God's People, Our Mission

The days are long, but the week is short.

I knew this going into the Ayoré camp: expect the unexpected, but trust that ultimately God has everything under control. It's not easy to rise before the sun and go to bed long after it sets, and rally your energy for every waking moment to encourage and stir up excitement in those around you. But it's definitely worth it.

The week had its challenges, to be sure. Our toilet broke our second day there. The girls almost killed a bird. Some girls from one of the communities broke into the room of one of the other communities and knocked some of the mattresses off the bunks. 12 of the girls were picked up half way through the week when a community leader came to deal with some girls that were being disruptive.

But God redeems brokenness. The four girls that were being disruptive were not taken back with the rest of their community. One of the girls, Bebeli, went and apologized to Sandra for her behavior. Sandra shared that in her 10 years working with the Ayoré, this is the first time she has received an apology.

I was blessed with Glaribel, one of the older Ayoré girls in my group who took me under her wing, helping me build closer relationships with the others, gave me grace with my Spanish, and put the other girls in line in our Bible story times. She was eager to interact with the Bible stories, partake in the worship times and go above and beyond in the dramas each night.

But perhaps my most exciting and encouraging part of the week was witnessing the change in this girl, Monica. She was also in my group last year, and I remembered her for a couple of reasons: one, she hated having to sit still and be a part of my small group and liked to run off, and two, she stuck her spoon in my food. She was one of the wilder girls. But this year, I got to witness God's transforming power in her life. She loved Bible story time and wanted to interact with the stories and help me tell them through drama. She wanted to sing the worship songs over and over again. She threw her arms around me in a hug during games one day, and another morning she looked up at me and told me I was pretty. She helped me with the names of the other girls. There was such joy on her face during her time at the camp - she made me excited to be up in the morning.

These camps are making a difference in these girls' lives. The gospel is being preached. God is at work. During this past week, the girls got to be just that: girls. They weren't looked at as an oppressed people group, or judged as prostitutes. God's love was lavished upon them by dedicated volunteers and Ayoré women. 

Although the Ayoré are a small people group, and many people will never hear their name mentioned or hear their language uttered, this last week I had the privilege of worshiping God with them. And as we worshipped God in ayoreo, Spanish, English, and other languages, I got a foretaste of what it will be like in Heaven, where every nation, tribe, and tongue will be represented. And I got to worship with these girls and women on this side of heaven. How amazing is that?!

I sang 'Hakuna Mungu' and 'Do You Love Your Jesus' more times than I can count, and my voice is hoarse from shouting 'Equipo Verde' and 'grupos pequeños' a gazillion times...but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. How awesome to wake up every morning with a purpose, and to be a part of God's redemptive work among the Ayoré. Because I truly believe that the girls going through these camps and learning the truth of God's Word are the generation that are going to play a role in transforming and redeeming their culture and communities.

Thank you so much for your prayers this past week. They were definitely felt! But please join with me in continuing to pray for the Ayoré, that God would build His Kingdom among them. That they wouldn't become more like us, but that they would become more like Jesus.

It's hard to say goodbye. These girls have captured my heart. It's hard to minister cross-culturally. It takes sacrifice. But I look at the inspirational people I've served alongside of, and I see Jesus in them. And I know I have no right to give any less than them.

So how do I sum up this last week? There were moments where my heart was so full I could burst, and others where I was incredibly discouraged. But God was there each and every moment, and where I am weak, He is strong. Every face has a name, and every name has a story. And God cares about each one. This last week, my story got to intertwine with theirs. And I am so incredibly blessed.

Blessings in Bolivia

Saludos de Bolivia! It's been almost a week, and it is such a joy to be back. My team has been packing our days with cross cultural training, prep for the Ayore camp next week, exploring Santa Cruz, and learning and performing a skit at the university with CCU (Comunidad Cristiana Universitaria). The days are long, but the week has flown by!

Today, we assisted a church in hosting their Bible school for kids in their community. I saw Pablo, my Bolivian brother in Christ, teach our group of kids the good news of Jesus and the importance of sharing God's word. Afterwards we performed our skit for them, and then gave out balloons and blew bubbles with them. So much fun! And so neat to witness the truth of God being taught in another part of the world!

Tomorrow we head out to the Ayore camp! I would really appreciate your prayers - a lot of spiritual warfare surrounds the work South America Mission and our Global Projet teams have done putting on these camps for the girls. But I'm so blessed to be a part of this again this year, and I'm excited to see familiar faces! We visited an Ayore community this morning, and one of the girls who is 15 and went through the camps and was recently married said that because of the camps and learning about Jesus, she has chosen a different path. And other girls in that community have made the decision to wait until they are 15 to get married. (Getting married very young is incredibly common among the Ayore.) So exciting to know that the work being done with the Ayore for God's glory is making an impact!

Life is such an adventure. And I am so blessed that my adventure brought me here.

(A picture from last year's campamento)

My Letter From Bolivia

First of all, Happy Father's Day!

Second of all, one week from today I'll be getting on a plane to fly to Bolivia!

Last summer I had the awesome opportunity and privilege to be part of an InterVarsity Global Project to Santa Cruz, Bolivia, where my team and I served in a variety of ways, one being helping South America Mission host a week-long camp for Ayore girls at risk of being trafficked or pressured into prostitution.

During our time in Bolivia, our project directors had us write a letter to ourselves that they would send to us in six months. In January, I received that letter, and to be honest, I had forgotten I had written it! And I was surprised, and encouraged, by what I read. Now, it may sound odd to you to think of writing a letter to yourself. And I'll admit, when I was writing it, it did feel...strange. How do you keep a letter like that from sounding cheesy, especially when you're from Wisconsin, where cheese practically runs in your veins?

I will say this: six months post-Bolivia, those words I had penned were exactly what I needed to hear. Words of encouragement for the person I was becoming. Reminders of the friends I had made in Bolivia. Exhorting myself to seek after God, and fall deeper in love with Him and His Word. To stand up for the oppressed, and to remember the power of prayer.

In my letter, I wrote, "Are you planning on going back to Bolivia? I hope you are."

Well, past-self, I think you'd be proud of me. Because I am indeed returning to Bolivia! And I couldn't be more excited and blessed.

I'm excited,

to be a part of God's global mission. To partner with some of the most inspiring and courageous and self-sacrificial people I have ever met. To see friends and brothers- and sisters-in-Christ. To serve in ways that force me to step outside of my comfort zone.

And I'm blessed,

to see what God has done in this past year. To continue building relationships in another part of the world. To give of the gifts God has given me to bless others. To learn and experience new things. To be surrounded by those who have partnered with me financially and through prayer to get me there. And to return to the place that captured my heart.

Please join in praying with me for the ministries we will be partnering with: GATHER, CCU, and SAM. Pray for safe travels and health for my team. Pray for the Ayore girls, and that chains would be broken as they experience the love of Christ, and the victory found in Him. And pray that God would strengthen His church, as we work to build His Kingdom here.

Bolivia, mi amor...

I'm coming home!

The Little Things

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and today, I'm going to let them do most of the talking.

Yesterday, after almost 17 years, we had to put our beloved dog Toby to sleep. I guess I always thought that he would somehow live forever - reality is a crushing thing.

This is when I first set eyes on Toby.

Together, we grew from this...

...to this.

Toby was the best dog our family could have asked for. 

He was a feisty rascal sometimes, to be sure. He was a professional escape artist, and enjoyed gallivanting through the streets of Burlington unattended. His bark could go on for hours without growing hoarse, and he turned into an acrobat that could perform amazing feats in order to reach food that seemed just out of reach.

But one look into his puppy-dog eyes, and he made your heart melt.

I don't remember what life was like without Toby. We grew up together, and he's seen me through so many major (and minor) life events and changes. He's been my main man, my partner in crime, my snuggle buddy, my greeting committee, and best friend.

And it hurts to finally have to say goodbye.

RIP, Toby. Thanks for the memories. Love you always.

"Sometimes," said Pooh, "the smallest things take up the most room in your heart."

My Year in Review

What an adventure 2013 was!

But since it kicked off at Urbana, I guess I shouldn't have expected any less.

This year has been full of joy, challenges, heartbreak, wonder, responsibility, and so much more. And though I very often fall short, I am striving to grow in my relationship with God and become the young woman He wants me to be.

So, in honor of New Year's, here's a look back on my adventures of 2013:

• I went to Urbana
• Two of my siblings got married
• I declared my major (and minor!)
• I got my wisdom teeth out
• I traveled out of the country for the first time
• I fell in love with Bolivia and the awesome family I have there (my brothers and sisters in Christ!)
• I got to fulfill my dream of being a princess
• I made my first 911 phone call
• I learned what it feels like to burn out and how rest is necessary in order to be a world changer (#Radical...)
• I turned 21
• I found out I'm going to be an aunt!

A year ago today, I did not see any of this coming. And of course, this is only the tip of the iceberg - 2013 was filled with adventures and life lessons up the wazoo. I made so many wonderful new friendships, and strengthened old ones. I rejoiced in successes, and endured failures. I laughed. I cried.

This year flew by. I have no idea where the last four months went. But here I am, all the same. And though I have no idea what 2014 has in store, I'm excited to see what God is going to do in me, through me, and in the lives of those around me. I'm excited for the adventures I'm going to have and the opportunities that await.

New Year's Resolutions, you ask?

Well, I'd like to take more risks, I guess. I want to become better at failing, so I can learn from those experiences and not let them defeat me. 

I want to be intentional in my relationships.

And I guess one of the biggest things I want to commit to this year is resting in God. I want to change the world, but in order to do so, I have to be plugged into Him and allow Him to fill me with the strength I need.

So bring it, 2014. I may not be entirely ready for you, but I'm as ready as I'll ever be.

Go team.

Fragile

via

As class ended today, my professor paused.

"I wanted to wait until the end of class to tell you all this. 

One of your classmates died."

I wasn't planning on blogging about anything else before I was able to write a debrief on my experience in Bolivia. But I couldn't ignore the need to write about this.

I didn't really know the guy. The most interaction I had with him was probably last Thursday, when a couple of us were joking with each other in the back row. I only found out his name today.

But I know that he had friends and family outside of that classroom that did know him. Right now, they're experiencing the shock and grief of a young life ended too soon. And I'm reminded of when I was in 8th grade and I found out that two of my classmates died in a car accident.

Life is fragile. Time and chance happen to us all. But I know I'm guilty of believing that I'm invincible. It's times like this that remind me that I'm not - life is short.

I may not have known this student, but his presence will be missed in our class, because we're cursed with the knowledge that he will never have the opportunity to join us again. His empty seat will be our reminder.

And it makes me wonder: what's the point of it all? As students, we study hard so that when we graduate we can go off into the world and makes tons of money. We fight to fit in a social life and have a great time with friends, or devote time to our families. We work one or two jobs to pay for as much school as we can so we don't have as much debt to pay back. We manage to fit sleep in there somewhere.

And in there, quite often, we miss out on a lot of joy because we're so stressed out. What are we really living for? Ourselves?

I don't know if this guy knew Jesus. I don't know if there was anyone in his life to share the gospel with him. But it makes me wonder, is what I'm doing on this campus making a difference? When people see me, do they see Jesus? Am I sharing that hope with people? Because there are people who are lost and in need of a Savior. And death doesn't always wait for us to be ready.

I'm still processing the whole situation, so I apologize if this doesn't make sense. But here are a couple questions that I'm asking myself, and maybe you might want to ponder over them too.

What am I living for?

And is it worth dying for?

Viviendo una Vida en Victoria con Dios

Hello again! I hope this finds you well. It's been a week since we've returned from the campamento with the Ayoré girls, and I wanted to make sure I blogged about it before leaving Bolivia. (I can't believe this trip is almost over!)

Last Sunday, the start of the camp, I wasn't able to go out with the other girls on our team because I came down with a fever and nausea. So myself and my teammate Katie stayed back because we were both sick, and went out the following day instead. Feeling sick is never fun, but I felt especially useless since I'm on a missions trip.

The week at the camp was full of ups and downs, trials and fun adventures. It was definitely one of the most challenging experiences of my entire life. I took turns teaching Bible stories in Spanish to my small group, which happened to be all of the new girls to the camp. I struggled to lead with my limited Spanish skills, and relied heavily on my coleader Tamara, one of my new Bolivian friends. She was an incredible blessing throughout the entire week. It was awesome to see the change in the girls as the week progressed. A few times during the small group sessions there were some girls who didn't seem to be paying attention at all. But then they'd surprise me by answering the questions at the end of the story.

My team also got to lead worship multiple times throughout the week, and though they were the same songs over and over, I absolutely loved worshiping in multiple languages with these girls. And seeing the girls get excited about the songs was really encouraging.

The week was filled with morning devotions, meal times, cleaning, playing on the playground and playing soccer and volleyball, crafts, Bible stories, worship, nightly reenactments of the Bible stories they were learning, and so much more. I was able to see firsthand why it can be difficult to work with the Ayoré, but I was also able to see how learning about God and His love was putting hope into their eyes. The theme for the camp was "Living a Life in Victory with God." And for this people group, who are considered the lowest of the low in Bolivia, and for these girls who are basically told that they're not worth anything, this theme spoke volumes. These girls are surrounded by pressure to become involved in prostitution and drugs, but we were able to share with them God's love and how He created them and they are valuable and precious to Him.

The last night, we had a dinner for the girls where instead of lining up to get food, we served them while they were seated. That morning Sandra, a doctor who has invested an incredible amount into the Ayoré girls, told the girls that they were daughters of the King, which made them princesses. So she told them to put on their nicest clothes they had brought and to come prepared to be served. And it was amazing to see the difference in the way the girls carried themselves at dinner. They took great care in properly using their forks and knives. They served each other soda. They had such a bright light in their eyes, it brought me to tears. For some of these girls, it was the first time they had been told and shown that they were valuable, beautiful, and loved. I also got to take part in a drama where a girl gets her heart broken by a series of guys (it gets torn into a bunch of pieces by the last guy), but at the end finds that Jesus loved her so much that He died for her, and He gives her a new heart. I hope it had a positive impact on the girls! That night, one of the young girls also accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior after an encounter with an evil spirit. I wish I could think of a better way to explain what happened, but the best I can do is to say that spirits are very real to the Ayoré. And after this girl experienced what she did, the leaders of the camp sat down with her, explained to her the plan of salvation, and she accepted Jesus. It's an awesome story, so if you'd like to hear it, please ask me about it when I return!

It was hard to say goodbye. As challenging as the week was, it was so fun being surrounded by the girls, loving on them and teaching them about Jesus. It was an incredibly humbling week. Many times, I felt completely useless with my broken Spanish. Spanish isn't the girls' first language either, so communicating was difficult for me sometimes. And other times I wondered if the little bit I was doing really made much of a difference. But looking back on the week, and from encouragement from others on the team who have been here before, what we did was significant, whether I thought so at the time or not. The fact that we came and spent a week with the girls, playing games, singing songs, and teaching Bible stories, shows the girls that they are special, that they are important enough for a team of Americans to come and invest time and money into. Thank you so much to everyone who made this trip possible, through all of your prayer and financial support. By extension, you're extending your love towards these girls too!

We went out and visited another community yesterday, and it was hard to witness their living conditions once again. Close quarters, trash littered all over the ground, stagnant water. And afterwards we saw two girls on the corner who were prostituting themselves, one of them sniffing glue to get high. Absolutely heartbreaking. I found myself asking, why was I born into privilege, and these girls born into this? Our situations in life could have been so easily reversed. Still trying to make sense of it all, and I don't know that I ever will. But I do know that I have a responsibility to the Ayoré now. To pray for them, to tell their story, and hopefully return to work with them again.

I'm so thankful for the opportunity that I had to come to Bolivia. I've fallen in love with this country, with the people here, and the work that God is doing. I am blessed beyond belief. I'm sad that the trip is coming to an end, but I know this isn't the end. It's the beginning of another adventure, for the chance to use what I've learned so far, and to continue to grow in my faith as I encourage others to do the same. Though the direct impact I may have had in Bolivia during my three weeks here may have been small, the impact it had on me is huge. When I get home and am able to process about my experience in Bolivia, I'll be sure to keep you informed with another update. Until then, Dios te bendiga! Ciao!