CP Ecuador – May 19 || Victoria

Joy With Abandon

The thought of teaching the high school students today was slightly intimidating, yet exciting for me. The last minute change to include the high school students was a surprise for all of us team members. I honestly wasn't sure what to expect because I'm not very comfortable teaching others that are older or close to my age. Teaching and playing with younger kids is amazing and so much fun for me, but, for some reason, I struggle to find the words to teach my peer. I love talking with them in smaller groups, but standing in front of 40-60 people teaching them, is definitely not my cup of tea! However, like He often does, God decided to throw this in to stretch and grow me.

Today began with a couple worship songs before splitting the 200 high school students into 5 groups so that we could rotate them between the different activities. I and three of my team members ran the craft group which included making bracelets and necklaces that served as reminders of the gospel story. At first, I had a hard time trying to share the message part with the high schoolers, but before too long, I realized I needed to get past my fears and expectations, and abandon myself to God. Of course, as soon as I did that, He took the opportunity and made this the best day yet! I found that I absolutely loved getting to talk and hang out with them while helping them make the crafts after the lesson. I have really enjoyed working with the younger kids the past few days here, but it was so neat to be able to really relate to the older groups! They become more like my friends than just students.

That interaction and communication with the older kids has been my favorite thing so far on this missions trip. It took abandoning my self and my fear of not being enough to reach this height of unimaginable joy: joy that fills my heart with gratefulness and smiles! It really doesn't matter how funny I look if I am at least sharing God's love. I can wear a wig and dance or teach a group of high schoolers, even when I don't know what to say, if that brings glory to God! And honestly, it is just way too much fun to get crazy with all the amazing people here!

To sum it up, forget about what people might think about you and get crazy for God! The joy that comes with this abandon is so worth it! :)