Even in the hours prior to leaving my parents house in Storm Lake, I was receiving text messages and facebook messages of encouragement from several friends telling me they would be praying for me. I felt so loved and more than ready for the adventure that lay before me.
My heart needed it so badly. Deep down there was a part of my heart that had not yet healed and there was a part that Jesus needed to bring back to life. Oh how the Lord blessed me!
On my first flight from Omaha to Houston, I sat by a lady and her husband who were on their way to tell people the gospel in Honduras. She spoke words of encouragement and affirmation as I told her about our trip.
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| The sun rose as we flew to Omaha. I was reading my Bible and listening to worship music as I looked out and saw this. It was one more way that I felt loved by the Lord as I set out on my adventure to be with Him. |
We rushed through the Houston airport to catch our flight to Managua and I found myself sitting by a lady and her 17 year old son who were both wearing matching missions trip shirts. So, I asked what she would be doing in Nicaragua and she told me she'd be doing medical stuff and children's ministry through a mission based in Managua. She asked me what I'd be doing and I told her basically the same thing. I asked her what her story was and she asked me mine and for the next 4 hours we talked about Jesus and she excitedly shared with me things I should look forward to. Once again I was SO encouraged and my heart was ministered to before I even landed in Nicaragua. By the time we landed I felt like I'd known her a life time and I had to remind myself that she was on a different team than I was. I remember thinking how much I love the body of Christ. How beautiful a thing that one can board a plane with a complete stranger and be working toward the same thing and love and encourage each other in such a short time.
After landing in Managua and getting in line for customs I realized that I knew the strangers on the plane better than i knew most of my team. As I stood in line, I informed the two girls standing next to me that I didn't know anyone and didn't have especially many friends along on the trip. They both informed me that they were in the same boat as for one, she only knew her dad and the other, her only friends had gotten left back in Omaha when they plane bumped 8 if our team members off.
We decided we should be friends on account we all were in need and I'm quite glad we did.
I sat by myself in the back of the bus on the drive to the mission house. The young boys were in the seats around me but I was quite content to listen to them chat rather than participate. This was another way that The Lord was bringing healing to my heart. I have missed my interactions with my brothers and thus even being around boys their age was comforting to me. I felt at home on any case.
Upon arriving at the mission house we were given time to rest a little before a team meeting in the dining room.
The mission house... That place was a gift from heaven in and of itself. Perhaps the most beautiful place I have ever beheld.
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| The "living room" of the mission house. There was a whole wrap-around deck lined with more rocking chairs outside.
There were rocking chairs all over the place. :) I LOVE rocking chairs. I have one of my own that I love to sit in after a long day of class. When I visit my grandparents house, one of my favorite things to do is sit in their old wooden rocking chair. Basically.. rocking chairs make me feel at home. I can't even begin to tell you how wonderful it was to arrive at the mission house and just sit on the porch in a rocking chair whilst enjoying the warmth and view of Managua.
Of course when I first arrived, I still was at a loss as to who I should interact with as I had only made friends, kind of, with the two girls in the airport and they were resting in their rooms when we got there. At one point I got to sit down by one of my friends from mission trips past and ask what the Lord had been doing in his life. He then asked me how I was coming into the trip and after sharing with him the somewhat broken and exhausted state of my heart, he was quick to encourage me and affirm me in saying, "Then this is perfect for you! This is exactly where you need to be." That was just.. huge. I could hear it a billion times but it was so soothing and encouraging every time. It didn't matter to me who said it, ultimately I felt like it was my heavenly father giving me straight up verbal affirmation and peace as I had been a little anxious about being "out of my comfort zone". But I was more at home there than I have felt in a long time. I think that is because Jesus was there and His presence was obvious.
That first day we rested and got to know each other. We filled 1,000 family packs in 20 minutes, we played catch phrase, we chatted and shared stories, we laughed, we smiled... it was perfect. I laughed more in the first 24 hours of the trip than I have laughed in a really long time. That was one part of my heart that needed to be awakened and I felt so alive in being able to laugh.
That night, though I was terribly exhausted, I was far too excited to sleep. I was overwhelmed by joy and peace to a point where it was difficult to rest in it. My heart was so happy!
Sunday we got up at 6am.. though I'd awaken at 5, and readied ourselves to go out to the village.
We had devotions at 6:45 and I was privileged to get to share what was on my heart going into the trip. Of course I received more encouragement from my team members during and after breakfast. We then loaded ourselves onto the buses and began our 5 hour bus ride to La Santo.
I get motion sickness pretty easily and it didn't take long before I felt like my stomach was tying itself into a knot. Having lived independently at college the last 4 years I'm quite used to people not caring and toughing it out on my own.
The people I sat by were first to notice and even though they couldn't do much more than feel a little sorry for me, it was comfort enough.
At the the half way point we stopped at a grocery store for lunch and that is where I really came to know just how well I was cared about. I was given medicines to help with the motion sickness and was offered encouragement from more of my team. Even though I was traveling with a medical team, I was simply not used to people caring and it was so...ministering to my heart, just like everything else. But that is how it went the rest of the trip. Ant bites, chigger bites, nausea, dehydration, sun burn.... anything, people checked on me and gave me what ever was needed and genuinely cared how I was doing. I felt loved by it. Not just by the people, but by God. I felt God's love for me in how my team members cared for me and about me.
Another thing about this trip is that I expected to be out of my comfort zone with the geckos and the bats and the bugs. I wasn't so much. Whilst the ant bites and chigger bites were not pleasant by any means, they didn't bother me and it felt quite like the adventure I had been longing for. There was never a point where I missed my cell phone or the internet or my hair straightener. If anything, I felt more than free. The time seemed to pass slowly there. I remember the first day we arrived and set up the pharmacy I thought it was something like 5 in the evening when a glance at my watch informed me it was no later than 2. We passed the time by talking to each other, which I loved. We had ample time to interact and laugh and be alive.
Children's ministry I loved!! I didn't know a touch of Spanish but it didn't matter. God's love knows no boundaries. :) We had great interpreters, though.
We did 4 or 5 services most days. We shared the gospel with the children and our interpreters gave them the opportunity to pray and ask Jesus in their heart. What a joy to see!
One night in Children's ministry we were all just running wild taking pictures and hugging and laughing... it was fun.
I also went into this trip needing to be used. One of the nights that our worship leader wanted to do a song that had actions with the kids I was impromptu assigned to lead the actions. It was so much fun! I loved it all.
I have always been in awe of God when looking at the stars. One of the nights, I was invited to look at the stars with the younger members of the team. I saw three shooting stars and even just laying under the stars watching the bats fly over head made me feel loved. Every little thing brought healing in a new way.
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