Outreach Update :)

Oh wow, so much to catch everyone up on! Our outreach is going awesome, we continue to see the Lord working in many different ways. We have been to 5 different cities doing a variety of ministry. The first city we went to after our Costa Rica trip was to Boquete which is in Chiriqui. We were supposed to go somewhere else but they canceled on us, so we began praying about where we should go.. there had been a lot of flooding and mudslides in Chiriqui, so that is where we went! I was able to have two weeks of nice cool weather! Praise the Lord! We helped the town by cleaning out trenches from the mudslides. After digging a trench in Costa Rica as well we considered renaming Discipleship Training School to Digging Trenches Siempre (Always in Spanish). Haha. ☺ We stayed in a big gymnasium where one night they played soccer until 1230 and didn’t leave the gym until 1! We were able to do a drama inbetween a soccer game and I was able to give a short testimony.
After Boquete, we traveled to Parita then to Los Santos, followed by Las Tablas, and ending in Aguadulce. We did a lot of house to house ministry and programs in the park. I got the opportunity to be a preacher and I preached at a church one Sunday morning. The Lord is teaching us all sorts of things and stretching us and using us in ways we never thought we would be used. We are discovering gifts and passions that we haven’t experienced or felt before as well.
We came back to base on Saturday the 21st where a nice comfortable bed awaited us, after sleeping on the floor for several weeks it was a nice “homecoming”. We have been working in Colon these past few days visiting the Mother Theresa Home and the Salvation Army. I have been so super blessed by these two places. The Mother Theresa Home- I fed 2 blind men and a cute 4 year old boy that hit me and threw cornflakes at me. :) And was able to help the sisters out by feeding and playing with the kids. Life is so precious and we are so blessed by the abilities that we have. God works with us the same way that we were working with them. They relied on us for their food, their smiles, their communication. They trust that the sisters will feed them, clothe them, bathe them. In the same way- God does the same for us. He puts time and effort into us, he desires our attention, even when we throw fits and ignore him. He still desires us. It was such a humbling experience to help someone out with daily things that I take for granted.
Yesterday, we went to Salvation Army where I met an awesome blind gentleman named, Mr. Bennet. He was such a blessing to me, I was able to read some of his favorite passages to him from the Bible. Even though I didn’t get through half a verse at a time because he wanted to make sure I understood. ☺ So cute and precious. He sang songs for me, took pictures with me, taught me many things, and prayed for me.
I am learning so much on this outreach and on this “adventure” here in Panama. We leave Friday to go to the jungle for a week. Please be praying for my sleep, I am nervous about that aspect of being in the jungle for that extended period of time. We are going to 2 villages to work with both the Kuna and the Embera indigenous Indians. Be praying for language barriers and for the superstitious indigenous customs they have set in place. After our week in the jungle I will have one more week of debrief and then I will be home! Thank you for your prayers.. I will be updating again as soon as I can after the jungle. Love you all. B.