Friday March 20,

Hi!  Today was our fun day.  We spent the morning looking at all the projects, including the house we did last time.  We then went to Caye Caulker where some of us shopped and the others snorkeled.  Needless to say we are all tired and a bit sunburned.  We spent the evening eating at a restaurant and being with our friends from Belize.  They are very thankful for all the work we did.  Kept repeating what a blessing we are to them.  If they only knew what a blessing they really are to us.  They keep us humble.  Walking with Shavonnie made me think about how if each one of us gave $5 a month to her that would be enough to pay her bills and most likely her cancer treatments.  If only…  I am so incredibly thankful that I get to come here and continue deepening my relationships with them.  Looking forward to the next time. –Sonjia

 

 

Today was our free day. After breakfast, we looked at the work of all three projects. Then we took a forty-five minute boat ride to Caye Caulker. But first, I went snorkeling for the very first time. It was a blast getting to see barracudas and getting to touch a Nerf Shark. At Caye Caulker, I went shopping with Hannah and Jennifer, and of course, they did most of the shopping. Then we all went back to Belize City and went out to eat at Bird’s Isle, which is about five blocks from where we were staying. I’ve had so much fun on this trip. I really hope to comeback to Belize when I’ll be in college. Thank you other members on this team for treating me like family. –Stephen

 

 

This week has been challenging but a successful trip. We are all worn out & ready to do it all again on the next trip our church takes. Getting to see past friends & meeting new ones is something I have really enjoyed this week. Our team has done a great job of connecting & getting our tasks finished. I am blessed to be here with many family members, girlfriend & friends. It has been great to be part of the 2015 Belize team. – Sean

 

 

This week I have been challenged several times! Usually on these types of trips I am a leader I know what im doing and I get it done and I tend to boss people around! This time I was on the other side I don’t know to much about construction so I got bossed around and I was very challenged by that. Today we didn’t do any work we went to the island of caye caulker and had our free day and I am very burt!! This week over all was a very successful week and I am very glad I decided to come back for my second trip!!- Cody                                                                   

 

This week in Belize has been an awesome time of meeting new people and facing new challenges. A group of us worked at the Bible Society to break down three walls and rebuild them. It was challenging to keep mixing cement day after day but very fulfilling to see our hard work pay off. It has been a blessing to work with the children and to see their excited faces each afternoon. I am very thankful for my time here and am glad the Lord pushed me out of my comfort zone to serve Him here in Belize.

-Stephanie

Thursday March 19

Belize has been an incredible, eye opening experience for me. Seeing people in such dire conditions, but yet smiling ear to ear, was something words can’t describe. Complete strangers showed me a welcoming spirit and a positive attitude, and yet I only know one of my neighbors back home in Indianola. The kids here in the after school programs absolutely shattered my heart. In my line of work I see kids living in some pretty poor conditions from time to time, but when you see and 8 year old girl push a 1 year old girl down the street to go home, knowing that she is the primary care giver, it is deeply troubling. I know this is the case in America as well, but the difference is here it seemed to be quite normal. It is great to know that Christ’s presence is here though and very much alive! The Open Door Believers Church here in Belize City has a wonderful congregation full of great Christian men and woman doing a mighty ministry within the city. Please remember them in prayer as well as all of Belize City. Thanks for listening.   –Nate

 

Hello all back home! This is Caleb speaking to you this beautiful Thursday evening. This week has not been at all what I was expecting. This is my third trip to Belize and coming here I had an idea of what to expect. I knew how poor this country is and I know how amazing the experience is to be here, to see God in the faces of these people here and to see Him work in my heart in amazing ways. But that hadn’t happened to me yet this week. In all the work we did and all the hearts we touched I knew that God was at work. But it didn’t seem to hit me the way it had before. Tonight we spent some time talking through the week, about our highs and lows and challenges. We spent some time in worship and some time in tears and hugs but still God hadn’t pulled anything on my heart. I walked by myself on the way home to the hotel and was so frustrated at myself for not seeing any fruits. I didn’t understand. Then tonight a few team members and I spent time sharing testimonies and our experiences with God in our lives. It was the absolute best thing about this week. To be on this trip and help others break out of their shell and know how good God is, is an amazing thing. God works in so many ways, so many unexpected ways. Thank you for reading and keeping up with our trip! I hope God is blessing you this week and every week.

–Caleb

 

This week has been a challenge for me on many levels.  I have been away from my kids longer than I have ever been, I have been tasked with things that are very much out of my skill set, and then you can add on the physical, mental, and spiritual exhaustion that I am feeling right now.  All that being said, it has all been worth every minute.

On this trip I have felt God move me in a worship service in ways He never has before.  I have grown closer to team members that I knew before only because we went to church together.  I have been challenged by God to look at my life and reevaluate what is and isn't important.

The thing that I have been obsessing over today is this: What do I do now?  Do I go back home and just fall back into my routine, or do I reevaluate and make some changes that God wants to see in my life so that I am better able to serve His purpose.  It is my hope and prayer that I choose the latter of the two.

-Jake


Wow! It's Thursday already! What a week our team has had! Today was our last day on our work projects. I was at the Bible Society all week, tearing down and building up new walls. My part of the project was completed for the most part! It was a challenge. I started this week being someone who had never worked with concrete, to laying a brick and leveling it all by myself! Don't worry though, construction is definitely not my calling in life! I'm pretty sure I was more entertainment for Kingsly (our project leader) than help.

I also got the opportunity today to finally work on a project with my husband. All week we were at the same location, but never working together. I'm thankful for the opportunity to work alongside him.

We wrapped up today getting together as a group and evaluating this week. It was great to hear what different people thought of this week and what they got out of it. My hope and prayer is that each of us will come home different somehow. I hope that we will not be the same people who came here. We have done so much this week and I am proud of my teammates. We are all thankful for your prayers and support this week!

God Bless!

Trisha 

Wednesday, March 18

We all have worked really hard so far. I got to work on the roof the past few days and even showed some of the boys up with my hammering skills! I also got to knock out a wall and then help rebuild it. We have worked with the kids a little bit and it is just so cool to see all of their smiling faces and how they are just so happy all the time. One little girl came up to me and gave me a hug and we just talked for a little while and she told me some stories about her childhood that I found really interesting. One way that I really saw God working today was when we were working at our job sites and I was just tired and frustrated and because I was having a hard time finding the energy to break down the wall and so I just stopped and prayed and asked God to help me find the energy and next thing I know I had enough energy to break down like ten walls. So far this has been a life changing trip and I can’t wait to see what it still holds.

                                                                                                                                -Jennifer

 

What a trip this has been! This was not what I was expecting…at all. But it has been really great.  I was assigned to Ms. Deborah’s house. We are building her a new staircase and putting in new walls. When I first went to her house, quite frankly, I did not feel safe. While I was walking up her stairs they were swaying and creaking. Luckily we have been working on it and I’m at the point where I don’t have to say a quick hail Mary before walking up the stairs (kidding). It’s been hard for me to find work at our worksite. There are only certain things that need to be done and only certain people are capable of doing them. It’s frustrating but I think I’ve done what I can with what I have. My mantra this week has been to go the extra mile. Interestingly enough Nomar, our contact in Belize, told us the same thing our first night in Belize. I know that was God talking to me, telling me to give it my all. I really have been trying to give it my all this week. Tuesday I gave my lesson to a classroom full of Belizean children. There was a boy in my class that had the same backpack as I did. I thought it was a pretty neat coincidence but he thought it was weird. I saw him throw it in the dumpster after I told him (again, I’m kidding J). Anyway, my lesson went well. Definitely an improvement from last time! I practiced with Sean every night before I was supposed to give it. This afternoon at our Wednesday church service Ryan asked for volunteers to come up and give a testimony to the congregation. I didn’t volunteer directly but he did ask me to. I agreed but this was way out of my comfort zone. I didn’t have very much time to prepare. I knew if I wanted to get through this I needed to lean on God. He would give me the words He wanted me to say. It went well, I gave my testimony and people came up and told me I did a really nice job. Darlene and Jake also gave their testimonies (and between you and I, they both showed me up haha). I definitely could feel God’s presence after the fact. This trip has been a rollercoaster of emotions. I am so blessed to get to share this experience with my church family and it’s been great getting to serve alongside Sean. I have had a very emotional week and I wouldn’t trade it for anything!

                                                                                                                                     -Alli

Hello from Belize!  Well, we pretty much hit the ground running from the time we got here.  Saturday and Sunday were spent mostly settling in and practicing our skits and songs and just spending time as a group. We have a quite a large group so we got a lot to attention at the airport and when we were out and about with our green “Belize” shirts. It was awesome that the shirts gave us an opportunity to share with several about what we were preparing to do. Going to the school each day has been quite an experience and I am starting to really enjoy the time we spend there each day. The kids here love to see us and are so warm and welcoming.  The work projects we go to each day have presented lots of opportunities to do good, hard work.  I am at “My Father’s House” which is also attached to the Bible Society.  This is a place where missionaries come and stay when they have no other place to stay while they are here. At the Bible Society I have been helping knock out parts of the walls with a sledge hammer.  This is a great activity when you have frustrations you just want to get out.  Scott better look out, because now I’m thinking about having a more open floor plan at home! Kathy, Sonjia and I have mostly been upstairs chipping paint and painting the main area.  The first work day we had to take out a few ceiling panels and we are getting ready to drywall them tomorrow. Today we were doing some mudding and taping on the ceiling. We keep joking that we have to keep these things secret from our husbands or they will never do these projects for us again if they know we can do them ourselves.  So mums the word!

 I think the way I have most seen God working this week is in the church services at Open Door Believers Chapel. Sunday’s service was so spirit filled and the worship was so lively. You couldn’t help but send praises to our God, a God that is not an American God, but a God of all nations. Ryan gave an amazing lesson about not looking back. He talked about how God isn’t interested in our happiness, but in our obedience.  And that is a lesson that I find myself applying over and over again as the week goes on. Tonight’s service was another amazing time. I found the way they pray to be awe-inspiring.  They pray all at the same time and you can hear all of God’s people lifting their voices in a unified prayer and it is really something amazing. 

The thing that has challenged me the most has been the after school children’s ministry. The first day we got there was a little chaotic to say the least.  The kids were not like the kids at the school. They would not sit still and they were pretty aggressive and misbehaved. Several of us found this experience to be different from what we expected. That night at dinner we had a nice conversation with Cellestino, who has been our driver this week.  He told us that we really needed to show the kids some tough love and we again talked about the idea of how this isn’t about our happiness, it’s about our obedience.  God doesn’t care if the kids think we are nice, he wants us to share the love of God with them.  And these kids come from broken homes and need to hear the gospel. Yesterday we went back and it was like night and day.  We were obedient and we definitely showed these kids tough love and it made all the difference. I will never forget the frustrations or the lessons that I am learning on this trip!

 

                                                                                                                                                -Jill

Tuesday March 17

Hey guys, it’s Dani. I am so excited to be here in Belize City! It’s been really warm and sunny out. I am going to give the rundown starting from Saturday when we first left Iowa. My biggest fear was getting on to the airplane itself and not getting sick. I was even offered little bags incase I did from my friends in front of me. Also thanks to Erin for letting me hold on for my dear life (sorry if I made you not have a pulse). Once we made it to the Belize Airport, Cody and myself were given a surprising awakening. Our luggage was lost and luckily we both stayed calm. Our luggage ended up making it safely to our hotel that night before dinner! (Thanks Nomar- We both greatly appreciated it! Sunday nothing really happened too exciting, we went to a pool and got to mingle with one another. We also attended Open Door Believers Chapel for service that morning. The service was the highlight of my day because it’s a lot different than our service. The music they had was more dancing and I felt really more connected with God being able to worship. I will say this trip has definitely made me come out of my shell. Another highlight from service was building relationships and meeting tons of new people. Jill and I met this girl named Leah. Leah is a woman from Canada that lives here with three children. Her husband is in charge of children’s ministry for the whole city. They provide camps in the summer from children 4 years old to 14 and all these camps would be known as our Junior Camp back home.

Monday is when we first started working. I do however want to mention Erin was not the first person to get the injury of the trip. That would be me! I have been asking around different team members and they did tell me splinters aren’t really considered an injury because everyone gets them! And since it did not contain blood, it therefore is not an injury. I have about four or five splinters on my hands and don’t consider it. My injury did contain blood and would not stop bleeding. My injury happened when I was holding a railing for Nick to unscrew with the saw and he told me to let go so I did, little did I know Nick would let go of it too. That railing came down on my right knee pretty hard with a nail sticking out and going into my knee. I can know say this is only my second missions trip  and both trips I have taken a nail to my knee. Luckily I am a tough girl and took it like a man. So I do claim the title of first injury and am pretty proud of it (Sorry Erin).

 

Today was day two of working. There are three different projects and the project I am placed at is Jevan’s house. What we are doing here is plumbing, we are replacing a railing, which was finished today. We also finished a HUGE pile of dirt, sand, and rocks that was in the front yard and moved it all on the side and back of house to cover the swamp that is around their house. We also worked on cement blocks and putting concrete for the counter we are going to start working on tomorrow (which I learned how to mix concrete for the first time ever-new learning experience for me) Also the windows finally came today and our group has to replace nine windows to this house and we are starting that tomorrow as well. So all in all we have a lot to get done in the next two days and with the amount we have to do, it will be a challenge, but I think we will be able to accomplish what we need to get done.

 

I started off my day at the Grace Primary School. Caleb gave his devotion on Daniel and obeying God. We did the Sin Chair skit. The children thought that Caleb was hilarious as usual. Once we got to our job site at Javan’s house we finished up the front porch. I went inside and cemented bricks to make two walls that will soon become the base of their countertop. Towards the end of our work day we finally got our windows so we can be ready to do that bright and early tomorrow. I went to after school children’s ministry. It was very eye opening to see these kids and how they behave. It was heart breaking to see very young kids taking care of their baby siblings. It’s a very different cultural change. Later we went to a friend of Ryan’s to worship and talk about our trip. And now I’m ending my long day writing this.   Emiley

 

 

Hello, Iowa. I understand the weather there is about as nice as here. Darn!  J  Well, today is day 4 of our trip and we are beginning to see some actual progress in our work projects.  At my worksite, we finished moving a pile of sand/rock that had been in the front yard for years, to the sides and back of the house, which was much like swampland.  We worked in the hot sun for 2 days on this project so were glad to see the last rock moved today. In this house, we also built a couple of short concrete walls in the kitchen to put in a new sink, and at the end of the day we got new windows, which we will be installing tomorrow.  We also finished installing a new railing for their front porch.  It was a good day and I expect to see even more of our plans come together – at all 3 worksites.

The thing that strikes me most about Belize is the attitude of the people and how the culture differs from ours.  What stands out to me the most is this. I understand not being able to do projects that take money or skills that you don’t have.  What I don’t understand is not doing things that need to be done – things that don’t take money or skills.  Like cleanup work, or moving the pile of rock and dirt that we did.  I can’t imagine not doing that stuff at my own home.  If something needs done, we do it.  If something needs cleaned, we clean it.  And so on. You get the picture.

 

I guess that is one of the many ways God can use us on a trip like this.  If people can see that we would come 1700 miles to do things for them because we love God and we love them, it makes it all worth it.  People look at us and wonder why we do it.  That is what gives us the opportunity to have conversations with them about our faith.  If that is how God opens doors, so be it.  We are happy to be here.  We don’t mind the work and we love the people.  It’s good to get outside of my world and think about someone besides myself for a while.  This is, once again, a mountaintop experience.  I’m so thankful to be here.  See you soon!   Julie

 

 

 

Monday March 16

We began our day at the primary school where we were able to briefly interact with the children before class started.  It was so neat to see their classrooms, school uniforms, and overall culture of a Belizean elementary. Our group had a lot of fun connecting with the children through skits, song, and devotion.  One of the children even decided to sing us a song, “This Little Light of Mine”.  It was such a blessing to start our journey knowing that the people of Belize are excited right along with us!

 

Javon’s House is where I spent the majority of my time.  Just driving through the neighborhoods and parking in front of this home I was reminded of how incredibly blessed we are as Americans.  There is such a need in Belize and it was evident that any help we could provide at this site would be so appreciated. We began by removing the rusted and broken railing on the front porch, and then rebuilt a new safe and functional rail.  We also removed the exterior trim from the windows, because one of our big endeavors tomorrow will be to replace those windows. There is a huge plumbing obstacle, and currently the sewage drains into the yard right next to the house, along with some standing water.  We moved a large dirt pile and create a muddy path to walk on all the way around the house so that we can get to the windows. This was a HUGE accomplishment! Before we left this site we ripped up the old flooring and swept so tomorrow we can begin to lay the new flooring. Already, this home is looking completely transformed.  It was a dirty job, but our group worked together with purpose, and I know we made an impact. J I look forward to seeing what we can get done here tomorrow!

 

It wasn’t ALL work and no play… We just got back from a really fun dinner to celebrate Jake’s birthday!  I thought it was really awesome that we were able to treat our Belizean friends to dinner.  This is my first year coming to Belize, and one thing that has really surprised me is the relationships our team has made in this beautiful country (a pleasant surprise of course!). I challenge myself to make those connections this year as I know these friendships are a product of God’s work. -Abby

 

Hello from Belize! This is Hannah, and today was our first day of work! We started our day at the school. It was so interesting to see the kids and worship with them. They even knew some of our songs better than us! We preformed some skits for the kids and they loved them and thought they were all pretty funny. My favorite skit was about becoming a Christian instead of just acting like one because I think the kids understood it and liked it the most. The kids were much more respectful and well behaved than I was when I was their age! From the school we went back to the hotel to change and get ready for the rest of the day. I worked at Debra’s house today and it really made me change my perspective about my own house. We replaced several spots on the floor and put paneling on some parts of the wall. We found some wood lice in the floor boards and had to spray them to get them to leave. Tomorrow we are going to replace the stair case that leads to the front door. I wish I had more construction skills!!! I am so thankful for the roof I live under and I feel so blessed to have the opportunities that come with living in the United States. Driving down the streets makes me wish that I could stay down here and fix every broken floorboard and wobbly staircase at every house.

Abby

 

Hey everyone! It’s Erin. So, as you already know, today was our first day of work. We started out by going to Grace Primary School (the same school we have went to on our past 2 trips) to sing songs, perform skits and give devotions. And of course, give lots of hugs to the children. The group I am a part of was with the older kids and we had a blast! They participated in the songs (for the most part) and really enjoyed our skits.

 

Before we started, while we were still outside interacting with all the kids, Julie came walking over towards me with a beautiful girl. Julie had been talking to her and found out that her name was Erin. What are the chances that there would be someone named Erin in Belize?! We started talking and we pretty much have the same personality. She said she is loud, crazy and loves to sing. J  I will post a photo of her on my Facebook at some point.

 

Next, we headed off to our work projects. There are 3 major projects for us to complete this week so we split up into 3 work groups. My group was scheduled to go to Ms. Deborah’s house but there was a slight delay so we were able to help bust out a wall at The Bible Society. During this time I was able to acquire the title for “First Injury!” I have to admit that I was kind of excited to earn this title. J Some of you may remember that we had a group of people on our first trip to Belize who went to The Bible Society to paint the walls. I had mixed emotions as I was slamming the sledgehammer into the wall and trying to help knock it out. The walls were blue and I know how hard our previous group had worked to make them look so beautiful. But I also knew that this particular wall needed to be replaced and the store would benefit greatly. We eventually headed to Ms. Deborah’s house to get started on our projects there. We spent today working on the inside. It’s really hard to describe in detail all the things that were wrong and terrifying about this house. I was honestly amazed that people were able to live there let alone able to get inside. I think the improvements we made will help make it safer living conditions even though it’s still nowhere close to our standards in America. It really makes you realize how much we complain and appreciate what we have.

 

There was a group of 10 teammates that left the work projects early to head to our afternoon children’s ministry. We didn’t start out with very many kids but they just kept coming and I believe at one point there were around 40 kids. I’ll be honest with you things did not go as planned with this particular ministry. It was pretty chaotic to say the least. The majority of us gave our fair share of piggy back rides. Cheyenne was pinched, Stephen was playfully tackled by a group of kids, I was bitten and had my hair pulled. This was definitely the more challenging part of my day. The best part is that the kids enjoyed themselves and we did get to sing some songs about Jesus to them. We have come up with a different approach for tomorrow that will hopefully result in being able to share more about Jesus with these little ones.

 

We ended our evening by going out to eat to celebrate Jake’s birthday. It was very delicious and a fun time spending more time bonding with one another.

Sunday, March 15

Today we went to church at Open Door Believers Chapel and it was really awesome! The thing that stuck out to me the most was the way they worship. They put so much energy and spirit into the songs they are singing. It’s not just the leaders, it’s the whole congregation. Their pastor, Pastor Dickie, sang with the worship team and he was literally shouting to Jesus at the top of his lungs. You could tell that he was so overtaken by his love for God. They were all dancing and just singing their hearts out. It was so amazing to watch. They are just so filled with the spirit! The way they worship is so different then the way we worship. Most of the time back home some people move back and forth or maybe put their hands up. But these people couldn’t keep still! As a member of the worship team it was just so amazing to watch. You could just feel they love these people have for Jesus. They may live in a third world country, that’s full of crime and poverty, but regardless of all of the bad stuff they still give it all to Jesus. They don’t blame Him for the way things are here and just turn their backs. They worship and thank Him for what they do have. It really made me think a lot about how I need to thank God more. I take so much for granted back home and I know that I don’t thank God for all the great things that he does for me day after day. I know that the last time that I came, I went to this church on Sunday, but this was such an awesome reminder. I really enjoyed it!

Cheyenne

 

It was wonderful today to get to see the people we met in 2013 at Open Door Believers Chapel again! We were remembered by a lot of them and some of the children even remembered Alli’s name. The people there are so friendly and show such appreciation for us. I hope that they know how much we appreciate them and that they are a blessing to us. So thankful that God brought us all together!

The team members are getting to know each other better and it’s terrific to see us all getting ready to do God’s will with each of our own special talents that He blessed each of us with. We have quite a range in ages but it’s not noticeable as we all help each other. Looking forward to begin working hard tomorrow, going to the school and then doing the after school ministries!

Kathy

 

Hey Everyone! This is Karen.

We had our first full day in beautiful Belize today! We started off our day with a great breakfast prepared by the girls at the Coningsby complete with fry jack! They made extra for us because they know how much we like it. After breakfast we took a short walk to the ocean which is just a block from the hotel. We gathered together and took communion as a team and it was an awesome bonding experience for us and really set the tone for the day and the week ahead.

We went to church at Open Door Believer’s Chapel and it was a bit like coming home. In fact when I saw Nomar at the airport when we arrived yesterday (wow, was that just yesterday??) he gave me a huge hug and welcomed me “back home.” And you know, it is kinda funny that it has been two years since we were last here but in some ways it is like we never left.

We saw many familiar faces at church and we were welcomed with big smiles and hugs. We got to see Glennis Barrow whose house we worked on during our last trip. It was great to see her again! The worship to ODBC was amazing! These beautiful Belizeans are so passionate in their praise and worship. They did a reading in Creole, it was very beautiful. Caleb, Erin, and and Cheyenne did a couple of worship songs and Ryan gave a really good message on being true followers of Christ. Today was probably one of the highlights of the trip for me….re-connecting with these beautiful people that have somehow captured a little piece of my heart.

Tonight, we got our work assignments and tomorrow the real work will begin. Grace Primary school in the morning , then off to our different work sites.

Off to sleep because the morning will come quickly. Please remember to pray for us!

 

 

 

Saturday March 14th

It’s been a long day but definitely worth all the planning and hard work. Thankfully, the day went without too much difficulty and all 25 of us arrived safe and sound in Belize.

The weather is beautiful, hot and humid, but definitely not complaining. We spent some time going over our skits as we tried to prepare for this week’s children’s ministries.  We were able to meet our drivers for the week and get to know them. They challenged us to have fun and work hard but to also remember that it may be the little things, like giving the kids time, attention, and unconditional love, that make the biggest difference.

We are all very excited to be here and can’t wait to see what God is going to do through us and in us as we serve Him this week.

Please continue to pray for safety, health, and a servant’s heart for each team member. We look forward to sharing our stories with you throughout this week.

Darlene

Today has been a day of new experiences and new sights. We prayerfully made it through the day and are all excited about our upcoming week. It feels great to be here, no longer having to worry about the technicalities of customs, flight schedules, and immigrations. For so long we have been talking about the trip and we are finally here!! I am anxious to get to work and see what God has in store for us. The work projects sound challenging and I am so excited by this! It is so encouraging to know that we can truly make a difference in the lives of our brothers and sisters in Christ. Although it may be a lot easier to just slap some paint on or pull some weeds than the projects we are facing, knowing that we have left behind lasting changes that will improve someone's life and serve as a lasting reminder of Gods grace is so powerful.

The relationships we have started to create within our group and with those here in Belize serving along side us are so encouraging. Every one has been so willing and encouraging and I can't wait to see what we can do together with God on our side.

Kelsey

We got up really early, got on a plane. I had never flown outside the country so it was a new experience for me. I am excited to share the word of God with a different culture. We got to meet Nomar and Wellington and some of the other people we will be working with here in Belize. Getting to know them helped to make the transition into a new culture a little easier. I even got to try Belize Coke and Fanta, which is way better than what we have back in the states (because I can say that now, "the states")! A couple of us got to go look at the projects we will be working on and it will be a lot of hard work, but as long as all of us stay busy and give it 100% we should be able to get most of the work done. I look forward to working hard this week and getting everything done.

-Nick