El Fin

"Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel." Philippians 1:27

About to have some Asado!

Okay, so this is a little late. So much has happened since my last blog post that I need to glance at my journal just to remember the specifics of everything. The last week of project was so busy, but I think it was probably my favorite week for ministry, so that’s what I want to focus on in this blog.

      At our last Vida Estudiantil outreach meeting, I was able to share my testimony. It was really great to share how God has brought me from a life of finding approval in others, to now being able to find complete approval in Him. That night, 3 people prayed to receive Christ! Glory to God for using my story to bring students into a relationship with Him. That week was the last week for discipleship so I finished up with my guys by giving them vision plans. Vision plans are a tool that highlights someone’s character strengths, a couple areas for growth, and some next steps in life and ministry. I received my first vision plan on my last summer project and it was really meaningful and helpful to me, so I really wanted to duplicate that with the guys I discipled over the summer. We also had our last bible study that week and it was my favorite one yet! The study was on the works of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit and so we talked through those and what each of us were dealing with in our lives. At the end of the bible study we each shared individual prayer requests and prayed for one another.

The bible study I led over the summer

Not only was it a blessing to do ministry with those guys, I also had the privilege of spending a lot of time on campus that week. Most of the summer I didn’t get to spend a ton of time on campus, but that last week I had plenty of time to do that. I got into several good conversations and I want to briefly talk about 3 of them. The first one took place at the Facultad de Medicina. A group of us were inviting students to our English Club, when some of the students we were inviting, invited us to sit down and talk to them. That basically was our English Club because we talked to that group of students for the entire day! About halfway through our time I was able to use Soularium and share the Gospel with the guys. Although they didn’t agree with what I said, they respected me and were very open to talking about Spiritual things. The next conversation took place at the Facultad de Ciencias Sociales. I met a guy outside while we were throwing the football around. After a while, I was able to do Soularium with him and share the gospel with him (All in Spanish!).

Doing Soularium at Ciencias Sociales

He had a similar response to the last group, but was very open and I could see him really thinking as I shared the gospel and my testimony with him. The last conversation also took place at Ciencias Sociales. I met a guy a few days before and had forgotten to contact him to meet up again. He actually contacted me surprisingly and we decided to meet up. He had class all day, but we managed to find slots of time during and in between his classes, and I managed to share the gospel with him as well after doing Soularium. He also had the similar response as the other guys, but I could tell that he was seeking and I know if I spent more time with him he would be more and more open to the gospel. It breaks my heart that I met all of these great guys the week I was leaving! I don’t know if I’ll be going back to Uruguay, but there is a chance and after being on campus so much that last week the Lord really opened my eyes to the need in Uruguay. I didn’t meet one Evangelical Christian, the entire time I was on campus for 6 weeks! 

My good friend Matias and I

 

After saying our goodbyes to all the friends we made, it was time to pack our bags and get on a plane to Miami, Florida. The sun and the heat were a nice change to the clouds and the cold in Uruguay. We spent two days debriefing there, before heading back north. I am so happy I made the choice to go to Uruguay this summer. It was such a privilege to be a part of what God is doing there and I know He will continue to use laborers in that country. In August, Uruguay will be receiving their first ever STINT team! They are going to be there for an entire year and I am so excited to see how God uses them. Thank you so much for all your prayers and support because this trip wouldn't have happened without them! God bless :)

Our entire team at our farewell party on our last night

Mixed Emotions

I can’t believe I’m going to be back in the U.S. one week from today. I have very mixed emotions. On one hand I am excited to be back in the States and see my mom and my friends, go to my church, eat good food, and move into my house. On the other hand, God has been doing so many good things in my life and in the lives of others during our time here in Uruguay. I have learned so much about depending on God to use me, because I am completely incapable of leading apart from Him. Speaking in Spanish and not having much time to prepare for things have been huge challenges for me, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. 

Admiring God's creation

This last week was another great week. Monday we had our weekly staff meeting, and that night was the Vida Estudiantil outreach meeting. I was blessed to help prepare a drama for the meeting based on the song Everything by Lifehouse. We only had two days to prepare the drama, but God definitely worked through us and that is evident by how well the drama went. Also, 114 people came to Vida Estudiantil which I believe might be the highest number they have ever had!  

Tuesday was a holiday, so I wasn’t able to go to campus, but I had two great discipleship meetings with Stephen and Barrett and with both of them we talked more in depth on what it looks like to live like a Son of God rather than a slave or an orphan. That night we had date night with Jesus, which is always a great time to be refreshed and recharged spiritually. Wednesday we had our English Club special outreach and a group of us were blessed to be able to talk to two girls for probably 2 hours. They were extremely nice and open to talking, and we are hoping to be able to meet up with them again before we head back to the U.S. That night we had our bible study, and we talked about what gospel-centered ministry should look like. Gospel-centered ministry should be centered on the gospel, and centered on grace and truth rather than flattery. We talked in the study about not being leaders that want to be needed, but leaders that want their followers to grow up and mature as quickly as possible and how that process is painful for leaders. Paul compares this to a pregnant woman about to give birth. She doesn’t want the baby to continue to depend on her, but to be out on its own and able to grow and mature. I really enjoyed that time with my guys!  

The famous hand

Thursday I was blessed to go with Jesse and Erik to meet up with a new believer named Angel. Erik and I met him a couple weeks ago, and soon thereafter Jesse and Erik shared the gospel with him and he prayed to receive Christ! I was able to go with them to do follow-up with him. I really enjoyed that, because I don’t get to do that a lot as a student staff, so that was another highlight of my week! Afterwards, Erik and I met up for discipleship and talked through the book of Jude. Jude is a book I haven’t read much of, but Erik chose to go through that and so we did. I was surprised by how much I learned from studying such a small section of scripture! That night we had men’s time, which Tyler (a Cru staff) and I were able to plan most of. We did a photo scavenger hunt, and then ate pizza and played a funny game. Afterwards we went around and encouraged each other as men and pointed out what appreciated about each guy. It was a really fun night. Friday the women planned a creative date for the men. They called it "Manventure". We started with some challenges, then ate a delicious taco dinner, and ended with the women all pretending to be a different guy while playing Mafia (A game that we play a lot on our project). It was such a blast and I am so thankful for all the women on our project! Later that night we had our soccer outreach, which was a lot of fun. I finally got to play because I don’t have stitches anymore, so I was on a team with some of our hotel workers which was a blast!   Saturday our group had the day off so we traveled to Punta del Este, which is the main tourist destination in Uruguay. It is a peninsula filled with beautiful hills and beaches. We spent the day taking pictures and just relaxing. Punta del Este is probably the most beautiful part of Uruguay that I’ve seen, so it was so amazing to be able to enjoy God’s creation together as a project. We ended the evening by watching the sunset.

A beautiful sunset in Punta del Este

Today we had family time, and then I went to the market to buy some things to take back to the States. In a little while we will be heading to our last Sunday church service. I am excited to see what God does this last week here in Uruguay. Please keep us in your prayers!!

"Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and everything that moves in them." Psalm 69:34

Sons of God

"And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!" So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God." Galatians 4:6-7

My hand is healing fast!

This past week has probably been my favorite week of project so far, both ministry wise and fun wise. Not only am I feeling 100% better, I was finally able to get my stitches out on Monday… and it feels so amazing! My hand is healing very rapidly, and I’m so thankful that my injury wasn’t worse. Vida Estudiantil on Monday was definitely the best one we’ve had so far. A Christian doctor spoke about depression, which is a very relevant topic to Uruguayos and one of our teammates shared a powerful testimony of how God has changed her life regarding depression. 107 people attended the meeting and 4 people prayed to receive Christ! Praise God for changing Uruguayo lives. Tuesday was my only day on campus for the week, but I was able to get into the best conversation I’ve had so far. Stephen and I did soularium (a set of pictures used to start spiritual conversations) with one of the friends we’d met at the Social Sciences faculty. We wound up talking to him for close to an hour and a half about the gospel and some of the reasons we believe its truth. He considers himself somewhere between Atheist and Agnostic, but was very open to talking with us and we hope to talk with him more in the future. On Tuesday I was able to meet with both Stephen and Barrett for discipleship, which I really enjoyed. That night I led bible study once again, and we talked about the significance of being called Sons of God and because of that Sonship we can call God Abba Father… or in other words Daddy or Papa. Since that bible study, I’ve consciously tried to call the Lord “Daddy” or replace the words God or Lord when I’m reading the bible with “Daddy” and I’ve experienced an even more intimate relationship with Him because of that. 

Our group enjoying the weather in Salto

Wednesday we packed up or bags and got on a bus headed north for Salto for our mid-project break. While in Salto, we ate some great meals, enjoyed much warmer weather, relaxed in thermal baths, and had some great team bonding time. It was a much needed and very enjoyable mid-project break. Saturday we spent the day at a small church in the country putting on a mini “VBS” for the children. We sang songs, did a bible lesson, and played games with these kids. I really enjoyed being able to show Christ’s love to these children, even for just one day. They were so happy that we were there! Today we went to a church service just around the block from our hotel, and afterwards a group of us went to a massive Sunday market. Tonight we have family time and team time, and tomorrow it’s back to a normal week of ministry. I can’t believe we are leaving in less than two weeks, but I definitely want to make the most of my time left here and let God use me however He wants! 

Hanging out with the kids

 

Tired, yet blessed

Tired. I think that’s the word that best describes how I’m feeling right now. I have been sick for the last few days and am still feeling under the weather. A lot of our team has had their health attacked on our trip. People have had anywhere from your typical chest cold to much more serious problems. Even in the midst of all of the enemy’s attacks, God has been so good to us and has blessed us. Our team has been so unified this entire trip, and that is something that isn’t always typical on a trip like this. Ministry is always much more effective with a unified team. This last week a lot of stuff has been happening. 

Stephen (one of my disciples) and I

Monday we had the Vida Estudiantil outreach meeting, and I met a lot of new people. I had been praying that God would allow me to connect with some more Uruguayos, and he definitely answered that prayer with the new connections I made at the meeting on Monday. Tuesday I went back to the Facultad of Social Sciences where I was able to reconnect with all the students Jesse and I met the first two days we were there, including Bruno and Rodrigo who we got to share the gospel with a few weeks ago! I also had the privilege of meeting with Barrett and Stephen for discipleship. I’ve really enjoyed getting to know my disciples on a deeper level, and meeting with each of them is the highlight of my week and makes my being here in Uruguay so worth it. Tuesday night was date night with Jesus, and it was much needed! I was able to spend two hours alone with the Lord and it was really nice to connect with him for an extended time, and it helped rejuvenate and refresh me.  

Celebrating our birthdays!

Wednesday I had the privilege of meeting with my other disciple Erik, and I really enjoyed our time together. As we were finishing up, a guy came up to talk to us solely because Erik smiled at him. He was so excited to meet us, and after we told him we were here to meet students and learn more about the culture he excitedly gave us his contact information. It was so great to see God provide a student who initiated with us! Wednesday night was bible study, and we talked about we need the gospel not just at salvation, but everyday of our lives! I love leading bible study with these guys because they always come prepared and have the desire to grow. My 21^st birthday was on Wednesday, and not only was it mine, but my friend Aaron turned 21 the same day, and another girl named Casey from my project turned 21 on Thursday. On top of all that, our Uruguayo friend Santiago turned 23 on Monday so we had a combined birthday celebration that night with cake and some rounds of my favorite game Mafia. Thursday I woke up sick, so I wasn’t able to make it to campus that day unfortunately. I was able to relax and read quite a bit so that was nice. As student staff, I have the privilege of leading the prayer/worship team and Thursday night we had our first worship night, led by our very own Aaron Esqueda. The night was really God-centered and others-centered and it was amazing to share in that time of celebration and praising God.

Creative date night!

     

Friday was our first creative-date night and so the guys planned a date for the women. Some guys made a delicious meal for the women, and then we played a game called “murder in the dark”. For some odd reason our project is obsessed with murder mystery games, but I am perfectly fine with that! We also had another soccer outreach Friday night which went very well.Saturday was probably my least favorite day of project so far. We went to a Josh McDowell conference. Now normally when I think of a conference I think of main seminars and then break-out sessions. This was not the case, because Josh spoke for the entire time. We were there from 9am-7:30 pm with just 4 short breaks. If the content was good, it might have been more bearable, but the entire thing was basically sex-ed. I am just glad it’s over! Today we had free time before church, and left for church around 4:30 and just got back about 30 minutes ago. We were at the church for over 5 hours! It was long, but they served us so much food in the end that it made the long service totally worth it.

A group of us at the Josh McDowell conference

God has definitely been teaching me to be patient. I really like to be on a schedule and for things to move quickly, but things just aren’t like that here. I’ve also been learning to take every day one day at a time and enjoy it, because in a few weeks I’ll be back home and back in my routine. This week we will be heading to Salto to take a mid-project break and to process what God's been doing so far and to be refreshed and ready for what He will do during the remainder of our time here in Uruguay. I really want to make the most out of my remaining time here, and I want it to glorify God!

“Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:58