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Coming from the perspective of a medical student, today was awesome! Coming from the perspective of a missionary, today was awesome! Coming from the perspective of a child of an amazing creator God, today was awesome! All that to say, today was a pretty incredible day.

First nights in the jungle are always a little interesting…one has to figure out the joys of hammock sleeping, bug repellants, and chilly nights, BUT we all lived through it, and minus a few bug bites where none the worse for wear. After finally untangling ourselves from our oversized cocoons, we stumbled out in the cool morning air to behold a truly beautiful landscape. Green hills dotted with horses and corn fields faded out into wisps of mist. This is the part where just gazing at what my Father has created made it an awesome day.

Next came the moment that thrilled all of our little medical hearts! Clinic started!!! Accompanied by our amazing team leader and translator, Grace, we watched as the highly skilled doctor worked his way through his patients. We didn’t have a lot of patients, but that just gave us more time to ask questions, look up medications, and discuss diseases. Being a nursing student, this time of learning produced an awesome day.

After the patients had petered out, the kids started trickling in. Medical team or not, we can still play with kids, and so we started an impromptu children’s program. We played games, painted faces, and told a story…or at least started a story. We had to pause the Jonah story for a real live storm that came up and didn’t go away when we through Jonah out of the ship. Hail on a metal roof ended all efforts at talk for about fifteen minutes, but we did finally finish the story. The kids sat in rapt attention, listening to what was for them a new story. Steven, another one of our fabulous leaders and story teller, finished up Jonah’s tale with an encouragement to spend time with God. The kids really seemed to absorb what was being stated, and part three of my awesome day as a missionary presented itself.

Tonight we will climb back into our crazy hammock beds, smelling like bug spray, and praying for a warmer night, but honestly how bad can it get after such an incredible, amazing, and awesome day!

Ruth Fox, for the Global Encounters medical team

Face painting for the little kids who decided to hang out with us

Playing games with the kids

Steven and David telling the story of Jonah

Jungle Pharmacy

Setting up our hammocks for the night

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As the leader of the team, I am always commissioned to write the last and final blog of the trip. Every time, you put your finger on the keyboard, and wonder, “what do I say”? There is so much that could be said from all kinds of different angles.  However, I believe there is one thing that is of utmost importance to tell about the trip: how did Christ work and show in us more of Himself? At the beginning of the trip, we were struck with sickness from the start; not to mention many other happenings that time will not permit to tell.  The first week was also one of the busiest of the trip adding to the pressure that was thrust upon us. The struggle was to grow weary, fill discouraged, and even fear. The tendency is always to become inward focused when hardships begin to hit you.  Yet, one theme kept coming up in our team devotions: “its not about us.” Rather, it is about the incredible glory of our God. This is why we do missions. This is why we can endure sickness on a mission trip. This is what brings a group of young people together from different backgrounds and situations in life to accomplish one goal: proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. Ephesians 3: 21 tells us, “Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.” This theme; this motto is what the Team Ecuador 2011 rallied around.  It took three weeks, but through it all, God molded, shaped, pushed, and produced in us a heart to do one thing: glorify our God through His gospel. It was through suffering and hardships that we learned this. It was through God’s spirit opening our eyes that we saw it in our hearts. It was through building each other up in the Lord that we were strengthened in it. It was through the powerful working of God – not of our own strength – that we experienced it. In the end, we saw one thing: Jesus Christ and Him glorified! Christ became our unifyer. Christ showed us what it means to make Him your all. Christ made Himself known to us as only He can and will do with His people. What a privilege it was to serve and learn with this team. You are my brothers and sisters and may this trip only be a step in the process of Christ making Himself known to you more and more. After all, He is all and in all.

Daniel Cavanaugh

Team Leader

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Sunday was our day to rest from our traveling and get acquainted with each other. After breakfast with the Terrells, Abbie Auslund, Ruth Fox, David Carnley, Stephen and Grace Curry, and I drove into town for church. A visiting missionary from Chihuahua spoke on the church’s responsibility with missions. I believe that even those of us who are still learning Spanish were able to understand enough to get a blessing out of it, and it seemed fitting for our first church service there.

After lunch we had a team meeting to plan and talk over our itinerary. Then, we packed and prepared for the coming week in the jungle. The girls helped Grace prepare food and then the guys helped us pack it into barrels. Hammocks, blankets, and medicines all had to be packed in addition to our own personal supplies. However, since we had all day to do this, it was a relaxing day to mentally and physically prepare for what I think will be a demanding next four days.

Abby Rogers, for the medical team

Grace and Ruth packing up supplies for the jungle

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Finally!! Our long-awaited trip to Chiapas has begun. All the agonizing about what to bring, all the packing, all the main questions asked, and all the goodbyes are said and done! I can hardly believe I am really going to be “there” tonight.

I could see the Lord work in every aspect of my prep for this trip, and by relying on Him to provide the needed funds and supplies, I have been strengthened in my faith and also overwhelmed by the generosity and love of His people. God brought me this trip out of the blue, but I have always felt the call to take my future nursing degree to the mission field. This chance to observe and serve in a medical field clinic is a direct answer to prayer. I am so excited to see how God is planning to grow, teach, stretch, and strengthen all of us during these three weeks. He has been so good to us in this process, and we have arrived in San Cristobal de las Casas safe and sound.

Thank you for all your prayers for our travels, there was no long lines, no delayed or canceled flights, and no baggage lost. The only delay we had was coming through the last stage of the immigration line in Tuxtla, where our last flight landed. The Mexican security detail there has a machine, with a red button on it, right before exiting the baggage claim area, and everyone in line has to push the button as they go by. If the attached screen flashes green then you can go right through. If it turns red, you have to open ALL your luggage and bags for inspection. Mine flashed red. Of course. But I had no plastic bombs or dangerous weapons, so I was allowed to leave.

Nathan Terrell and his lovely wife Julie picked us up and we then started the drive to San Cristobal, our final destination for now. We got acquainted as we drove up the mountain, dodging slow cars and bikers. There were a few security checkpoints where Mexican police were searching some cars, but we were not stopped. As we drove higher and higher the lights of Tuxtla spread out below us, pin pricks in the night.

We arrived at the Terrell’s home around 11:00 p.m. where we were met by two of our team leaders, Steven and Grace, and also by a blast of cool air! San Cristobal is a little over 7,000 feet elevation, and the air here feels wonderfully cool and mountainous. We are all thanking the Lord for a safe trip, and looking forward to tomorrow!

Abbie Auslund

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TOMA TOMA TOMAAAA!!! (TOMA TOMA TOMAAAA) MATE MATE MATEEEE (MATE MATE MATEEEE) TOOMAAA (TOOMAAA) MAATEEE (MAATEEE) Too00OOMATEEE!!!!! The cheers can be heard in china! Time to congregate on the basketball court. First team to have all their kids in line gets 10 points! Enthusiasm, excitement, and team spirit describes the atmosphere of the camp! The first day of camp is ready to start! We all brake up into groups and make team bracelets. And then we head out for free time! It has been a great experience for me to be at this camp living with the kids! It is a whole different perspective of the kids from the first two weeks! Where as normally we just come do the program and leave, now we get to know each individual child and there story. Because I am forced to speak in Spanish, unless I don’t want to talk to anybody accept my team, I have begun to think more and more in Spanish. After free time we head to the beach. We are released by color to walk the half a mile walk to the beach. Once there, each color draws a circle and puts their stuff inside of it. Then we hit the water! Splashing, throwing, and body surfing, its all there! Even mud bathes! It is very surprising how many Ecuadorians do not know how to swim. After two and a half hours at the beach we head to the camp completely exhausted. We eat the food they give us for so called lunch, we’re still not sure what the meat actually is though, and then we head out for more free time playing soccer, face painting, and playing EcuaVoly (the Ecuadorian style of Volleyball). Finally it’s time to do the kids program. Today, in the lesson team, we told the story of creation and taught the seven days of creation with hand motions and sound effects. Then we have more free time till dinner at 7:30. Following dinner we do large group where we tell the story of Jonah. Following large group we sent the kids to bed and had devotions. As we walked to our rooms it was completely silent. All the kids were tired as well!  We were so exhausted and it was only the first day! However, we all agreed that this week was going to be a very fun week!

John

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Let me tell you one thing: everyone is having way too much fun here in Ecuador! We’re all pretty exhausted including the kids but the fun factor overrides exhaustion at this point. A normal schedule looks something like this. Breakfast-8, Games-9-10, Beach-10-?, Lunch… changes everyday, Class time-3-5, Dinner-7, Large Group-8, Bible Study- 10, Bedtime… varies. Let me tell you, we have a blast! All the kids are super sweet and forgiving of our Spanish. We have been becoming accustomed to the phrase “Como se dice…?” We’ve also taught them to say “Sup Homie?” They think this is pretty cool.

Tonight was rather memorable as Pastor Benjamin arrived with his wife and son. We set up a warm welcome for them with balloons and streamers and a surprise gathering. But before this happened we needed to keep the kids occupied. They decided to teach us a song with dance movements. First everyone did it then, to our surprise, they had all the team leaders come up to do it. This would be Daniel Dickson (Green), Brandon Dickson (Red), Nate Foreman (Blue), John Foreman (Orange), and Danny Fox (Yellow). This was very entertaining to everyone but even more so to the team members when we later learned that the song was about a big fork, knife, bowl, plate, and spoon!

God is doing amazing things in the lives of everyone here. All the team members have changed in many ways. We are praying for the kids that God will reach them during this time and that we will have a lasting impact on their lives. I can already tell you they have impacted mine. Saying goodbye will be difficult for more than one team member.

Ashley Dickson

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Generic depersonalized labor is useful and at times necessary for service projects, but it’s not my favorite part of short-term missions work.  It is far more interesting to see each member discover and exercise something more of their unique identity – the particular passions that God gave them; the things that move them – and hopefully to see these passions find an outlet out on the field.These are the forces that draw us through life and into relationship with God and others, and that with far more pull than some dutiful notion of rote service.

God is a deeply, profoundly passionate person. Zeal consumes him. It is the secret of his life, the writer of Hebrews says. The “joy set before him” enabled Jesus to endure the agony of the Cross (Heb. 12:2). In other words, his profound desire for something greater sustained him at the moment of his deepest trial. We cannot hope to live like him without a similar depth of passion. Many people find that the dilemma of desire is too much to live with, and so they abandon, they disown their desire. This is certainly true of a majority of Christians at present. Somehow we believe that we can get on without it. We are mistaken. (John Eldredge, Desire, p.54-55)

Chiapas can be a good place to consider what moves you. The jungle deprives you of normal supports, and taxes your sense of order.  It’s generally busy with ministry work – water filters, construction, etc. – but can also allow escape to a place apart where you can pour out your heart before God. And the great natural beauty of Chiapas is a contemplative context perhaps closer to that ideal garden setting that our Creator thought so conducive to fellowship between God and man.

What moves the members of the Global Encounters 2011 Chiapas Jungle Team One? Collectively, one aspect was their aptitude to try new things.  We initially considered backpacking to a couple of remote villages – something most members hadn’t done before.  While we ultimately scrubbed that, I knew we had a good team when I heard from each member that they were not just willing but eager to overcome any trepidation and take on a new challenge.

As a matter of appreciation and not evaluation, here are just a few enjoyable individual aspects that strike me after some time with our team.This is nothing approaching the sum total of each person; just a highlight or two.

Abby’s calm exterior masks a delightfully wacky and warm personality. She has a soft heart for her amigos, and a kind heart for her teammates.She also has a committed willingness to let God send her wherever He may want – even if it means the beastly hot jungles of Ch’ol.

Brittany is an exceptionally gracious young woman.  She is eager, good-natured, serious, and at the same time a lot of fun. I was delighted at how she would throw herself into what’s at hand with 100%.

Katie is one of those fairly quiet people that doesn’t try to attract a lot of attention but just keeps on going.  It’s our second trip together and I still don’t know what it takes to push Katie over the edge and make her grumpy.  I know Katie as steady, reliable, helpful, and cheerful.

Laura has an engaging passion for life and was up for not just tolerating but embracing the physical intensity of a Chiapas jungle trip.  Laura has an appreciation for things being done “decently and in order” and on schedule; but in the jungle, where they are often not, she had an appreciation for relying upon the God who transcends time.

Mandy loves adventure and can adapt to it easily.  She loves the kids and sights of Chiapas and the Creator who made it all.  I appreciate her concise insight and thought-provoking questions.  She has a good balance between being easygoing in relating to people yet staying well-grounded.

Nicole is a sensible and well-oriented person.  I have a hunch I could drop Nicole nearly anywhere on earth and she would land on her two feet, intuitively know which way is north, and start going there if needed.  She has an admirable passion for God and repulsion for what is lukewarm.  I appreciate her ability to easily exist whether in the middle of a vigorous group discussion or completely alone.

Henry is a unique and gregarious character who leaves me with a smile on my face and a loss for words. Quick, smart, hard-working, and accompanied with an amusing stream of commentary. Henry seems to thrive on spontaneity, and adapts quickly when the ground changes under his feet. I especially appreciate his skill with the guitar, which was a great asset to making music out in the jungle.

Minters are steady people and hard workers. Stephen Minter and Seth Minter were constant assets. Stephen is a reliable guy who’s serious about work but always ready to enjoy a conversation on just about any topic.  He’s unafraid to appreciate beauty, and captured much of it with his camera in Chiapas.  “Why did God make [this flower] [that bird] [these mountains]? Because He can!” Seth is quiet, wry, ready to do his part, enlivening our day with piano and the occasional quotation, and on the lookout for ways to help out where needed. Whereas the oppressive jungle heat seems to melt some people, it seemed to bring out Seth’s personality. I think I found that out in Carranza when many of us were sort of staggering around in a dull haze, and I found Seth down at the river climbing trees over the water with some village kids.

Our host Nathan is a legend. It’s no accident that he’s in Chiapas. He’s who you want to go into the jungle with. Nathan has a remarkable aptitude for making it up as you go and dealing with the fact that the nearby civilization that may not offer much help. He’s got a keen insight about people, a wonderful spontaneity and ability to grapple with the unexpected, and a deep appreciation for beauty. His gracious wife Julie is quite longsuffering about the chaos a team brings to their dwelling, the provider of many a fine meal amidst the responsibility of caring for three darling girls, and a most enjoyable person for thoughtful conversation.

We owe a big thanks to Stephen Curry, his wife Grace, and Grace’s sister Gabby Ozuna – our translators, local guides, and friends. To be lost amidst a stream of foreign language is to feel helpless; to have a focused translator like one of these friends is to feel rescued.

My co-leader Amy is, to sum it up, who you want to be your co-leader. Sensible, level, straight-shooting, covering so many details, and an appreciation for the occasional retreat to that rare but oh-so-needed silence or thoughtful conversation to balance out the flurry of team activity and energy.

This is, of course, only a sampling of the diverse glory God has added to the world with these enjoyable individuals. As we part ways and return to what we generally deem “normal” life, I pray that each team member will continue to discover and live out the original glory that God is bringing to the world in them.

And I also pray that you would discover and live out the original glory that God is bringing to the world through you. What moves you? Why did God give you that desire? Find a place apart and talk to Him about it.

– Christopher

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Sunday was our last day in the beautiful city of Esmeraldas. After working all week with children from all over the city, we had the opportunity to visit the main host church for our Sunday morning service. During the service, several team members performed piano and violin numbers and delivered testimonies. Worshiping with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, it was amazing to see that despite the cultural differences, the object of our adoration remains the same. After the service, we were swarmed by children who we had worked with during the week and their parents. After tons of pictures and autographs, we were treated to one final amazing “Esmeraldas” meal.

After our lunch, we headed over to the camp were we would be teaching and living with kids from Quito for the next week. Let me tell you, the transition from comfortable, air-conditioned, hotel rooms to the bare, concrete floor, barely ventilated cabins was rough. Here’s just a little run-down on the camp facilities: no air conditioning, no consistent running water (it comes and leaves ever 10 minutes or so), no hot water, no internet (this blog post is being posted by our faithful team leader, Elizabeth, who is making the long trek to the local internet cafe), and TONS of bugs. But I wouldn’t trade it for the world. The kids make it all worth it. It is SO much fun to see their expressions at everything from the beautiful beach with its enormous waves to the “larger-than-life” grasshoppers that make their home on the ceilings. Since all of the kids are from the mountain city of Quito, beach trips are a rare occasion for them, and every trip to the beach is a new experience. “Cuando vamos a ir a la playa?” (When are we going to the beach?) is definitely the most asked question.

Despite the “less than 5 star” accommodations, this week is turning into my favorite week of Ecuador. Even though just getting a shower has turned into quite a feat, this camp has made me appreciate the “little” things of life. (For example, after being in a hotel and bed and breakfast for the past two weeks, most of the team members never missed their own personal towels. Let me tell you, after drying ourself off with old shirts for a day, we have NEVER been so glad to see the towels that the team leaders bought.) This week will truly be summed up in the verse, 2 Corinthians 12:9 – And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

-Nani, on behalf of the team

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Today was WONDERFUL! After a lovely but exhausting week in Esmeraldes, the team went to the beach!

Thanks to our awesome photographers, we got our team picture set up and over with quick enough. Afterwards we went whale watching and some much needed shopping was accomplished =) One broken shoe and a lot of spent money later, we headed back to the beach.

At night we hosted the youth program at Pastor Louis’s church. Danny (Fox) and Christina shared personal testimonies and Daniel (Cavanaugh) gave a short sermon. As usual the ladies of the church made AMAZING food for us for our last night in Esmeraldes. Afterwards the teens plus some of the team members got together for an impromptu worship group. And it was lovely. To hear half of the teens singing in English and half singing in spanish was truly beautiful. It just showed once again that a love and passion for Christ is never contained by langues or cultures.

Personally, my favorite part of the day was the boat ride out to the whale watching spot. Boat rides on the ocean are truly one of my favorite things. It’s so hard to imagine the fact that the ocean goes down for hundreds and hundreds of MILES. It’s more than I can fathom. How tiny we are compared to everything else. Think about the size of the ocean, the earth, the universe…. but even after all of that, after you feel completely negligible, trivial, insignificant, and infinitesimal… God whispers “I have called you by your name, you are mine.” (Isaiah 43:1b) Wow. I think I’m just gonna go and marvel at the love of God for the rest of my life. =)

Nikita, for the team

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You know that connection that you have with people in the Body of Christ? It transcends culture and location. It lasts for years; kind of like meeting an old friend and just picking up where you left off.

This is how I feel about the people in Ecuador.

We’ve been here almost two weeks already and, still, one of my favorite memories was seeing the smiling faces of my Ecuadorian friends waiting to greet us in the airport as we exited the baggage claim. These people are some of the same people who have been with us throughout this trip as our translators. They are so giving and we would not be able to teach anything without them. They have been a wonderful part of the team!

We were blessed with a whole group of youth to translate for us the first week – Roberto and Sam were the Amazing Craft Team 2 translators A whole team of them came with us to Esmeraldas and have become near and dear to all of us.

One of our translators, Andreita, had to go back to Quito today because of her work. She is less then 5 feet tall and has the most sparkly face and eyes. I have so enjoyed sitting and talking with her on the bus, or when we get ice cream. She will be very missed.

The last day of the kids program was a little different because many of the school children had “examines” that morning. I hope they all did well – sometimes we wonder how the kids learn anything in this learning environment. Some of the same kids came to see us that night at the evening program. All week we have been “encouraging” the kids to sit quietly and listen (and the parents not to talk) and tonight they were really quiet (by Esmeraldas Standards). We told them about how God is Eternal and never changes and that the things they’d learned about Him this week were things they could count on forever.

“Is this the last day?”

“When are you coming back?”

“Look, He’s crying because he doesn’t want you to go”

These were some of the phrases we heard as we ended both the morning and the evening programs. Sometimes it is hard to see the fruit of what we are doing – but I do know that there were many kids who felt loved this last week. I pray that the seeds of God-Love that were planted in their hearts would grow and that when a team comes here next time they will be able to see how God has worked in the people here.

– Amanda, for the team

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