Post Ecuador

July 28, 2011

{Left to right Timmy, Gabriel, Ruben, Alex, David, Israel, Kileab}

I have returned from Ecuador, and have hit the ground running.  This week I am heading to our Mountain Life Transforming Event.  Since I returned, I rested a little at my Aunts house in Dallas with my Mom and siblings while my Dad and Kendra and Kramer were in Peru.  I have worked G.E. registration and also been lifeguarding for the Honor Academy Extreme Camps this week.  I want to take this opportunity to share with you some reflections on the Ecuador mission’s trip. 

·      I was the Missionary Advisor aka. Small group leader to 4 teenage guys who are in the above picture with me and two of our translators.  We called ourselves the Bros.  The first night on campus during pre-trip training with these guys I shared my testimony and I opened up and shared the nasty unseen and how God has rescued me from death and brought me into marvelous light. The guys in my group opened up and started sharing and from then on they all got excited for “Bro-Time” (our man-time).  Something inside of me jumped for joy when these guys started sharing and the Spirit of God began to knit us together.

·      I played Jesus in the Ragman drama.  God worked on my heart.  He brought me from a place of fearfulness to do the drama to a place where I was looking forward to performing the drama.  I was looking forward to doing the drama because I could show these people Jesus.  When my heart cared more for people to know Jesus the fear and nervousness faded away and passion to share the truth with people and boldness rose up inside of me.  I not only came to ease with performing the drama but also had a desire for people to find satisfaction in Christ alone.

·      I had the privilege to meet Minkayani, the man who killed Jim Elliot and 2 more of the missionaries, as well as hear him testify how God has mercifully redeemed and changed him and used him for His glory.  He is full of joy and I don’t know if I ever saw him stop smiling.

·      While on the trip I had wonderful leadership above me and they encouraged us to pray and get in the Word everyday.  We had a couple of very cool nights where the Project Directors spoke at night on the roof and the Holy Spirit came and convicted people and called them to lives dedicated to sharing the gospel.  They had 1 hour set aside for “quiet time” (devotions).  I enjoyed that so much.  It was a relieving time having an hour that I didn’t have to fight for to spend seeking God.

·      Our Ecuador team did work projects where we were cleaning out this area and laying a foundation so that they can add on to the kids club building.  Kids were coming and learning about God.  When the kids club started the numbers of kids consistently attending was 4 and now there are about 15.  This extra building will help provide more kids to come who don’t know who Jesus is or that He loves them.

·      Our team did VBS for children; over the last two days we had 27 children choose to follow Christ.  Praise the Lord hallelujah!!  Pray that God would stay near them and that He would water and grow the seeds we planted.

·      We also did a drama a couple of times.  One of those times, on the day we went riding in giant canoes down the river, we walked around and informed people that we were doing dramas and about 50-100 people showed up and were watching from all directions.  We were able to share the gospel with a translator after the dramas.  We then went out and prayed for people. I prayed with a couple of others from our group for a lady.  She currently is following Jesus and has a heart to see her 2 children (Carmen and Adriana) of 24 and 20 years of age come back to Jesus.  Pray for those two to reach the end of them and be broken so God can grab His children and use them.

·      The one night when Eddie, our project director, was sharing with us on the roof I saw brokenness and it was beautiful.  Eddie was sharing stories of many people all over the world that will walk 10+ miles to get dirty water that ends up killing them and their children from worms that eat away from the inside out.

·      Pray that God continues to work in and through the missionaries that went on the trips.

·      Pray that anything that they need to get rid of or take out of there life gets destroyed

·      And pray that God would fill that God shaped hole in the leaders, missionaries, converts and lonely lost people

Thank you so much for your prayers and support.  I am so grateful I had the opportunity to go to Ecuador and experience God there among a different people.  He is so BIG and to be magnified.

Kileab (pictured with Minkayani)