart. The problem was that  I didn't really believe that He saved me. It wasn't till many years later, between 10 and 11 years old, that I really understood what God did for me. Now I know that Jesus came as a humble child, and when He was a man, even though He never sinned and led a perfect life, He died… yes, died… on the cross and paid my debt for my sins. Three days later, He rose and now is preparing me an eternal home. What He has taught me, and is teaching me is that my identity isn't in my passports, family, or my country, rather, it’s in the work HE did on the cross. Now I am the Heavenly Father’s daughter and that is my identity. I don’t have to worry because I am here in this world only for a short while, but I will be with my God and Savior eternally.

Lyrics: "Do You Wanna Be Well?" By Gaither Vocal BandPhoto: By Me; In San Felipe Fort, Ferrol, Spain

          Two weeks ago I gave this testimony in church (in Spanish of course). A week before that, I gave it to the OM house. Both times I felt a strong heaviness in my heart. Actually the first time that I gave it, I was reading off my computer screen, and it caught my reflection so when I saw it, something inside of me was repulsed. As I continued to read it there were thoughts running through my head saying, “Yeah, you may be God’s daughter, but you’re not much to look at. Yeah, you may have eternal blessings, but look at your life. You've failed so much, and you will continue to fail and you won’t accomplish much. You’ll get to heaven, but God won’t be able to say ‘Well done my good and faithful servant.’” And on and on they went. As I've done for so long, I brushed those thoughts away, not to never think them again, but just so that I wouldn't have to worry about them at that point. The next week, that Sunday, knowing that I would be giving this testimony again, those thoughts and lies came back. When I gave my testimony the Pastor’s wife came up to me and said, “I know God has great plans for you.” To which my reaction was “Uh huh, yeah.” After church, we came home, and I began cleaning the oven. (At this point I anticipate my parents are going to drop dead.) But it was a shiny oven by the time I was done, and in the mean time, Eli came in and started talking to me. Actually, she started listening to me as I began telling her what was going on in my heart and mind. She then said that she’s noticed those lies in my heart because I don’t see myself as others see me. That was just step one.

The team: Growing, learning, getting stronger.
From L to R: Thomas, Jeser, Me, Eli, Oli, Erin, Dani

          That Tuesday one of the girls felt led to call us out and be open with God. It’s so easy, I've learned, to simply ask Him for little things, and to tell Him the little things that are on our hearts, but we don’t give Him our whole hearts. We become so attached to the pain and the chains that we’re afraid to part. Silly, isn't it? I then proceeded to confess my heart to God. I confessed my pride and selfishness, and asked – pleaded, rather – that he change my heart according to His own. Slowly and surely God answers when we ask, He’ll open the doors when we knock, and He’ll show answers us when we seek. That week, (two weeks ago) He began opening doors, breaking chains, and chipping away at the ice-boxed heart of mine. You choose the metaphor because they all apply. He's both breaking and healing me. That may sound like a contradiction to the world, but they do go together. He’s showing me that it’s not about His law that I try to follow on my own, but it’s about His grace that allows me to glorify Him. The cross is freedom to the weary soul. (Step 2).

Our back yard

          The next Sunday I was outside listening to music and reading when some of the group came out and said, “We’re going to pray, you can join us if you like.” So I did. I sat there as they started praying, and I sat there as they started declaring truths, and I sat there as they praised and worshiped God. Eventually, I got up and made tea, tired of not praying. Something inside of me said that I had to go back out. I’m glad I did because it was then that I asked for someone to pray for me because I couldn't. The reason I couldn't pray was the fact that my heart was heavy again with lies penetrating my mind. It was as if there was a soundproof box that encased me stopping any prayer from leaving this prison I was in. As she prayed for me, she told me to start praying too. She told me that it might take time, but eventually I would be free to pray, praise God and declare truths. As I started praying I asked God to break the chains that were holding me away from Him. He already saved me, but now He’s looking for a genuine relationship with me. I knew this. As I was praying, I began sobbing. I saw how chained up I really was, and how many lies were holding me back. I cried calling God to break me, I cried as I declared His goodness, and I cried as my heart ached and yearned for freedom. Suddenly, the girl behind me started saying, “Come dance with me, let me love you, let me set you free. Talk to me, I want to know you, I want to love you, come love with me.” At this point I knew it wasn't the girl who was talking, but the Holy Spirit through her. “You are mine,” she continued, “You are mine! I’m here for you, come to me.”

          Just then I was able to declare freedom! I was able to say that Satan has no power over me. He can’t hold me back with chains, because Jesus paid my complete and total ransom when He died on the cross! The next day Erin said that I couldn't stop smiling (which was true). There is a greater peace in my heart, and a greater freedom.

          This past week, however, has been a really hard one for the team. Even though we are claiming great – and I mean Great – victories, we are also all struggling. So even though I've claimed new freedoms, that doesn't mean I’m not still working hard to identify lies and get them out of my head as I find my identity in Christ. On Wednesday morning there was a heaviness on all of our hearts. I was prepared to spend the day feeling sorry for myself and having an awful day until Eli prayed, “God today we choose joy.” The thought of choosing joy wasn't necessarily new to me, but I had forgotten about it for a while. It’s like the Psalms say, “The joy of the Lord is my Strength.” So that whole day, while we were feeling this heaviness we were also praising God and giving Him thanks and because of that He gave us the strength to work through that day.

We, as Christians will always be struggling. As Erin said, if you’re not struggling it means that Satan doesn't care about you, and if Satan doesn't care about you, it’s because you’re not working for the Lord. Don’t get me wrong, we can reach mountain highs and not feel any pain at all, but also remember that at some point Satan will attack. So through all of this, God has proven to be at work. For this we praise Him. Just as Paul described His sufferings in Philippians with praise and thanksgiving, so we do the same, knowing that God is still God and He is playing out His good and perfect will.

So thank you all who are praying for me and my personal growth. I know God isn't done with me, and I don’t think He ever will be, but I know that I’m just that much closer to Him.

Please continue to pray for us:

1)   Pray that we can allow God to work in our hearts.

2)   Praise Him for the victories He’s made in our lives.

3)   Pray that we would prepare well for the 6 day walk that’s coming up much sooner than I’d like to say.

4)   Praise God that we've been able to hike when and where we've gone.

5)   Pray for the church here, pray that they would be able to start an adolescent group for any in-between kid.

6)   Praise God for His goodness.

7)   Continue to pray that OM Spain gets a van that is desperately needed.

8)   Praise Him for the car that we do have.

9)   Pray for team unity. We've come so far, but it’s easy to let things slip here as we might let our guard down.

10)Praise God for each team member because He brought us together for so many reasons.

Thank you all

God Bless. 

Big Birthday Bash, from My Good, Good God.

OK! So let me tell you a little story about the best birthday ever. I asked God to give me a little gift but wasn't sure what it would be, and I wasn't sure that it would happen. I got home from working at the social work store/thrift shop when I went to lunch and I saw that they made me some pretty awesome cards. Ana gave me a scarf, and they made me a cake. Most of this, except the scarf, wasn't a surprise as it seems to be tradition here, even though they keep it on the "DL". Then I went, took a birthday nap, we rehearsed our puppet show and our dances and went to bible study. After Bible study, the girls all took me out for a Cappuccino  Keep in mind this was at like 10:00 at night. When we got back, I look in the kitchen and saw that the dinner table was all set, and I had no idea why because we never eat dinner together. Then they say, someone from church made dinner for you! When I look in the pot, I saw the yummiest lentels ever! Then they showed me pudding and a card that said "God bless you always, you're the sweetest girl I know. Love, Rocio." That rocked my world because God answered my prayer, and I didn't really expect Him to. I mean, I thought that the lunch and cake and coffee were enough!! But dinner and a card and cake is probably the best thing in the world. GOD IS SO STINKIN' GOOD! SERIOUSLY! This is 100% proof!

Thank you all so much for the greetings, for the presents, the cakes, and the dinners. Thank you, God, for your blessings that I don't deserve! Wow. Just, wow. I'm in shock, I'm humbled, and I give all the glory to GOD!

"Surprise" birthday cards. 

Birthday cake! Thanks Eli. It was delish.

Surprise birthday dinner. No, really. HUGE surprise!

Birthday pudding! 

These girls took me out for coffee before dinner. Love them so much.

Above All...

"ABOVE ALL, SPAIN." That's what this sign on a Spanish navy ship said. I loved it because these people in the service who defend their country, who work to protect it, and do so much more, always have Spain as their priority. It reminded me of what we should do as Christians ~ especially missionaries. A lot of the time we forget who we're working for. As missionaries we often focus on our work, and making sure that we get non-Christians at the church meetings, kids at the kids clubs, and making sure that our messages are super deep and spiritual. Though none of that is bad, we forget why we do what we do. So for me, it's not "Above all, preach" or "Above all, evangelize" or "Above all, Spain, or Colombia, or USA", it's "Above all, GOD." He should be and is my focus. What's yours?

An hour and a half away from our town is another, more touristy town called Ribadeo. It's a beautiful, quaint little town that is so typically Spanish. Because we had to return our borrowed van on Monday, we took advantage of it last week and drove down to this town. The main reason we went down was so that we could get permission to do programs on the streets and in the parks during our campaign there, but, so typical to the missionary's life, the office was closed for a week. So we went to key spots where we hope to do the programs and prayed there, then we went and got a coffee and enjoyed ourselves. Much of what we're doing this month and last month is to prepare us for that week that we will be staying there and doing the campaign. We will go to a camping ground with a lot of the church here and sleep there. We will also be joined by 11 or 12 other people from a Transform team who will be hiking with us on the Camino to Santiago. 

On Wednesday we went back to the puppet stage (finally). Interestingly, we spent about an hour trying to find a way to make it work. Finally we figured out a way and went to work. I think we spent about 3 hours working hard, figuring out numbers and such, but because I don't have the mind of an engineer, I had no idea what to do except what I was told. We finished it, glued it together, marked it so we could know where things go and presto. This is what you get. We realize it's not the best puppet stage in the world, but I am personally proud because we actually made it. At the end, we were so tired. I'm pretty sure we all slept really well that night.

I wanted to thank you all for praying for personal growth, and for growth of the team. God is really working in my personal heart, teaching me, breaking me, and showing Himself to me. On Sunday Oli and I both had to give our testimonies and we were both nervous. I was struggling with the truths that I had written in my testimony. I talked about being God's daughter and belonging to Him, but for some reason I was struggling with believing it; even though I knew it was true. Since I've given it, God has showed me the lies that I've been listening to, and the reasons why I struggled so much with it. Slowly and surely He's teaching me, and molding me more and more. Praise God, the God of forgiveness and mercies that are new each morning. (Ps. 32:1-2). 

As for the team, well, we're doing alright. Each day growing closer, working through differences, seeing God in each other's hearts and words, and learning to love, even when we don't like them. But I truly do love them. 

So some points of Prayer:

1. Praise God for providing the van that we had for a while from OM Belgium. 

2. Pray that the two who went to return it would have a safe journey as they had to drive there and fly back. Also pray that God would somehow provide a van of their own for OM Spain. 

3. Praise God for His word and all that it teaches as we listen to others and do our personal devos.

4. Pray that we might be able to grow more and more in our love and likeness of God. 

5. Praise God for our leaders and their abilities and love.

6. Pray that all of them (field leaders, team leaders, and others) would all be able to guide us and make the right decisions. Pray also that they would grow with us. We love them, and are so thankful for them. 

Beginnings of Growth

I am always so amazed at how God works in our lives! I'm not going to lie, there have been rough spots, but its with those tough times that God cuts off our rough edges. I don't know about the rest of the team, but I know that I have had points in the last few weeks where there's been tension and such festering in my heart, specifically. Knowing that this is one way in which we can really hurt the work we do here, I'd been praying that God would give me, the team, and the leaders wisdom on how to deal with each issue as it rises. But God's given me the grace I need specifically to be graceful and merciful. I also know He's showing me ways that I need to work so that I'm also not bothering people. Today Trevor, our field leader, gave a powerful devotional on working on healing wounds. it was great, because earlier today, one person asked for the two us to talk and pray mending something that could have really damaged our relationship. When we prayed, it was like God had filled us with His love, not just the love of man.

The team has really worked hard to make sure that we don't let things get between us. We know that Satan uses even the smallest annoyances to break us apart. One way in which we have had to work together, work past differences, and put our different gifts together is through making a puppet stage (which is still in the workings because of some mathematical thing that I really don't understand.) But Thomas drew a blue print for us, Erin and Danielle helped out with the math, and Oli and I did the translating as we went to town and priced all the pieces. We then came home and began putting it together and cutting and doing everything that needed to be done when we hit a bump due to the math problem. It's funny how we all give our opinion and try to "help" when sometimes we have no idea. For me that was frustrating because I really like to feel useful, but when I don't understand something I can't help. Anyway, we had to go to one of the mid-week meetings and had to leave it, but we were able to come back together as a team even though nothing has been solved about the stage, we have been able to grow stronger as a team. I praise God for a team that loves Him and wants to grow closer to Him, and know Him more, and as a result we grow closer as a team, growing stronger, getting ready to do amazing things!
On a more personal note, God has been using my personal devotions to teach me, encourage me, help me and grow me more and more each day. This is all what I mean when I say that I'm a sunflower seedling. Right now, I'm weak, young, inexperienced, but through God's work in my heart and life hopefully I'll become a beautiful sunflower; but we all know that won't happen until we get to heaven.
There's just so much to tell you all, but I'll summarize it as best I can. On Saturday we went to the Evangelical Olympics which is an event that the Evangelical Churches of Galicia put on for the kids to compete in races and marathons and other Olympic events. Some of us volunteered and helped out with keeping score and lining kids up. The rest of the team stayed in the stands cheering on the kids with their drums, bongos, banners and voices. It was really cold, but a lot of fun that day. Church here is different for a couple reasons: 1) It starts at 6:30 PM on Sundays 2) Even though we're in Spain 90% of the Church is Latin. Galicians, and Spaniards in general seem to be harder to reach because Catholicism is THE religion here. Mondays are our days off, so it's nice to physically, emotionally, and spiritually renew ourselves. This Tuesday Oli and I started working in "La Puerta" which is a really cheap thrift store that the church has set up to help those in the town. The economic crisis hit Spain hard as there is about 20% unemployment. At the shop we get to help with the retail and we also sit and drink coffee with people who want to come in and talk. It's a great way to show Christ's love to the people. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, the days we work, we also hand out food that the people can take home. This part of the ministry is a government given area so that they can take care of their citizens. Tuesday nights we have prayer meeting which I love because we get to meet with other believers and truly listen to what's going on in someone else's life and pray for them. The people here in this church have a strong bond and love for one another and love to pray for each other as well as praise God for all that He's done for us. It truly puts a smile on my face. Tonight, Wednesday, we go to English class, which is another ministry that the church and specifically Eli, my leader, puts on to invite the community in to learn English which also doubles as an opportunity to spread God's light and love. Last week we also were given several different workshops to learn about the culture, the history, how to make a testimony, and so on.
So far that has been the past week and a half. So sorry I get wordy. Here are a few more points of prayer:
1) Praise God for His mercy and grace so that we can then show mercy and grace.
2) Continue to pray for team unity.
3) Pray for our leaders as they plan the whole program and deal with everything as situations come up.
4) Praise God for OM Belgium which has let us borrow their van for a while. But they now need it back so pray that God provides a van of our own for OM Spain.
5) Pray for all of us as we prepare our testimonies and practice sharing them for later ministries.
6) Pray for me as I get ready to teach a Sunday School class. Pray that there would be clarity in what I say.
7) Praise God for this opportunity to be here, to learn, and become more like Him.

Week One: Orientation

May 25

This first week in Naron, Spain has been a good one. I am enjoying getting to know my two roommates and the other two girls on our team. In the picture the five girls in the middle are the ones I'm going to be working with for the next three months. There is also a guy from France and the other team leader who are not pictured. The two ladies on the extremities are here for a "Communications 'Conference'", and are leaving today. Eli, the second in from the left, is our girl-team leader, and her roommate, Erin, is second in from the right. Me, and my two roommates are in the middle. 

We truly have had a good week of orientation. My morning routine usually starts with me waking up around 6:30, breakfast and getting ready, then chores. Yes, I said chores. We then meet at 9:10 or 9:15 for devotionals and then we head out for the day or work in the house. Lunch here is around 2 PM and "siesta" generally comes right after. We all rotate cooking lunch, which is the big meal of the day. Each week we will be going to 5 different mid-week meetings such as English class, Bible study, Prayer meeting, Kids club (which is called "Happy Hour") and, lastly, Youth Group. Sundays are different because church doesn't start till 5 PM. 

We've also already learned a lot about Spain's history going from before the Roman period all the way to present day which explains a lot about their culture. I would love to share some of it with you, but it would take too long. 

Yesterday was great because we had our first mini hike to start training us for the 120 Km hike we will be taking in July. Yesterday we went to a Castle-Fort that the city of Ferrol used as a strategic place for defense. In order for ships to come into Spain at that point, they would have had to come between two forts that would have cannoned any enemy. No enemy ship survived. Anyway, the walk yesterday was about 8 Km long. There were a lot of steep, long hills, but we all made it! I learned a very important life lesson: I need people, and more importantly I need Christ. I can't do anything by myself, and it's pride when I say I can. 

Pray and Praise

1) Thank God that we are all here safe and sound.

2) Continue to pray for team unity.

3) Praise God for our ability to learn languages. (Side note: the Spanish in this region is called Gallego, which has some differences in its writing and pronunciation  The biggest any other Spanish speaker will notice is the fact that when a "C" makes an "S" sound or when there is a "Z", they pronounce it with the English "TH" sound. So instead of saying "Gracias" they'd say "Grathias".)

4) Pray that despite any language barriers we would be used by God to do great things!

5) Praise God for good health, but continue to pray that we wouldn't get sick. 

6) Lastly, pray for strength for all of us. We all have our weaknesses, pray that we would constantly seek God to fight the fight with us and for us instead of trying to do it by ourselves.

Thank you all.