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Gear Suggestions

I did want to write a brief post to anyone who is interested in doing a trip like mine. I thought I would give some gear recommendations. What I couldn’t live without and what I would’ve brought if I could do it again.

Nothing glamorous but might be helpful! So here it goes!

Sleeping bag: REI Helio Sack

This sleeping bag is super light weight, perfect for sleeping in hot humid climates. It also is very easy to pack because it compresses down into a tiny stuff sack.

Bug Net: REI Bug Bivy

I did not use my bug net as much as I thought I would on this trip. So for how often I was using it, the Bug Bivy was perfect. It is small and easy to pack. It has one pole that allows the net to prop up over your head, which gives you a comfortable sleeping space. Most people on my team brought Sans Bugs, which is like a tent. But I thought for the amount of times I actually used my net the Bug Bivy was the perfect size and not any hassle.

Pillow: Thermarest

If you are someone who is very specific about their sleeping setup, I highly suggest packing a pillow. I almost didn’t buy one because so many people told me it was a waste of space. The thermarest pillow is perfect for this trip though. It’s tiny and it rolls up so it’s easy to pack. It isn’t inflatable either which I like. It is made out of some type of special material so it fluffs up and compacts super easily.

Bug Spray: Anything and everything

People will tell you that you 90% deet in order to keep the bugs away. The honest truth is, the bugs are going to bite you no matter what. I brought a variety of bug spray. Bring some natural lemon and eucalyptus spray, as well as, some heavy duty deet. You can alternate and fine what works best for you. Osana soap is something that I used too. Its all natural, I washed my whole body with it any time I showered and it seemed to keep the bites at bay.

Clothes: Dress more for everyday life

I wish I would have brought more clothes that I was comfortable in and felt more like “me” in. By the end of the trip all my clothes were paint stained and ratty. I wish I wouldn’t have packed just running shorts and work clothes as my “everyday clothes”. Rather some nice shorts with pockets and a v-neck t-shirt would have been good for everyday wear. In regards to church, I would have brought more knee-lengh skirts and dresses (less maxi skirts) because those could have been worn throughout the week too.

Shoes: Chacos ALWAYS

I love love loved my Chacos! I never had any problems breaking them in. They never gave me blisters or were uncomfortable. I went in to a store and got fitted. I also had the woman show me how to adjust the straps, because thats probably the most complicated part of the shoe. Nothing but good things to say about these shoes.

I also packed a pair of Merrell hiking shoes. I loved these shoes as well. Had no problems breaking them in. They are incredibly comfortable and great for long hikes or working outside.

The End

Wow. So friends, this is it. The end of the journey. I have been home for almost a week now. It has been a transition in many ways. Adjusting back to American culture after living in the Caribbean for six months is really going to take some time.

I find myself appreciating little things that I never would have paid any attention to before I left. For example, how lucky am I that I have clean, drinking water that comes out of every faucet in my house! Whenever I want! I don’t have to sleep in a bug net. I can take a hot shower. I can drive anywhere I want, whenever I want. So much to be thankful for and truly appreciate.

There is such a hype around “going home”. When we say we are going home, everyone usually pictures the house you grew up in, your family, friends, all your things. But I think “going home” means something different for everyone. For me, it was getting to see my parents and my dog. I think that after my trip, my definition of home has changed. The word home for me is where my family is; it’s where love is. In a sense I have five homes now. Two in Jamaica, one in Belize, one in Costa Rica, and one in Gibsonia, Pennsylvania.

These people became my family. They took me in, loved me, taught me their ways, and accepted me as their own. To me, thats home.

It gives me such a warm fuzzy feeling to know that even though I am home, a piece of my heart lingers in each of those countries. I love my house, my bed, my shower, and all my stuff. However, none of those things really cultivate the actually meaning of being home. Home is where the people who love you most are.

I have a feeling that this trip has only been the beginning. In years to come I have a feeling I will find new places to call home; leaving little pieces of my heart all around the globe.

#liveyourmission

Costa Rica!!

#liveyourmission

Thoughts About The End

Oct 22 As I near the end of my trip, I can't help but feel as if I need to have all the answers. I am beyond ready for God to tell me what my next step is. I'm ready for a job or career opportunity to come my way. I thought I'd maybe have an idea of what kind of work I would want to do when I get back. And while I am definitely returning to America as a much stronger, better version of myself. I still carry so many doubts that I didn't think I would have any more. My leader described my transition home in a way that I had never seen it before. She told me just image that your transition home is like transitioning to a new community. Hold yourself to the same standards as you had for yourself on this trip. Always keep in mind our team motto to "never stop reaching". And continue exploring your faith the way you have been these past 6 months. This has really helped me with the idea of adjusting to home. I think my main concern is that going home without all the answers, I will fall back into old ways and old sin. But if I continue to act the way I have acted on this trip, that is less likely to happen. A girl on the Costa Rica Immersion team shared a quote that also reassured me about my transition home. It was a quote from her pastor. "God doesn't work quickly, he works all of a sudden". And so with all this in mind, I can transition home confidently. God is not going to answer all of my questions quickly just because my trip is coming to an end. He will, however, answer them in his own timing as I continue to seek him in my everyday life.

Demolition

October 25 A portion of the time that my team has been in Costa Rica has bee dedicated to working in the schools. In preparation for this, way back in Belize, we were told to use our time at wifi to look up children's activities. So I made sure I was prepared! I had a mental list of all the games I had played at vacation bible school and I even had my mom send me some activities she uses in her 3rd grade classroom. But despite my research and planning, I was not prepared for the work ahead of me. When it came time to work in the schools, we were divided up into two groups. One for high school and one for elementary. I was put in the high school group, so I immediately knew that my educational games would not work. Nevertheless, we got all "dressed up" ( I use this term loosely, since anything outside of running shorts on immersion is considered dressy). I wore jeans and a clean shirt. I put on jewelry and a little make up. We arrived at the high school ready to teach! (Despite the very obvious language barrier) Surprise! The teacher gave us two hammers and took us to the field behind the school. There we found what looked to be the remnants of an old school building. Piles of wood lay scattered everywhere. Two visible wooden platforms laid amongst the weeds. Our job was to tear up the floorboards and tear apart the entire structure... It was definitely a humbling experience. And so for the past 4 weeks, Monday through Wednesday, I have been doing demolition in the hot Costa Rican sun. Moving forward we came prepared: dirty Tshirts, work gloves, closed toed shoes and a few hammers of our own. Some days, our whole team helped, some days it's was just the six of us. I feel like most times when going on mission trips, it's about what you build. What did you make? What did you paint? What did you build? No one wants to know about what you tore down, because that's messy. Not only is breaking something down messy, but it takes as much effort, if not more, as creating something new. Destroying this platform was hard work. Manual labor. That's putting it gently too. I was sweating in places I didn't know possible to sweat. We were doing whatever we could to demo this platform. We hit the boards with hammers, we kicked them, we snapped them in half. Whatever we needed to do to get it done. We still managed to make it fun. We encouraged each other, used it as a time for team building and a time to get to know each other. We took multiple breaks, often times visiting the nearby fruit trees for a snack. Overall, an amazing challenge and a great addition to my immersion experience. I know that when I return home I will be asked what I did on this trip. I know that people will be curious as to what I learned. How have a changed and am I a new person because of this experience. These are all valid questions that I will be happy to answer. Everyone always wants to ask about the shiny new things. What did you build? I've built a lot of brand new shiny "things": new paint in a school in Jamaica, new cucumbers planted in Belize, new family throughout the Caribbean, friendships, confidence, faith, language skills and more. But what about the things I've destroyed? Usually, before building, you have to tear down old and remove a lot of debri. Or at least clear a space for the new. Just as I've developed all these new shiny things (some being tangible products from my trip, other characteristics I will take away), I've also destroyed a lot of not so great things in my life. Just like that wooden platform at the school, I have kicked, pulled, and broke areas of my life that do not bring joy and do not give glory to God. Because at the end of the day, that's what this life is all about. Life is a continuous process of demolition and building new. You can't have one without the other. What are the areas of your life that need destroyed? Get a hammer and start swinging.

Start Small

October 10 I know I've written a lot about how important it is to appreciate the small things in life. But on this trip, the small things are so significant. They take an average day and make it extraordinary. So here is a list of "small thing" that I get excited over in Costa Rica. -successfully using Spanish -getting to carry a machete -successfully bucket flushing the toilet on the first try (I actually jumped around and cheered) -bathing at the river -arroz con pollo for lunch (rice with chicken and a bunch of other delicious stuff) -birthday cake for breakfast -rainstorms on a tin roof This is just the list so far. I'm sure there are many more to come. But I've learned to seek happiness in the tiny treasures of every day life. It makes each day more enjoyable and exciting.

Hi My Name Is Brenna and I'm a Child of God

October 7

The Immersion program in Costa Rica is a little different than other countries in many ways. One specific example of this is once a week immersion teams spend the night at the church. We pack an overnight bag, buy groceries, cook meals, and spend time discussing our week.

We decided to do a bible study in the evening after dinner. The topic of discussion was identity.

Most of us think that we have “found ourselves” by this point in life. We think the things we do and the people we surround ourselves with define us. We are students, employees, sisters and brothers. We find our identity in how much success we have at work or in school. All of our friends and family tell us we are shy or talk too much so it must be true. We are overweight or too skinny because that’s what society says. We dress a certain way because that’s who we are. We are cat ladies or dog people or hate animals all together. We are poor. We are rich.

Why do we let these things define us?

During our bible study, we each thought about all the things we use to define our own identity. Several things came to mind for me.

Positives and negatives.

It’s always been expected of me to do well in school, I define myself by my college diploma.

I am the youngest child and sister. I know my place in my family and I know the expectations my family has for me.

I define myself by my friends.

I am soft spoken and thoughtful, I’m kind (at least that is what I’ve been told). If I’m ever loud or demanding attention that’s just not me.

In college, I felt defined by how many parties I went to or how often I went out. I felt as if there was a standard I had to meet, if I stayed in I would be labeled as lame or “no fun”. I defined myself by how many boys liked me. (And that’s really hard for me to even write down and look at, but it’s true.)

I defined myself as my major: marketing and international business. I had to get a lot of internships to define my success. If I didn’t get a job right out of college I was a failure.

All these things, good and bad, are how I’ve been labeling myself for most my life. But God dropped a big truth bomb on me last night… My identity does not come from any of these things, it comes from him. And him alone. He knows everything about me, good and the bad. He knows where I’ve been, what I’ve done. He thinks I’m funny and likes it when I actually voice my opinions. He knows that the real me isn’t shy at all. God knows that the real me enjoys being sarcastic and silly. Those sides of me that I’m afraid to show even closest to me, he knows and loves them.

I’m am a daughter of God the father and that should be the only thing that defines me.

What are the things that you use to define your identity? What are you hiding behind? Take it to God. He’s all you need.

Last Stop: Costa Rica

September 28 We arrived in our new, and final, community on Saturday. We will spend our last 5 weeks of this journey in Shiroles, Costa Rica, which is on the Bri Bri reservation. My 6 month Caribbean team is joining up with the experience mission 3 month Costa Rica team. Not going to lie, it was a bit terrifying know we would be getting an additional 10 people on our team. They also had gone to three weeks of language school before we met up with them, to learn Spanish. It was intimidating. When we met them for the first time at a mall in San Jose I was so overwhelmed.. These were the first new Americans I had been around in four months. In our first weeks in Shiroles, I have been slowly getting to know each of them and I'm excited to see what each of them will contribute to our trip. I am living with Victor and Sarah, the experience mission community partner. Victor is a plantain farmer. They have 4 children. 1 daughter who no longer lives with them and 3 teenage boys. The boys enjoy scaring me, throwing things at me; anything to get a reaction. I think that most people would feel uncomfortable in this situation. But growing up my dad and brother who would tease me daily and bother me until I screamed, the jokes and sarcasm make me feel at home. Since I can't speak much Spanish, fake fighting is just one way I've learned to communicate with my host brothers. We play soccer and volleyball every other day or every day. It feels good to run again. The food is delicious. Most meals are served with rice and beans. I've had some wonderful chicken, tuna, pork, spaghetti, chop suey. Fried plantains are still a thing which makes me very happy. (My favorite Caribbean snack). Cabbage salad made with tomatoes, lime juice and salt is a meal regular too. This host family is much different from my three previous experiences on this trip so far. They welcomed me just as openly as all my other families. However, they don't fuss over me, which I love. They treat me as part of their family. I have chores to do every morning and I help cook lunch and dinner on most days. I even makes trips to the store when needed. They ask for my help in the house regularly and it's refreshing to not have to ask every hour what I can do to help. Though it's still very early on, Costa Rica may be my best experience yet. Always have to save the best for last!! Four more weeks until home!!

#LiveYourMission

Vagabonding

September 14 My brother gave me a book to read right before I left for this trip. It's called Vagabonding. It's a no excuses guide to traveling the world and living an unconventional lifestyle. I absolutely loved it. A quote that really stood out to me from that book is below. "A process not of seeking interesting surroundings, but of being continually interested in whatever surrounds you" I think this quote can be applied directly to Immersion. I am not constantly doing exciting things, there is a lot of down time, but at the same time, even down time can be interesting. Especially in another country. Immersion is all about taking initiative. In our team covenant we state that "we will never stop reaching". Reaching out to community members, host families, and teammates. The combination of the quote from Vagabonding and this specific line from our team covenant, I believe specifically describes my past 48 hours. On Monday I woke as every other day at 6:40am. I got dressed. put on sunscreen and bug spray. I walked to the outhouse to use the bathroom, brushed my teeth and washed my face at the pipe. I then fixed myself a cup of instant coffee (heavy on the powdered milk and sugar) and did my devotional that my mom sent to me. Once I finished I decided to do laundry. Half way through my bag of dirty clothes Dilieni shouts to me that her mom and dad would like Halsey and I to accompany them to the Mennonite community. Details given by a 10 yr old "just a 1 mile walk through the bush". The kids went off to school and I watched as mom put on pants under her skirt, long socks and rubber boots. Imitating her, Halsey and I put on our church skirts and closed toe shoes. We began our trek. Dad at the front as our fearless leader, swinging his machete and chopping away at any branch or thing in our way. It was not a mile walk... Oh no, it was like maybe 5, maybe even more. Because once we got through the bush, we had to walk a long ways through a Mennonite field and down through their community. I'm all for exercise, in fact I miss running and my ab workouts desperately, but there is a reason people don't work out in Belize. If you walk just several miles down the road, you will be dripping in sweat from places you didn't know possible to sweat from. The sun is HOT!! Anyways, there was so much to complain about on this trek. It was hot, I was dirty, I was hungry. The list goes on. But remembering this quote and our covenant, I didn't stop reaching. I marveled at the beauty of the Mennonite community. I engaged in conversation with some of the children, learning about their family and their animals. I even successfully spoke Spanish with my host mom. When we got back we were exhausted but it was only 1pm. After lunch and a short rest of sitting down, cooling off, and drinking lots of water, I suggested to Halsey that we go visit our teammates, wayyyy at the other side of the village. About a 40 minute walk, we arrived just in time to find out they were going to their host brother's farm. Without thinking, I jumped in the back of the truck and was off to plant tomatoes. Abbie and Taylor planted, I watered. A half hour after getting there, the heavens opened and the rain poured down. We continued to work, along side the girl's host family. The soft, fertile soil quickly became mud, caking on to my chacos and holding me back from my job. I kicked them off and went barefoot. I felt so alive in that moment. We road back soaking wet and covered in mud, but smiling the whole time. My teammates' host family allowed me to shower, lent me clothes, and gave me coffee. Their kindness towards me was so sincere and is something easy to forget about when you are away from the comforts of your home and family. The following day (Tuesday) was going to be our teammate Tee's 24th birthday. In Belize they have a tradition of waking people up at 4am the day of their birthday, singing happy birthday and banging pots and pans. I certainly was not going to miss out on this. Halsey and I slept at the girls house that night. At 4am we snuck over to Tee's house and sang at the top of our lungs. We banged pots and pans, we popped balloons. We were absolutely obnoxious. His host mom was there too, taking pictures and laughing along side us. After we got him out of bed, she had made "impossible cake" (the best cake you will ever eat) and hot chocolate. We sat around the table eating and drinking and celebrating Tee. After, we climbed one of the nearby hills and watched the sunrise. But his day had only just begun. Most of my team went back to sleep, but Jerrica, Tee, and I spent time talking and drinking coffee. The girls host mom then asked for help on her farm. [PAUSE: I'm still only human. This is a moment where all three of us were physically exhausted. I either need caffeine or a nap or maybe both. Farming was not on the to-do list for today. But I promised to "never stop reaching". That is my purpose that is why I am here]. So the three of us jumped up and followed her over to her farm. We picked cucumbers, we planted cucumbers, we had great conversations, and I squealed when I encountered my first live tarantula! It was a great morning that I would've missed out on if I had gone back to bed. I learned two things: 1. I love farming. 2. You can find excitement in everything you do. I think this can be applied to everyday life. We don't need to constantly be seeking interesting surroundings. (New things, places, people, etc.) but rather we should be continually finding interest in the things that surround us.

#liveyourmission

Meet My Acquaintance, Jesus

September 4th A long time ago I made the very big mistake of introducing my best friend to someone else as my "neighbor". She did in fact live right next to me, however she was my best friend first, neighbor second. She has never let me live it down. But I've realized recent I've been doing this with Jesus. "Yes, I'm a Christian" is how I respond when people ask if I'm a believer. Because I am; I grew up learning about Jesus, I prayed before meals and bed. He was a part of daily life in my home. But I never took an action on my own to make him a part of my day. He was there, I knew he was. But often I ignored his presences. But this trip has drawn me closer to Jesus than I ever thought possible. I give him thanks when I wake up and we talk before bed. I see him in all the beauty of Belize. I see him in my teammates. I see him in my host family. He's every where and we chat constantly throughout my day now. Jesus should not just be someone I introduce as my neighbor. He's not just an acquaintance. He's a lot of things but neighbor or acquaintance are certainly not what we should refer to him as. I am worried that when I return home, I will lose sight of this relationship I have formed with God. On my trip I have my team supporting and encouraging me, I have a lot of down time, and we attend church multiple times a week. I see God in the natural beauty surrounding me every day too. In these beautiful countries it so hard not to see him. Plants and animals all bursting with life: a constant reminder of creation. But what happens when I return home? I no longer have my team, I go back to my regular church routine of once a week, I will be overwhelmed with applying for jobs, saving money and looking towards my future. If there is anything I've learned while on this trip, it's about the importance of enjoying the present. I pray that when I return home, this deep personal relationship I have formed with Jesus will continue and that I will continue to live in the present moment of each day as they are given to me.

Immersion Is....

August 31 Service on Immersion goes a lot farther than work projects. Painting, building, and cleaning are all a part of our mission and we have done all these things. However, Immersion looks much deeper than the material things that we can give. This program is all about relationship building. I have spent 6 plus weeks in each country so far, so that I can understand the local way of thinking. So I can see their day to day life. So I can compare it to my own and realize we aren't much different. I get to live among these different cultures and experience different languages and food. By doing this, I am serving in an unexpected way. Just by being willing to learn about someone's way of life, I'm stripping down stereotypes. I'm telling these people, "we may come for different parts of the world, but we serve the same God. We are both broken. But God loves us anyways." Immersion is about finding service in daily life. It's brushing up my Spanish so I can communicate with my host mom. It's tickling my host siblings until they can't breath cause they are laughing so hard. It's riding in the back of trucks down dirt roads, to unknown places just to pull weeds with family and friends. Immersion is giving all control to God, having no expectations, and jumping into new experiences 100%. Immersion is constant sunburn and dirt under my nails. It's bug bites and bee stings. It's outside showers and Chaco tan lines. All these things become irrelevant when I'm waking up everyday knowing that I get to live the mission that God has set out before me. I would not trade a single burn, bite or sting if it meant not getting to have these incredible experiences with incredible people. My team and I are serving every day. Just as we give to these local people, they have given to us. I see myself and my team growing and changing everyday. These families have found a special place in our hearts and taught us things about life that we never may have learned if we didn't set out on this journey. Immersion is all these things and more. And though my team may not be giving these people material things, I promise you, we are forming mutually beneficial relationships that will last a life time.

#liveyourmission #livingthelocalway

Give them Grace

August 26 You know that song, "Hope it Gives You Hell" by the all-American Rejects? It came on while I was listening to music the other day. The music on my phone is just a hodgepodge of random music I have accumulated since the age of 17. Anyways, every time I hear that song, I have this vision. It's me on a stage singing karaoke and jamming out to this song. And every person who has ever hurt me, is in the audience. And there are all these strangers there that are cheering because I'm so amazing and I look and sound like a rockstar. I know, Crazy right? especially because I can't sing. No way that would never happen. But we all do it don't we? We all have been hurt in some way, by someone. We all want that person who hurt us, to see us someday day and feel a pang of regret because we are so much better off without them. My team is doing a devotion on grace as we continue through our trip. Grace is a tricky concept. I was still coping with the idea that I get to receive God'd Grace, when we came to a day in the devotional that talked about the flip side: those people that hurt you, they get God's grace too. "What?!? But why?! That's not fair?! God, they don't deserve Your grace, they hurt me" ( above is an accurate conversation I had with God after reading the devotion) But it's true, God's grace isn't ours to give. God gives us grace, even when we feel we don't deserve it. God gives grace to the people we feel do NOT deserve it too. But how lucky we are to have grace. The idea that we are forgiven for our sins no matter how big. Those people we may not like are forgiven too. If God can forgive them, we can forgive them too. Let it go. And move on. God has been helping me a lot with this right now; forgiving and moving on. God's grace is amazing. And if I am allowed to get it, then I suppose the people I've spent so much energy on hating, should be able to get it too. Give them Grace.

#liveyourmission

I found my second home

August 17 It's a cool, rainy day in 7 Miles, Belize. I am writing this post from my bedroom. The screenless windows are wide open letting in a cool breeze every so often. A lizard keeps poking it's head out of the crack between my wall and the tin roof; occasionally making a strange clicking noise. Mosquitos ands flies are frequent visitors, interrupting my writing only for me to Swat them away. It's a quiet day at the Alivardo home. Normally, there is too much going for me to even hear all the sounds listed above. But today the family went to town leaving alone to finally organize my thoughts. I wanted to write a bit about this wonderful family; they has taken me in and accepted me as one of their own. Papa is a farmer. He grows corn, zucchini, and cilantro. He also has 6 cows. He is a hard worker, other than meals we rarely see him between the hours of 6am and 4pm. I think he knows more English than he lets on, but I still try my best to communicate with him in Spanish. He's a teddy bear when it comes to his grandsons and his dogs. Mama has raised 10 children. 7 boys and 3 girls. Ranging from 27-8 yrs old.She hugged me the minute she met me and has treated me as one of her own since then. She introduced us to the church congregation as her daughters. She makes cheese. It's very complicated process that I am still trying to learn more about. But what I understand so far is that she gathers the cream in the morning from the cows, she lets it sit all day. She filters out all the dirt and bugs it may have accumulated throughout the day (I got to help with this part once). She then adds some sort of tablet and let's it dissolve. She puts her palm on the very top of the cream, taking off only a light layer, and scraps it off into a cup. From that she works it into a solid and wraps it in banana leaves, selling the cheese to friends and family. There are 5 children left at home, they help their parents with all the chores around the home and also serve as my translator. Hiro is 17. Jaylin is 13. Ederson is 11. Dileni is 10. And Neri is 8. They are all so unique and entertain me in one way or another. Daily activities include, eating rice and beans, attending evening mass, sitting in hammocks. We have been busier than ever here in Belize. My roommate Halsey and I have all ready had the opportunity to help in the kitchen, cooking tortillas and washing dishes. We painted out host families house. This past week we helped with vacation bible school. As much as I love all these activities we have been a part of, I never forget that it's the small things that can often be the most significant. Learning to communicate with my host mom in Spanish, a smile, a tickle fight with my youngest brother. These are the things that sometimes matter most. Immersion is all about taking time to truly know the people of the community. Learning their hearts and what makes them laugh. Seeking every day for new ways to serve.

#liveyourmission

Water

August 7th We finally have water!!! I arrived in Belize last Tuesday. We stayed one night at a church in town. I arrived at my host family on Tuesday. We soon learned that sometimes there isn't water for long periods of time because there is only one pipe that runs to the village and it breaks often. It's been five days since I've showered. Five days since my host sister and I have been able to do the dishes. Five days since we have done laundry. Five days that drinking water has had to be brought into the village. But today!! The faucets burst to lift spewing, sweet refreshing, clean water! Praise the Lord! I can be clean again! This was not the first time this the water has been shut off and I'm sure it won't be the last. We attend church every night except Monday's and Friday's in Belize. I found myself praying for water these past couple days while in service and before bed... And each morning when I woke up. Water! Something I take for granted so easily at home! I take 15 minute showers, leave the faucet running while I do dishes, and have an access supply if I ever get thirsty. To find myself praying for water was such a wake up call. "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet their Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your day?" Matthew 6:25-27

Cliff Jumping and Hurricanes

August 4th If you are looking for an adventure, immersion is the trip for you. Just a few days ago I was jumping from a cliff 35ft above the Jamaican coast. Today I'm in Belize, evacuated to a Church to ride out the approaching hurricane

#liveyourmission

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