Back so Soon?

Wow, I am totally in awe of how our God works. When I left Chiapas this summer I didn't know if I'd ever be back. Well, I'm going back this March with my friend Bethany to visit some amigos who live there.

This trip kinda fell into my lap. Someone offered to pay for over half my plane ticket. Then my dad gave his blessing for me to go. And when I asked time off of work, it was no problem getting people to work for me. Again, wow.... So here begins a new adventure for me and Bethany. Are we up for the challenge? I think so :)

Just another amazing scene. Breathtaking for sure!

Apologies...

Hey All,
I want to start this post by apologizing profusely for the lack of attention I have been giving to this blog. Yipe! Summer weather has finally come to NY and I have been taking advantage of it.

Life has been pretty crazy these past few weeks. A dear 81 year old man from my church died. It's been an emotional roller coaster ride for sure! BUT God IS GOOD!!! All the time even in the hard times.

I've been looking into ticket prices for my trip. God is amazing and is taking care of my needs. Please continue to pray for me. God has put me in contact with a girl who is going to Chiapas. She is from NY too which is amazing!!

Here are some pictures of what's been happening lately. My brother Danny, friend Bethany and Rudiel went to the Lilac Festival which is near our house. We had alot of fun and Rudiel got to try many new things like fried dough. The evening ended with a nice dinner at Bugaboo Creek. *The last picture is PEPSI by the way*

Dios te bendiga mucho. Cuidate gentes!

Girls Day Out!

Hey All,

This Monday I went to the city with my sister Katy and our amiga Rut. It was SO fun! We did some serious shopping and took some pictures. Ok, since I'm a girl, I gotta brag about the bargains we found at Sears. $70 winter boots for $5!!!! I was shocked and it's such a blessing how the Lord provides. I also bought a tankini for this summer and Mexico and a few shirts. I love shopping at the mall sometimes. Other times, it just doesn't appeal. Here are a few pictures from the trip.

The first thing we saw when we walked into Sears were these goofy hats. What better item to start our photo shoot with than these hats? =)


Katy and Rut with some beautiful (?) prom dresses. Again, we couldn't resist taking pictures.


Me in Claire's with a feather thingamajig in my hair. Beautiful, huh! =)


Finally, we posed with these feathery boas. It was SO fun!


We had a ton of fun being goofy and being serious about deals and just being young girls. I love my sister Katy so much and I also love my amiga Rut. Praise God for the life I have.

In other news, I've been studying Spanish more lately. I think I mentioned that I am working on the future tense and I also want to start working on the tense that is -ing. Don't know what it's called though. Still no word from the language school yet. I keep praying that I will hear so I can start making the necessary steps to go. It's exciting and scary to think that in 6 months, I could be in Mexico! Please be praying that I will have patience as I wait to hear from the school. Also, that the Lord will provide for me for the school. It's not expensive, and I have a job, but I also will need about $3,000 more than I can save at my job. But the Lord is all knowing and WILL provide for as much as He wants me to go for.

I pray you all have a wonderful day. It's gorgeous here in NY even though it's a little cloudy. We'll see what this day brings. Dios te bendiga mucho hoy! Cuidate...

Spring!!!

Hey All,
Is it just me who is crazy for an adventure now that the weather is nice and warm? Wait, I forgot that some of you don't have the blessing (and yes, I really do see it as a blessing!) of living in a four seasons part of the world. There's nothing like the crisp fall air or the change of leaves or the bone chillingness (is that even a word? :P) accompanied with sledding and hot cocoa of winter or the newness and mud of spring or the BBQs and late nights of summer. I LOVE where I live! But even though winter is fun, it gets so monotonous and icky having to shovel snow and bundle up. As I'm writing this, I'm hearing crickets or peepers and robins! Awesomeness fo shizzle!

Bible study was last night again and it was a blessing. My amigos Rudy, Chino, and Leo had the privilege of learning to jump on our family trampoline. My friend Jacquelyn and I showed them how to do flips and butt bounces (don't know any other way to describe them) and then we got the bright idea to teach Chino to jump off our garage's roof onto the trampoline. Great fun! And lots of amazing memories. The study itself was good too. Alot of interaction. The lesson was focused on Christ's death, burial, and resurrection-- the Gospel itself! The guys had alot to say which was great. Many important questions are being asked. I'm so excited to see where the Lord leads this study.

Here's a picture of some of my sister's bible study girls with a couple extra people, my brother Danny and little Jason. I don't go to Katy's study because I'm involved with the Mexican one but the Lord has brought about 10 girls to the study. Such a great ministry opportunity! Praise Him for this. From top left is my brother Danny, Margo, Jacquie, Sarah, Allie, Jenny, Katy, me, and Jason. I love these people so much. God is working in ways we cannot see and it's cool when He gives us a glimpse of what He's doing.

Easter Sunday is tomorrow. Why is it so important? Who cares about a man who died over 2,000 years ago? Why is He so important? What's important is that Jesus died for the world's sins. He didn't deserve to because He is perfect but He did. The most important thing is that the story doesn't end in the grave. He rose from the dead (who does that?) and is going to come again to take His people to Heaven. Please don't wait to be born again, do it tonight! It's the most important decision you will ever make. Confess your sins to the Lord, believe that He is Savior and able to save you and start walking with Him.

Blessings to all of you this wonderful Easter. May God richly bless you all and may you all look to Him for completion. Dios te bendiga este Semana Santa! Cuidate.

They're Here!!!

Hey All!

As the title suggests, my dictionary and 501 Spanish verb books came yesterday after 2 long weeks of waiting for them. I'm SO excited! The 501 book will be very useful I think because it has 501 verbs, their meanings, and the conjugations plus common usage forms too. These books are going to be well worth the money I think in the long run! I already learned a new phrase from the dictionary: Vaya ocurrencia which the dictionary says means "what a ridiculous idea!" Yeah, that's gonna come in handy fo shizzle! :P I praise the Lord that He provided these for me!

Bible study was last night. There weren't as many people as usual due to several circumstances but the Lord knows what is right for this study. He is in control! Even if just one man came and heard the Gospel, it would be worth it.

Here's a picture of the Coyote Medina family. At least, I think that's what the boys' name is. I don't have a complete grasp on the name thing yet in Mexico. Jose and Elizabeth are dear people. They have four boys who I've already written about but it doesn't hurt to write about them again! From the left is Elizabeth, Dominic is 6, Antonio is in the back and is 8, Cesar is 10, Jose and Jason is 2. They come to our church and really enjoy it. I love this family. Thank God I have the opportunity to know them. Dios te bendiga hoy!

Decisions....

Hey All!

I've been doing alot of thinking and praying the past couple of days. Two opportunities have come up for my education. I am planning to go to Guadalajara this year to the Harvest Language Center. I'm not sure how long I'll be there. An 18 month LPN (Licensed Practical Nurse) program close to my house. That starts in January 2011. So for right now, I'm confused about what direction to take. To go to Mexico for 3 1/2 months then come home for the nursing program or to go to Mexico for all 4 sessions (there are 4 total) then come home to start raising support for Bible school. Decisions, decisions, decisions... Please be praying that I will listen to the Lord's will and what He wants for my life. Not what I want.

These pictures are at the farm where my friends Bethany and Rudy work. I decided to visit them one Saturday and brought hot drinks for them and the other amigos working (Yeah, I know I'm a gem! :P)Bethany and Rudy got me all dressed up in farm clothes and I went to work. I also rode a heifer named Shredder. It was so much fun! Here's me before we got to work, posing for a picture. I borrowed one of Bethany's hats. I think some of the amigos couldn't take me seriously with that hat on. I can't imagine why... Then I met the cow that I was going to ride. She wasn't very cooperative at first but I wrangled her and wrestled her to the ground and hopped on her! ('K, not really...) But I did pet her and spoke loving words to her before getting on her. Bethany and Rudy herded her out by a gate and I quick jumped on. I have horses that I do this to all the time so no biggy! It is harder than you'd think when you have 30 pounds of extra clothes on. Ok, that may be a SLIGHT exaggeration but still, it was alot! After I got on Shredder, I kicked her to get her moving and Rudy freaked out. It was hysterical. He thought I was going to fall off or something. But I bareback ride my "wild" pony all the time so I can stay on pretty good as long as she doesn't buck. I did freak out a little when the bull decided to check out what we were up to. Anyone who lives in the country knows what bulls can do. Bethany assured me this one wouldn't hurt me. I wasn't totally convinced and kept looking to see where he was. But it was fine. I finally posed for a good picture to remember the afternoon by and jumped down. Cow riding is a blast! Although I do prefer to ride my muffins (horses) because they smell better and are more graceful. But if horses aren't available, cows will do just fine. I don't recommend hopping on a bull though. That could get messy... Thanks to Bethany and Rudy for a fun afternoon! I don't think farm life is for me but it's fun to visit once in awhile.

I hope you all have an amazing day! I was reading in Mark today for devotions about the father whose son had a mute demon. When Jesus asked if he believed He could heal his son, he said "Lord I believe. HELP MY UNBELIEF". May that be my prayer as I seek to do what the Lord wants. He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask OR THINK. Dios te bendiga!

Happy March!

Hey All!

Happy March! I can feel spring in the air I think. Nothing really exciting has been happening for Mexico lately but I wanted to post anyway. I'm anxiously waiting for my dictionary to come. I looked at my friend's and it's amazing! So many words and phrases and how things work grammatically. It's a tremendous resource for sure! Right now, I only have a teeny dictionary that is somewhat helpful, but this one will be an amazing tool.

I haven't heard from the language school in Guadalajara yet. I mailed my application in about 3 weeks ago but the director said mail is slow in Mexico so I'm not worried. It's weird to think that at this time next year, I could be in Mexico. I don't think missing a NY winter would bother me too much! We'll see where the Lord has me a year from now.

As I promised, I am including pictures and a little story with every post to give it some jazz. One day, we brought our two horses down and Bethany, Jairo, and Kristy came and rode. We had a blast. Our horses were really good which is amazing! Here's Jairo and Jenny showing him how to hold the reins. He had ridden a little bit before but not for long and never trotting. He had alot of fun. My brother Danny and he did some wrangling too. This is Danny fixing Kristy's stir ups. She's riding Mack and Traveler is on the right. Our horses are so funny and fun! Bethany also rode but we didn't get any proof on camera. While we were waiting our turn for riding, my sisters and I showed Bethany and Jairo our tree fort. Katy climbed up in it and told Bethany and me to look up. I love these people. We have made many good memories together and Lord willing, will make many more! It's amazing to think how God works in our lives at just the right time to bring people together. I'm so thankful to the Lord for my friends. Family, too. Sometimes I just marvel at why the Lord has placed me where I am. Why was I not born in the remote jungles of Papua New Guinea? Why was I given wonderful godly parents who raised me using the Word? Why have I been given the opportunity to hear God's Word in my language from the time I was a newborn? It's so easy for me to get stuck on certain issues. The fact is, I am where I am, when I am for a purpose. God knows exactly what He has for me and I need to trust in Him for my future.

Thank you all for "listening" to the ramblings of a crazy gringa. I hope you all have a wonderful day. Look to the Lord! Oh-- I want to start including Scriptures, too. Here's one I just recently rediscovered from Psalm 34:8. "Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; BLESSED is the man who TRUSTS IN HIM." Dios te bendiga!

Mis Pecados

Hey All,

Today has been icky for me. I'm dealing with so much sin! Como se dice? Talvez "demasiado pecado"? No se ahora pero algun dia yo puedo hablar y entender con perfeccion. I have some stuff that I'm confused about and don't know my own feelings let alone try to express them to others. It's frustrating for all involved. If I can't even say what I'm feeling in english then how in the world am I going to do it in Spanish!?! I am very much wanting to understand Spanish perfectly NOW so I can witness to mis amigos that aren't saved here in Estados Unidos but obviously I don't speak it well yet. I use the Bible ALOT when I'm witnessing to these guys but it's frustrating when I can't understand important questions. I keep saying algun dia, algun dia (someday) but what if I never am able to understand the Mexican people? What if I am never able to communicate the Gospel to them? Necesito obtener mucho mas fe que yo tengo ahora. I don't mean to sound depressed or anything but I'm frustrated. Lo siento for this post. Well, I'm not really. I didn't intend to write this but I guess maybe I was supposed to. I am NOT depressed. I feel I need to say that again. Just confused and frustrated pero ni modo!

Here's a picture of me with four of my favorite little chicos en el mundo. Antonio's on the left and is 8, then there's me with Jason who's 2 on my lap, then Cesar is 9 and my sister Katy is holding 5 year old Dominic. These boys have brought me so much joy. They speak perfect english except for Jason who will learn as he gets older. Their parents are wonderful people too. They are so giving and always wanting to help. They don't speak very good english but have been coming to our church for a year now. Such a blessing! We serve an amazing Lord!

I hope you all have a blessed night. And I'm really praying I haven't brought anyone down by writing this post. That is not my intention at all. Dios te bendiga!

Bienvenido!

Hello Everyone!

Welcome to my blog. To introduce myself, I thought I'd share a picture of me and my sisters. I'm on the left with my sister Jen on in the middle then Katy on the right. This blog is a testimony of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.I want to stress that this blog is not about ME. It's about Jesus and what He's doing in and through me. I am nothing without Him. I don't deserve salvation but for some reason, He saved me. ME, a wretched person! My prayer is that through this blog, people will see my heart's desire to bring the Gospel to Mexico one day. Here's how it all got started:

When I was very young, I wanted to be a ballerina but since my parents could never afford lessons, that dream quickly became nothing more than that. Don't worry, I wasn't scarred for long! After that, I started hearing more and more about missionaries all around the world. My dad is the pastor of a small independent Baptist church in Western New York so I grew up hearing stories from missionaries about their ministries in Africa or Europe or Asia. The Lord was working in my young heart to become a missionary one day. In October 2002, some dear missionary friends from Papua New Guinea came and spoke at our church. (This is the Van Der Decker family at their home in Papua New Guinea. Their oldest, Josiah is in the States attending a New Tribes Institute Bible school.) They have 4 boys and a girl. I played alot with two of their boys and during our childish games, they told me all about their life in PNG and invited me to visit them. I was only 10 at the time and was like, "Sure, we're having such a fun time here, it would be great if I could visit them someday and we could play some more!"


On November 7, 2002, I was born again. I have literally gone to church since I was a newborn but had never made the personal decision to accept the Lord as my Savior. I was getting ready for bed that night and scraped my shin against a sharp corner of the bed. I started sobbing and could not stop even after the pain stopped. I remember crying out to the Lord for forgiveness and asking Him to live in me and be the Lord of my life. After that time, the Lord really laid on my heart foreign missions. He gave me the verses in Romans 15:20-21 that say "And so I have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named lest I should build on another man's foundation but as it is written: 'To whom He was not announced, they shall see; and those who have not heard shall understand.'" This sums up my heart's desire. I want to take the Gospel to where it has never been.


PNG seemed to be the place that the Lord was leading me so I started making steps towards going there. I emailed the missionaries who had visited. They were very helpful in providing literature in Tok Pisin (the trade language of Papua New Guinea) and giving me advice. In October 2006, they came back to visit our church and stayed with us. During that time, my dad felt that our family was being called into ministry. (Here's my whole family: I'm on the left and am 18, then my dad Dan, mom Sydney, Jenny who is 16, Danny who is 15,and Katy who is 19.) At the time, we thought Papua New Guinea or Mexico. When he made the announcement in church he said he didn't know when, where, or how but he knew the Lord was calling us into some sort of ministry. He pursued several mission boards but it was like the Lord kept closing the doors. God opened our eyes though to the migrant workers from Mexico who live all around us. Dad went to a farm about a half mile from our house and asked some guys over for dinner. Cesar was the first amigo to come to our house. We had him over every other Friday for dinner then he and Dad would read the Bible in Spanish and English. This went on for 2 years. Cesar and his nephew Adrian just kept coming over for dinner. (Cesar is the man on the right with my dad in the middle and a precious 70 year old man, Tiburcio on the left. Tiburcio has since gone back to Mexico. We shall see him in heaven!) During this time, I was still making steps to go to PNG in 2009. Our family never dreamed that the Lord would ever grow our ministry to more people then Cesar and Adrian. But His ways are not our ways...


In the fall of 2008, my siblings and I started going to a youth group at another church because our church is too small to have one. There, we met a lady, Bethany who works on a farm and knows alot of "amigos" as we call our Mexican friends. (Bethany's in the middle with Rudiel on the right and Jairo on the left.)
We started talking and decided to meet at a cafe that is run by a local church for coffee one night. There, we met another lady Kristy who speaks Spanish fluently. We started talking and decided to meet at the Cafe Shiloh for a bible study every Friday night. (Kristy is on the left with Antonio who is 8 and Dominic who is 5.)
At first, there were only two or three guys that came every time but over time, more and more guys came and even a family with four little boys. Right now, there are about 7-10 amigos that come to the study. We outgrew the cafe and are currently meeting at my family's home.


Meanwhile, doors to go to PNG were flying open like crazy for me. The Lord provided that I go with New Tribes Mission to their 5 week program, Interface that takes place high in the Eastern Highlands province of Papua New Guinea. He also worked it out that I got to visit my missionary friends for 3 days while there. I still am amazed at how God worked everything out.( Me with some precious believers at the village that my friends live in. There truly are brothers and sisters in Christ all over the world!) Only He could do that! Going into the trip, I had no clue what would come of it. I though for sure that while there, the Lord would reaffirm what I knew (or thought I knew) and that He would give me such a burning desire to go back to PNG as a missionary nurse one day. Well, that didn't happen. I don't know, but while there, the Lord completely took away my desire to go to PNG as a full time missionary. (Here's me with Dominic and his brother Cesar who is 9. At Bible study, we like to celebrate birthdays with cake and a card for whoever the birthday person is. Big Cesar bought me a cake and the boys' parents made it for me. It was delicious and so precious to know that my amigos care about me so much as to celebrate my birthday. I LOVE these people!) Instead, He started giving me a burning desire to go to Mexico. He started a very painful process of turning my direction to Mexico instead of to PNG.


I found a language school in Guadalajara, Mexico that is run by missionaries. I sent in my application and placement exam (yikes!) the other week and am waiting to see where the Lord leads from here.(Ok, one more random picture. This is one of my bestest friends ever, Jacquie! She's been so supportive of me on my journey. Love ya girl!) That is the long version (well, not really 'cause I omitted ALOT!) of how the Lord brought me to where I am now. I am purposing to keep this updated. We'll see how that goes! Thank you all for reading. Dios te bendiga! (God bless you!)