Day 7 of our time in Quito Ecuador, Carmen Bajo

Hola from Jackie,
Friday, we spent the morning working on the church at Carmen Bajo. We had various projects going on...building a classroom, painting, and major clean-up.
During the afternoon, youth went on a cable car ride while others went to a market looking for bargains.
Friday evening we had an awesome celebratory service at the church. We worshipped in English, Espanol, and Spanglish. Ninas from the Compassion Program performed a dance for us. Many goodbyes were said and many tears were shed. Our amigos from Carmen Bajo promised to pray for us as we will continue to pray for them.
It is bittersweet for our team as we leave our Carmen Bajo amigos and look forward to returning to our families, jobs, school, and friends.
Please pray for our safe return and that we take what we learned in Carmen Bajo and use it in our daily lives.
Jackie


Hello,
It's Erin. Yesterday was our last day at Carmen Bajo. In the morning we all went to the church and worked hard to put everything together for the worship service that evening. I, along with some others, wiped down benches and chairs, did a little painting, and cleaned the carpet in the church. For lunch we went down the hill to the compassion project. While there we had a little time to see some of the children and buy some awesome stuff from the women who work there.
After lunch our youth and some adults along with their youth went up the mountain in cable cars and the rest of us went to a really neat market. Those of us who went shopping got a lot of stuff and everyone was happy with their purchases.
We had a very nice service at the church in the evening. It was full of worship in both English and Spanish and the three of us who got baptized Thursday night gave our testimonies. It was awesome to see how the people responded to our words. After the service we had a time of good-byes with the people at the church. For me it was a very emotional time, having to leave these people who have had such an impact on my life and after such a short time with them. I became very close with a 5-year-old child named Lisa Naomi, and as I was hugging her good-bye I said "te amo" (I love you). She looked up at me with teary eyes and said "te amo" back to me. It was such a blessing to know that even though we do not speak the same language I still had an impact on her. I pray that she, along with everyone at Carmen Bajo will always remember the love we shared with them and the love they shared with us.
See you soon,
Erin

Day 6 of Service for God's Kingdom in Carmen Bajo

Hello you wonderful people! This is Suzie Miley :) Words cannot describe my experience these past days here in Carmen Bajo. From the children, to the poverty, to the mountains, God has been revealing and teaching me incredible things! When I first got to the school here in Carmen Bajo, a little girl ran full speed right into my arms. The joy from this little girl immediately shot through my veins and brought me to tears. It blows my mind how these children and people can have so much happiness and a constant smile on their faces. Especially when they have close to nothing. It really makes me ponder on my own life and how much joy I'm showing through my words and my actions. God has shown me that it doesn't matter if you have a big house. It doesn't matter if you have the latest iphone or the cutest clothes. It doesn't matter how smart or how skilled you are. What matters is having a loving heart and serving our savior through everything we do.

So now, as I sit here on the bus heading to the hot springs, my heart is overwhelmed with sadness knowing that I'm leaving these precious children behind. I think of how hard it will be to go back home and live my normal life. Although I will miss Ecuador and the people here dearly, I'm so ready to bring the compassion and love I have experienced here to the ones at home. God is working in each and every one of our lives. Not just here in Carmen Bajo or in Mishawaka, but all around this beautiful earth. All the praise be given to our Creator! For he has given us eternal life and has never ever stopped loving us.
I'm praying that these people in Ecuador continue holding close to God and what he has planned for their lives. I will never forget the precious memories of this adventure. I can't wait for the next TeamEcuador!! :)

For His glory,
Suzie


Hey guys it's Kelly Brooks!
As this amazing trip and experience winds down, I am brought to sadness as I must say goodbye to Ecuador and all of the beautiful people in this country. The men and women in this place were just amazing and such hard workers, it's unbelievable! And the children were so precious and loving. Today I struggled with trying to figure out how exactly to say goodbye to the kids. How do you tell someone so young, someone who means the world to you, that you have to leave, and that you may never see them again. Just thinking of how much they have impacted my life and how long it may be before I see or have any contact with them, brings tears to my eyes.
I am so thankful for the opportunity that God has given me, to reach out to these people, and have them impact my life as well. I have so many things I could share with you and tell you, but I will leave it as this, if I had not listened to God and not have gone on this trip, I would not be the person I am today. I cannot wait until we come back!!:)

Love and miss you all!!

Kelly


Hey everyone it's Louis Cutrona
Rejoice rejoice Emanuel has come! God is truly with with us on this glorious day! The day was once and a lifetime. The day started out as usual. The work crew and I continued to get work done around Pastor Fabian's church which for me consisted of a lot of painting. I may never see the peoples' reaction to the work we have done, but I know they will be amazed and grateful and that alone makes me smile. God's work though was only just beginning. After we were all done with our work and the rest of the team said their last good-byes to the children, which had to have been tough because even I had built a bond with them and didn't work with them, we all went to the hot springs.

The trip to the hot springs was about three hours, but on the way there we got some awesome pizza and stopped at an amazing view point of a snow capped mountain. Through out the whole trip I and the rest of the team have been surrounded by God's majesty and we have all had our breath taken away by it. Anyway, back to the main point. We arrived at the hot springs and we all got in the hot steaming pools of water. It felt incredible after a long week of rock lines, manual labor, and long games of soccer against the Ecuadorian people. Nothing better! Jeff had us all part take in this challenge where you dunk yourself full body into a freezing cold stream and then run and stand back in the hot springs. It was an absolutely exhilarating experience! But God had a greater plan for this trip to the hot springs. He wanted to change peoples lives today and boy did He ever! Three people from our team got baptized while we were there! The people that took this tremendous step of faith were Laura Roinila, Jacob Hambruch, and Erin Steele. I was simply in awe and my whole being just felt joyful! God was truly with us and I can't say how happy I am for all of those kids! After all those baptisms we sang worship songs together and it was absolutely beautiful. I and everyone else were completely overcome with the Holy Spirit! How can you describe seeing three spontaneous baptisms!? God's love is just that powerful and for me that what this whole trip has been about. Whether it is seeing a little kid's big beaming smile or seeing God use this great team of 39 for His glory through our serving, it has all been about doing that in love. I can't think of a better way to show His great and powerful love than through three baptisms that weren't even planned. This trip before all that was awesome to me, but now I can't even completely comprehend what has just happened! All I can say is thank you God for your amazing grace and never ending love. And thank you all back home for your continued prayer and support! I can't wait to come back home tell all of you how unique this trip has been.

God bless all of you,
Louis

Day 5 for Team Ecuador 2013 04-03-13

Sorry for the absent post yesterday we have been very busy, so today's post is extra long for our faithful follower and prayer warriors!

Buenas Noches Amigos,

This is Ryan! And don't let my greeting fool you. That is about the extent of my Spanish. I did learn how to say bathroom :) I hope that everyone is enjoying the chilly weather up there! We could have used some today! Today started early, but for some reason it is easier to wake up here :) We have had so many great experiences and it is really awesome to see God working in the people down here, and within our team.
This morning we started helping a single dad and his two sons move cement block up a giant hill so he can begin construction on a new house for his two boys and four girls. We made an assembly line, and moved over 200 concrete blocks up a 30-foot cliff. It was absolutely incredible to see how appreciative the dad was for the help. He actually broke down in tears telling his story. So, by lunch time everyone was exhausted. ( Jake almost passed out!) We headed up for lunch, and had a little taste of home when they started serving spaghetti!! Of course, everyone ate more than they needed to, but it was worth it. (Jake was so full, he almost passed out!)
Then in the afternoon, we headed over to the church to continue in our construction. Over the past couple days we have been moving dirt and laying concrete block for a school area. We are also helping them put a new roof on. There is so much work to be done, but the people were so grateful for just the little help we can give for a week. ( Jake thought it was so beautiful that he almost passed out!)
As if we weren't exhausted and sunburnt enough, we headed to the city soccer fields to showcase our skills, or lack there of, in my case. It was so fun just getting out and running around. The end of the soccer games ended with a friendly game of USA vs. Ecuador. We were pleased to come away with a draw :) And again Jake almost passed out.
We are getting ready to head to Pastor Fabian's for dinner. It has been a long day, but it has never felt so good to be so tired, and so sore. The team is working so well together, and everyone is stepping up and going above and beyond what they are asked. God is truly working in lives, and it is just awesome to see. We appreciate all the support and prayers, and we all look forward to sharing stories with all of you! Take care! Adios.

*Disclaimer: Penny, Jake is completely fine, he is in good hands :) He was sitting next to me, so that is his way of saying hi.

Ryan



Hola! This is Jacob and Jared. Today has been a pretty eventful day. From moving bricks up cliffs to seeing seven people living in a one-room house. This was by far the most powerful day for us two. It is amazing how we complain about such small things, from only having one bathroom to not having a TV in our own room. The people here do not complain about much. It is such an eye-opener to see how much faith they have and how few possessions they have.

Yesterday and today I have been working with a guy by the name of Ruben. He is such a hard worker that it is tough for me to keep up with him. I have been helping him lay block for a foundation for a room. He is such a encouragement to me it's crazy! He is always telling me "Muy bueno!" (very good) for what I am working on. It's also fun that he is teaching me Spanish and I am teaching him English. We point at objects and he will say the Spanish name and I will say the English name. It's awesome how God has enabled me to comprehend and to talk with Ruben. The two of us were talking about our families and writing in the sand how many family members we have. God has truly showed me so much already this week. Thank you for the prayers and support that all of you have given for us.

Much Love
Jared

This week has been an amazing eye-opener just seeing how much faith that people have regardless of what they have or what their living conditions are.
Working with the kids at the school and seeing how happy they remain even when they literally have nothing was awesome. Their happiness and light that shines all the time has been so inspiring. One moment of particular note was when I was playing basketball with the kids, one of the boys named Gabriel, probably the smallest in the group, wanted to play basketball. He kept on trying and trying to shoot and eventually he looked up at me and jumped up and down yelling "Mas! Mas!" I picked him up so that he could dunk the ball and the smile on his face made me so happy. He kept on asking me to pick him up and I kept lifting him because I couldn't stand to let that smile go away. All of the kids at the school are amazing and a true inspiration to how we all should view life, with complete happiness and faith regardless of what troubles we encounter. Thanks to everyone for all the prayers and love that you have shown all of us.

God Bless
Jacob



Hello Friends!

I have had the privilege to work with the children here in Carmen Bajo. It has been so fun to get to work with all of them. In the mornings, I work with the elementary and pre-school kids. I go back and forth between classes to take pictures and then help with the lessons and crafts. The pre-schoolers have been learning about Noah's Ark and the elementary kids are learning about the Fruit of the Spirit as well as English words/sentences. It is unbelievable how fast these kids catch on and how smart they are. It's hard to sometimes remember that they are just like us and learn like us. The only difference is that they live in another country that is not blessed as we are in the United States. However, they have a lot more appreciation for everything they have. Spending time with these kids has been a constant reminder to me of how blessed I am to have a family who loves me as well as an endless amount of food, stable roof over my head, and clean water every day and I need to be more appreciative of what I have.

In the afternoon, I get to share my gift and passion of dancing with the 8- to 12-year-old girls. I teach dance at Christian Dance Academy back home in Elkhart. At the studio we teach our classes to dance for an audience of one, God. I am so glad that I have gotten the privilege to share that with the girls here at the Compassion Project. I am teaching them a dance to the song "Le Canto" which means "I'm Singing" by Kari Jobe. The girls have picked up on the dance so quickly and love every minute of it, as do I. On Friday, the girls will get the chance to perform their dance at some sort of celebration that night. (Here in Ecuador we don't really have control of what is going to happen during the day so I am not sure exactly what kind of event they will be performing at. Every day is a new, unknown adventure and we all love it.) I made headbands for each of the kids that they will wear for the performance to add a little something extra to each of their beautiful faces. It has been a great experience to get to teach them a dance and also TRY to communicate with them in Spanish. Nevertheless, I have loved every minute of it.

I am going to end my blog post with an experience I had today with one of the kids. I was standing in the courtyard talking to some of the team members when a little girl came up and hugged the back of my leg. I turned around and picked her up and she laid her head on my shoulder. She ended up falling asleep on my shoulder while I held her for about a half hour. This experience showed me just how much love all of the kids here need. You can tell they don't get enough of it and absolutely love having our team at the project every day. They are truly a blessing to our team.

See you all soon!

Maggie

Day 3 in Quito, Ecuador/Carmen Bajo 04-01-13

Buenas Noches! This is April Fool's day but the blessings we all received today were no joke. God called each of us to serve here in Ecuador for one very short week, and we are being obedient and serving to the best of our abilities. But oh my, how we are being blessed by the people of Carmen Bajo!

Here are some of the things we were involved in today:
* Incredible worship and testimony time with our group, Pastor Fabian and a
few of the people of the school and Compassion International.
* A lot of our group formed a human rock-moving chain down a steep hill
behind the school while some of the women helped in the kitchen to prepare
lunch for the school kids and three of us handed out t-shirts and took
pictures of the sweet preschoolers.
* Many of the youth girls spent the majority of the afternoon on the
playground with the school kids playing soccer, volleyball and giving lots
of hugs and I mean lots!!!
* Most of the men, youth guys and two women went to Pastor Fabian's church
and worked on cement and painting...hard work!
* Some of us other women helped in the kitchen, worked with the elementary
students and sorted clothing and other items for their thrift store.
* We ended the day with a volleyball tournament of mostly our people trying to
beat Pastor Fabian and his team, and another yummy meal of homemade
mexican food. They treat us so well.

We are all very thankful for each other as we grow closer together, for the people of Carmen Bajo and for our personal families and church family back home. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. We love you all!

Day 2 in Quito Ecuador 03-31-13 Easter Sunday

Hola! This is Diane/Dino writing tonight. If what this says doesn't make much sense, it has been a long, busy, exhausting couple of days...but great days!! This will definitely be an Easter Sunday none of us will ever forget. We celebrated Easter morning with Pastor Fabian and the gracious people at Alianza Cristiana y Misionaria de Carmen Bajo. So much I could say about that, but will just say a highlight for me was listening to the testimony of a very articulate 12 year old boy who was baptized this morning.

Other events today were a yummy lunch at a restaurant, visiting the Equator (and shopping there too :), tasting guinea pig meat, riding up to a really high point - which was kinda scary in the bus - in the center of Quito where there is a huge statue, getting groceries at a market called Supermaxi, and having a scruptious meal of tacos at Pastor Fabian and Grace's home. We are eating really well! Something Lizzy ate didn't agree with her however, but she is doing much better now.

Thanks for your continued prayers for our team! We are ready for some rest to prepare for more adventures tomorrow in Carmen Bajo.

Travel and Arrival 03-30-13

Starting off at 4:30am Saturday we began with the organization of 82 pieces of luggage and at least 40+ carry-ons. One would think that this would be an incredibly daunting task, but we had some incredible organizers on the job. Hopping on a bus at 5am we headed toward the great city of Chicago to catch our first Copa Air flight to Panama. Arriving in Panama we had a brief one hour layover before boarding our second and final flight to Quito, Ecuador. With safe and speedy arrival we then had to unload all of the luggage and wait for the bus to come and take us to the Hostal. We did have three first time flyers and many that hadn't ever left the country. This was very exciting for all especially the first time flyers. When we arrived in the city Pastor Fabian along with his wife, family and friends cooked us a homemade Ecuadorian meal, yes it was amazing and everyone had there fill and there were still left overs!
It has been such a HUGE blessing seeing God working in so many of the details already. From people to luggage and supplies to even flights and transportation, we serve such a big God that cares about His people and their needs. The team is very excited to LOVE and SERVE this week. The team has adjusted well already and is very excited about celebrating Easter with the people of Carmen Bajo. In all everything has went very smoothly and we thankfully give all of the credit to The Lord Himself!

Meeting Testimonies

What a great meeting yesterday, so powerful hearing the different testimonies from different people how God has shaped and molded their lives. Testimonies of people continuing to trust God and the good times and especially the hard times. Really looking forward to getting to know this team better and better as we prepare for mission to Ecuador in 2013!!