After being absent from the blogging world for over a month, I am finally getting around to sharing about my extraordinary time serving in Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands this summer (more to come about what I've been up to soon!)
Last summer, I had the opportunity to travel with Never the Same Missions, an organization based in Tulsa, to Costa Rica for two weeks (read about it here). Encountering Jesus' radical love for me and His children in a new way, I returned home truly never the same. My passion for missions flourished and I began to look forward to my second trip with NTS.
As always, the Lord provides. I soon had raised enough money and was on my way for training in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. I arrived absolutely stoked and ready to see how God was going to work over the course of the next three weeks! I was put on a team with almost all of my old friends and ready to turn the strangers into new ones. What a sweet reunion it was to be with people so dear to my heart that I hadn't seen in a year.
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| Lizzie and I |
Over the course of our three days of training, we had team meetings, FUAGNEMs (services with worship and speakers), many trips to Starbucks, and drama training. Lots and lots of drama training.
Our organization uses a drama called 'Spellbound: Toymaker and Son' for our main ministry. Spellbound is a drama which portrays the Gospel through many unique characters and costumes that is family friendly and breaks through the language barrier. Each student on our team is cast a role the first night we arrive in Florida, and this year I received the part of the Spanish dancer who represents Mary.
I was also one of three students who was asked to speak on youth night in Florida during one of our FUAGNEMs this year!! You can listen to my speech on forgiveness here:
Following that evening's service, I hopped on a red-eye flight with a group of 20 other Galapagoers and flew directly to Quito, Ecuador. This is when the adventure really began!!
I would be lying if I said there weren't a couple bumps in the road along the way. Because of another group's flight complications, a couple of our soundboxes did not show up until a few days after being in Quito. However, we made it work and headed out for ministry the day after everyone had safely arrived and checked in.
Pope Francis also happened to be in Ecuador for his South America tour at the exact same time as our group; Quito being one of the cities he stayed in. Several Ecuadorians were confused, believing our sole purpose for visiting their country was to see the Pope like thousands of others who had migrated there to do the same. It was interesting to see their reaction when we explained why we were there and how God had divinely placed the both of us there at the same time.
We began day one of ministry by performing the drama in a huge park on a street corner across from our hotel. Playing games with children, conversing with people on the sidewalks, and dancing around in our ridiculous costumes caught the eyes of many, and soon we had our first audience.
This year's ministry had a bit more variety than last year's. On our third ministry day, we partnered with a local church to help out with work projects where we painted walls, scrubbed floors, and cleaned bathrooms. After finishing at the church in the morning, we traveled down the road to another park to perform the drama. It was here that I had the privilege of leading a young mother named Jessica to Christ!
On day four, we traveled to a church where we put on a VBS for kids and colored pictures, blew bubbles, passed out stickers, made balloon animals, and shared laughter together. Our group took a little field trip with the children, which included hiking up a steep hill that dropped into a beautiful valley and revealed a large, open space to play soccer. After loving on the kids some more, we performed the drama again.
Day six's ministry was one of my favorites. Our group traveled two hours to Otavalo, home of the largest outdoor market in South America. On our way there, we stopped at a rural church to aid in their VBS program. First, we shopped around at the market to buy all of our souvenirs. After all of our purchases were made, we began weaving through the market and inviting people to watch the drama later that afternoon. The church we had visited earlier that day brought the kids to watch us perform there! It was the most unique place I have performed the drama over the past two years and a great place for ministry at that. After the drama concluded, the children flocked around us and piled onto our laps to listen to what our team leader had to say about God's love for them.
During our time in Quito, there were two optional excursion days to go white water rafting/ziplining and visit the Equator. I chose to visit the Center of the Earth and take the other day off since I had done the other two activities in Costa Rica last year. It was so surreal!!! There was also an array of shops and restaurants that we visited after taking photos on the famous yellow line.
One of our FUAGNEMs was designated as the annual 'Talent Only A Mother Could Love' show. Basically, students, LITs, or leaders can perform their "talent" of any kind, which is usually a joke and not supposed to be a legit talent at all. This year I went for it and decided to enter with a few of my friends, leading a pretend Zumba class! We received second place to the boys on our team who danced to 'Apache.' Their win was well deserved :)
Probably the most impactful experience I had in Quito was my baptism! I was baptized/dedicated as a baby in the Methodist church, but we don't attend there anymore. I also wanted it to be a personal decision I made for myself when I was more mature and confident in my faith. It was so worth the wait! Before the actual baptism, my two closest friends Kassidy and Lizzie, read my testimony. It was an incredibly holy and special moment to be surrounded by some of my favorite people for this event. What teenage girl can say she was baptized in a hot tub in Quito, Ecuador?!
It was incredibly bittersweet when the first flight group made their departure. Some friends were continuing on with me to the Galapagos, while others were returning home. It would be another year until I saw some of them again. Many tears were shed, many hugs were given, and many plans were made for the future.
While the goodbyes were difficult, that didn't stop my excitement from arriving and reality began to hit that we were actually traveling to the GALAPAGOS ISLANDS! Our flight there was short and soon we landed on the island of Baltra. Next, we loaded onto a boat to Santa Cruz, the island where we were staying. Our hotel was seven floors high, had hammocks in the lobby, and delicious empanadas were sold right next door.
Each day spent in the Galapagos was structured almost the same. We woke up and were presented with an amazing breakfast of coffee, freshly-squeezed orange juice, scrambled eggs (that weren't runny, which is typical of Central/South America) and homemade rolls. We then started ministry by visiting a school and performing the drama. The kids were so sweet and open to what we had to say. It was awesome to witness the children listen about Jesus with enthusiasm, some hearing about Him for the first time.
Our afternoons were spent being tourists and visiting the national park, a few beaches, local shops and restaurants, including a froyo place (which we discovered had the best WiFi on the island.) Then, we geared up for evening ministry. There's a neat park by the dock with a stage where a lot of teenagers, families, and tourists go to hang out. Here, we set up camp and performed the Spellbound drama and the Everything Skit. We also spent a few nights having worship on the dock. People in the Galapagos weren't necessarily as hungry to hear the message we had to spread, but many seeds were planted and I'm thankful for the hearts we did get to touch during the time we spent there. There was a team of about fifteen who traveled on to India after the Galapagos for three more weeks! From the pictures I've seen and the stories I've heard, it was a once in-a-lifetime experience and God worked in big ways.
Overall, these three weeks were full of adventure and personal growth. I'm so grateful for the opportunities God has granted me with and I hope to continue to pursue His plan for me. With that being said, I am praying about traveling to Haiti with Never the Same again next summer. Yay!
Thank you for reading about my travels and how God has worked in my life. I'd love to hear about what He's doing in yours.
"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." -Matthew 28:19
His Biblical Beauty,
Paige
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