Sunday February 19, 2012

Moria – Everyone arrived last night and had good flights. There were no delays and some were even running early. It is exciting to be here. We are looking forward to a week of many different opportunities to see what is going on here and how God is working in the lives of the people here.

Jeremy – Yo! I’m in El Paso!! Eh eh eh, estoy allegre! (Spanish for ‘I’m glad’).  It is such a joy to be back here.  Amanda, Chris, and myself were privileged to come down on Friday already to reunite with Tim Gamwell, the wise and gifted director of Life Challenge International (the organization we’re working with).  In many ways it feels like we never left, but the most constant thing is God Almighty.  He helped 2 of us frantically find passports just before we left, He got us all through the border into the USA WITH PASSPORTS!!, and He is already challenging us…seriously, I am very excited to see how He’s going to use us.  In my view, we have such a unique group of weird students…but that makes this team fantastic, and odd ducks are exactly who God makes use of!! Many thanks for your prayers already, and please keep boldly praying for opportunities for us and for God’s power to move all devils and obstacles out of our path!! Amen!

 

For the sake of small talk, it’s pretty warm during the days, chilly at nights, and the sun is strong…if it works, you’re gonna see a photo of my sun-glasses tan in this post somewhere.  Put on your sun-blockage. 

Steph – Hola amigos! We are finally here in El Paso!! We arrived Saturday evening, after surviving a lot of turbulence and united as a team with Tim over some pizza at CiCi’s. This morning (Sunday) we were privileged to worship alongside fellow believers at Second Baptist Church which is a small black Baptist church in El Paso. It was an amazing service, HALLELUAH, and they were very welcoming. Their regular attendance was doubled with the addition of our team. This afternoon we moved dressers from one room to another in a warehouse, and then spent the majority of the afternoon disassembling a huge playground made of tires and wooden posts. The playground is no longer meeting safety standards so the school is donating the playground to Life Challenge. After a delicious dinner made by Tim’s wife, Debbie, we gathered together for worship and group devotions led by Tim Gamwell. We are all very thankful and excited to be here and we’re looking forward to serving and learning here in El Paso and Juarez during the coming week!

Amanda – Looking out the plane window as we flew over El Paso left me breathless. All I could think was “God, how did you do that?” Then I thought to myself, “What would happen if the plane just shut down and we were all plummeting to our deaths?” Yes, this was a serious thought. In that moment, I began to question the mechanics of the plane I was sitting on- did they have enough gas? Were there any loose screws? Then I turned my thoughts toward God- could I trust Him with my safety? I concluded that I would have to trust God- there is not much I could do about this supposed impending doom my brain was concocting anyways. Tim Gamwell’s brother- a man named of Austin- said something to us at the dinner table that night that related to this idea of trusting God with our safety. He said that those of us believers who ask ourselves “Can I trust God with this?” are asking the wrong question. God already showed us that He is worthy of our trust- He sent his only Son to die for us. It’s not about what we can trust God with. It’s about what God can trust us with. God has entrusted each of use with gifts, callings, responsibilities- each of these and more are given to us so that we may further His kingdom. We can mistreat and squander these blessings or we can use them to bring honor and Glory to God. What has God He entrusted you with today?