Back from OE

Yahoo!  We are back and it was awesome! Awesome isn't even a strong enough word to describe it. OE this year was in the village of Ibele up in the highlands. We were at 5,900 ft. The people are always a highlight for me. I love hanging out with the ladies and the kids.  There was a total of 85 of us that invaded the village and tried our best to make a difference. We had some work projects like painting, building a road, installing water tanks, fixing the runway fence, and planting over 100 orange trees.  We opened a medical clinic and saw 100 patients, and opened a  dental clinic where we saw 80 dental patients. My team of 8 pulled out 17 teeth. We had 8 days of Kids Clubs and 5 Gospel presentations where over 50 people came forward! Guys, this is what you were praying for!!!  It was so super cool. God showed up and He did amazing things.

Our group hiked up to 8,000 ft. to another village called Sinema. It was cold! I haven't been that cold for a LONG time, probably last year on OE. Haha. We played games with the kids, did crafts, hung out in their houses, slept in their huts, ate their food, sang and prayed together. I wish you could have been there. It was an experience like no other. In Indonesian we would say it was "luar biasa." Outside of normal which translates to extraordinary!

I have seen such spiritual growth in the kids since last year. So many volunteering and serving with joyful hearts. It was a privilege for me to be there with Emma and Sophie and observe them from afar. They love these kinds of things and really shine.

God is so good, you guys. And we are so very blessed. There is an abounding number of things we have that we should be thanking God for every day.  Our lives are so easy compared to the people here. And yet joy is so much more evident here than in America. These people are happy with so little. Spending time with each other is what is important. Not stuff. So that is what we did. Every chance we had we spent time with them, holding their babies, playing with their kids, playing guitars and singing songs, talking, sitting, listening, being. For two weeks, life slowed down. And I loved it. 

Now we are back. Everyone took multiple showers to try and scrub off the gallons of mud caked on our skins, and we all slept in our own beds. Life will go back to normal, but none of us are the same. God has moved in our hearts. I can see changes already. And it makes me smile. What does He have in store for us next? Who knows, but we are ready. And you had a part in all of this.

Thank you! Your prayers were very needed. There were a lot of hikes up the very slippery mountains, and treacherous rivers to cross, and cliffs to shimmy over. So thank you for praying.  Keep praying for all of us. That God would continue to move.

Love you

Rachel