Only the beginning

Hello, everyone! :)
(I know it's a long post, but I'll treat you with some pictures at the end! :P)

I am writing this on a sunny, hot Sunday afternoon, although I am posting this the day after.  This is probably how I will write most of my blogs -- I only have internet access when I go to the city of Guanajuato, and because there's so much I want to tell you and I'm unsure of how much time there will be when I actually have access, I will write ahead of time so I don't forget any exciting details.

We arrived here this past Thursday night, and right from the start I must say a great big THANK YOU to God and all those praying for me!  Let me share with you a little story:

Our flight itinerary began in Atlanta and connected in Houston before reaching Leon, Mexico.  The first flight was delayed for about an hour and a half, however, and we arrived in Houston after our connect left.  But... (drum roll) we still made the connect to Leon!  How did it happen?  (This sounds like a mystery story! …have you figured it out?)

Clue número uno: airport car.  Clue número dos: unfortunate stewardess.

Even though we heard that our airplane left already, Mary Frances, Kaitlin, and I (two of my teammates; the other three are coming later, yay) still decided to run to our gate and see for ourselves.  Just as we got there (20 minutes after departure time), we discovered that the plane did actually leave, but at sixty feet out turned around and returned to the gate, due to the unfortunate incident of a stewardess' swollen hand.  Needless to say, the other flight attendants were very surprised to see three new passengers, and we were also rather stunned that we were actually aboard the plane and on our way to Mexico.

Praise God!  One thing I was reminded of at pre-field training is that God has a plan -- a plan for our good -- and nothing can thwart it!  No matter how chaotic or hopeless things might seem, God's already holding out the victor's crown for me to take and wear; nothing -- not even I -- can thwart God's plan.  It's so encouraging and comforting to know that when God makes a promise, it's as good as fulfilled.  Sometimes, that knowledge is all I can hold onto because I'm only in the working stages of the promise and I can only see so much; but I can testify that God is always better and greater than anything I can imagine.

I'd love to share briefly with you where I am, what I've been doing, what our future plans and hopes are, and prayer requests.

Where I am:  I'm living in the Mission to the World camp about half an hour's drive from Guanajuato, right on the edge of a very small, rural village called Téjaban.  I wake up to roosters crowing, one particularly talented bird singing "La Cucaracha" (very literally; I'll record a video soon for proof), and a dog named Capolín jumping about and always wanting to play.  The mornings are the most wonderful -- beautifully sunny yet still very cool -- but the clear nighttime sky could rival for my preference; I've never seen so many stars at once!  The daylight reveals vast, brown, dry terrains before the far-off mountains (also very brown and dry-looking), but we're on the verge of the rainy season, so before long everything will become green.  Our mission leaders Alex and Maggie Halbert and David are three of the most welcoming, fun, and God-following people, and I can't wait to get to know them, work alongside of them, and witness their service to God this summer.

What I've been up to:  On Friday, Mary Frances, Kaitlin, and I walked around the village in the morning, made friends with some cows, discovered a tiny fruit that smells like a peach, avoided horse droppings, poked our heads in a small grocery store, and made conversation with a little schoolgirl.  The afternoon brought us lots of exercise in the form of walking up and down the streets of the hilly San Miguel, a very beautiful tourist city.

Saturday was exciting: another walk through the village (during which we made friends with Ángel, Guillermo, and Regina, all of whom are super cute children and whom I hope we'll get to know better through English classes/recreational time), a really fun Picture Scavenger Hunt in the city of Guanajuato to help us get to know our way around, watching a traditional Mexican dance show at a downtown theatre, and our first taste of real Mexican food at Taco Roy's afterwards.

Our future plans/hopes:  This week we start a more solidified ministry: English club on Saturday nights in León with the youth at a church; recreational camp for men (here, where we live) to which we hope wives and families will come, too on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays; an English club for university students in GTO (Guanajuato) on Wednesdays; and English classes for the children of the village on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  Our vision is very much focused on building relationships (more so than the English lessons themselves), and I'm so excited for that!

Prayer requests:

1. For team unity with my awesome new friends: Mary Frances, Kaitlin, Victoria, Elisa, and Laura

2. For the travels of our remaining teammates to GTO (the three latter names)

3. For Alex and Maggie, and David - strength, trust in God's plans and vision for this ministry

4. For the ministries that are beginning this week; for the relationships we hope to build

5. For myself - that I would be actively present here in GTO, and for peace in trusting God's plans and promises

Thanks so much for reading; I know that was a lot, but there's so much I want to share with all of you who have been an incredibly support and encouragement to me!  I miss you all but, again, am very encouraged by your prayers and just following my blog and sharing this experience with me.

I will update again in one or two weeks and let you know how our ministries are going and how God is working within this community!

This is the landscape around Téjaban, where our camp is.

The beautiful city of Guanajuato

Mary Frances, Maggie (one of our wonderful mission leaders), Kaitlin, and me

I was going to post a picture of my delicious taco and quesadilla, but I thought this was more interesting: cucumbers with lime and salt -- ¡qué sabroso!

Watching the sun go down in Téjaban

Working Promises

I know there are still a couple weeks until I depart for Mission to the World training, but I just couldn't wait any longer to make my first post.  I am so excited to share with you that I am nearing the end of my fundraising process, and by the end of this month will have completed training with Mission to the World and have arrived in Guanajuato, México!  It is also rather exciting to finally own my own blog, and I hope that it will be a useful tool in sharing God's goodness in my life with you.  I suppose since this is the very first entry, it might be nice to state the reasons for the creation of this colorful blog.

Who?
This blog is dedicated to our awesome God and all the wonderful friends who have already been so involved in this journey with me and have been such a huge encouragement and support to me!  And if you're interested, I'll probably go by "Mónica" down there in Mexico.

What?
I will be serving in Guanajuato, México this summer as a volunteer intern with Mission to the World, a PCA missions organization, helping coordinate short term mission teams at that site.  Possible activities include: translating, cooking/cleaning, construction work, VBS, ESL, and sports ministry.

When?
I depart for training on May 23!  Our Guanajuato team departs for México on May 28, and I will return home on July 28.

Why the title "Working Promises"?
This spring semester at Davidson, God has been challenging me to trust in His promises.  My journey with MTW has so far been another one of these challenges and a very wonderful testament to His faithfulness and graciousness to me.  In this moment, I am simply overwhelmed with joy and thanks to have this opportunity to serve God in Guanajuato.  At several points in my fundraising process, I was sure that it would never happen, and I even began to make Plan B's and Plan C's for the summer...  But His graciousness flowed out to me through amazingly generous hearts, and now I can only thank God for carrying me through the deep waters I could not wade on my own.  He has humbled me to the point where I can say with all my heart that it is truly a privilege to be a part of pushing out the reaches of God's kingdom with MTW.

My MTW journey began with God asking me to depend on and trust in His promises, and I know that He will continue to humble and break me, and when He does, I pray that the pieces of me will fall into His open, creative palms that not only make me into a beautiful art but also something lovely that reaches out and blesses others.  Sometimes, when I'm in the middle of chaos and I can't see the light at the end just yet, it's encouraging to remember that God is always faithful to His promises, and they are being carried out, even if I can't see it.

Working promises: His promises are both in the works, and they always work!

I am thrilled that you will be a part of God's work in Guanajuato with me this summer.  I hope to update this blog once every one or two weeks, if not more often, and depending on Internet accessibility there.  Please read my entries as often or as little as you would like, and I hope that whenever you do, it will be something similar to having a nibble of the most glorious-tasting apple pie.

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope... When you seek me with all your heart, I will be found by you. (Jeremiah 29:11-14)