Living in God's Provision

God's provision. It's something that we talk about, something we've read about, but honestly, something that I have rarely experienced. Growing up in a fairly comfortable life, in a responsible home, I honestly never really had to look to God to provide many things. Don't get me wrong--I always knew they were God's blessings and was so thankful for them. However, it's a different situation when you KNOW that something only exists through God's provision. That is something that I have experienced lately. Throughout this entire school year at HOH Christian Academy, we have been a little shorthanded. We have had to make changes and adjustments all year long, and just about the time that we are feeling like we are getting on our feet, we find out that two (out of three) of our fluent English speakers suddenly have to go to the States for the rest of the school year. As soon as I heard this, I began to pray hard that God would provide for us somehow, however He saw fit. Then the people started pouring in. First came Deisy, a fluent English speaker who couldn't find work in Quito. Second came Enrique, a volunteer who wanted to practice his English. Next was Jill, a beautiful girl with a heart for God that has an awesome story of how God worked to bring her down here so quickly. Last, but certainly not least, arrive four college summer interns (Chelsea, Casey, Hannah, and Sean) to live in the Hacienda and help us in the school. Wow, how God has provided for us, and so much more!! This extra help really makes a huge difference for these students, since this is their only shot at this school year. Thank you to all of those who have been in prayer for this project, and I ask specifically for prayers for this upcoming school year, that God would provide the school with the teachers it needs. Praise be to God!

Jill with Carlos, one of her 9th graders. 

Casey getting "beautified" by some of the 7th grade girls. 

Chelsea with Nicole and Anthony all dressed in their play costumes. 

Awkward photo of Hannah and Casey with Erick, one of the 11th graders.  

It's Hannah's turn to wear Carmen's costume. 

Chelsea with Emerson, the famous 4th grader at the school.  

Jill with María at the girls' house.

Madison Academy and Tena

Lately has been a busy busy time at both the school and in our free time. We started our third and final trimester yesterday, so let me give you a recap of the end of last trimester:

First of all, Madison Academy came to visit and work with us in early April. It was a blessing to have them here for that time. I was able to catch up with some old friends and meet many new wonderful, precious souls. They came with energy, open hearts, and pouring out love for all of our kids here at the Hacienda and the school. The weather was absolutely horrible while they were here, raining every single day, but it did not dampen their spirits or stop them from doing anything. Two of the days they were here, they helped us tremendously in the school. All of the students who have worked hard all year and were ahead in their work were able to go outside and have two free days, under the supervision of Jon Jones, Marla Logan, and four of the teens. They participated in relay games, a scavenger hunt, sports, crafts, and watching movies. Laura and I were so pleased that MA really took this as their responsibility and made two fantastic days of it.

While some got to go outside and play, the rest of us were working in Learning Centers, working with those students who were behind in their work or needed extra attention/tutoring. Each teen and adult from MA was assigned 2-4 students to work with for the two days. They were able to really focus on their students and we accomplished so much during that time. It was really a blessing for these students, and this gave many the extra attention, push, and time they needed to finish their work for the trimester or catch up significantly. Thank you, MA, for all of your work and love!

Every Sunday evening, all of the Americans in the project meet together to have a devotional in English. The past few months we have been studying about the last week in Jesus' life, all leading up to Easter Sunday. While Madison Academy was here, they led our devotional, and it was heartbreaking, thoughtful, and touching. The students did a presentation called the "14 Stations of the Cross," dramatizing in frozen sets the walk that Jesus had to Calvary, as the mothers read from the perspective of Mary. Several of our Hacienda kids joined us for the devo, and it was a blessing to all share together.

Some very exciting news: we have had several baptisms lately! While MA was here, their "baby" student, Chris Moorefield (14), was baptized. Although his mother could not be here, Glen Laird was able to broadcast the baptism live online so that she would be able to watch it. The next evening, our own precious Catalina Sevillano (14) was also baptized, after thinking about it for several years. Then just last night, Hugo and Jenny's oldest daughter Patricia Sandoval (15), was also baptized into the Lord. Praise God! Please be in prayer for these new sisters and brother in Christ.

After a week of finals to end the second trimester, we had a week break in classes. Wanting to travel, have some fun, and enjoy some warm weather, Laura, Maritza, and I visited Tena, a small jungle town about 6 hours southeast of Quito. We stayed in a cute little hostel named Brisa del Rio (Breeze of the River), visited a zoo, explored some caves, and went whitewater rafting. What an amazing trip it was! We had two perfect days of sun, warmth, and being active. Although we didn't come prepared with bathing suits or a change of clothes for the caves, it was still a fantastic time. We spent both days very wet, and somehow ended up with mud all over our faces, but loved every minute of it!

Having fun on the bus ride to the caves!

A beautiful tucan we saw in the zoo...

Aw, sweet parrots!

 

Ready with our boots for the caves!

Cave mud masks...so rejuvinated and young!

Very very wet after being in the caves!

Ready to go rafting! 

Taking a break. Aren't we having fun?!?

The guides painted our faces with rocks. We are fierce jungle women.

Trekking through the water in the jungle!

With our guides after rafting!!

Back in Quito at Maritza's favorite restaurant...bolon de verde...YUM.

I'm starting to realize how little time I have left here. As I said earlier, we started our third and final trimester yesterday. This trimester is significantly shorter than the others (10 weeks of classes compared to 15 weeks of classes). We will also have a lot of changes and visitors. Laura, my dear dear friend that I have lived with, worked alongside, and hung out with for this whole year will be leaving in three weeks to return to the States. We will all miss her greatly, but are wishing her the best as she returns and begins the next phase in her life. To fill her spot and the huge hole it will leave in the school and at the Hacienda, we have another girl, Jill Abbott, coming to us from the States, and are excited to have her with us. We will also be having Chelsea and Casey Thomason from Twickenham with us for the month of June, which will be a great help in the school. We certainly have some new and exciting things coming up!

Thank you for all of your prayers and encouragement! May God bless every one of you!

Thoughts on a Rainy Day

A rainy weekend taking care of the girls at the Hacienda. What a beautiful time. "Stuck" in a house filled with tons of laughter, homework, Disney teenage musicals in Spanish, singing, dancing, and more Spanglish than you can imagine. (like Cynthia at lunch today, laying out of sight on the bench, groaning: "Yo no avanzo...my belly is going to explotar!") Other highlights include: Cynthia shoveling broccoli down Carmen's throat, biscuits shaped like deformed rocks (it happens when you have little girls helping you), Carmen so upset because her doll's head keeps falling off, María and Magali giggling so hard that they can barely stand, drinking tons of cinnamon and apple tea, seeing my girls work so hard on their homework and feeling proud of themselves, and time snuggled up in the adorable new pajamas that 'grandma' bought.

I love my life here. It's often hard, and I get homesick at times, but I love it. At times, I've felt like I'm never fully myself here. Every day, I deal with people and situations that frustrate and sometimes flat out anger me, but I am growing and learning through it. I am constantly in either a teacher or parent role for large groups of kids, which can be exhausting. Before I came, I prayed that God would use me in every way, and use this time to teach me to give my all, with my physical resources, time, energy, and love. Some things about the culture that I am living in make that very difficult, but other things really encourage me and give me a great example of how I should be. In some ways, being here is like a crash-course in letting God teach me and use me. I pray that He continues to and that I learn as much as I can so I may serve Him better every day.

I have so many blessings here. First of all, I have the overwhelming support and encouragement of Jerry, Pat, Justin, and Amanda. They give so much to help me in my life and my work here. I have my beautiful, energetic, passionate, big-hearted roommate and dear friend Laura, whom I have learned so much from. I don't know what I would have done without her this year. God was absolutely working when he put us together this year. I have fellow co-workers and teachers at school that care so much for the students and put their heart and soul into these kids' lives. I have fantastic friends like Maritza, Tatiana, Alegría, and Clemencia to joke around with, laugh with, and pour out our hearts to each other. I have the constant love and huge hugs of a million students every day at school. There's nothing like it to cure frustrations. I have the most hilarious high school students, who never cease to entertain me. I have a beautiful apartment and kitchen (thank you so much, Jerry!) to relax in, work in, cook in, and invite people to. I have beautiful friends and family back in the States that provide constant support and prayer.  I am so blessed.

In many ways, I am so ready to be back home with my friends and family in the States, but I love my life here. With only a few more months left, I am going to soak up every minute of my time with people. I pray every day to be an impact on these children and the people surrounding me, and for me to be changed and taught by them as well.

Babysitting Esteban and Priscila after school...we have fun. 

Laura and I had the high school girls over after school one day...these are my precious Caty, Marlene, and Paulina hanging out on my bed. 

A fun afternoon of lunch and UNO with Elena, Holger, and Juver! 

Being goofy in Otavalo. 

Laura, Maritza, and me at the waterfall outside of Otavalo. Gorgeous! 

Maritza and Tatiana! 

Our beautiful apartment! 

Home sweet home.

...aaaaaaand, We're Back!!

Well, I hope that everyone has had a wonderful Christmas and beginning of the new year. I was able to go home for a couple of weeks to good ol' Huntsvegas to spend time with my family and friends there. It was a wonderful break and so good to see everyone. I especially enjoyed the beautiful snow on Christmas day! I know that it doesn't even compare to the snow that everyone has had this past week, but it was exciting nonetheless.

It was a white Christmas! I think it snowed a little more after this; it looked less pathetic at the time.

My brother Chase showing off his Christmas gifts in the snow... 

With my new cousin/nephew Murphy! How precious is he?!? 

My Ecuadorian gingerbread man and woman :)

I arrived back here in Ecuador late on Monday the 3rd, and hit the ground running with my work here at 5:30 am the next day. My schedule at school has been changed for this trimester, and in addition to teaching 9th-11th grade English, I am also teaching English to the 4th and 5th graders and music (guitar) classes with the 9th-11th graders. I know just a little bit of guitar, so this will challenge me to learn more! 

The living situation for myself and Laura has changed. Last trimester, we were living with the girls in the house at the Hacienda. Currently, Jerry and the workers are in the process of transforming part of the girls' house into an apartment for us, which we are very excited about. In the meantime, Justin and Amanda have been kind enough to open their house to us, which has allowed us to spend more time with them and their family. They hope to have construction completed and have us in the apartment in the next couple of weeks. 

Teaching is never easy, but always a blessing. My work here is constantly challenging me to be a better teacher, mentor, and person. It drives me closer to God and give my issues over to Him. I am learning well right now how I am nothing without Him, and can do nothing of my own power. I am just praying to be the instrument that I need to be for Him to reach these children here. 

We have had a few sad things happen recently, mainly, the death of the Sevillano family's grandfather. Ten of our sixteen children in the Hacienda are from the Sevillano family, and their grandfather passed away last weekend. We did not find out in time to send them to the funeral on the coast of Ecuador, but all ten children were able to go this weekend to see their extended family with Jerry, Hugo, and Carlos. All of the children had a hard time with this news, especially Christian and Leonela, our oldest children. This is the same grandfather that was baptized by Christian two years ago, when they last saw him. Please keep the kids and their family in your prayers. 

Other than that, it has just been work, work, work! We've taken a little time with this weekend off to relax and sleep. Laura and I are continuing our Beth Moore study of Revelation, and I am currently reading the book of Romans, which is speaking a lot to me at this point in my life. 

Thank you to everyone for all of your thoughts and prayers. God is working here, and I hope that you will continue to pray for this project! God bless!

Visas and Pies

Whoa! Well, it has been quite a while since I last posted in here. My days lately have been filled with my work at the school, taking care of the girls, and enjoying the company of others around me. I've been getting a little bit homesick lately, and I am surely ready to see everyone very soon. I'll be leaving to come back to the States for a visit in just over two weeks, and what a Christmas present that will be!

I did have a little adventure lately with trying to get my Ecuadorian visa to be able to stay in the country. Because of the time crunch when I decided to come down here, we decided that it would be best for me to come immediately down and enter the country with an automatic 90-day tourist visa, which I would be able to extend until I could return to the States for Christmas and travel to Houston to apply for my long-term missionary/volunteer visa. Well, Ecuador being Ecuador, the laws have changed in the past few months, and now extending my visa was no longer an option. When Justin took me to the Immigration office a few days before my tourist visa expired, we discovered that pretty much the only thing that I could do was to get a 6-month tourist visa for the low low price of $230. The good news that came out of this was that I no longer have to travel to Houston during my precious two weeks at home, but can convert my visa to the long-term one right here in Quito. It also ends up being about the same cost due to travel expenses. Well, Senor Fausto, the very kind man to whom we talked that day, gave me a list of all the paperwork and other materials that I needed, and said that it was fine to return after my visa expired since we couldn't make it back before then, without a penalty.

To make a long story slightly less long, I returned by myself that following Monday, and (since I now knew the type of visa I needed), after waiting for three hours, was directed to a different man with whom I had already spoken and had also said that it was fine that I was past the expiration date. When I went to this man and presented my case to him (and remember, this is all  in legal jargon in Spanish, what good practice, haha), he told me that he had no memory of me and could do nothing to help me, that I was illegal and refused to grant me the visa. I talked with him and tried to convince him, reminding him of what he had told me the week before, and telling him how important it was for me to get this visa. He quickly tired of me talking and abruptly stood up and walked away. I was quite upset and stressed, and asked the guard on the way out if I could speak with Senor Fausto, the man with whom I originally spoke, and he said I could, but I had to get another number. At this point (it was about 11:15 am, and I had been at the office since 7:45 am) I was going to miss almost the whole day of school anyway, so I decided it was worth it to stay and do everything I could to get the visa.

So I took another number. After an hour and a half of praying for God to allow this to happen if it was His will that I stay in the country, I was finally called.

As I sat down to talk with Mr. Fausto, I explained to him my case and showed him the piece of paper on which he had written the list of things I needed as well as his name. I reminded him that he said it was no problem to return late, and he immediately answered,

"Oh yes, I remember you. That's not a problem. Do you have all of your paperwork? Okay, great. Let's get this done."

What a blessing! I was holding back tears of joy and relief as we filled in my information and I went to go pay for the visa. God really gave me the person that I needed to accomplish what needed to be done. He always provides. I picked up my passport (yes, you have to leave your passport there for several days, a little nerve-wracking) with my pretty new visa in it on Friday afternoon, and oh, what a relief it was! I think I just started at it in the car with Jerry for about 10 minutes. I am just thanking and praising God.

As you all know, Thanksgiving was last week. As I live in Ecuador, I didn't get to have Thanksgiving off. It was a normal day just like any other, except Laura and I wanted to do a little something to celebrate, so we along with Laura's friend Karen who was visiting for the week, made pies for all of the teachers for our afternoon meetings. I made pumpkin pie (using Amanda's fabulous recipe!) and Laura made chocolate pie. They all loved them, and I've already had to translate the pumpkin pie recipe to Spanish at the request of several people. Family in Huntsville and Nashville, you may look forward to some over Christmas, because I am surely making it again :)

We did finally get to have a Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday. Sunday was a national census all around Ecuador, and no one was allowed to leave their house until 5 p.m. while the government sent around representatives to count everyone. (Yep, I'm in a different country.) Since church services were postponed because of this, Jerry invited myself and Laura to spend the night at his house and we had a big Thanksgiving dinner and devotional there for Sunday lunch with Justin and Amanda, their four children, Ulf (the original director of Camp Bellevue, who is currently crashing with Jerry for a while), and Kyle, the American intern at the camp. It was a wonderful dinner with tons of delicious food and fabulous company.

Making the pies in the kitchen. It was late. 

On the way to school, showing off our creations! (Notice that there's a big chunk missing from the one that Laura is holding. Someone found it in the middle of the night :) ) 

Another fun thing that has happened recently is decorating the house for Christmas! We have many Christmas lights up, and our little living room is looking quite cheerful. Enjoying Christmas decorations is one of my favorite things about the Christmas season, and it was so much fun to decorate everything with the girls.

Also, while Karen was here, Maritza made us arepas (Carlos' specialty), a very traditional Venezuelan food that is yummy yummy yummy! (And oh, so filling). It was a fun and special night, even without Carlos there. Carlos' 28-year-old brother passed away in Venezuela at the beginning of November, so he went and spent 2 1/2 weeks there with his family. He has returned, and we are all glad to have him back, especially Maritza. He used the opportunity to try to talk to his family about Christ, and God is working in their hearts. Thank you to everyone who has been praying for Carlos in this time. It's been difficult for him and his family. Carlos also brought back many different Venezuelan treats that Maritza is giving myself and Laura a little bit of every day so we can try some different things. She spoils us :)

Arepas with Maritza, Laura, and Karen! Yum :)

Well, I think that's all for now. We're just wrapping up the school trimester, trying to help all the students get their work done before Christmas break. We have a few more intense weeks, then it's off to Sweet Home Alabama for me for a while! 

Also, thank you to Karen Hill for the photos. These are all hers that I stole off of Facebook :)

A Fantastic Visit

Well, the visit from all my loving support from the States was wonderful. We had a lot of fun just hanging out, and everyone was a great help in the school and around the property. Everyone helped in Learning Center for several days, and several of the men (and Ann!) helped to lay down pavers to continue paving the entrance to the school. That's been a blessing for us here at the Hacienda, as we don't have to walk through the mud in the worst part anymore :)

We were also able to spend a little bit of time in Otavalo and other surrounding towns one day, as well as have a fun evening in Quito on their last night, complete with a nice meal across the street from our hotel room. My grandmother generously paid for myself and Laura to stay in our very nice hotel another night after my group had left. We had a wonderful and relaxing weekend and were able to catch up on some sleep. Thank you again, Nana!

Throughout their stay here, my family/friends were able to love on all the kids, and the kids were able to love on them in return. Art could not go anywhere without several kids hanging all over him. The young ones were especially fascinated by his head :) The students also all greatly enjoyed the chapel that they organized.

We've had some wonderful answers to prayers! We did not have to go a single day missing the three professors we lost! We were able to find and hire four new teachers that started the following school day after the others left. What a blessing! Things are beginning to stabilize in the daily routine of the school as the students settle in and we have more sufficient personnel.  These students have just captured my heart. It's wonderful getting to spend my days with them.

Another answered prayer is the stabilized political situation in the country. After that chaotic day of unrest in Quito, things immediately stabilized and returned to normal, and we've not heard of any problems since then. Praise God!

Last, and certainly not least, is that we had three people join the body of believers two weeks ago! Ms. Elena, who takes care of Justin and Amanda's children during the day, along with her two precious sons, Holger and Juver, was baptized with great celebration. All glory go to God!

We're going to begin putting out a newsletter every month for all those in the States who want to know what is going on. Amanda made and sent out the one for this month, and did a fabulous job! I'm having trouble uploading it here, but let me know if you would like me to email you a copy!

Thank you for the continued prayers and loving support! Blessings!

Wow, What a Week

Well, this has been quite an eventful week, and I have some prayer requests to go along with all of my news. First, the good (but a little sad) news: we have a new girl living with us! Her name is Magaly, is 8 years old, and is precious. We got her on Sunday, and that was a little bit of an emotional experience for me. She has a mother and siblings, but her widowed mother has more children than she is able to provide for and can't afford to put any of them in school. When Jerry and Hugo went to pick her up on Sunday, they brought her whole family with them so that they could see where she is going to live and meet the girls that she is going to live with. It was hard meeting her mother and siblings, knowing that they were going to have to leave her here and part from her. I can't imagine having to do that. So far Magaly has been doing really well, and I hope it continues that way. I can't imagine how overwhelmed she must feel with being in a new place and being put into school for the first time. Please keep her and her family in your prayers.

The other big news is (as I'm sure many of you have already heard) that there has been a police riot against the President in Quito, the capital of Ecuador today. Everything in Quito is shut down, and there are even roads in Ecuador that are blocked off. I have a group coming to visit that lands this Sunday in Quito, and so they are now watching to see if it will be possible/safe for them to come. Please be in prayer about this whole situation. As of tonight, I've heard that things have calmed down, but I have no details at all. Please be in prayer about all this.

To add to the chaos at school today with the news of the police riots, we also had to say goodbye to three of our fantastic teachers at the school who have gotten good government teaching jobs. It was very sad, and we had many sobbing young girls (didn't really see any boys crying :P) who are going to miss their teachers terribly. This also puts the school in a tight spot as we are now five teachers short, and certified teachers are very difficult to come by right now with all the jobs that the government is offering. This makes functioning on a day to day basis very stressful for everyone. Please be in prayer that God provides the teachers and support that we need. We need individuals who will not only be good teachers, but who can be good Christian role models to these children and be involved in their lives. Not only do we need more teachers and support, we especially need certified teachers so that we can finish the process of legalizing the high school so that the oldest students can graduate in a couple of years. The Lord will provide somehow. Be in prayer for this school with its mission, aim, and heart.

To leave with a good thought: tonight at our women's Bible study, we sang one of my favorite songs, "Ancient Words." I absolutely love the words to this song...

Ancients words, ever true
Changing me, changing you
We have come with open hearts
So let the ancient words impart