About 3 weeks ago, I posted an informational update in regards to a mission trip that I would be going on from July 25-31. Here we are, 3 weeks later, back at home. I cannot even begin to explain how amazing the trip was. The trip went perfectly and for someone like me [one who complains a lot] I have no regrets, no disappointments, and no complaints about the trip. The pictures that I took cannot even begin to express how beautiful the land there is, it cannot express the love I saw in the eyes of my own team members and the people of Ecuador, and cannot even begin to demonstrate or show how effectively God used us to do His will.
Without a doubt, this mission trip was THE highlight on my summer and hands down one of the best experiences of my life. With months of prayer and preparation, we went into Ecuador ready to do whatever it was that God called us to do. For many of you, you may just be interested in the photos but for those of you interested in how my trip REALLY was, feel free to contact me and ask me questions, ask for my testimony, etc. Here are a couple pictures and a video with which I hope to try and provide just a mere visual and small explanation of how blessing this trip was for my team and me.
Some pictures prior to our departure.
The bottom, right picture is a picture of Quito, Ecuador at night from the air plane.
Some of the B-E-A-U-TIFUL scenery in Ecuador
Our first FULL day in Lumbaqui, we made a quick stop in a town called "Cabeno" to make some of our own sugar cane juice.
Not too long before our arrival in Ecuador, local church in Lumbaqui was broken in to and the kitchen sink was stolen. So, to help increase security and safety, we helped build a wall around the church after we made our sugar cane juice.
Later that day, around 3 or 4 PM, we headed back to Cabeno to tell the town's people that our mission team would be giving our free hair cuts at the local church while leading a nighttime service.
Our time in Synangue was to be spent helping this unreached village known as the "Cofan Village."
Our time in Synangue was supposed to be spent putting up the walls for the church that our team last year spent time laying down the foundation for. Our plans were changed, and instead, we spent our time in Synangue (2 days) moving the bricks for the walls in a series of 5-6 different "transfers." We moved 1,000 cinderblocks, each weighing about 5lbs, from...
- Where they were to a river bank
- Across one river
- Across a small island
- Across another river
- To a river bank on the other side
- From the river bank up a 60 degree hill (more or less)
- Finally, from the top of that hill up another hill, finally to the church.
You can pretty much sum it up as us transferring 2.5 tons of cinderblocks 7 times or as us transferring a whole church 7 times. haha
Some of us were able to carry 6 cinderblocks, others carried 2.
While we were training in Orlando, we had practiced three skits.
We decided to perform all three of skits on our last day in Lumbaqui at the local church.
We also taught the kids about Jonah and acted our the story.
The top two photos (left & middle) were from a skit that we call "Bus Stop."
The top right and bottom left are from a heart skit that we created,
and the bottom right is the start of Jonah.
The top left picture here is also from the story about Jonah while the remaining three photos are from a skit that we call "Sin Chair."
On our trip back to Quito, we stopped by a beautiful waterfall (above) and a natural cold & hot spring known as "
Papallacta."
