Life....to the Fullest

Christmas Eve. Tonight my heart is in many places. It is in Aljaba with the three children, Vanny, Daniela, and Jorge, celebrating- I don’t know how- with Hermana Lucy. The soccer court empty, the play ground silent, the kitchen perfectly cleaned and in order; only the voices of three youth. My heart is also with all my friends from church celebrating Navidad with all amigos de fe after Christmas Eve service tonight.  By now all are in their homes either with their families or friends or some alone. There are a few names that come to mind and I wonder if they have anyone. My heart is with Pastor Clauber and his familia in Brasil-the family who practically took me in as a daughter for a week and taught me what a simple and meaningful life is like not only for a missionary but also a native Brasilian. I think of Hermano Manuel and his family. The pastor I worked side by side with at Aljaba every day for the past six months; his beautiful wife and adorable long-eye lashed boy. He w...

It came no surprise to me that this past week was another holiday and school break for the kids. But this week end was different, because each year during  theOctober  school break,  Ministerio  de  Misiones( my home church while here),  Aljaba , and a brother church in Brazil all organize a camp for their youth-ages 12 to 19. Monday through Wednesday we had camp staff meetings then spent the rest of the days planning. I woke up at the crack of dawn Thursday-4:30am to be exact- and headed to the port with my tourist backpack to meet the campers and staff. Around   6:30  all 100 of us packed in three motor boats and took a thirty minute ride down the Amazon to a port in Peru. From there we hiked into the jungle for about an hour to the camp site. The hike was a blast! It was soggy, muddy, and rainy but so fun! Honestly, I didn't know what to expect of the facilities we would be staying in, so I lowered my expectations before going and prepared for ...

Romans 12:1 says to "present your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God".  'Sometimes the humblest life is the clearest example of obedience. The way of the Cross is an ordinary street in an ordinary city. It is an ordinary life lived in the grace of God. There is a pot of gold. There is a king's reward, but it comes at the end of the journey.' ""Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position"(Romans 12:16). My foot note says, "Be willing to do menial work."

"God does not allow anything to occur that will prevent me from doing His will....The plan of God for our lives includes all of any circumstances, my entire heredity, every detail of my enviroment, each decision I make, all the decisions of others, absolutly everything. He can make even the wrath of man to praise Him-or any discomfiting circumstance." Elizabeth Elliot Sometimes my perspective is so limited. I forget that Your ove does not show itself only in protection from suffering. It is of a different nature altogether. The cross was the proof of Your love, though 'legions of angels' might have rescued Him. You will not necessarily protect me-not from anything it takes to make us like Jesus.  Ruth 3:18, "Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall. My response is what matters. "A quiet heart is content with what God gives." All is grace. "Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup." I pray I walk with open hands ...

A ugust began a new chapter for me here in Leticia. I began alternating teaching English one week with teaching a physical activity such as art, embroidery, sewing, exercise, etc. the next. For the most part my weekly schedule is teaching the tutors Monday morning and planning me week's lesson for the kids; On Tuesday I do my grocery shopping, work on updating the info for the each child's sponsor, and doing whatever else there is to do. Wednesday I teach Group 1 with ages ranging from kinder garden to third grade; Thursday I teach Group 2(4th-5th grade) and Group 3 and 4(middle and high schoolers) on Friday. On Wednesday nights I sometimes attend a small Bible study in a home with people from my church, otherwise I head home by 5pm to make dinner, read, and watch the news. Friday and Sunday night I gather with the church for a time of prayer, worship, and study....I so look forward to this time during the week! I love ending my week in worship a...

W hat a day yesterday was! Around nine o'clock most of the kids that come to Aljaba gathered in the Malokamazonas to celebrate the July and August birthdays. There were games and a time of prayer then we topped it off with scrumptious cake and ice cream. A side note: Colombia has the best cake I have ever had! The ice cream here is good as well, because it has more of a handmade texture to it. We had brownie and fresa(strawberry), the kids’ favorite. After most of the kids had gone home, the rest of us ate lunch and began to decorate for the 15th birthday of one of Aljaba's girls. A former tutor at Aljaba was in charge of the decorating. He is so artsy and creative! He did an awesome job as you can see from the pics. The theme was butterflies and blue. So from around 2pm-7pm we decorated-the party began at 8:30ish. At six Dami and I had fun getting dressed, doing her hair, makeup, and painting her nails. We made some good memories.... Colombi...

(This post is a week over due because of the bad internet connection) The past two weeks have been full of fun, excitement, and much blessing! We had two different teams come to visit us at Aljaba. The first was from Texas. They stayed at our house for a few days and were such an encouragement to me personally. The second was a team from Bellevue! I had a few friends on that team before I came and made many more during the week. Bellevue took us to visit Monkey Island on Monday and held two days of devotions, fun, games and a 'World Cup' competition. Then the last two days included a trip to the zoo in Tabatinga, Brasil and to the property of the 'new Aljaba''-to praise and pray for God's blessing and provision.  Then came the hardest part: The goodbyes. I watched as the team as they held children in their arms and wet their clothes with tears. It was such a beautiful moment... The Lord reminded me of my prayer prior to my trip: "Lord, bre...