I love my 12:7 Team!

So as my time as part of 12:7 Serve is coming to an end, I'd like to share with you all how much I love my team, and the things I've learned from them over the past 5 months. :)

1. Estela - Thank you for your selfless servant attitude, and your willingness to give anything and everything a go. Thank you for teaching me to be honest, with my self and with others. I will miss the way you hug me and encourage me!

2. Lynda - Thankyou for your honesty. You have taught me things about myself through your words. I love it when you laugh and joke, and I love sharing those moments with you. You have leadership qualities which the Lord is going to use in so many ways!

3. Alan -  Jefeeeee, thank you for being my big brother! You have cared for me and others on the team in so many ways, even just by a simple hug. You are a gifted preacher, teacher and evangelist, and when you open your mouth to speak in these ways, I know your words are straight from God himself. I can't wait to see you serve the Lord in the future. Oh and I will miss dancing like a Mexican with you!!

4. Maura - Oh Mau Mau, thank you for always watching out for me! I will never forget our numerous nights sharing beds and hugs and laughs with each other. You have taught me through your words of wisdom and gentle spirit. You are such a beautiful lady, and by far my favourite Nicaraguan on the planet! 

5. Chennice - Thank you for believing in me. Thank you for the way you were always listening, you have made me want to become more of a listener. Thank you for the hilarious memories we've made together! I will miss your quiet but constant presence in every room, in every situation. Thank you for never giving up.

6. Erika - Thank you for being an incredible leader. You are a sensitive, beautiful woman of the Lord. Your attitude is truly that of Christ, and you have lived it out every day of this trip. Thank you for keeping your eyes open to the needs around you, and for always meeting those needs. I want to be more like you!!

7. Carlos - Oh Carlitos, the team wouldn't be the same without you! You are a constant mood lightener, and positiveness giver. You are such a relational person, and people just always want to be around you! God has gifted you with this personality so that you can serve others by building relationships. Thank you for being such a great friend and brother to me. I will miss learning Spanish with you, baking carrot cake with you, and I will even miss your horrible jokes! ;)

8. AJ - You were MEANT to be part of this team. It has been a blessing for me to see you grow more and more into a man of God over these past months. You have taught me a lot about my attitude, and how to serve without complaining or thinking the task too hard. I will miss your hilarious jokes, your angry games of Monopoly deal, and taking photos with weird faces with you!

9. Jana - Thank you for being so understanding! We have many similarities to each other, which we have found out over our journey. But even our differences have brought us together. :) I love the way you have let the Lord heal you, teach you and grow you over these past 5 months. You are always up for anything, which is such an encouragement as one of your team mates. I can't wait to see you serve the Lord in missions in the future! You're going to be a great missionary. :)

10. Helen - Oh beautiful He, my big sister. You are an amazing woman with an amazing story of God's power working in your life. It has been a joy for me to see your childhood dreams of being a missionary come true through 12:7 Serve. You are such a humble servant, and it is clear that you are always listening to the voice of God in every situation. I am also so proud of the way you have learned English over our trip. Wow, you have improved so much, it's so amazing! He, I will miss your hugs, and when you say "Que?!" like a Tica! ;)

11. Absolu - My friend, there wouldn't BE a 12:7 Serve team without you. Thank you, thank you, thank you for your joy. You light up every room that your in. Your attitude is always positive. Your work is always the best that you can give. You are an example and inspiration to your country that Haiti CAN send missionaries! You have started the rising up of more Haitian youth to serve in the nations. I am so proud of you Absolu! Keep spreading your joy to the world!

So there you have it - The 12 people who over the past 5 months have changed my life for the better. You will always have a place in my heart, and I hope to serve again with you one day. Thank you all for serving well, and for inspiring me to do the same. I love you! Les amo! Je vous aime!

Always be flexible! (Guatemala and El Salvador in words)

If you'd prefer to read about my time in Guatemala and El Salvador in words, here we go! 


For the 12:7 Serve team, Guatemala was just an add on to the sites were serving in. On our way to El Salvador, we stopped there for a few days to meet up with our leader, Milton. What a beautiful country! The weather was cooler (the complete opposite of South Mexico!), and the scenery was green and mountainous. 

As you saw in Guatemala and El Salvador (in photos), on the weekend we were in Guatemala, we were involved in a youth sports day! It was a church event held at the Bible college there. I’ve got to be honest with you, it’s been a long time since I’ve played sport!! But it was fun to get back onto the basketball court that day, even if I’m not the best player! We were also able to visit some schools in Guatemala to share with the students our “Sex, Lies and the Truth” presentation, and some of the churches there, to let them know about our project. Overall, our time in Guatemala was a bit slower paced, but we were still able to serve the people there. :)

So after those days, we made the long drive all the way down to El Salvador! Our first stop was a town called Santa Ana. We were part of services during our 5 days there, as well as working in evangelism. Like the photos in my previous post show, we spent some time fixing up a classroom at the church, changing the roof and painting it. Also, while Estela, Erika and Maura were cleaning up a classroom, they found a turtle in there! Lots of fun times while serving in Santa Ana.  

The Santa Ana church is currently starting a mission in a town close by, so on one of our days there we went and served. Again, we did evangelism and performed REMI our kids program (you can see pictures from this in my previous post!). It was really exciting to be apart of beginning this new mission. Please pray for the church in Santa Ana and their work for the Lord!

Our next stop was the town of San Miguel. We served at two churches there, doing evangelism, children's ministry, and giving testimony of our time serving on the mission field. It was exciting to be able to encourage the church members (especially youth) that they can serve the Lord and that God has purposes for them! I especially loved our pastors kids in San Miguel, 

For our last week in El Salvador, we made our way to the capital (San Salvador). Here, we visited schools to talk about our project, our testimonies and to encourage the students to continue with their English studies. One morning we were able to sit and speak with the students and ask them questions about themselves. For me, it was pretty exciting to be able to speak in English! Although my Spanish has definitely gotten better over these months, speaking your first language always feels good. :) As well as this, we visited churches in the district and were blessed by their welcoming arms and hearts towards us.

During our time in Guatemala and El Salvador, our busy schedule was always being added on to or changing. Sometimes we would wake up one morning thinking we were doing one thing, and the next minute we were doing another. Although this could have been frustrating for me, it was another chance for me to learn to be flexible. I was telling some youth the other day, that serving the Lord is often like this! We always need to be prepared to serve in what's needed, and to be flexible when plans don't work out. This is what God wants to see from us - that we keep serving with love and joy, even when things change or are difficult. 

So there you have it, Guatemala and El Salvador in words. :)

Keep serving with love and joy my friends!

On the journey,

Dani

PS. If you haven't looked yet, here is Guatemala and El Salvador (in photos). :) 

Guatemala and El Salvador! (In photos)

[1] Guatemala City

[2] A river in Guatemala

[3] Sports day

[4] Shootin' hoops with my homies

[5] Watching the soccer

[6] Los Nazarenos

[7] Du yus pikin glish?

[8] On the road again

[9] First meal in El Salvador

[10] Real life Remi and Silas

[11] Typical El Salvadorian breakfast

[12] Fixing up the church

[13] Pastor's kids

[14] Making Pupusas - Typical food from El Salvador

[15] Santa Ana Cathedral

[16] AJ's pretty eyes

[17] Beautiful children

[18] Happy Birthday Estela!

[19] Worship with the youth

[20] Warm welcomes

[21] 12:7 Serve band ;)

[22] Bible quizzing with kids

[23] Chilling with youth pastors in training

[24] Performing skits

[25] Saying goodbye to San Miguel

 ...The end. 'Guatemala and El Salvador in words' coming soon!