CP Ecuador – May 15 || Conner

After an extremely late, but incredibly joyful night of reuniting with old friends, getting to know new ones, and planning for our upcoming week, we all awoke right around the crack of dawn to make the drive through the winding streets of Quito to the church we were working with,  Iglesia Iñaquito. During the drive, we took some time to plan our lessons, prepare our crafts, and wake up. Upon arrival, though, our drowsiness quickly vanished as we were welcomed by Pastor Benjamin and a multitude of smiling church volunteers. We were assigned rooms and began preparing for the program, all the while receiving help and encouragement from the children’s ministry workers from the church.

Of the many things that absolutely struck me during that first day of ministry, one stood out to me. I was so encouraged by the work that the church was doing in the community and how they were doing it. They not only welcomed us crazy, sleep-deprived Americans, but they made us feel so welcome and so appreciated, even before we began our work. More than this, they welcomed so many children and worked so hard to show and teach the love of Christ, often sacrificing convenience and dignity to do so. Tommy, my and Peter’s translator during the first day, stopped at nothing to make sure that the message of the Gospel was being preached, no matter how energetic the children were. He matched their energy and enthusiasm and was a huge help to Peter and I throughout the day.

I saw this enthusiastic service in each of the translators, teachers, helpers, and volunteers as they not only welcomed us, but also invited us to partake in their amazing ministry. I was so encouraged by their devotion and love and will always remember their dedication and thank God for their help. In addition to growing to love these amazing servants of Christ, I also began to see my own team beginning to grow in their own ministry and service. It was a great start to our trip and I’m so excited to see how else God works through our time here!