Home Again: Prayer letter 1

As promised, a post just for the El Salvador trip.  I was in La Libertad, El Salvador last week, and many of you helped to make that possible.  I owe you the deepest thanks, and sincerely hope that this letter encourages you.  If you have read any of my older blog posts, or even just talked to me, you may know that I absolutely love the sunrise.  I find them so renewing and love the promise of a new day.  The picture above is just that: a promise of a new day, and particularly special because it was in La Libertad, a place so near to my heart.  I woke early each morning to exercise on the beach as well as just sit and take in the first warm rays of the morning.  I meditated a lot on God's power and his ability to make everything new as I watched each wave washing up onto the shore.

This past week was so good for my life and for my spirit.  I was able to reconnect with many of my friends there that I have grown close to over the past 4 years as my involvement with the church there has grown.  My role has changed a little each year, and this year was different because I am an official staff member now, which required me to have a greater sense of responsibility.  We also did a lot of different things than usual this trip.  We worked with a lot of kids in the public schools, an orphanage, a day care, and the children at the nutrition center at the church.  It was beautiful to see each member of the team engage with the children and allow their hearts to change as they made new friends and memories, that I know they will carry with them for the rest of their lives.

On a more personal level, I had the privilege of getting baptized last week.  I accepted Christ as my savior when I was 12 at SpringHill Camp, but I did not know that I should get baptized since I was baptized as an infant.  I have felt the Holy Spirit telling me for some time now that I nee to get baptized as a step of obedience, but I honestly have been too proud and afraid of what others would think.  However when the opportunity presented itself I just knew it was right.  I quickly went to tell pastor Ivo and he asked if he could do it!  I was so excited and he as well as two people that have played an integral role in my spiritual journey also baptized me in the Pacific Ocean.  It was absolutely perfect, and I feel it brought me a lot closer to the Lord as well.

This trip was a great reminder of why I love ministry so much.  I saw students wrestle with the ideas that society so frequently shoves in our faces to consume and only think about ourselves and that we are only worth the number of zeros on the end of our pay check.  I saw people love children that have not, and are not growing up in an atmosphere that puts them in a place to succeed like many of us.  There were so many moments of joy as well as tears and heartbreak.  These are the things that really speak to my heart.  I love when people are confronted with something that is not right in the world and challenged in their heart to do something about it.  I think trips like this one are such a great way for students to interact with these issues because the issues are no longer something we think about and just try to find a solution for while sitting in our comfortable life.  We are forced to put a face to words like poverty, inequality, oppressed.  These faces become the faces of our friends and we are more moved to do something about it because we have actually interacted with an issue and made friends that for some unfair reason, have been handed a bad hand. 

I really feel as well that it brings the Gospel to life.  Although we do cook and offer food to people they will be hungry again, and we cannot be there every day to provide this basic need for them.  What we can do is share about Christ and how in Him we do not ever have to go hungry again.  For me, sharing the Gospel can be really hard while I am at home.  I feel insecure and scared of what people think.  However after sharing with over 500 people in one week I am reminded of how beautiful it truly is and how selfish it is of me to not share with others.

So I guess to wrap it up, I want to offer another huge thanks to all those that have been praying and and also supported me in this mission trip.  God is doing amazing things in La Libertad, and I am just lucky that I even have the opportunity to witness it.  Please feel free to leave comments with any thoughts or questions.

Standing in awe of the beauty of the Gospel,

Sigourney