Future Plans

So I´m sure you are just as excited as I am about my next step! Here it is:

Leadership Practicum in Ozark, Arkansas

2013 schedule: Dates: Feb 25 - June 28th. The first 2 weeks will be boot camp + prep for a Mission Exposure Week. March 11 - 15 Mission Exposure - high school group from Joplin, MO March 18 - 22 Spring Break outreach for high schoolers March 25 - April 19   Four weeks to go home for a break.  This is built in to the schedule because all the interns will have gone directly from Outreach to the Internship.  This gives time at home to share about the outreach and do any support raising. April 22 through June 28 - We will have a combination of outreaches, Mission Exposure groups, and teaching/practical application weeks.  Outreaches will be domestic (in our region of Ark/Oklahoma).  An international outreach may be offered for after the Internship.  We have gone to China in past summers. Some Content Includes: Research project on your subject of interest - cultural studies, apologetics, worldviews, church history etc etc Prepare a teaching Creatively present a book report Support raising training Outdoor skills refined Evangelism & apologetics teaching Practical service on campus & in Ozark community Exploring your giftings Muslim ministry training Prayer hike to Wakarusa Outreach site

That is copied directly from an email I received from their base. It´s going to be so exciting. I feel like after I´ve completed this I will be staying in YWAM and staffing at a base. I`m not sure what base exactly but when I figure that out I will update you.
There´s a few things I need still.....
The fees for the practicum ($2,000) of which I have around $3,00.
In order to stay in YWAM and do missions work I need monthly sponsors. What I´m aiming for is having 30 people sponsor me $25 per month and possibly, if someone feels like blessing me this way, a sponsor to cover the cost of my phone. I use the donations only for course fees so I don´t have any extra money to pay for toiletries etc.
I appreciate all of your support so much and thank you for partnering with me!

Mazatlan & the rest of Juarez

Wow!
I can´t believe that Outreach is almost over. Three more days here in Juarez working at Rancho Los Amigos and then it´s done! But before we get to information on that...let´s talk about Mazatlan.

Mazatlan:
Mazatlan is a beautiful city located on the west coast of Mexico on the Pacific Ocean. The water is so amazing and blue! The weather, even in winter, was sunny and hot. I loved it.
While I was there the 2013 Carnaval was happening. During the evenings the streets were lined with people and music could be heard everywhere. Unfortunately, it seemed like every two minutes you walked down a street you would reach another beer tent. This paints a terrible, but realistic picture for what the main purpose of Carnaval is: to get very, very drunk. The parents would be staggering down the street with their small children in tow. It was so heartbreaking. 
For the Carnaval there were various areas of ministry to be a part of in order to reach out to the people. Evangelism inside the Carnaval gates, outside the gates, prayer intercession, beauty salon and a cafe. I was part of the cafe. We would set up every night from 8:30pm until 1:30am and hand out free coffee. It seems straight forward and lacking in evangelism, but  we had a strategy! We lead people to the tables and two people from the local churches would be at the tables ready to talk about anything with the newcomers. 
At first I was skeptical of this and thought no one would be responsive, but I was definitely very wrong. So many breakdowns and struggles were spoken of. With the use of a translator, my friend and I chatted with a man who had three daughters. All of his daughters were in prison for being drug traffickers. From what he said, the oldest was in her early 20s. That came as such a shock to me and I wanted to help him more but because he was slightly unsafe, we had to remove ourselves from the conversation.

By the end of Carnaval (which lasted around five days) 237 people had accepted Jesus as their Saviour, over 1,000 conversations were held and 4,000 cups of free coffee were handed out. I´m looking forward to Carnaval 2014 and hoping to have the opportunity to return and run a bigger children´s program than the one that was there this year. 

The last few days of Juarez

It´s kind of scary to be almost finished with outreach, especially with all the responsibilities we have this week! My team and I are running the children´s home while the couple in charge goes on a much needed family retreat with his children (one of which is my outreach leader Beca). They all left this morning with their spouses and children for a few days in New Mexico. 
Our day started at 5:30am. We got ready for the day then walked over to Rancho Los Amigos to wake the children up at 6am and help them tidy their rooms, do their hair and put their school uniforms on. By 7:35 all 30+ children were out the door and walking to school. I now have a few hours off until they return at 1pm and the day goes until bedtime at 8pm and then starts again the next day!

A Playground for Rancho
The last topic is....a playground! Here at Rancho the children play outside every day for at least a few hours. Their current play equipment is incredibly inadequate and unsafe. However, since the home is run entirely on donations, they do not have enough money to buy new and sufficient structures. Because of this my team and  I were inspired to raise the funds for a playground for the home. We have located a company in America that builds playgrounds for schools and parks that we are going through to provide for Rancho. In the upcoming weeks we will hopefully have a website showing more information on our endeavor and ways to partner with the home and donate. Our time frame to raise the funds is roughly one year and we are applying for grants and contributing the $800 that was raised by our team members. If you know of any businesses or individuals who would like to be a part of our project please let me know! Mucho Gracias!

Tarahumara Mountains

A lot of people have never heard of Creel, I being one of them. I had to use google to find out where it was before I came here and when I arrived I realised I wasn't going to be staying in Creel, but in a tiny community half an hours drive away. Sierra Tarahumara is the last town name I remember and is still a ways away from here.
Nestled in the Tarahumara Mountains is a cement building where a patient, loving couple work. They have dedicated their lives to following the call that God has for them. They have left their family behind to live among a community of people who are reserved and speak a language that isn't known by many. Spanish is the second language for the indigenious people here and they are not quick to accept outsiders, even those who are Mexican.
Having a team of five caucasian girls and their outreach leaders' family spend two weeks with children of the area was a challenge, but one we accepted. It was difficult at first as the children were incredibly reserved and shy and little progress was made. But as the days progressed they warmed up to us and those adorable, strong children have forever made a place in my heart. I have loved joking around with Leonel and 'surfing' down the pine needle covered hills on sheets of metal all the while greatly enjoying his unabridged laughter.
My team and I shared the joy and love of Jesus with the children by creating a kids carnival for them where they could win prizes and daily presenting Bible stories and crafts. I had the opportunity to tell them about Noah & how trusting God is so important, and the story of Mary and Martha, and how Jesus wants to be our friend. Learning to share simple stories and have them translated was very helpful for my future and was at times challenging, but I wouldn't change a thing about my time here. Difficulties and all, I know we impacted the lives of the children here for the better.
We were also able to spend some quality time with the couple who live here as they aren't around many who know their culture in this remote setting and got to share stories and the goodness of God. Continually we arrive in these places expecting to minister to others, and we do, but mostly the hand of God works in my life. I serve a gracious God who has amazing plans and protects lives.
A man named Dwayne lives among the Mountains here and has faced many run ins with drug dealers who stop him on the road pointing automatic guns at him. God has shielded him from harm numerous times and he is able to continue his work here. Following God can be dangerous, but who is more powerful than He?
Tomorrow I leave for 10 days in Mazatlan & then 6 days back in Jaurez before the journey to Madison starts. I'll update you on the rest of outreach when I'm back in madison, until then. .....