The Week:
Monday-Friday we have Spanish classes from 8-9:45, but we stay at UCA until 11 to build relationships that lead to discipleship. We have already met some really cool Salvadorans in our first few weeks.
Every other Monday we also have bible classes with Ryan and Keeley Blackstock. Each class we talk about some cultural differences that we've noticed. For example, Salvadorans dress up everywhere they go and they ALWAYS have on pants. It doesn't matter if Satan himself kissed earth, they would STILL be wearing pants. It's pretty amazing. In addition to this, we have been learning how to study, truly study, the Bible. Things like: context, audience and such are important when reading.
Every Tuesday and Thursday we have English classes at La Iglesia where we have English conversations with Salvadorans. This has been the coolest experience. This past Thursday some of my teammates had a conversation with this guy who was far from God. He told them about his past and how he has been clean for 5 weeks. He asked if this church was okay with tattoos and stuff and one of my teammates showed him her tattoo. He was very open about who he was and where he came from. It was really cool to be able to say, "we accept all," because some of the previous churches he attended weren't like that.
Every other Tuesday and Thursday we also have an English class at UCA. Most of the students in these classes are fluent in English and they use this time to ask us about the education in the U.S. I was asked questions like, “What’s the difference between public and private schools in America? What does curriculum mean to you?” It was really neat to be able to sit and talk with the students. After this experience, I also learned that Facebook is a big deal. After the class, they found all of us on Facebook and friended us lol.
Every Wednesday we have a BIble study with Mario where he goes through the sermon he preached on Sunday, in English. We also go to La Iglesia and do outreach where we walk on the streets, talk to people, and prayer walk. A couple of weeks ago we met this atheist couple who spoke English, but we didn’t get a chance to speak with them for long, so this past week we went to the same house and spoke with the wife. We had an awesome conversation with her and she offered to show Brant, Sherri and I more of El Salvador. She took Brant’s number, and we plan on going out for dinner with her soon. We are creating a relationship with her that will, we hope in the long run, lead to her accepting Christ.
Besides Spanish class, Fridays are free days. We get a chance to talk to family, catch up on sleep, work on Spanish, experience the culture and dive into the word. We also plan to start practicing T4T discipleship at UCA.
Saturdays we have another English class at UCA!
Sundays we have church at La Iglesia and English church. This past Sunday during English church we prayed for each other the entire time. English church generally lasts 2 hours and about 1 hour and 30 minutes of that was used to pray. We literally just sat in a circle and voiced all of our prayer requests one by one and prayed over each and every one of them. Even after we went around the circle, some of us still had things that we needed to pray for, and we prayed over that too. It was such an intimate time. It was the epitome of church. To sit together, not to be talked at, but just to pray for each other. Genuinely caring, giving, sacrificing. It was the most awesome experience. During these short 5 weeks my love for prayer has grown exponentially.
Things I've learned about myself:
I'm an INTROVERT…(cue music) dun dun dunnnn
~I NEED alone time. Like for real. It is the air I breathe.
~I am not a big fan of small talk. It's awkward and I'm bad at it.
~I like small groups of people.
~I love deeper more intimate conversations.
~During those conversations, I enjoy listening more than talking.
~With a house full of 14 people, I’m learning how important it is to take ANY annoyances or frustrations before God. For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. Both good and bad.
I’ll be quite honest. For a while I was a little frustrated, because I didn’t feel like God was moving. I didn’t feel like I was doing anything important. I was sitting learning Spanish and doing some ministry, but it didn’t seem like enough! I wanted to do great things right when I got off the plane. I wanted to see God do incredible things right away, but the goal of this trip, to make a disciple that loves the Lord, knows how to study the bible, and is discipling another person, seems so far in the distance that it’s a little discouraging. I’ve realized that I have to focus right now in order to accomplish that goal. I have to give my FULL attention to what He is doing right now and learn Spanish. I can't worry about what will happen months from now, because then I won't accomplish anything. Just because this will take a little longer, doesn’t mean it won’t be just as incredible. Job 5:9 says, “He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed and miracles that cannot be counted.” Even though I cannot do great and “incredible” things right away, I can do small things in a great way that lead to God doing something incredible. I’m learning to wait patiently for His plan. Just because I don’t see him moving, doesn’t mean he’s not working. I’m so excited to see what the next 8 months will bring.
Monday-Friday we have Spanish classes from 8-9:45, but we stay at UCA until 11 to build relationships that lead to discipleship. We have already met some really cool Salvadorans in our first few weeks.
Every other Monday we also have bible classes with Ryan and Keeley Blackstock. Each class we talk about some cultural differences that we've noticed. For example, Salvadorans dress up everywhere they go and they ALWAYS have on pants. It doesn't matter if Satan himself kissed earth, they would STILL be wearing pants. It's pretty amazing. In addition to this, we have been learning how to study, truly study, the Bible. Things like: context, audience and such are important when reading.
Every Tuesday and Thursday we have English classes at La Iglesia where we have English conversations with Salvadorans. This has been the coolest experience. This past Thursday some of my teammates had a conversation with this guy who was far from God. He told them about his past and how he has been clean for 5 weeks. He asked if this church was okay with tattoos and stuff and one of my teammates showed him her tattoo. He was very open about who he was and where he came from. It was really cool to be able to say, "we accept all," because some of the previous churches he attended weren't like that.
Every other Tuesday and Thursday we also have an English class at UCA. Most of the students in these classes are fluent in English and they use this time to ask us about the education in the U.S. I was asked questions like, “What’s the difference between public and private schools in America? What does curriculum mean to you?” It was really neat to be able to sit and talk with the students. After this experience, I also learned that Facebook is a big deal. After the class, they found all of us on Facebook and friended us lol.
Every Wednesday we have a BIble study with Mario where he goes through the sermon he preached on Sunday, in English. We also go to La Iglesia and do outreach where we walk on the streets, talk to people, and prayer walk. A couple of weeks ago we met this atheist couple who spoke English, but we didn’t get a chance to speak with them for long, so this past week we went to the same house and spoke with the wife. We had an awesome conversation with her and she offered to show Brant, Sherri and I more of El Salvador. She took Brant’s number, and we plan on going out for dinner with her soon. We are creating a relationship with her that will, we hope in the long run, lead to her accepting Christ.
Besides Spanish class, Fridays are free days. We get a chance to talk to family, catch up on sleep, work on Spanish, experience the culture and dive into the word. We also plan to start practicing T4T discipleship at UCA.
Saturdays we have another English class at UCA!
Sundays we have church at La Iglesia and English church. This past Sunday during English church we prayed for each other the entire time. English church generally lasts 2 hours and about 1 hour and 30 minutes of that was used to pray. We literally just sat in a circle and voiced all of our prayer requests one by one and prayed over each and every one of them. Even after we went around the circle, some of us still had things that we needed to pray for, and we prayed over that too. It was such an intimate time. It was the epitome of church. To sit together, not to be talked at, but just to pray for each other. Genuinely caring, giving, sacrificing. It was the most awesome experience. During these short 5 weeks my love for prayer has grown exponentially.
Things I've learned about myself:
I'm an INTROVERT…(cue music) dun dun dunnnn
~I NEED alone time. Like for real. It is the air I breathe.
~I am not a big fan of small talk. It's awkward and I'm bad at it.
~I like small groups of people.
~I love deeper more intimate conversations.
~During those conversations, I enjoy listening more than talking.
~With a house full of 14 people, I’m learning how important it is to take ANY annoyances or frustrations before God. For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. Both good and bad.
I’ll be quite honest. For a while I was a little frustrated, because I didn’t feel like God was moving. I didn’t feel like I was doing anything important. I was sitting learning Spanish and doing some ministry, but it didn’t seem like enough! I wanted to do great things right when I got off the plane. I wanted to see God do incredible things right away, but the goal of this trip, to make a disciple that loves the Lord, knows how to study the bible, and is discipling another person, seems so far in the distance that it’s a little discouraging. I’ve realized that I have to focus right now in order to accomplish that goal. I have to give my FULL attention to what He is doing right now and learn Spanish. I can't worry about what will happen months from now, because then I won't accomplish anything. Just because this will take a little longer, doesn’t mean it won’t be just as incredible. Job 5:9 says, “He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed and miracles that cannot be counted.” Even though I cannot do great and “incredible” things right away, I can do small things in a great way that lead to God doing something incredible. I’m learning to wait patiently for His plan. Just because I don’t see him moving, doesn’t mean he’s not working. I’m so excited to see what the next 8 months will bring.