Language Team – March 1 || Ashley

Hey all! Ashley here to give you the "rest of the story".Sunday morning we got up and took an early combi back to our Hotel but went straight to church. Afterwords, we went back to the Hotel then to what has become one of our favorite eating places. This time for me was absolutely delicious even if they didn't have Mora. :P Kim and Max then went to the market to look around while John and I went back to the Hotel to get some much needed rest. Later we went back to church and I taught more violin lessons. One thing about that is that in Spanish they use Solfege instead of note names... THAT was confusing! But God in His grace and mercy worked it out so I was able to understand and explain the notes on the violin.It was so exciting this week in church because I was actually able to understand most of the sermon! I talked to everyone else after and they said the same thing! It's starting to really click for all of us! All those times studying in the park, hotel, or coffee shops have been paying off. All the late nights trying to memorize verbs and writing sentences have been paying off. All the listening to the most ridiculous songs in Spanish (Frozen) have been paying off. I can't tell you all how very encouraging this was to us. Now, putting it into speaking terms... thats an entirely different story.God has been so very good to us in giving us this opportunity and placing these people on this trip to encourage and help us in this learning process. It's very different than any other trips I've been on. In the sense that our free time is spent on studying instead of doing kids programs. It's taken some getting used to especially to us who are used to being on the go all the time. But I must admit I really appreciate all the free time. It's helping me to really get my Spanish in concrete and ready to use. I remember my first missions trip to Ecuador and wanting so very badly to communicate with the kids there. God used me despite the language barrier and used me through His grace. Now I know God can use me no matter what the circumstances, whether language barriers or anything else, but having the words now... it's an incredible gift that I won't take for granted. Ever.Pray for us this next week as we continue studying and get our testimonies ready for the Bible School. Grace and peace be to you all!