“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” -Hebrews 13:8
The last few weeks have been an absolute whirlwind and I just wanted to post an update of what my life is looking like at the moment!
So as most of you know from my prior blogs, I have wrapped up my time in Honduras! My time there was so so sweet and I am so grateful for each of the people that I met there and the work that the Lord is doing in that city!
The process of leaving Honduras is where things started getting a little crazy for our squad. About two weeks before we were set to leave the country, about 12 of my squad mates tested positive for covid, and had to leave the mountain to quarentine abruptly and without the opportunity to say thief goodbyes. As myself, and some of the other members of my squad continued to do limited ministry up on the mountain, are friends were quarantined in hotels in the town of Comayagua.
On June 21st we were all to get retested and leave the mountain to drive to our debrief which would be held in a town closer to the airport, for about a week prior to leaving Honduras. One more person on the mountain tested positive, sending myself and three other friends to our own hotel to quarantine for about 6 days, missing some of debrief.
Ultimately, only about half of our squad ended up making it to debrief, as 17of us stayed back. Its a LONG and slightly stressful story if what happened next, but essentially only 17 of us were able to leave Honduras when we were supposed to, head to our one night layover in New Jersey, and then off to South Africa…or so we thought.
As we tried to board our plane to South Africa, more than half the squad still in Honduras, we began to run into some problems with our original covid tests while checking our bags, but they waved us through anyway.
After sitting in the airport ALL day, we were there last ones boarding the plane and as we handed them our tickets they stopped our groups. They told us there was a problem with our covid tests and if we got on the plane to South Africa we would instantly be deported once we got there. So no flight that day!
We actually had the sweetest experience from United Airlines after that. Not a single one of us was mad, it actually seemed to some of us as extremely God orchestrated. God tried everything in His power to keep us off that plane. What if us not getting on that plane, which caused the plane to be delayed 45 minutes, was to save something from happening to the plane?
A lady who worked at the airport was so sweet to us and bought us all pizza. Her name was Crystal and we loved her and got to pray for her! There was another woman who had to miss the plane for the same reason as us. She told us being with us changed her whole mood about the situation. Maybe God put us there for her?
The next day, we go to the airport to get covid tested again, with the promise of getting on another flight to South Africa that night. We got tested, waited around, and got really excited when most of us were negative. Unfortunately we soon found out the disappointing news that one of us tested positive.
The airlines covid team decided to individually interview us, to get a good sense of who had potentially been exposed or not. Ultimately the decision was made that the group of people that had previously tested positive in the last few weeks but were now negative could fly, but the group of us (6) who tested negative but could have possibly been exposed before were separated and sent into a 10 day quarantine.
AIM decided to keep the 17 of us together and now we all sit in hotel rooms in New Jersey, waiting for our different quarantines to end and to meet up with the rest of our squad in New Jersey.
I have two decisions when looking at this situation. I can choose to look at it as a setback or as a grace. I can choose to see my own agenda falling apart, or I can choose to see Gods will being done. There have been so many times in the process of moving around in New Jersey that I have run into someone that I have gotten to pray for, or a seemingly divine appointment has occurred.
God never had South Africa in the cards this week for our squad. For me He had New Jersey in mind, and I’m grateful to be where my feet are planted, even if it is quarantined in a hotel room.
Who are we to say what is good and what is bad? Who are we to judge the goodness of God on the bases of the perceived goodness of our circumstances?
“For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility.” -Ephesians 2:14
The Lord is my peace, I’m grateful to go anywhere He takes me. We’ve been given the news that instead of South Africa, we will be headed to Romania! If it wasn’t for all the “setbacks” I wouldn’t be headed to Romania and I’m glad that I am! Stay tuned to hear how travel goes to Romania and what ministry will look like once we get there!
This week I am grateful for:
-Gods faithfulness in consistency during circumstances which are everything but.
-Flush toilets, Starbucks, and laundry machines that actually turn your clothes back to white.
-To live in a country where to scream that Jesus is Lord is a freedom we have.—
-To be surrounded by friends who live with the eyes of Jesus, look at things with a higher perspective, and love me well!
-Hot showers.
Lord, thank you for this life I am living. Thank You for showing me more and more what it looks like to abandon my expectations to make way for your will. Continue to show me what it looks like to loosen my grip on the things and ideas I try to hold on to. May You be the only thing that I grasp as You grip onto me.
