Ecuador Mission Trip 2019

Hola everyone, We love and miss you! As we wind down our time in Ecuador, we are getting excited about returning to the States and getting to see y'all. Thanks so much for your support this summer. We are humbled by how many of you have checked in on us and prayed for us during our time here. We can't do enough to thank you! The past few weeks have been a little crazy, as Christina was sick for a week and had to stay in bed. Thankfully, a doctor from the church came and took care of her and now she is better! On a few of the nights when she was sick, I had to go teach pastors in a small town around 45 minutes away, but thankfully some of the college students from the church came and kept her company. Christina has continued to build relationships with these students the past few weeks. She has learned so much from their faith and they love to spend time with her and look up to her! We have also had the opportunity to spend a lot of time with the missionary families and le...

Hola familia y amigos! Our past few weeks have been full of traveling, new relationships, and opportunities to minister to believers here in Ecuador. Last week, we traveled to Riobamba, a small city in the middle of Ecuador, to help with a week-long theological training for pastors. There were 80 pastors there who were taught the entire Old Testament over the course of the week. These pastors have no other opportunity for theological training. I admire and desire their hunger to grow in their knowledge of God's word so that they can pass it on to others! Most of these pastors' 1st language is Quichua and their second language is Spanish. Worshipping and learning with people from a different culture and language is such a blessing and a foretaste of heaven! I had the opportunity to teach the book of Esther to them. I encouraged them to trust in God's sovereignty over every detail of their lives and to have courage because God is using them and their ministry to deliver peo...

Hey everyone, We have had a busy first week in Ecuador! Much of it was spent getting to know the cities and people that we will be working in/with for the rest of our time here. We spent time exploring the downtown area of Cuenca, went to a few malls and college campuses, sat in on language school, participated in a youth Bible study, visited some Incan ruins, and ate at some good restaurants (lots of chicken and rice). We also spent a day with each of the three the missionary families here. These days were very informative in helping us understand what normal, everyday missionary life is like. Everyday life as a family in foreign country is similar in many ways to life in the states (you take your kids to school, have friends over for dinner, go to church, etc.). However, we have already seen that living in a foreign culture is full of difficulties and inefficiencies because of the culture and language gap. Some days, all of your time is spent dealing with simple problems that would...

Hola fam and friends, Thank you so much for your support and prayers for us over the last few months! We have been so humbled by everyone who has supported us as we have prepared for this trip and want you to know that you are a vital part of our ministry efforts this summer. We are excited to let you know that we have arrived in Cuenca, Ecuador safe and sound! It took us 4 flights, over 24 hours, and one mile-long sprint through the Miami airport to get here, but we are excited to finally be in the place that God has led us to for the next 6 weeks. We flew into Cuenca yesterday morning and met the missionary family that will be hosting us. They have 5 kids and are a fun bunch! We are excited to learn from them this summer. There are 4 missionary families in Cuenca, which is the third-largest city in Ecuador that is known for its Panama hats (as made famous by Teddy Roosevelt), great weather (highs every day are in the 60's), and universities. These missionaries focus primarily ...