This blog is going to be a compilation of multiple different stories from the past month that I saw God work through. Some are shorter, or longer, big or little moments, but all were sweet things that I wanted to share before I start posting about Nicaragua.
Parent Trap Movie Night with Revel (September 20th)
Our days are packed full of stuff during training camp, but today we used our squad time to go to Walmart to buy work clothes and shoes in preparation for Samaritans Purse. But while we were out, we also got to buy some snacks too. When we got back to AIM, we made chairs into a makeshift couch with our sleeping bags and camping pillows and we got to enjoy some much needed enjoyable rest as a team.
Samaritans Purse (September 24th – October 8th)
In July of this year, Jackson Kentucky was hit with a huge flood. The water raised about 47 feet within the day, which resulted in so much damage. Samaritans Purse responded to the disaster by putting together teams of people to mud out houses, and basically strip them down to the studs.
During our second week on the job, I was pulled from my first team and put on a team with some of the guys from different squads. We were basically strangers, and the house we started working on was in terrible condition.
It was a trailer house and the homeowner hadn’t done anything with the house since the flood happened, so the floors were literally caving in below the beams. If you stepped somewhere that didn’t have a board underneath you fell through. So our team emptied his entire house, all his belonging, family photos, furniture, appliances, etc. We tore down the walls and the bathrooms. The beginning of a new house, aka the ‘mudding out process’ is my least favourite part of our job because you have to carry all of a persons belongings that are moldy and destroyed to the trash pile on the side of the road. And it made it worse too because the homeowner never came to meet us, so we couldn’t ask if he wanted anything saved or not. Because the homeowner couldn’t be there though, one of his neighbour’s came and helped us out. He lived on his own, and his house was just high enough that it didn’t get damaged by the flood. Over the three days that we were working on the house, we got to know the neighbour more and more. He gave us watermelon one day, then later he gave us a tour of his man cave and karaoke setup.
By the third day of working on that house we were coming to a finish and we were supposed to start the house next to his, which just happened to be the homeowner’s daughter and grandchild’s house, but unfortunately we couldn’t start work on that house because the floors were weak and moldy like the first house and on top of that the floors were raised about 8 feet off the ground so it was too dangerous for us to try to work there.
Our team was kind of bummed to hear that we couldn’t work on this house though because we wanted to spend more time with the house owners neighbour (he isn’t saved). We also figured out that our homeowner had a prosthetic leg, was staying with his daughter and grandson in an apartment 2 hours away and on top of that, he was fresh out of heart surgery and he didn’t know Jesus. It was tough news to hear, especially after a long three days of working on his house. I mean the point of our job is to help him out, to share Jesus with him, but we could only do so much for his house and we couldn’t share Jesus without being able to talk with him at all. Anyway we were about to leave the house at the end of the day and our chaplains showed up saying they had good news. Basically what they told us is that they were able to call our homeowner and get to know him over the phone. They said that they had asked him if he thought he would make it to heaven if he died right then, and he answered no. Then they were able to share the truth and life of Jesus into his life and he ended up giving his life to Jesus right there over a phone call!
Isn’t that amazing?!
And what makes things even better is that now our team will have more peace leaving the neighbourhood because we’re believing that the homeowner become a witness for Jesus to all his neighbours (including the one we wished we had more time with ourselves).
Gods so cool!
Squad Bonfire (October 13th)
A day before we leave for Nicaragua, we had a squad bonfire in our camp site. We had s’mores and sang some songs and just hung out. It was a good time. A little later our Squad mentor Luis told us that the Nicaraguan border isn’t allowing Christian Missionaries into the country anymore. So everyone who was still left around the fire joined in prayer, praying that if it was God’s will, that he’d make a way for us to get into the country. After our session of prayer a lot of us contacted our friends and family to ask them to join us in prayer too. The next morning we woke up at 6:30am to spend more time in prayer.
Travel Day (October 15th)
We started our travel day on the 14th at 10:30 pm after a two hour long revival worship service with all the other squads and people involved with AIM. We all got into our World Race vans and drove down to the airport. At the airport our squad set up our sleeping bags along a wall, a bunch of people went to sleep right away, some of us (including me) took a shuttle to the domestic flights airport to say goodbye to K squad. We didn’t really realize how long the drive was or how long we’d have to wait for the next one though so we ended up getting back to our airport squad sleeping area at like 3am. I didn’t want to set up my sleeping bag so I just decided to lay down on the ground against my pack. Let me tell you, it was not worth it. I was cold all night and didn’t get more than at best half an hour worth of sleep. Moral of the story, don’t be stubborn, if you have a sleeping bag, use the sleeping bag. Mind you the airport music and the guys voice that was constantly calling things over the speaker which didn’t help the situation either, but that’s besides the point.
Everyone was tired when we packed up again at 5:30 am and began getting our bags checked. At 9:30am our flight boarded. Flight lasted 4 hours, but it flew by.. literally. We landed in Costa Rice just after noon, and by 2pm we were all in a big van/bus headed toward the Nicaraguan border. The drive was 6 hours long, which usually would be fine for me but the roads were so twisty that I literally couldn’t sleep, and I really wanted to sleep. I did get to look out the window at the view a bit though, which was beautiful. About halfway through our drive, the separate van that was carrying all of our luggage couldn’t continue with us anymore, which meant that we had to squish all of our stuff and all of us 26 people into the van we were already super tight in before the luggage was there. It was really funny actually. The back two rows of seats had our luggage, then people were sitting about 5 or 6 people in each row (which should have only fit 3 people comfortably). Honestly it kind of a miracle that we all fit, it kind of shouldn’t have worked.
By the time we got the the Nicaraguan border we were all exhausted. In the pitch black we emptied our van, grabbed all our stuff and hiked to the baggage checking building. The people there didn’t want us to go through. But so so many people were praying for God to make a way for us to get through. I think everyone on our squad had people from our homes praying on our behalf.
There was one man working that night who wasn’t like the others. He was an answer to our prayers. He ended up convincing the others to let us through. None of us speak good Spanish so we don’t even know what he said or did for us but somehow we made it through. God made a way!!!
We got into a new steaming hot van, exhausted and soaking wet from walking in the rain, and we drove for another 3 hours to Granada! But we made it! God brought us all the way to Nicaragua! We all slept so well that night, and not in our tents and sleeping bags, but real life beds!
Its currently October 31st when I’m finally posting this blog, so I’ve been in Nicaragua for about two weeks now. I have lots of stuff that I want to share with you about my time so far, so expect more blogs about Nicaragua soon.
I’m so thankful for all of your guy’s support and I want to please ask for your continued prayers.
Bye for now, God Bless!
– Hannah 🙂
I love that you led someone to the Lord over the phone. So many times, we think we need the most perfect circumstances or in person. I pray he will continue to share what he has given to his neighbors. What an adventure getting to Nicaragua! I am glad you are finally in a nice bed and able to sleep.
I look forward to hearing all the Lord is doing in Nicaragua and you real soon. Praying for you. Love ya.
Love love love hearing about all your adventures and especially of the greatest miracle of all, when a person gives their heart to Jesus, praise God! So worth all the inconvenience and sacrifices you and your team are put through, isn’t it?
So proud of you guys!! Love love love you my Hannah bun!????????????
Remember to take care of yourself and your friends too, in between your missions.????
Lol, apparently emoticons don’t work too well in this comment area, but just turns into question marks…too funny! Hearts, hugs, kisses and smiles from mom!