Day 3 (2018)

Today we woke up at 7:30 and had a variety of breakfast choices, including cereal, eggs, Ecuadorian fruit, toast with jelly or butter, etc. Mrs. Strayer made me scrambled eggs, and I had butter toast with Granadilla (snot fruit), a fruit from Ecuador. 

We left the hostel at 8:15, and it took and hour to drive through the morning traffic so we arrived at Buen Pastor at 9:20. It was very, very chilly. We heard a devotion from our friend, Patricio, about how God has helped him through life and he now wants to become a priest. We all then got in a circle and prayed for Patricio and for God to be with him always. Then Juan Carlos spoke about Buen Pastor and it’s youth. Something that Davis said stuck out to him was that Juan Carlos mentioned that the majority of the parishioners are teenagers, and the kids are beginning to be the ones that are encouraging their parents to come.

After the good devotional, translated by Pablo, we were split into three groups. One group painted murals in the Sunday school room, another group sanded down the outside walls of the church, and the last group put a fresh coat of paint on the sanded walls. I was in the group painting murals. We painted one of a large cross made out of the handprints of the youth. Bella and Danishi painted one of a large hand that had inspirational words on the fingers. Davis and I painted one of two kids standing on a bible with Jesus in the middle, rowing the Bible like a boat. Catie and Emi painted a rainbow coming out of a tree that had butterflies and flowers on it. Lastly, Caroline and Tommy painted ‘Sunday school’ on the outside wall, in Spanish. (Pablo was the best in all the activities, I want to be like him in a couple of years - says Pablo, our rockin host)

We ate lunch at 1pm: we had a beef and pepper kind of stew with rice and plantains and we got COKE!!!!

After lunch we put on a VBS lesson about the Feeding the 5000. During VBS Catie, Sibley, and I stuffed candy into goodie bags for the kids at the children's festival we will have tomorrow. The group leading VBS acted out the Bible story and then made fish out of paper plates. They also played duck-duck-goose, but as pan-pan-pescado (bread, bread, fish).

On the bus on the way back to the hostel, we shared tongue twisters in Engligh and Spanish, and I worked on my friendship bracelet. When we got back to the hostel we had 2 hours of free time. The boys played basketball, and Emi, Mrs. Strayer and I played double Dutch. For dinner we had pizza empanadas, which are like calzones, and potato soup. At 8:20 we did debrief, saying our highs and lows and where we saw God in the day.

Con mucho amor,
Mary Mac

(written by Mary Mac Krause)

Day 2 (2018)

Today we got off to an early start, waking up at 7:45 in the morning and leaving the hostel by 8:30 for a day of worship and orientation with the members and leaders of Buen Pastor. After yesterday’s lengthy introductions and seemingly endless lists of rules and facts we felt more comfortable in the hostel and around the city of Quito. Our bodies have almost adjusted to the definably thinner air that accompanies the nearly 10,000 foot altitude of the city. This second day of exploration and learning has given us a much deeper immersion and understanding of the culture that embodies Quito.

The church service began at 10:00 and lasted a lengthy 2 hours, although it felt like much less. The entire congregation was more than happy to be there, the catchy songs and interesting stories and interpretations captivated the audience of Ecuadorians as well as the Floridians. The entire group brought an energy of pure joy and happiness as we collectively took part in the multicultural service. The experience proved that despite the obvious cultural and language barriers the fascination and joy that comes through worship, Bible lessons, and Christian community knows no boundaries.

After the church service and a quick lunch of chicken and rice, the group went to a local park to play soccer and learn more about each other. The activities began with several "get to know you" games where we took turns practicing each other’s names and playing games that required little verbal interaction. From there we went on to play soccer, which was an absolute blast for everyone involved. The common sport and understanding of the sport bridged all gaps between the two countries and both sides unified to play. Through this exciting, high scoring game, both churches bonded and learned about each other while having an exciting time. Following the afternoon in the park everybody was more comfortable around each other, acting as if we had been friends for more than just the couple of hours that we have known each other.

This day gave the entire group an insight into real joy and happiness in faith and trust in Christ. The service was electrifying and the people welcomed us with open arms. Through the simple game of soccer, we saw the joy of community and inclusion as anybody, despite their age or height, was welcomed to join and genuinely had a fun time.

(written by Tripp Shippen)

2018 Mission to Quito, Ecuador

Day 1 (2018)

Hello faithful blog readers,

After a Friday morning that found me waking up at five, then continued with an eight hour layover in Dallas, and concluded with a six hour plane ride that saw us arriving in Quito, Ecuador at two in the morning, Saturday was off to what one might call a shaky start. I can happily report however, that things only improved from there. Thankfully Caroline allowed us to sleep in, and enjoy a relaxed breakfast today. An event I may have slept through. We were then given free time in which some of us played of basketball while others simply took in the view of the city and relaxed. Next began a crash course orientation in Ecuadorian customs before we braved the city of Quito. We had a filling lunch of empanadas before heading to the Basilica. The Basilica offered sweeping views of a city that extended seemingly to the horizon. The climb up for the view was rather sketchy as it included a walk across a thin wood catwalk, and a climb up a metal latter that extended off the edge of the Basicila a considerable distance in the air. We then walked around the old Spanish city while recieving a brief history of The Republic of Ecuador. While downtown we also visited a church supposedly built by Lucifer which seems counter intuative to what one would imagine the devil's main objective. On a fun tangent, while there we bought a soccer ball that Tommy, during a game of  keepie uppies, gracefully kicked into the head of a small Ecuadorian girl. We then traveled to Youth World Ministries to learn about the organization that sponsers all these missions, and what their objectives are. After that we returned to the hostel for a bit of free time during which Tripp kicked our only ball so hard it flew several houses over, which at the very least means that its child harming days have most likely come to a close. We then concluded the day with a discussion about what we hope to achieve with this mission, and a debrief of the day.

Neil out.

(written by Neil Strayer)

Day 7 (2016)

The week has flown by, and as I sit to think about this past day in the airport, I find myself thinking about the entire week, as well.

We began the day with leftovers for breakfast - egg casserole and sweet granola crumble, among others. Leftovers never tasted so good!

We then packed up all of our donated supplies - more than an entire suitcase full! - to leave with our family at Buen Pastor for their use in Sunday School and other programming and loaded up the bus for the last time.

Arriving at Buen Pastor, after reading Matthew 5:13-14 Maggie and Melissa shared about a time when they each felt the light of God during our morning devotion. It took courage to be vulnerable in front of our group and our Ecuadorian friends, and they did a wonderful job sharing their stories!

We then worked for about an hour on various projects - scrubbing drips of paint off of the tile floor, finishing two beautiful murals, and generally tidying up the grounds we had all worked to beautify throughout the week.

Before we knew it, it was time for lunch. It included zero rice! We couldn't believe it. We shared one last meal with our brothers and sisters, yelling translations across the room and laughing through the corn, potatoes, and meat.

Afterwards, we were herded like sheep into one area below the church, and we were not allowed to move from that spot. Minutes later, we were permitted to enter the sanctuary space - greeted with balloons, confetti, and of course, dancing! Our new friends made us feel so loved and celebrated.

Our "despedida," or goodbye party, also included a traditional dance in costume performed by some of the youth of the church, salsa, merengue, and macarena lessons, and some very meaningful prayer and words of gratitude.

Juan Carlos, or "Daddy" as the youth call him, led the youth in praying for us while one of them was touching each of our feet. He prayed fervently to God - it is an honor to be in the presence of this man as he prays and a Godly experience in itself - asking for a blessing. He prayed for every place these feet will touch, every place we will come to know, and everyone that fills those places. He asked that the blessings we have each experienced this week may multiply and continue to impact lives beyond those present. Finally, he prayed that these wary feet would lead us back to our Buen Pastor family and home again. To that we could only say, "Amen!"

After a quick trip to the market to find llama sweaters, blankets, hammocks, tablecloths, and many other trinkets, we quickly finished packing, showered, and headed into our final debrief (processing time) of the week. Dinner was a typical Ecuadorian meal - menestra, which is beans, rice, and meat. It filled our bellies after this week had filled our hearts to overflowing. And now, here we are, waiting to board our plane back to the US. Back home. But for some of us, home is not so simple a concept anymore.

I am thankful for moments when God reveals himself to us - in giving roses to a stranger, in the smiles amid the smell of true poverty, in the lights of an ambulance that saves an 88 year old life, in the eyes of a blind woman, in the joy of children as they plant seeds (literally and figuratively), in the wonder of our youth as they look out over God's beautiful creation, in the breaking of the bread, in the singing of one chorus in two languages, and in countless other moments.

I am thankful for a week that leads to deepened relationships, new friendships, thought-provoking conversations, and hopefully, to fruit.

Please pray for our team of 12 as we return on our two flights tonight, and as we begin to transition our of this literally mountain-top experience and re-examine what our lives look like .

Que Dios les bendiga,

Caroline Williams

Day 6 (2016)

The second to last day was filled with much joy and much sadness. As we hurried to see what our morning breakfast consisted of, we were delighted to smell the delicious egg and sausage casserole!!! After I had my necessary morning cup of coffee, we were off to start the day!! We picked up extra help from another parish in Quito. We then continued our daily journey to Buen pastor. After we said our "buenos Dias's", we quickly sat with our Ecuadorean family inside the church. The morning devotion consisted with a parishioner's point of view on our reading about Gods love and families love. Her story touched us all and brought us closer to the various ways God works in our lives. After our great start to the day in song and prayer, we started our work projects around the church! Maggie, Collins and I (along with our friend Alexis) were in charge of "trying" to paint the outside of the church with our very much diluted paint!! After a bit of painting, Father Juan Carlos asked me if I could draw and paint a mural with Jorge (a parishioner) to liven up the white walls. This happened to be the highlight of my day :) Jorge and I designed and outlined our plan for the wall- one family in the hands of God. Working with him, using our Spanglish, we were able to make a beautiful drawing on the wall (tomorrow we will add the color). 

Holly, Neil, and Jorge started off their work in the classroom we had previously started painting on Monday. They painted the tops and bottoms of the room and applied a second coat to make it perfect!! After that, they painted the outside of the room with the lovely diluted paint. 

Mother Abi and Sarah spent their work fine being plaster masters and filling in the holes in one of the outside walls. Mother Abi wants to note that it is not as easy as it seems! I can attest to that for I had to be a plaster master on Monday and putting it on the wall without it glooping off is quite a task!!

Marian along with some parishioners spent their work cleaning the inside of the church. They worked hard scraping gunk and old pain off the walls to reveal a revitalized look. 

After we finished our work projects, we hurried into the dining room to scarf down our lunch. Today's meal consisted of pork, beans, rice, and a plantain (along with some soda that tasted like medicine.) After lunch, Maggie, holly, Neil and I had some good bonding time with Alexis and learned more about his story!! We were then interrupted to begin VBS, which didn't quite go as planned. Today was a bit crazy due to the fact that a lot of the group split up to do various tasks. We had spent hard work planning out the games and crafts and story, however things always look better on paper...... The Buen Pastor youth had quite the hard time understanding the directions for the "ships and sailors" game, my stressor #1. Then, we tried to play Marco Polo and the children just really didn't understand that they were supposed to run away from "polo"...... Stressor #2!! So we decided to begin the dramatized reading of The Prodigal Son, which didn't go too bad however the kids attention span was almost gone by then!! Our craft was drawing a heart and writing inside what was meaningful to them along with making bracelets using 4 colored beads that represented faith, family, forgiveness, and love. The bracelets actually turned out nice and we all worked together to help the children out! I was finally relaxed until I was walking upstairs and banged my head onto the ceiling.... Ecuadoreans are very small!!! 

On a more positive note, while the youth and Sara were leading VBS, Mother Abi and Marian led a marriage workshop. 25-30 people gathered in the church to learn about Gods role in marriage and how to strengthen his importance. The workshop went beautifully ended in a lovely prayer. 

Simultaneously, Julia and Tracie continued their "patient" rounds in the mountains with Buen Pastor parishioners. I had the privilege of going with them on Tuesday, which was an amazing experience. To offer my help to those that have so little and can't access many things necessary for their bodies was amazing. To our surprise, they shared that they had to actually call an ambulance for one of the women they were seeing. She had been living for at least a week with pneumonia and maybe worse. 

My overall thoughts and lessons learned from the day was that God works in many unexpected ways. I had a vision of the way things were supposed to exactly go in VBS, and when they didn't go perfectly, I stressed. I should've just left it in the hands of God and trusted that he would take care of the children and the plan for the day. I also saw God while Jorge and I were drawing the mural together, displaying Gods love in our own way despite our language barrier. As the trip comes to a close, I can't help but smile at all the many amigos I have at Buen Pastor and how thankful I am for all the unexpected yet lovely moments. 

Con Amo,

Fra!!!

Fraleigh Krause