You are strong and dignified; you can laugh at the days to come.  -Proverbs 31:25   This is such a well known verse and a verse I often overlooked until the day in Ecuador when one of my leaders, Danielle, handed each girl on our team a journal. These journals all had a different bible verse written on the front cover in free-handed calligraphy. Danielle told us that before she knew us, she had been praying for us and asked God for a specific verse to write on these journals to speak over each of our lives. Proverbs 31:25 was the one God had for me, and I am now seeing how it plays out...

Faith, love, and head nods are universal. Yet, something I have observed in Ecuador is a bold, thirsty faith—not that this front forward trust isn’t in other places, but here the openness of the people magnifies their undeniable reliance upon God. Here, people are willing to step out in faith to receive songs and prayers in a language they do not understand.  In contrast, I am guilty of being comfortable in my faith. When Christianity is free and open—as in our great country—sitting in comfort can be very dangerous. With all the resources and churches we have, stagnant...

Last Saturday, we set out on what we thought would be a “leisurely hike” up Monte Cristi. When we pulled up, it was rainy and cold, but we decided to hike anyways. About five minutes in, our expectations were shattered. The path before us was rocky and nearly straight up. For nearly two hours, we climbed, we slipped, and we fell. There were many laughs, some tears, and a whole lot of mud. We were so relieved when we finally reached the top, but just wait… In order to get down the mountain, we had to sit on our butts and slide because it was so muddy. Whenever we slid, we were...

As we come to a close in our time in Ecuador, I am in awe of the ways I have seen Christ in many of the people here. The Ecuadorians we met are warm and greet one another with a handshake and a kiss on the cheek. They are inclusive and truly treat each other as brothers and sisters in Christ. Before coming to Ecuador, someone sent me a quote saying, Look for Christ and you will find Him. And with Him, everything else. – CS Lewis   I have seen Christ in their actions. One day last week, our team had the opportunity to go to a three-hour prayer meeting where the church members broke...

As we begin to reflect on the first half of our journey in Ecuador, the many experiences have formed complete thoughts. One of the things we have done several times is visit a community that lives across from a local dump. The families originally lived inside of the dump, but recently got kicked out. Now, many of the families struggle to make a living, as it is illegal to sift through the trash to sell. Many of the fathers have resorted to stealing or smuggling trash illegally. On top of this obstacle, these families were also a part of the devastating earthquake last year. Walking into the...

As we began serving in Ecuador, I came to several realizations. Sometimes we create expectations and get upset when they are not met.   From experience with missions, I created an expectation of serving people directly. My favorite type of ministry is working with children and building relationships with people. Our first day of ministry, we were told we were going to work in the hospital. After hearing this, I immediately expected we would work with patients. Instead, they told us we would be working in a room sorting health files. While we were organizing, I was a little upset. I did...