The Joy of the Lord is our stregth! Home from Belize

Hello everyone. I am now in the USA. Arriving in Belize was a culture shock and arriving back in the US was a culture shock. It is amazing how God can get you adjusted to something so new so quickly when you trust in him! Now that I am back I am looking back on the trip and seeing how AMAZING it was. I was there as a assistant trip leader with Praying Pelican. I went in with little idea of what it would be like.

It was interesting being on my first missions trip, first time out of the country, and learning about being a trip leader all at one time! Im going to give you a  look into my days in Belize :

6:50am

get up and get on the road

drop off trash from the day before
then go get water from the store

then off the the cute cooks to pick up breakfasts!

Then eat breakfast with the lovely team

pack up and head to the town for the day. We went to a different one everyday.

9:00 am

set up and start the clinic at the local community center.

nursing and pre-med students did all the vitals, then one American Dr. Greg and one Belizean Dr. and our pastor for the week saw many many people each day! And then 2 pharmacy students helping get meds out in both Spanish and English. Also lots of playing, bubbles, and coloring with the kids.

Then lunch around 12

then off to the local school for some health education about coughing, sneezing, teeth brushing, hand washing
then lots of play time, packed with games

Then VBS prep, some prayer walking, Fanta runs
around 3:30 VBS lots of kiddos about 60 + each day Lots and Lots of kids. All filled with smiles! :)
Then dinner, some days at the sea with the cooks.

And then night time was different every night depending on if we had church or not.

That is a VERY quick look into the week. So many highlights that I could type about! So so many!

God has JOY for all of his children, and that really hit me today! If joy is what God has for us to strengthen us how much does Satan hate that joy?!
There are many many verses that talk about JOY!
Take some time to look at psalm 45 <3 the whole thing is great. See how joy is uses in verse 7 and 15. Jesus will one day come back for his Bride. Are you ready?
"They are led in with joy and gladness; they enter the palace of the king." Verse 15 What a beautiful visual this creates!

have a blessed day, I pray the joy of the Lord hits you today like it hit me. Remember you were made for HIM and you were made by HIM. It is not about what you do but what God does. It is about his love, his joy, his sacrifice, his ideas! This makes me happy because when I don’t know what I am doing, God always knows what he is doing! We get to trust him. Thank you Lord! So thankful that we are The Lords, no longer our own.

Spring Ahead into Belize! :)

Ok so it is a bit late and daylight savings isn't helping. I will be up in the air at 6:10 am and off to Belize. I am so excited to go, to see what the Lords plan has been. I am so glad that He is with us where ever we go. I am so thankful that he has let me go on this trip with him. It will be bigger then I think.
I cant wait to tell you all about it! My hope is in the LORD!  I was thinking about hope and the saying "gave up all hope" or "give up all hope" and I was thinking about how sad it sounds but then I was thinking about our HOPE BEING IN THE LORD when we are children of the most high king and ruler of everything. Then giving "UP" are hope is such a lovely thought. Placing that high up there with our king in his chambers. Our hope is found in God!
This makes me think of a great lyric "our hope is found in the God we trust, any other identity will self destruct."
think on these things, think on wondeful God things :) <3  I pray you find your hope has been given up to our God!

I don't really know what to say for this post.

the verse of the day on my facebook was this:

"The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands." Acts 17:24

This is a beautiful reality. And I am so glad it is what we get to live out!

I pray you are all blessed, and grow in the fullness of the Lord, who He is and who you are. I am going to miss many people while on this trip :) have a wonderful 10 days! YOU are loved by a perfect God!

He is faithful, he is just.

<--- this is Emily Porter, life long gift from the Lord I am thankful to call friend! her and i will be working together on this trip starting tomorrow!!! God is good! all the time! God is good!

Trust the Lord, lean not on your own understanding. he was and is and is to come

In less than a week I will be leaving the country and heading to Belize with the Lord, my lifelong friend Emily, a group of students from both Uof M and Bethel, and others. To go be with this team I have yet to meet and all the people in Belize I have yet to meet. What is SO cool is that the Lord who knows me perfectly also knows all of them.


and the Lord knows what every day has in store for us there. He goes ahead of us and behind us. God talks about this in Isaiah 52, (btw it seems that I cannot get enough of Isaiah, I don’t even try to go there it just happens) but anyway Isaiah 52:12 "But you will not leave in haste or go in flight; for the Lord will go before you, the God of Israel will be your rear guard."
Go take a look at chapter 52. The Lord is calling the captives free, free in him and by him. He says awake and put on strength and splendor, shake off dust, stand up and sit enthroned! wow those are just bits of the first 2 verses. The LORD calls us out of chains to a place enthroned! lets keep going....

verse 6, we will know his name! Then we come to verse 7 oh how lovely of a picture is this???
How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring the good news... verse 9 burst into songs of joy together, you ruins of Jerusalem, for the Lord has comforted his people....
Keep reading it on your own, it is amazing
bare his holy arm in the sight of all nations
the ends if the earth will see the salvation of our God
The he is calling Zion to depart and to know that he is before them and their rear gua
what a wonderful chapter!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HANNAH 19!
<--- could she be cuter?
Ok hope you all have a blessed day, call on the name of the Lord, learn who you are, created by him and for him. What does that mean today? Be encouraged, stand in the Love of the Father, and pass it out to others <3