Small Steps. Big Faith.

Please forgive the pause in communication recently! Last week, I started feeling bad and Aaron joined me the next day. He was home from Wednesday through Friday! We started with all the typical home remedies: chicken soup, Tylenol, extra liquids and extra rest. However, on Thursday morning Aaron woke me up saying that he could not breathe. So, I  put Aaron in the bathtub with hot water running, hoping the steam might open up his airways while I made an appointment at the local primary care center. We waited an hour past our appointment time, but finally the doctor was able to see Aaron. After listening to his lungs, she said that, indeed, he was suffering from a strong case of bronchitis. Right there in the office, she gave him some medicine to breathe in through this plastic mask. Later that afternoon, we bought the prescribed medicines to nurse him back to health. I am so grateful to live in a country where we have almost immediate access to doctor care and medicine. A...

Sometimes it's hard to live the life of an ex-pat. I don't have my family and old friends with a long history here. I sometimes still miss cultural cues that would help me to know how to respond in certain situations. Being from another country does have its benefits though. A good portion of my staff career, the formative years, were spent in the U.S. and some significant relationships were formed during that time. Those connections can be useful at times when there is a need to resource one of our Spanish staff. Mariló Fuentes is an incredible staff woman who has begun to serve as the Director of the Campus Ministry in Málaga, in addition to serving at our national office in the areas of MPD, Donations and Reimbursements. Recently she has begun to experience a restlessness in life, sensing that God may be calling her to make a change, to look for more training, to pursue even greater growth. I had the privilege to chat with Mariló in February about her situation. A...

Today I traveled by train to Terrassa to meet with Gema Pérez, Spanish staff member who serves on the Area Leadership Team for Ágape Europe. She has gently taken me under her wing over the last few years to check in with me, to see how I am doing, to share life, to pray together. She has been a great encouragement to me as I am still learning how to fit in to Spanish life and culture. Gema (pictured left with her husband, Javier García) and I also attend the same church so I told her about the plans for the Evangelism Module that I will facilitate this fall at church. She encouraged me and gave me several ideas that I hope to implement during this learning opportunity. Thank God for Gema's initiative with me and for the privilege to have an older woman to connect with as I live life and do ministry in Spain. Pray for Gema that God would continue to bless her in her life (she's a new grandmother!) and her ministry.  Pray that God would use our relation...