Memories of Mexico

Yeah, it was 75 degrees on Thanksgiving Day. And these lovely ladies decided it was an occasion for some bright colors. (L to R: Natalie, Alicia, Kelley)

Mexico. Churros (long stick donuts) and hot chocolate. Mariachi bands in the evenings. Cops on horseback wearing period costumes. A beggar playing a three-stringed out of tune guitar. Scorpions in my laundry bag. Soaking in the hot springs. Sipping a chai tea latte. Oh, Mexico!

Cristina, a native of San Miguel. This sweet girl has a lovely, lovely heart for the Lord and she's an incredibly talented vocalist, actress, and servant. Not to mention the fact that she's just a good dose of plain old fun. We spent some good times together--praying, talking, and keeping several small children entertained/in line for an entire afternoon. How do you keep Mexican children out of trouble for hours? Soccer. Enter Cristina and her mad soccer skills. Let's just say she's handy to have around...

The trip itself was fabulous. I believe our whole team learned a lot about what it looks like to serve as a team, and what it means to give of yourself even when you're feeling crabby/sad/angry/sick/insert adjective here. Most of the team got food poisoning one night...the sad thing was, it was our own food. We never did exactly pin down the culprit, but for now the leftover Thanksgiving turkey is highly suspect.

The Catholic church (cathedral?), a main fixture in town. It sits at the top of the city square and serves as a gathering place/point of reference for pretty much everything.

Several thoughtful people have asked me what the Lord taught me on the trip, and I'd have to say that one of the primary lessons was that He's sufficient. I don't have to sweat it, cause He really is in control. Even little stuff like starting conversations--when I was too scared to just talk to people, the Lord would do it for me and they'd talk to me. Surprise, surprise, Michelle, He can handle that too.

Rockaway Beach, OR

kelley and i have sort of matching shirts. yup, i stole hers.

jeff and val enjoy the sunset and the low tide...

sunset on the pacific at rockaway beach. spectacular.

driftwood cross.

caitlin caught the sun just before it went down and held it there awhile.

first time i touched a jellyfish. ever.

"L" is for the way you look at me . . .

Meet The Ridge. The one behind the dorm that I can see from my window.

And The Wagon. The one that every ACTS session takes pictures of.

Love. A couple of weeks ago now (maybe several, if I'm honest), we had the privilege of being taught by one Michael Turay of Sierra Leone. We talked about foundational principles of Christianity--who is God, who is man, and therefore, what is our response?

apple orchard against the ridge on a clear day. photo by kelley.

In the discussion of who God is, we discussed 10 attributes of God, and one in particular--love--stood out to me in a profound way. In 1 Corinthians 13, the famed "Love Chapter," 16 aspects of God's love are mentioned just in verses 4-8.

sunset jumping pictures against the ridge. photo by kelley.

(L to R: Hannah, Kara, Hanna, Caitlin, Shana, Michelle)

Love has no pride. True love, godly love, does not act out of a desire to please itself or to further itself--ever. It's primary goal in every situation, every relationship is the furthering, the bettering, of love's object. A bit abstract on paper, perhaps, but so profound in real life. When I'm in conversation, am I really listening because I care about you and I want to know? Or am I just waiting for a point that I can connect with so I can take over and talk about myself some more? Am I really serving because I want to please the Lord? Or am I just helping out so someone will notice what a servant's heart I have?

Hanna goes to the fair in town. Boys stack everything she owns on her bed. Bingo.

Love never fails. God's love succeeds in its intended purpose every single time. Is that not blow-your-mind awesome?! Think about it this way: Love is stronger than death. None of us can really resist death. But love is stronger than that. God, who is Love, conquered death itself.

And through Him, we, too, can conquer.

ACTS X, Cont.

ACTS X ladies: (back) Shana, Kelley, yours truly, (front L to R) Caitlin, Hanna (RA), Kara, and Hannah

Erin drove down and spent a very brief night with us. SOO good to see her!

Trevor and Christina!! Greg (Erin's brother) adds a little excitement in the background.

Week One: Team Building

Can't believe it's almost September! The first week of my time here in Tieton (Tye-uh-tun), Washington has been fantabulous. ACTS team ten is made up of 11 young people coming from Washington state to Virginia and everywhere in-between.

For the first week of our time here, we focused on building relationships among the team members with some fun stuff like an overnight camping trip, a low ROPES course, and tubing down the Yakima River...

During our river trip, Val (director's wife), Hanna (girls' RA), and Kara jumped out of the rafts to swim at some point along the way. They were enjoying themselves in the water until we got to a rock that jutted out into the river, creating some strong current. Val and Hanna were hanging onto the boat and made it through okay, but Kara got caught in the current and pulled under the water. The current was too strong for her, but she managed to put up her head and calmly say, "Guys, I need help."

Keith (guys' RA) jumped in and pulled Kara out of the current and managed to get her to the side...somehow in the excitement, we lost a paddle and Val swam after it, but got caught in the same current that had captured Kara. Jeff (Val's husband) jumped in after Val, and Keith grabbed the boats as they floated down the current and held them until everyone could get back inside. Hanna jumped out to help Keith hold the boats and one of her toes got crushed between two rocks. All in all, it was a great bonding time for the team, and we're really thankful that Kara is still with us. :P

Highlights:

--> being reunited with Trevor and Christina, my dear friends from Romania

--> awesome scavenger hunt on a mountain = lots of great new ideas for future treasure hunts

--> being surrounded by 10 likeminded young people who are seeking the Lord with their whole hearts

changes...

can sometimes be good. But hard, too. It was wonderful to be reunited with Michelle for a few weeks, but all good times eventually come to an end...at least here on earth. :)

in case anyone's interested, I've started a new blog: www.keepyourpearls.blogspot.com. I know how frustrating it is to find help dressing oneself when all the world's gone mad...so I've been researching tips, tricks and other various secrets...in fashion, beauty and most importantly, inner beauty; that "hidden man of the heart, which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price." (1 Peter 3:4)

Michelle Beaty...

...is home again! And I've eaten so much junk food in my first 24 hours here it's really not funny. But I'm glad to be back and look forward to catching up with you guys!!