WOW, What a trip…From the timing to each team member. And those four women (Ana, Beatris, Cheryl, and Deb) rocked it. I would love to share in as much detail as possible how each day went. Scott and I have been around the globe, both vacationing and on missions trips. This trip truly stands alone….above every other missions trip. Some details I don’t have because three of the days (Tues-Thurs), we had women’s ministry and Scott spent time with Tim and Pastor Carlos. I will do my best to cover those details though.
So to start, God put it on my heart to ask our team if they would consider doing a 21 day fast prior to our trip. Everyone agreed, some with hesitancy because they had never done a fast before. We read through Jenetzen Franklin’s book “Fasting.” If you have never read it, I highly recommend it! We all fasted differently…however the Lord led us to fast.
The fasting emptied ourselves of self. It was like crucifying our flesh. And walking more united in the Spirit. I believe that was key to this team and this trip. Every one of us was given words from the Lord before we went….words of wisdom to share. Every single one of them was spot on. This is something we should expect when we, as believers and followers of Christ, spend time with Him listening.
A few weeks prior to our trip, one of our team members lost her mom. As she navigated through this loss, she was given the word ‘forgiveness.’ Scott and I had been volunteering at the Missions Hub at church when she stopped by to share this word with us. I told her that I believed she was to press in for more because the word was to be shared on our trip. You see, I had received the exact same word in my quiet time, just a few days before this. I know it was for our trip, but I didn’t know who was to present on it. This certainly made it easy to figure out.
Sunday, Feb. 28th, the day of our departure, we were up at 3am, got to church about 3:50. The others arrived shortly after and we were on our way to Newark by 4:30. Checking our bags, etc. went smoothly. Our flight went smoothly and even arrived a little early. The Pikes had already been to our van rental company and had them there with the van when we arrived. We had a small hiccup getting everything through customs upon arrival. But even in that God moved. A young lady wanted to hold us up because of the 6 trunks we were bringing for the family moving here. We even had a letter from Pastor Carlos with us explaining the contents. When she called her supervisor over, he asked her why she would bother him about household items. They did open the trunks to do a quick peek; then let us go.
From there we met the Pikes along with Javier (worship leader from the local church), Paola (Javier’s wife), and their precious baby Bethany. Scott had no problems adapting to driving from the driver’s seat on the opposite side of the car and on the opposite side of the road. Off to the Pikes for lunch. As it turns out, this set the tone of our trip. While we were there, I felt the Lord leading us to pray for Beth and her health; we also prayed over the house and our week together. Originally, Scott was asked to preach at Sunday night’s service. However, we were told there might be an evangelist in town and Pastor Carlos wanted him to come. So, at this point, we were still uncertain if Scott was preaching or not. We left the McClure’s 6 trunks at the Pikes and headed to our housing for the week. We had 2 villas at HBKvillas in Jolly Harbor, about 30 minutes from the Pikes. Ana, Beatris, Cheryl, and Deb stayed in one, while Scott and I hosted Tim and Beth in the other one.
We unpacked and got as settled as we could before having to get ready for church. Then off to church…Scott still did not know if he was preaching. God had given him a message. So he was prepared either way. Upon our arrival, there was a gentleman sitting outside with a bandaged leg. As the ladies and I all followed Beth inside, Scott and Tim parked the vehicles. Tim then introduced Scott to Jerry, the gentleman sitting outside. When the guys came in, Scott was told that he would be preaching. We mingled and met a few of the people….most know some English because their children are learning in an English school. They understand it when listening, can speak it in varying levels of brokenness. Ana and Beatris did connect quicker because of knowing Spanish. Sunday night’s church service was the highest attendance they have had up until then. It was standing room only. Our team stood in order for others could sit. But there were still others standing! So, we had already experienced His favor at customs, and at this service. Scott preached a Spirit-led message that got several hallelujahs and amens. Jerry had come in and was sitting in the back of the church. At the end of the service, I began walking down the center aisle towards Scott….not by my own will, it was God’s will. I was even thinking to myself ‘what am I doing?’ I stated that we were not done, the Lord wants this entire church to pray over Jerry. Not one person remained in their seats…NOT ONE!! Everyone pressing in together calling out to the Faithful One, believing for a miracle gathered around him and boldly asked for his healing. Jerry had started a restaurant in the community to feed the homeless, but he hasn’t been able to lately because of being diagnosed with congestive heart failure. More on this later….you’re going to want to stay tuned, answered prayer is coming. After service, we headed back to the villa to grab a bite to eat, to share and get ready for day 2.
Anchored 