We finally made it to Bolivia!
It was very stressful, with connecting flights in Charlotte and Washington D.C., and an unexpected connection in Bogota, Colombia! We knew we would touch down there, but we expected to stay on the plane while others borded. Instead, we had to get off the plane, shuttle to the Bogota airport, and wait for an hour. Because of this we were an hour late getting to Bolivia!
Once we got to Bolivia, we met Luz, our sort of Church connection here. Her, her friend, and an American Missionary shuttled us from El Alto to La Paz. Us kids were in a van with the missionary. And we kind of got lost for about a half hour look for the Hostel. But we made it okay in the end!
The shower was sooo cold. Although Aline somehow managed to take a hot shower. I was jealous. We got a total of about 4 hours of sleep last night, and combined with the 24 hours of traveling yesterday, I imagine we will be sleeping like rocks tonight!
The plan for today is to go to the ash spreading ceremony of Gary Fritz, a long time parishoner of both the Grace United Methodist Church and the church down here, who passed in April. Our condolences go out to his family, and I know he was a great influence on both Church communities.
After we spread his ashes we will be exploring a little and meeting members of the youth groups here. Tonight we depart from Peru!
Please pray for our safe travels and our protection from stranger and sickness!
Hasta Luego!
Monday, June 25, 2012
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Pre-Travel Madness
At this time in one week I will be in Bolivia. Crazy isn't it?
I decided to go on a mission trip to Bolivia with members of Primrose Lutheran Church and Grace United Methodist Church in Belleville last August. I couldn't let myself pass up this amazing opportunity to travel the world and spread God's love and word.
In Bolivia we will be putting on Vacation Bible Schools for three different groups of Children. Our curriculum for these schools are called "Big Jungle Adventure: A Faith Journey with Jesus". Or, "Una Gran Aventura en la selva: un viaje de fe con Jesus". ;) I think it will prove to be a great experience for both the children and our mission group.
Speaking of which, our mission group includes 9 members (including me!) Kyle, Duane and I are from Primrose. Pastor Edwin, Aline, Nicole, Gordon, Annette, and Taylor are from Grace United. Some of us speak Spanish, some have a very limited Spanish vocabulary.
In order to afford this trip to South America, we had to do a large amount of fundraising. From Brat Stands to Flower Sales we did it all, and we would like to thank each and every one of you who donated to our trip. Your donations mean so much to us. In fact, today in church we did our last fundraiser for school supplies for our Vacation Bible School. We simply asked for donations after church for supplies. We raised over $300 in just 20 minutes! Thanks be to God!
More happened in church today that really connected with our upcoming mission. The lessons and sermon today were about growth and flourishing. Parables such as the mustard seed were read as lessons and Pastor's sermon included Hans Christian Anderson's fairy tale, "The Leaf from Heaven".(http://www.andersen.sdu.dk/vaerk/hersholt/ALeafFromHeaven_e.html) < you can read it here! Overall, the messages really spoke to me today. As we travel to Bolivia, we will be sowing a tiny mustard seed of faith within the children, and I can only hope that our program and their futures nourish this seed to become a great tree of faith within them and that this faith will glow outward so they can be like the flowers and leaves of the tree in "The Leaf from Heaven" so that they can shine their light of faith onto others.
We leave for Chicago on Saturday the 23rd to spend the night and then depart from Chicago to Washington D.C. on Sunday morning. We go from D.C. to Bolivia after that. I'm so excited! It will be Kyle and Duane's first time on a plane! Pray for them!
We will also be spending about 5 days in Peru! We are going to see Lake Titicaca, Machu Picchu, and other ruins! This will be the "vacation" aspect of our trip.
Anyway, my plan for this blog is to type my journal entries up while there at internet cafes (if possible) or all when I get home. I also hope that others on my trip will keep a journal that we can share here so that you don't just hear from me! I'm also going to add our pictures! Enjoy and I will keep you posted!
I decided to go on a mission trip to Bolivia with members of Primrose Lutheran Church and Grace United Methodist Church in Belleville last August. I couldn't let myself pass up this amazing opportunity to travel the world and spread God's love and word.
In Bolivia we will be putting on Vacation Bible Schools for three different groups of Children. Our curriculum for these schools are called "Big Jungle Adventure: A Faith Journey with Jesus". Or, "Una Gran Aventura en la selva: un viaje de fe con Jesus". ;) I think it will prove to be a great experience for both the children and our mission group.
Speaking of which, our mission group includes 9 members (including me!) Kyle, Duane and I are from Primrose. Pastor Edwin, Aline, Nicole, Gordon, Annette, and Taylor are from Grace United. Some of us speak Spanish, some have a very limited Spanish vocabulary.
In order to afford this trip to South America, we had to do a large amount of fundraising. From Brat Stands to Flower Sales we did it all, and we would like to thank each and every one of you who donated to our trip. Your donations mean so much to us. In fact, today in church we did our last fundraiser for school supplies for our Vacation Bible School. We simply asked for donations after church for supplies. We raised over $300 in just 20 minutes! Thanks be to God!
More happened in church today that really connected with our upcoming mission. The lessons and sermon today were about growth and flourishing. Parables such as the mustard seed were read as lessons and Pastor's sermon included Hans Christian Anderson's fairy tale, "The Leaf from Heaven".(http://www.andersen.sdu.dk/vaerk/hersholt/ALeafFromHeaven_e.html) < you can read it here! Overall, the messages really spoke to me today. As we travel to Bolivia, we will be sowing a tiny mustard seed of faith within the children, and I can only hope that our program and their futures nourish this seed to become a great tree of faith within them and that this faith will glow outward so they can be like the flowers and leaves of the tree in "The Leaf from Heaven" so that they can shine their light of faith onto others.
We leave for Chicago on Saturday the 23rd to spend the night and then depart from Chicago to Washington D.C. on Sunday morning. We go from D.C. to Bolivia after that. I'm so excited! It will be Kyle and Duane's first time on a plane! Pray for them!
We will also be spending about 5 days in Peru! We are going to see Lake Titicaca, Machu Picchu, and other ruins! This will be the "vacation" aspect of our trip.
Anyway, my plan for this blog is to type my journal entries up while there at internet cafes (if possible) or all when I get home. I also hope that others on my trip will keep a journal that we can share here so that you don't just hear from me! I'm also going to add our pictures! Enjoy and I will keep you posted!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)