I AM HOME!!

I am finally home! There are so many things we take for granted in the states. It is so nice to drink from the tap water. I got parasites and amoebas again at the end of the trip in the Galapagos, but it was worth it to stay with natives and get to know them. It was so nice to have a hot shower... I hadn't had a hot shower in over a month. It was so nice to eat fruit that all I had to do was wash off... whereas we had to soak fruit for 20 minutes in a chlorox/water solution to be able to eat. It is very nice to be home.

The first picture you see is of the Pastors on the coast - Josue and Chily and their son Lucas. They are wonderful people. In the last two months, they have started 2 adult small groups in homes, and one youth small group that meets in their home, and Chily has begun to work with the youth in an afterschool type program where she helps them with their homework, teaches them basic things, and teaches them about Jesus and the Bible. Many people have come to know Christ through their serving, already!

The next picture is at INNFA, where we worked on the Galapagos. We taught the children songs - Si, Cristo me ama (Yes, Jesus loves me) and Yo tengo un amigo (I have a friend). We also helped out the teachers there. The children were 2-4 years old, so it was hard to see any impact that was made, but by the end of our time, when we asked who loved them, they were saying Cristo. So I think we made an impact there.


While on the Galapagos, we walked to every single store in the town to see if they had balloons to make animals out of. We finally found some, and we made some for the children on the last day. The little boy is named Jose.





These are the pastors of the church in the Galapagos. They are amazing people. They are doing amazing things. Their church has up to 350 people, which is almost 10% of the island. They are also working in many various social programs to help out the Galapagos. They send outreaches to other islands and other communities on their own island. They also have been able to teach sexual abstinence and abuse education programs in the schools, and through this, on another island, the government asked for their help in exposing a child pornography ring. Please pray that their church continues to grow and for the impact they are having on the islands!

Thanks for praying during my trip!

INNFA.... crazy 3 year olds that vomit!

All week we have been working at INNFA, which is a ¨daycare¨ program for less fortunate kids that can´t afford to pay to go to a school. We have been working with 2-3 year olds... it´s very trying. We have been teaching them songs. We taught them Jesus loves me in Spanish, and it took 3 days, and they still don´t have it all the way. After the song, Corey asked them who loved them, and one of the kids yelled out... YOU! And Corey was like... yes, but from the song. The kids are finally getting that Jesus loves them. We are going to do a puppet show, and hopefully make balloon animals on Friday to teach them about creation and how God created everything and all of the animals. I have never working with kids before really... to actually teach them anything, so it´s pretty difficult.

Also, we are preparing a puppet program for the children in the church on Sunday. We are doing something having to do with obeying their parents because it´s fathers day on Sunday. Also, today we went to one of the schools and make some balloon animals for the kids, and we told them about a program we are going to have on Saturday to teach the kids and families about Jesus in another neighborhood here.

Yesterday, we were talking to Alaberto and Lucy, the pastors here, and they were telling us about the problems with corruption on the island, and how the church is growing, and they hope to have an effect on the entire island, including the politics, because the politicians right now are very corrupt and pocket a lot of the money. It is great to see the effect they are having on the island already, and it will be cool to hear about the effects that will happen in the future as the church grows. Right now almost 10% of the island comes to the church!

Yesterday, after we went to INNFA, we had a tourist day. We went to the Galapaguera, which is where they have the huge tortoises. It is a national part reserve to keep them from dying off. We saw tortoises that were 2 months old up to 100 years old! They we went to a beautiful beach on the other side of the island, and got to see a lot of blue-footed boobies. Then we went to see a lake inside a volcano (junco), and then we went up on top of a mountain to see the view of the island. There is a man from the church who drives a taxi, so we spent the day with him as he took is around to see everything. I am loving the Galapagos, not necessarily loving working with kids all the time, but I know we are making some sort of a difference in their lives! Thanks for praying. We will be leaving the Galapagos on Monday, so pray for safe travels, and we are returning to the states on Wednesday! Thanks.

Galapagos!

We are now on the Galapagos Islands. The last week with the group was long, but it was really cool. They went into schools and did dramas and taught the kids a little bit about Jesus. They were really nice, and we got to spend a lot of time with them. The internet is really slow here, so this is going to be really short.

The Galapagos Islands are absolutely beautiful!! We will be working for the mornings every day and have the afternoons off. There is a social organization called INFA, and we are going to work there from 8:30 to 10:30 everyday that we are here. We will be working with the kids, and starting a work there with the church. We will teach the kids to pray and teach them songs in Spanish, and we might do puppets or something, and help with whatever we need to, and then we are going to do work around the church after that for a few hours before lunch. It is very calm and tranquil here. I absolutely love it. We can go on the roof of the church and look over the whole small city (there are 5000) people total on this island. We watched the sunset from the roof and the start from the roof. It is absolutely beautiful here.

My ameobas, parasites, and fungus are gone, and I am feeling great. Thanks for prayers. Also the trip here was fine. There was a doctor on the medical team, and he gave us some stronger medicine for motion sickness so none of us got sick even though we were bouncing for about 2 hours! Please pray for the work here. They have a church of about 350 people, so that is almost 10% of the island. How amazing! I may write again before I go home, but if not, I return June 20, and I will see you or talk to you then. The internet is really slow, so I probably will be reading my e-mail but not writing back because it just takes too terribly long. Hasta luego!

Parasites, Amoebas, and Fungus, oh my....

Well. I´ve been in the bed for the past 2 days, because I had parasites, amoebas, and fungus. I already took medicine to kill the parasites and the amoebas, and I started the medicine for the fungus today. The medicine is very strong, so it took a toll on me yesterday. It was fighting and killing everything, so I felt very sick and had a fever. I have no idea what I got it all from, but at least there´s a way to get rid of it. Pray that I will be feeling better soon.

We have a mission group here on the coast right now, they are doing different things, like cleaning up parks and courts and skits and dramas, etc. There was the first church service here on the coast last night, and I wasn´t able to go to it because I wasn´t feeling well. There were 150 people at the service, and about 30 said that they wanted to accept Christ and opened up their homes for small groups.

We will be leaving on the 7th to spend the rest of our time on the Galapagos Islands, which I am so very excited about. Please be praying for our health and our trip there. Also, pray somehow that God will provide food for us, or we will be eating out for almost every meal, because we have to stay in a hotel that is connected to the church without a kitchen. Pray for people to open their homes to us (safe food), or that the church will, or that the person living in the apartment above the church will allow us to cook there. Please be praying for an open door, so we don´t need to risk eating out a restaurants all the time. Thanks.

Galapagos Islands!!

We just found out today that we will get to go to the Galapagos Islands! At first, they said that they weren't going to let us go because they closed down the airport on the San Cristobal, which is the island that the church is on, but we now will be able to fly to another island and take a 3 hour boat ride to the island. Please be praying for our safety since it is a small boat going across the Pacific Ocean, and also be praying for our health, because we could get VERY sea sick, and be throwing up for the straight 3 hours! So, as long as we can get tickets and everything, we will be going there on June 7.

We are leaving to go to the coast tomorrow. A group from Alabama flies in tomorrow at 11:00 PM, and we are picking them up from the airport then, and driving straight to the coast. We will probably get there at about 7 AM on Saturday morning... that's going to be a fun night! Please be praying for there to be good weather, because when there is a group there we will need to be doing ministry outside most of the time, because they do not yet have a church built. Thanks for praying.

Atacucho!

Today I went to a feeding center in Atacucho, which is a town outside of Quito, at about 13,000 feet. I went on a bus for almost 2 hours with a girl named Lucy, who was really nice. We got there, and I found out that it actually was one of the places that partners with Compassion International for sponsorships. I thought that was really interesting. I looked through the names of the padrinos (god-parents - literally or sponsors) because my parents sponsor a child in Quito, but it is not the same place. We were hoping it would be. They have about 210 children right now and are going to get 30 more this summer. I get there and they tell me that I have to tell the kids about myself in this megaphone thing, and then I had to pray (in Spanish) and the kids repeat after me. It was very interesting. We fed the kids Ceviche, rice, and french fries. I ate it too... didn't get sick praise the Lord. Then I got to visit all of the classes, and then they put me in charge of the 10-12 year old classroom... all by myself... it was absolute chaos, but I had the opportunity to help some of the older children with their English homework. It was a really great experience, and when I get pictures on the computer I will put them up. I wish I could go back there, but today was the only day I would be able to go because tomorrow I have to help them finish packing, and then we are leaving on Friday for the coast. Please pray that we will get everything packed up, and ready to go Friday.

Corey went to the coast to set up the beds and stuff in the apartments, and then they were going to take a bus back today, but the people who went with him didn't have enough money to ride the bus back, and the truck driver is coming back tomorrow, so they are just coming back tomorrow. So he's still there and not super happy about it. He asked if he could just come back by himself, but they told him that there's no way he'd be able to navegate the bus system for 8 hours back, so he had better just stay with them and come back tomorrow. Pray for safe travles for him. Thanks.

Mitad del Mundo

Yesterday, we went to Mitad del Mundo, or the equator. In the picture below you see Corey and I standing on the equator line, and then you see me "holding the world in my hands" - that is the typical thing that all Ecuadorians do if they come here. We went with Matt and April and their daughters. They are missionaries who are planning on coming down to Ecuador full time in August. They are absolutely amazing people with amazing stories to tell. They lived in China for a year and taught English, and were illegally pastors of an underground church there, and they have gone to a language school in Costa Rice, and just endless stories. They have 3 daughters - Darbyjule (5), Maria (3), and Catherine (1 1/2). You see them all in the picture below. We had a great time relaxing and shopping and visiting.

Today, we helped the missionaries pack things up some more. We took down all of the curtains in their house, all the rods too and the screws and stuff - it was hard work. You wouldn't think so, but really it is! Thank you for your prayers. Please be praying for Tori, the other girl here. She has been sick and has a fever of 101.3 right now. Thanks.