An unexpected gift.

Whew! It's been a while since I've written! I've been a little out of touch but I thought I would write to share with you how the holidays were for me!

My birthday and Christmas this year were unlike any other year... and not just because it was my first time spending them without my family. This was the first year in my life that I didn't receive any gifts. Material gifts, anyways.

I have a friend who lives in a town nearby and she has the same birthday as me, so the weekend of the 14th I went to spend with her and her family to celebrate. I ended up staying with them for SIXTEEN days! Ha! The family that I live with needed to go to Tucson and I didn't want to go so I stayed with my friend and her family. It was only supposed to be for a week, but ended up being a little over two. 

During my time with this family, I noticed something start to stir in my heart. At first I wasn't sure what it was. I was missing my family a lot, so I thought maybe I was just unsettled about not being able to see them for Christmas. But then, on the morning of my birthday, I realized that God had given me a new family. These people had taken me in as their own. They treated me like I was their own daughter/sister. They showed me so much love while I was in their house. It was such an amazing experience that I wish I could fully put into words. 

One thing that I can tell you though, is that they are the best gift I have ever received. My heart felt so full just being in their presence every day. Sure, they are a lot different than my family, but that was the most beautiful part! I got to adopt new customs, learn more Spanish, and be embraced by a new family. I gained a new set of parents, two new brothers and a new sister. God is so good and I feel so blessed to have a family here that I can call my own.

Before I left their house, the mom gave me a big hug and said, "Te quiero mucho, Shelbi. Mucho, como mi hija." Which means, "I love you so much, Shelbi. So much, like my own daughter."

Some exciting news! My mom is on her way here! It has been quite the ordeal. Her flight was delayed, then cancelled, she had to get a hotel and now her flight is finally scheduled to leave tonight! She is going to have to take the bus through Mexico alone so that should be interesting. Prayers are apprecitaed!

I hope the holidays treated you well and you were able to spend some time with family and friends. God bless you all and have a happy new year!

Me and Eunice on our birthday! 

Me and Robert on Christmas!

Me, Eunice and Pa on Christmas!

FOUR

Four months.

Technically 18 weeks.

Technically 127 days.

Four months since I've driven a car where there are street lights.

Four months since I've seen a familiar face.

Four months since I've worshipped communally in English.

Four months since I've gone more than a day without eating tortillas.

Four months since I've hugged my nephew.

Four months since I stepped onto that plane and my life changed forever.

Four months since I've drank water from a faucet.

Four months that God has been growing me more than I ever thought possible.

Four months that I've gotten to live life with a new family that will be family forever.

Four months that I've been blessed to make new friends.

Four months that I've been learning a different language.

Four months that have brought new challenges everyday.

Four months that I have gotten to watch friendships strengthen from afar.

Four months that I have seen so much change in myself, it's amazing.

It seems like I got here yesterday...

But at the same time...

It feels like I've been here for a year...

So deeply grateful for every single second of this journey.

On a lighter note, I spent the anniversary of my four months in Hermosillo, the capital of the state we live in. It was so fun! Daisy and I went to see "Catching Fire" VIP! I swear, I was like a little kid in an amusement park! Leather recliners, waiters who come take your order... It felt like we were the only ones there! And VIP seats were the same price as regular seats in the States! 

We walked around downtown and looked at different shops. There was one called "Cuidado con el Perro" which means "beware of the dog". It was so funny because all the manikins were DOGS!!! I had to take a pic, obviously. 

I saw some interesting stores at the mall. One was called "Aerocrombie". They can't use the same names as the stores in the US so they just decided to combine two names I guess, haha! Also, I needed a new iPhone charger so we went to what is like an Apple Store, but it's actually a reseller called iShop. It was cool being in a mall that was so different! 

Being from Washington, I had to make a stop at Starbucks! I bought a Mexico mug as a souvenir and got to drink from a holiday cup! I didn't think I would get to this year! It's the little things! ;) Kinda funny how I went from living in the state that Starbucks originated in, to living in a state that only has three in its entirety. 

I want to say thank you again to everyone who has supported me financially and prayerfully thoughout this journey. I can feel the love everyday and I am eternally grateful. None of this would be possible without you guys. 

I hope you all had an awesome Thanksgiving!

A silly little dream.

It being the holiday season, I find myself missing home just a little bit more. I am a little anxious about missing Thanksgiving and Christmas, neither of which are celebrated here, and having my first birthday away from home. Luckily, my mom gets to visit just two days after Christmas!

Anyways, last night I had a dream about one of my favorite holiday traditions... the Life Center Annual Carol Sing! I haven't missed one of these since I was six or seven years old. If you've ever been to this event, you know that it is tradition to sing The Twelve Days of Christmas. The whole church participates in taking turns acting out each number as it is sang. So, one section of the church acts out the partridge in a pear tree, another section acts out the two turtle doves, and so on.  The Jr. High, High School and College students are always the five golden rings! Therefore, I have been a five golden ring for the last ten years! Pastor Joe always calls twelve people up on stage to lead each section in their number. There are a few people who go up every year, but others that are picked at random by our pastor, Joe Wittwer. I have ALWAYS wanted to be chosen to lead the five golden rings!

So, last night I had a dream that I came home solely for the carol sing at Life Center. In my dream, I was holding a baby, probably about 6 months old. I didn't know whose baby it was or even how I ended up holding it. The time came to sing The Twelve Days of Christmas and I was ecstatic. Even more so when Pastor Joe called my name to lead the five golden rings! But I still had this baby in my arms and I didn't know where the mother was... so I just took the baby up with me! I didn't know what else to do!

So there I was! Ready to go! When all of the sudden, I  started smelling poop... then I realized that there was poop on my arm! Baby poop! I was disgusted! I started dry heaving as if I was going to throw up! Apparently, Pastor Joe was just as disgusted! He asked me to exit the stage to clean everything up and go to the bathroom in case I was going to actually vomit.

NOOOOOOO! Just as quickly as my dream was given to me, it was ripped out of my arms! I was devastated! I hope that this dream never comes true! Well, at least not the baby part! :)

Aren't dreams so weird sometimes?!

I wanna talk about thankfulness.

Around this time every year people start counting their blessings. I'm sure your Facebook news feed is full of your friends sharing what they are thankful for. It is the season of thanksgiving.

Everyone is posting about how they are thankful for family, friends, God, church, jobs, a house, even daylight savings for crying out loud. I'm not particularly fond of posting different things everyday, but this weekend I experienced something that made me grateful for things that I don't usually think of thanking God for. 

I stayed with a family from our church who live about twenty minutes away in a town called Bacerac.  It is a husband, wife, daughter and son. Their kids are fourteen and seven. The fourteen year old daughter, Eunice, speaks English very well, which made the weekend a lot easier, haha. They all share one bedroom with three beds, so when I stayed with them, I just stayed in the same room. 

We were playing cards on Friday night and I was looking around the kitchen and realized they didn't have a sink. I said, "Wait... You guys don't have a sink?" They said no and I asked how they wash dishes. They told me that they use big bowls and get water from outside. I thought, "Huh, well thats different, but ok."

We kept chatting and playing games and before bed I went to wash my face, brush my teeth, etc. Eunice came in and told me that she had to bring water in from outside for me to use. This is when I realized that not only did they not have a sink, but they didn't have running water in their entire house. They get all of their water from a hose outside and for showers they heat it up on their wood stove that you literally have to light a fire to use. To brush their teeth they put water in a cup and use it little by little.  To flush the toilet they have to dump a big bucket of water down the toilet so the pressure will make it go down. They pretty much only flush the toilet when they go number two so they don't have to keep getting water all the time. Oh, and you don't put toilet paper in the toilet... it goes in the trash can next to the toilet. No matter what. You may think that sounds disgusting, but to them its just normal life.

These are everyday things that I don't even think twice about doing, and it made me think... Do I ever stop to be thankful for things like this? For the ability to have a hot shower whenever I want? That I can flush the toilet without having to go outside in the sometimes freezing cold weather to get water? That I don't have to take the time to make a fire whenever I want to cook and keep checking back to make sure it is still lit? That I don't have to share my room with anyone, let alone three other people? I don't think I have ever thanked God for anything like this. Until now.

This weekend was such a great experience. It made me reevaluate my view of thankfulness and what I should be thankful for. I'm not saying we shouldn't be thankful for an extra hour of sleep, but shouldn't we also be thankful for our bed? Our pillow? Our blankets? 

Here are a few photos to give you a better idea...

The bedroom where the entire family sleeps. 

Heating water above the wood stove.

Me and Eunice before we went to a Quiceñera for one of her friends.

What a humbling experience it was. I hope this thanksgiving season opens your eyes to the things you may be taking for granted and that God teaches you new things to be thankful for. There are people all over the world who live on way less than most of us.

Happy holidays, friends!

Chosen.

Do you ever feel like you're not enough?
Like you are running in a circle searching for your purpose?
Like you thought you were in God's will but you feel like you've let people down?

If I am completely honest....
This could describe me lately.

I have been living in Mexico for a little over three months now (crazy, right?) and sometimes I feel as though I have accomplished nothing. Sometimes I don't feel like a missionary. What is the definition of a missionary, anyways? Sometimes I feel like maybe more was expected of me, and I turned out to be this mistake.

We've all felt like this before, right?
Maybe for you it has happened at work. You had a huge task to accomplish and the results just didn't turn out how you thought they would.
Maybe it was with your family. You said something wrong to a spouse, child, or sibling and the rest is history.
Maybe it was in your ministry. You thought God was leading you in a certain direction and all of a sudden things seemed to be spinning out of control.

There are so many different situations, but they all have one thing in common... they leave us feeling worthless.

I was talking to a friend today who has been having similar feelings. The Holy Spirit nudged me to go read a blog that I usually keep up on, but haven't recently. The entry is titled, "When you're pretty sure you are a dissapointment." It is written by Kari Patterson. In it, she explained having had feelings like these and I thought, "Wow! This perfectly describes how I have been feeling!"

As I kept reading, Kari went on to explain that these feelings that we have, these painful, raw, and very real feelings, make it so that we see the gospel. The ravaging love that revolutionizes our souls, she says.

The gospel doesn't tell us that we are worthless, purposeless, and a mistake. In fact, it tells us the exact opposite! It tells us that we are CHOSEN!

Matthew 22:14

"For many are called, but few are chosen."

Romans 8:29

"For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them..."

1 Thessalonians 1:4

"For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you..."

2 Thessalonians 2:13

"...because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth."

These are just a few of many verses in the bible that talk about how God has chosen us. What a beautiful thing that is! And if God, the creator of the universe and everything in it, decided to chose me, should I feel anything less than enamored? In awe? Grateful? Confident? Intentional?

I think not.

Now, I know that realistically I will feel down and out sometime again in my life, but I hope that in those times, God brings me back to this place. A place of remembrance and peace. Because, friends, what he did on the cross is what defines us. Remember and find peace in that. 

You are worth loving. You are enough. You are loved.

You are chosen.

If you want to read the blog by Kari Patterson, you can do so by visiting www.karipatterson.com.

Time.

James 4:14

"What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes."

I read this passage during my PBJ (prayer, bible, journal) time on October 1st. Although this isn't what I journaled on that day, I felt prompted to just write it down. 

Over the last few weeks my brain has been flooded with thoughts on this concept of time.

What is time? 

I have been living in Mexico for three months now. When I think about it, that sounds like quite a while, but at the same time, it feels like I just got here yesterday. Lately, I have been struck with the thought of how soon I am leaving. I still have quite a bit of time left here, but I know that it is going to fly by. The first three months went by so incredibly fast, so I know the next few will be the same, especially with the holidays approaching.

In the past two weeks God has continually brought this reality to my attention... you are a mist. When we are driving down the road, the thought pops into my head. When I am teaching my students, walking to the store, going to bed at night, playing with the kids I live with, reading my bible... you are a mist. 

Time is so precious. I would be lying if I said I haven't taken some of my time here for granted. We all do it. I think it's a part of our human nature. We can all think back to certain memories that we wish would last forever. There are special moments in our lives that we never want to end. There are also moments in our lives that we wish we could forget forever. Things we would do anything to take back. It is all a part of time. 

The bible talks about time in Ecclesiastes 3. Verse one says, "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven." It goes on to say that there is a time to be born and a time to die, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to seek and a time to lose, a time to keep silence and a time to speak, etc, etc. 

There is a time for everything. The good and the bad. The happy and the sad. The fun and the boring. The exciting and the dull. The joy and the pain. EVERYTHING. Knowing this reality, you'd think we ought to make the most of all of our time here on this earth. 

In the grand scheme of things, our lives really are a mist. We are only on this earth for such a short time. I think that God has put all of this on my heart to show me that these next few months are precious. Every single moment of them. And I can't take them for granted. I need to thank God for every moment that I have left here, no matter what it brings. 

What times are you taking for granted? I encourage you to pray and ask God to reveal to you how you value this crazy concept of time. I also encourage you to savor every single second of life, because before we know it, it will all be over. 

My last thought...
How cool is it that for those of us who have our hope in Christ, time will never end. We are living for eternity. And someday that time will be perfect. Forever and always.

A different kind of brokenness.

Those of us who go to church have definitely heard the song Hosanna. The bridge of it says, "Break my heart for what breaks yours, everything I am for your kingdom's cause." I don't know if my heart has every truly been broken by the things that break the heart of God until yesterday. This isn't a story of sad brokenness or mourning, but one of the kind of brokenness we experience when we are so overjoyed and humbled that our only reaction is to become completely undone before our Father.

A little background. When I was here last April I connected with one family in particular. We connected on a level that I didn't know was possible after only knowing someone for a week and not even speaking the same language. Their names are Carlos and Yaneli, and they have a two year old son named Carlitos (little Carlos). They are in their mid-twenties and have been Christians for about a year.

Last Friday we had a church service in San Miguel, a town about 45 minutes from Huachinera. This is where Carlos and Yaneli live. After the service, Yaneli asked me if I wanted to come to her house. I was a little confused because it was out of nowhere and I didn't know why she wanted me to come over. We all ride in a large van to the services in other cities, so I was also wondering how I would get home. She said I could stay until Sunday and ride back after church. Now I was wondering why she wanted me to come for three days! In the U.S. we don't just invite someone to stay at our house for three days when they have a house of their own. I asked Heidi about it and she said it is custom here. When a missionary visits it is common for some people to invite them to stay with them. It might be because they want prayer or an encouraging word, or because they want to serve you by letting you stay under their roof. After finding this out, I told Yaneli that I would love to stay. We agreed that she would talk to her husband and we would figure out a time that works for us!

Last night we had church in Bavispe, a town about 35 minutes from Huachinera. Carlos and Yaneli were there. After the service I asked Yaneli when I should plan on staying for the weekend. It wasn't even a second after I asked the question that I saw tears begin to form in her eyes. I was so confused! I thought, "Why is she crying? Wasn't she the one who asked me to stay? Does she not want me to anymore?" I asked her what was wrong and she told me that they only have one bedroom at their house with one bed. After that, she was crying so much that I could't understand what she was saying. She asked if we could find Heidi to translate what she wanted to say. My heart was surely not prepared for what happened next.

In tears, she told Heidi what she wanted to say to me. She said that they only have one bedroom with one bed, but that they borrowed a bed from someone so that I could stay with them. She told Heidi that the house that they live in is not theirs, that someone is loaning it to them because they can't afford a house right now. She was crying because she was so embarrassed about all of it but at the end she said, "But we want you to come because we love you and our home is your home."

Emotions flooded my heart and soul. I was completely broken. I was broken by the fact that they would borrow a bed for me. That is so far out of their way. I was broken by the transparency in her words. I was broken by the fact that she would look beyond her embarrassment and invite me into her home, which she said was my home too. I told her that I don't care what the condition of her house is, that I am so incredibly honored to even be invited to stay with them.

I began crying as well. Why? Because I have never experienced anything like this. I don't know her or her family very well at all, but the amount of love in my heart for them is indescribable. I didn't know that it was possible to feel this way. I'm sitting here in tears just writing about it.

I imagine that this is how Jesus felt about Yaneli in that moment. I imagine him to be overjoyed that she would set aside her own worries and cares to invite a sister in Christ into her home. I bet he had the biggest smile on his face when he heard her say that her home is my home. I imagine him to feel completely undone at the sight of her love for him.

I don't know if this whole thing makes any sense at all... maybe it is something you can only understand if you have experienced it. I'm not sure. All I know is that I am beyond grateful for each day here and for all the God is revealing to me through his body of believers in Mexico.

A photo taken of me with Carlos, Yaneli and Carlitos a few weeks ago. I cannot wait to spend a weekend with this family!

The time I almost got kidnapped in Mexico.

I have been wanting to write a blog for the last few days, but nothing has seemed to come naturally, so I've put it off.

Then something happened last night...
Boy, do I have a story for you guys...

So, I have been home alone since Friday. Heidi, Conrad and the kids went to Tucson to buy groceries and I decided to stay behind. The drive is long, the roads are awful, I just figured I would have a relaxing weekend with the house to myself. Daisy, Heidi's sister, lives in town, about a ten minute walk away. We spent a lot of time together over the weekend. We watched movies, talked for hours, played with her little boy, went to church. It was a blast and I am really grateful for the bonding time we had.

I'm not gonna lie, I was a little nervous to be home alone at night. I mean, I am an American girl living in a town full of Mexicans. My Spanish isn't that great, I don't have a phone and we live down below town so our only neighbors are Conrad's parents. A friend back home told me, "Don't let anyone know you are home alone!". However, this is a small town. I went to the store Friday morning and the owner asked me, "Are you going to Tucson with Heidi and Conrad?". I didn't know that she knew they were going, let alone that she knew that I might not be going! Needless to say, everyone in town knows I am here alone! The town is very tranquil though. There is no crime, everyone knows everyone, its harmless.

The weekend went great...
Until last night...

It is Independence Day weekend here in Mexico, so last night there was a fiesta in the plaza. Live music, food, raffles, etc. Daisy and I went up and walked around for a little while, it was fun. I came home after, around eleven, and was checking Facebook and chatting with a friend when I heard the dogs barking. I was curious as to why they were barking, but it didn't last long.
Soon after, I heard a knock on the door. Alarmed, I ran into the bathroom, the only room with a lock on the door. I started thinking of any possible reason someone would come to the house at this hour. My only logical conclusion was that someone followed me home from the plaza. I messaged my friend Lindsay saying that someone just knocked on the door. Once she realized that I wasn't joking she told me to FaceTime her. I was sitting in a dark bathroom talking to her, and the knocking hadn't stopped. She could even hear it through the computer and she said, "You need to show them that someone is home! All of the scary movies I've seen show that if they think the house is empty they will break in!" I told her that the TV was on, the lights were on, they had to have known someone was home. Daisy has an iPhone so I knew I could iMessage her over the wifi. I must've sent her six messages in a minute. No reply.
The knocking got louder and sounded like it was coming from the roof or the side of the house. It was becoming more frequent. You can imagine at this point Lindsay and I were both in a panic. She would say something like, "Call Heidi and Conrad!". To which I would reply that I didn't have a phone. Then she told me to call the police, and again I said that I didn't have a phone. She was googling the police in Mexico, asking me for anyone's phone number she could call, trying to add Daisy on Facebook, etc. She told me to go get a knife, but that meant walking by a window where they could see me, so I said no. My heart was pounding and I felt more scared and helpless than I ever have in my entire life.

Then... Daisy texted back. I read her text to myself and quietly said, "Oh my gosh, Lindsay...". I read the text aloud, "I think it is the echo of the fireworks." At the exact same time, Lindsay said, "Are there Independence Day fireworks in town?".

HA! We both immediately started nervously laughing and crying all at the same time. Crying tears of stress relief and joy that I wasn't going to die, and laughing at how ridiculous this whole thing was.

So, I guess the title of this blog should've been, "The time I thought I almost got kidnapped in Mexico". I just wanted to make you guys sweat like we did last night! ;)

A little bit of culture shock.

I have a little time alone this morning, so I figured I would write!
I thought it would be fun to let you guys in on some of the cultural differences that I am experiencing here, and just things that I am not used to.

First, I have driven a car once in over a month, and that one time was for approximately 3 minutes. So weird! Not gonna lie, I miss my little stick shift car, haha. Also, I haven't worn a seatbelt since I got here, sorry mom and Eric Bradley!! They just don't do that! Its not uncommon to pack ten Mexicans into a car that fits four. We have an 12 passenger church van and I was told their record of people they have fit in it is somewhere around 34!!! Babies don't use carseats, they just ride on their mother's lap. Sooooooo different from the United States.

We get fresh fruit about once a week when the fruit and veggie truck drives through town. It is all so cheap! I spend about eleven dollars each time he comes and I get enough for the whole week. Its awesome, but sometimes I wish I could just go to the grocery store whenever I need something. We also buy purified water at the store in big Culligan jugs, but sometimes they run out and we can't buy it for a week or so. You really don't know what you've got until its gone. Luckily they have small bottled waters, so I just buy a bunch of those.

Its so easy to lose track of time here. I have found it incredibly freeing to not have a pressing agenda all the time. I find myself forgetting what day of the week it is and never knowing what time it is during the day. I kinda love it! The town I live in is so peaceful. There are mountains everywhere and when the sun is setting just at the right time it all looks like a painted picture. Takes my breath away every single time. That is one thing that I will NEVER get tired of.

I've seen two live tarantulas since I've been here... lets just say I could go the rest of my life without seeing one again. Snakes, as well. I hate snakes.

Last night we had church kickball, youth against adults! It was a blast! I discovered something about myself... I get pretty excited during sports. I'm sure it was quite funny for them to watch me jumping and shouting, all the while, having no idea what I was saying!

I STARTED TEACHING! AHHHH!!
I love it! So much! I am teaching 7th-9th grade, which is Middle School here. My schedule is Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9-10:30am. It is so much fun! A bit of a challenge, but I like it. Each grade is on a different level of English, so every other day I am preparing different lesson plans, and I am actually finding myself learning things too! It feels so weird that I am doing this without any experience or schooling. It is a totally different experience for me and I feel so blessed and honored to do it.
When I took Spanish in high school our teacher had all of the students choose Spanish names, and those were the names that we went by in class. I did the same thing with my students, except for with American names! I named a lot of them after my friends, haha! There is a Grace, Amy, Nathan, Adam, Eric, Lindsay, Chris, Daniel, Zoe, Brittney, etc. Being around people with your guys' names makes me miss you less, haha! ;) One girl chose the name Miley... can you tell our news here is WAY behind? The second she said that I thought, "If only she knew...".

Here is a photo with some of my students during recess! 

Well, there is a little update! Miss you guys!

Learning how to worship.

Up until now, most of my posts have been updates on how things are going in Mexico...

Well, this one is a little bit more personal.

Today, I learned how to worship.

Now, you may think that sounds odd, I surely did. I've been a Christian for 15 years. I've grown up singing in church, and hearing the talks about how worship is more than just singing. I've read Romans 12:1 about offering our bodies as spiritual acts of worship. I was even a worship intern at my church for two years! I've heard it all. If I am completely honest with you, my favorite form of worship is singing, though I am not very good at it, haha. My home church has a congregation in the thousands, our worship team is incredible and I have the opportunity to worship corporately with them every week. One of my favorite sounds is when the church is singing so loud that you can hear everyone over the instruments. You can hear thousands of voices singing as one voice to our Almighty Creator. It is so beautiful. I think until now I have taken that for granted. 

Since I've been in Mexico, I have noticed that corporate worship is one of the things I miss most. We worship as a church here four times a week, but it is so hard for me because I don't understand the words. I don't know what I am singing, so usually I spend that time praying quietly to myself about whatever The Lord brings to my mind. I knew before leaving that I would struggle with this in particular, but I didn't think it would be this hard. 

This morning, Heidi came into my room and told me that her and Conrad were going to Bacerac (a nearby town) and that they'd be home soon. I quickly realized that this meant that I would be alone. Completely alone. Just me. No one else. You have to understand, this was a big deal to me. I have only been alone maybe one other time in the three and a half weeks that I have been here. The discipline of solitude is something that I learned about from my college pastor, Bobby Moore, and it is one that I try to practice often. Here, however, that is very difficult.

When Heidi had come into my room, I was reading my bible. After her and Conrad left I felt an urge to worship. But how? My hearts desire was to sing... and to sing in English. So I did something that I have never done before. I picked up my phone, opened my music, and turned on Hillsong. I started to sing.  It was just me. I wasn't surrounded by thousands of other people, there wasn't any live instruments, no worship leader. Just me and Jesus. At first it felt a little weird. Maybe unfamiliar is a better word, but let me tell you, it was one of the most intimate times I have ever had in worship. I felt The Lord wrap his arms around me, comfort me, be near to me. It was indescribable. I was brought to tears. I sat on my bed weeping in front of my King.

In that moment, I learned how to worship. Now, I am not saying that corporate worship isn't important, because it is, but I think that we all need to have moments of intimacy and solitude with Jesus. I think that he desires to be worshiped in that way. He desires moments with just you. Maybe you are already really good at setting aside time to be alone with Jesus, but if you are anything like me, things tend to get in the way. Whether it is a busy schedule, other pressing matters, kids, school, work, even ministry. Life happens. I know that, you know that, God knows that. But we must remember, Jesus desires intimacy and solitude with us.

I hope this leaves you encouraged to have that time with Jesus, because it is precious. I hope that in that time you meet Jesus in a whole new way. I hope you learn how to worship, whether it be for the very first time or for the hundredth.

Thank you for reading and sharing this journey with me. I am thankful for each and every one of you.

My Mexican vacation.

WOW! I'm exhausted. But the good kind of exhausted. Like the exhausted you feel when you are just getting home from vacation...

The last ten days were amazing! Heidi and Conrad asked me shortly after I got here if I wanted to go with them to Peñasco. They really want me to experience their life and ministry while I am here, and a lot of their life consists of traveling. It was a little weird for me though. You see, we left for vacation only a week and a half after I arrived in Huachinera, so in a way, I still felt like I was on vacation. Then we left for a real vacation... kind of threw me off, haha.

I'll start from the beginning...
We headed out on a Thurdsay to Hermosillo, the capital of Sonora (the state we live in). It was about a 4 or 5 hour drive. We only stayed there for one night, but it was really cool to see a big city. We went to dinner at a restaurant that had a real live Mariachi band!  That was very fun and very loud!

The next day we left to Puerto Peñasco, commonly known to Americans as Rocky Point. Another long drive, about 7 hours. Heidi and Conrad used to live in Peñasco before they moved to Huachinera. They were sent out as missionaries from Peñasco Christian Fellowship about 5 years ago. Our reason for going was for them to speak at the church and fill people in on how the ministry is doing in Huachinera. We were there for five days. We went to the beach multiple times, had several meals with old friends of theirs, went to a movie, went to church.
My favorite part was one dinner in particular. Stan and Becky are the pastors of Peñasco Christian Fellowship, which is in partnership with my home church, Life Center. Dave and Cheryl oversee the Mission Center that the church has. Since Life Center sends groups of missionaries to Peñasco multiple times a year, we knew a lot of the same people! It was such a blessing to be able to chat with the four of them about where I am from and to see the work that my church family has done there! The house that we had dinner in was built by a team from Life Center! How cool?! Another team from Life Center will be going to Peñasco in October and Cheryl emailed Heidi to ask if I could come! She even offered to drive to Tucson to pick me up! I feel so blessed that they want me to come back, and am praying that it will work out!

We also got to serve with a ministry called Two Fish. Heidi and Conrad's best friends are in charge of it. They feed the hungry in Peñasco Monday-Friday. There is preaching before every meal and many people have been saved through this ministry. What an amazing experience that was.
Another highlight was being able to watch my dear friend Cami on America's Got Talent. We don't get the channel in Huachinera, so we can't watch it here. Heidi and I were ecstatic when we found out we could watch it in Peñasco!

And then of course there was the beach. Mmmm. The water was so warm... the sunsets were so beautiful... it was a true blessing and I think The Lord knew that it was exactly what I needed. He is so good and gracious to us.

Sooo... after five wonderful days in Penasco, we headed to Tucson. This time only a three hour drive. Heidi and Conrad needed to help their parents with some paperwork so we were there for four days. We did some much needed shopping for clothes, school supplies, groceries, etc. They showed me some great places to eat! If you are ever in Tucson make sure you go to Eegee's! It is soooo good! Also, I enjoyed a refreshing Starbucks chai, venti of course! We also got to watch the AGT results show and see Cami move on to the semi-finals! So cool!

Yesterday we took the long trek back to Huachinera. It is about a ten hour drive if you make a few stops for food/bathroom breaks, and the closer you get to Huachinera, the curvier the roads get. Talk about carsick. Needless to say, we were thanking Jesus when we pulled in last night around 10:30.

Here are a few pictures from our trip...

So, that has been my last 10 days. School starts here tomorrow so things are about to get crazy busy! Thank you so much for reading and if you want to, please message me with some feedback! I would love to know who reads these posts! 

Love and miss you all!

The first few days.

So... I arrived in Tucson on the 29th. We spent the day running errands and such and stayed there that night. The next day we did a lot of shopping (Walmart, Costco, etc). We left Tucson on the 30th around 6pm. We drove until about 11pm when we got a hotel. The next morning (Wednesday) we got up and finished the drive, arriving in Huachinera around noon. 

That night we went to church in Bacerac. I sat in while Heidi taught the middle schoolers. Wednesday was also Heidi's birthday so we celebrated after church with Coke and snacks (a little raisin cake thing, not sure what it was). I mostly chatted with a girl whose name I cannot spell or pronounce, haha. Her and I were partners for a game we played when the Torches interns were here in April. She told me about her family and I told her that I like pizza and ice cream. What else am I supposed to talk about when my Spanish is so limited? Hahaha!

Yesterday we spent most of the day unloading all of the stuff for Daisy's (Heidi's sister) house. She is renting a house in the town square. Her and Heidi will also have their photography studio there. 

Thursday through Sunday there is an annual party in Huachinera. I don't really know what it is for but basically the town square is full of small rides, games, food and a huge stage for bands. Imagine Pig Out in the Park, but on a smaller scale, and this one goes until four or five in the morning. Heidi and Daisy opened up the studio for people to get pictures with their friends. In Tucson, we bought ingredients to make banana splits, I sold those in the kitchen. Here are a few photos from the festival...

A few funny stories...

I was telling Heidi a story and used the expression "like a deer in the headlights". Apparently she had never heard it before, so she immediately got the image in her head and couldn't stop laughing! 

Then at church I was talking to a lady who is 28 years old. I was meaning to tell her that she looked younger (joven) than she was, but I ended up telling her she looked older (viejo)!!! How embarrassing! She knew what I meant so she corrected me and we all laughed about it!

I also mixed up the words for niece and nephew (sobrina/sobrino) with the words for aunt and uncle (tia/tio). I was telling them about my nephew and putting my hand low to the ground, trying to show how small he was. They must've thought I had a midget uncle or something...

...gotta love language barriers, right? 

It has been a little difficult not having a schedule... some people would LOVE that, but I am a planner. I love knowing what is next at exactly what time. This has made it a little bit tough for me to find time to read my bible. Today I was finally able to sit down for an hour or so and just read by myself. It was actually God's perfect timing for me. He brought me to this scripture...

Psalm 62:8

Trust in him at all times, 

O people; pour out your heart before him; 

God is a refuge for us. 

How awesome?? God knew exactly what I needed to hear in that moment. I can pour out my heart fully and completely to God... when it feels like no one understands what I am feeling... when I am frustrated about not being able to understand things... when I miss my family and friends... when I am tired. I feel as though I shouldn't be feeling these things when I have only been here for a few days, but everyone tells me that the first few days are sometimes the hardest. 

God has also given me moments of peace... for example, yesterday Heidi and I were driving in the car and I asked her if I could pass as just a pale Mexican or if I just look really American... she said, "No, they willl be able to tell that you are American right off the bat!" She made a motion like she was swinging a bat and the car swerved when she took her hand off the wheel. For some reason it was so funny to us! We could not stop laughing. In that moment, I felt like family. She felt like my sister. I don't know how to explain it, but I knew that moment was from The Lord. He is a refuge and a comforter. 

The internet at Heidi and Conrad's is WAY better than I expected! I have been able to iMessage and FaceTime without any problems! If you want to keep in touch, you can message me on Facebook, or email me at shelbgeorge@gmail.com. 

Tomorrow.

The time has finally come!!!!

I leave for Mexico tomorrow morning at 8am. For some reason it still hasn't quite hit me yet. Well, to be honest, it hit me a little bit yesterday as I was trying to get my suitcase to zip. Have I told you how much I hate packing? 

I feel so blessed today. I am feeling blessed because the last two weeks have been full. Full of people that I love. Full of laughter, fun, tears, joy, smiles, blessings. My calendar has literally been full of names. I got to go see my best friend over in Seattle! My dad was able to come from Oregon for a few days! I was blessed by my dear friend Lindsay with concert tickets to John Mayer at the Gorge! I spent tons of time with me niece and nephews! Lunch dates, sleepovers, family dinners. So so great. I feel incredibly loved. 

At church this morning we sang an old hymn that says, "I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back. The cross before me, the world behind me, no turning back." This describes perfectly where I am right now. I am following Jesus in the call he has given me. No turning back! Keeping my eyes on His cross. It is only by HIS love and grace that I am able to do this. He is so powerful. 

Also at church today, our senior pastor Joe Wittwer led the congregation in prayer for me and my adventure! One of many reasons why I love my church family and will miss them all dearly.

                  

I  wish I could put into words how excited I am for this journey and also how grateful I am for the prayers and support from the people who love me. If you want to keep in touch with me, the best way to do that is through email or Facebook. My email address is shelbgeorge@gmail.com. I will be able to receive mail in Arizona, however I don't know how often I will be able to get it. If you would like to mail anything you can email me for my address. If you text or call me and don't get a response, it is because my phone will be shut off while I am away. Also, if you feel called to give financially while I am gone, you can send donations to Life Center Church. Checks need to be made out to Life Center with a note attached that explains that the money is intended for my mission. The address is 1202 N. Government Way. Spokane, Wa. 99224.

I will continue to post about my many adventures right here on my blog! 

Adios amigos! Dios te bendiga!!

(Goodbye friends! God bless you!)

Processing...

Wow! Only four and a half weeks left until the big move... I cannot believe it. I was talking to my dad today and he said, "It feels like just yesterday you were calling me telling me that you wanted to move..." Oh, how time flies...

Everyday it gets more and more real... Today was one of the hardest days yet. I am feeling so many different emotions right now... joy, peace, sadness, longing, fear. I am feeling these things because today I moved out of the house that I have been living in for the last year. For the next month I will be living with some very dear friends from church. Actually, they are more like family. I made the decision to only take to their house what I will be taking with me to Mexico. This avoids me having to pack everything twice. So, with the help of a friend, I fit everything into two suitcases and a duffle bag.

It was really weird packing my bedroom knowing that I wouldn't be unpacking those boxes for at least seven months. I kept constantly asking myself questions like,  "Will I need this in Mexico? How many pairs of pants do I take? Do I take my pillow? What about when it gets cold? How many pairs of shoes?" Hahaha, as you can imagine, it took me a while.

Moving out of this house also brings so many different emotions because I am not only leaving my things (which are just things) but I am leaving behind three of the greatest roommates and friends I have ever had. We lived in a ministry through our church called "College Housing". There are houses all over Spokane filled with college-age people who live and do ministry together. College Housing is designed for friendship and spiritual growth. That is exactly what this house was for us... A place where our friendships grew deeper and stronger than we ever imagined, and a place where we were able to grow our faith in community with other Christians. We shared countless memories, late nights filled with laughs, tears, deep conversations, complete randomness. We shared a unique bond while living together.  I guess I can't say shared because I believe that the bond we created will last our whole lives. We were able to create this bond because we are unified in Jesus Christ. We experienced many different situations over the last year and in every single one we were always brought back to this bond... we were always brought back to Jesus. When we were upset with each other, hurt by each other, laughing with each other, celebrating each other... This bond was always there. And I am confident that it always will be. I am a better person because of them and I will never forget everything that I learned while being their roommate. I am so incredibly excited for the new chapter in my life, but these three girls are one of the hardest things to leave behind.

God is so good at bringing us peace in times like these. He is so loving... so compassionate... so gracious. I find the Lord always brings me back to this song... I posted some lyrics from it in my first blog...

"You call me out upon the water, the great unknown, where feet may fail. And there I find you in the mystery, in oceans deep, my faith will stand."

thankyouthankyouthankyou

Hello friends! I want to take a second to say thank you.

I have been SOOOO overwhelmed with the the amount of support I have received in more ways than I thought possible. I have been encouraged daily by so many people. God is so good at confirming things in our lives through other people, and he has done that for me through each of you. Since I have decided to go to Mexico not a day has gone by that I haven't had something happen that reveals to me more and more that I am in His will. 

I also want to take a second to share a few stories with you...

First, let me tell you about Lauren. We met probably about a year ago, but she hasn't lived in Spokane consistently so we have never really built a relationship. When she has been in Spokane she has attended our college group, bible studies, Sunday services, and each time we would chat and say a friendly "how are you?". Last Sunday at church Lauren came up to me and said that she needed to talk to me. I asked her what was up and she said that she wanted to support me financially. I was thrilled! I emailed her my support letter and went about the rest of my day. I never expected what was going to happen next...

Later that day Lauren texted me asking how much support I had left to raise. When I told her, her response was ,"Cool. I'm going to give you $600." So nonchalantly like that wasn't a big deal, haha! I was shocked. My jaw dropped and I couldn't even speak. I knew she was leaving town the following week, so I asked her if we could go to coffee. During our time together Lauren told me how God revealed to her that the money was for me. You see, Lauren wanted to go into international missions. She was planning on moving to Poland to be a missionary. Her missionary training was supposed to take place in Colorado, and she had $600 saved up to go to the training. God totally closed the door on that path in her life and she knew in her heart that the money was still supposed to be used for missionary work, so she gave it to me. The obedience of this 23 year old girl puts me in awe.

Next, I want to tell you about Chris. We have been interns together at Life Center for the last two years and I would call Chris my brother. Before I could even mention the fact that I would be writing support letters, he assured me that he would be financially supporting me. A few days after my letters went out we were headed into a meeting when Chris stopped me and handed me an envelope. The envelope had $100 in it. Now, what some of you don't know is that Chris has been battling an auto-immune disease for the past few years. Along with the sickness comes mounting medical bills, and on top of that Chris supports himself as he lives with 7 other guys from the church. Just in general, $100 is a lot of money, but when you throw all of that on top of it... Wow. Again, the obedience of a 19 year old... It made me examine my own heart. 

And let me tell you, Chris isn't the only person with a sickness that has donated a large sum of money to me. It brings me to tears when I think about the people in my life who are battling illnesses that bring financial burden, yet they are still obedient in giving. 

Another shorter story, a random guy at my church approached me and said, "Hey, I think what you are going to do in Mexico is so amazing and I want to support you, but this is all I have in my pocket." He reached into his pocket and pulled out $5. My heart was so full in that moment. Someone emptying their pockets because they believe in God's calling on my life in this next season.

My sister and her husband generously sold me their iPad for nearly half of what it is worth, and since I won't have a phone down there it will be my only means of communication! What a blessing! 

I receive facebook messages almost daily of people sending me their addresses and asking for my support letter. Even my co-workers have just been coming up to me and handing me a piece of paper with their address on it. I can't help but smile. It is so encouraging.

These are just a few of many AMAZING stories that I could tell you about what God is doing, but I'll spare you the time. Again, THANK YOU so much to every single person reading this. I can feel the comfort from your prayers every single day and it brings so much joy to my heart. I could never do this alone, and I am so thankful that I don't have to. 

Progress...

Well....

Things are moving forward in a mighty way. I thought I would write a post about the cool things God has been doing in my preparation for Mexico, as well as some information about what I will be doing there!

First, God hooked me up with FREE Spanish lessons! My friend AJ studied Spanish for eight years and lived in Spain. Needless to say, he is very fluent. He offered to tutor me two hours a week for free! This is such a blessing! Also, I have realized that I have more friends who are studying Spanish than I thought. It has been fun to be able to communicate with them a little bit and be able to practice! 

A couple weeks ago I filled out an application for missions funding at my church. I had no idea what to expect but it turned out that the missions council had a meeting the SAME DAY that I turned in my application. That evening I found out that the church graciously decided to donate $2,500 towards my trip!!! That is nearly half of the total cost!!! Can you believe that?? God is so good! 

Something that made me laugh... my mom has already started planning my going away/fundraising party... she's cool like that. Always planning ahead. She has the venue booked, cooks scheduled, details thought through. Thank God for moms, right?

Today I found out that I will for sure be flying to Tucson on July 29th. I am buying my plane ticket TOMORROW!! My host family, Heidi and Conrad, will pick me up there and we will make the long drive to Huachinera. Right when I arrive they will be hosting a group of missionaries from Mexico and America, so I will get to help prepare meals for them and make them feel at home, while also adjusting to my new home! Heidi messaged me today and told me that they have some ideas of what I will be doing long term while I am there. One of them is for me to teach English to the children! This makes me so excited!!!! Another idea is for me to co-lead a women's Christian book club! Hearing the ideas that Heidi has makes me so anxious to be there! 

Also, today I received a text from a family that became very near and dear to my heart while I was there...

This is Carlos, Yaneli and Carlitos. Yaneli nearly died when giving birth to their son, and through that experience her eyes were opened up to the life that Jesus has for her. They have been attending Heidi and Conrad's church for quite a while now. It is so encouraging for me to receive messages that express how much they miss me and how excited they are for my return. I cannot wait to see them again. 

While I'm at it, I should probably introduce you to Conrad and Heidi as well!

I took this photo the day before our team came home from Mexico. This is them with their children, Max and Emma! I asked Heidi to send me a little something that explains what her and Conrad do in Huachinera. This is what she said, "Conrad and I received the calling to become full time missionaries (in Huachinera) 5 years ago while attending Penasco Christian Fellowship. The vision is to establish a church in each of the towns here in this region." 

That is what I get to be a part of!! I am so incredibly honored that God has called me to do this in the next season of my life! It is all beyond my wildest dreams...

If you are reading this, and you are a praying person, I have a few requests...

One, I am sending out support letters soon, so prayer for funding would be awesome!

Two, that God would prepare my heart during the next two months for everything that I am going to experience while I am there.

And three, that I will be able to take in all of the Spanish that I am learning! Haha!

Thanks for taking the time to read and be interested in what I am doing with my life! You are so awesome!

Well, here we go...

Hello friends!!!

If you are reading this, you probably know that I am soon moving to Huachinera, Mexico for six months! Crazy, right?? I can't believe it! This first post is just to let you in on how I got to this place...

I was recently on a missions trip as a part of my internship at Life Center Church. We spent eight wonderful days in Huatchinera. It was the most amazing time. We stayed with a married missionary couple named Conrad and Heidi Quiros. They are from Mexico but have dual-citizenship in the US. Conrad and Heidi live on a small farm where they grow chiltepines, grapes, and pecan trees. Numerous men from the town of Huachinera are employed by Conrad and work on his farm. While we were in Mexico we worked in these fields alongside the Mexican people. We also served with them at their church. The church that Conrad and Heidi lead meets on Sunday mornings in Huachinera. However, it also meets throughout the week in surrounding cities. We met so many amazing people and the experiences were unforgettable. It was the most life changing week of my life, but I never thought it would lead me to where I am now.

During my last few days in Huachinera I began to think about what it would be like to return for a month or so. I thought one month was long enough to decide if I would want to be there long term. When I approached the international missions director from my church about my idea she suggested that I consider going longer, possibly six months. At first I was baffled. She went on to explain that six months is long enough to be completely immersed in the culture and learn what it looks like to do in-depth ministry in another country. Her and I had this discussion just before we got on our plane to return to Spokane.

As I was sitting there waiting for the plane to take off I thought, "Ok, God. I will give you a month. If you really want me to do this, let me know within the next month. A month is enough time for you to answer me." Quickly after that I realized that a month is kind of a long time... so my next thought was "Alright, Jesus, a month is a long time... so how about a week? Let me know in the next week, and if you say yes, I will go. No questions asked." That was that. My mind was made up.

The plane started heading down the runway so I took my iPod out to turn my music on. The first song that came on was called 'Oceans' by Hillsong United. The bridge of the song says, "Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders, let me walk upon the waters, where ever you would call me. Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander, and my faith will be made stronger in the presence of my Savior."

In that moment, God answered my prayers. I knew that He was calling me to a place where my trust is without borders. A place that is deeper than my feet could ever wander. That place is Huachinera, Mexico. I decided in my heart right then that I would pursue this dream.

In the last week I have seen God overcome countless obstacles that could potentially prevent me from going. Every day He has confirmed more and more that this is really what I am supposed to be doing. I am so thrilled! Never in a million years did I think that God would bring me to this place. There are many more small details that I could share with you about how God has confirmed in my life that this is His will, but I will save you the time.

Sooooo... I will be leaving for Mexico sometime towards the middle of August! I will be sending out support letters shortly. If you would like one you can email me your address at shelbgeorge@gmail.com. In the next few weeks I will post a blog sharing more about the city of Huachinera and about the Quiros family.