1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” This verse God kept bringing to my attention and I would just read it and go on to the next thing. Then this morning, with my bible open God led me right back there again. This time I slowed down while reading and that is when I understood. It had the three things God has been laying on my heart the past month. Be joyful always….God has been showing me that He is the only one who can deeply and fully satisfy me. Joy is a deep satisfaction in God and His ways. Pray continually….God has been challenging me greatly with my prayer life this week; in the midst of everything, I need to be continually praying and communicating with God. Giving thanks in all circumstances….God is my Creator and Planner; so I need to be thankful in every circumstance for what God has done or is doing. That includes getting rid of all the anxious thoughts and worries in my life! I find comfort in knowing that God will direct and guide me to knowing what His will is for my life. 

 

I have been having lots of fun at the school this week, especially during my time with the 4^th graders! Today as the students came pouring into the classroom they started forming a line to greet me with Chilean kisses. Two 4^th grade boys kept going through the line till they were the only ones left.  It was the sweetest thing! What a joy they bring to me! (Above picture of two 4th graders) Last night I made the girls monkey bread and they loved it! They never had anything like it and have been asking for more, but I told them our stomachs can’t handle more for a while! Thank you mom for the recipe! I can’t believe only 4 more weeks left. Please pray for my remaining time here and that God would bless it. Thank you all so much for your support and love!

Another weekend gone by rapidly! As I look back, I stand in awe at how great our God is. There were moments that I felt I couldn’t keep going and God would answer my prayers and just guide, provide, and comfort me. God is the one who I can solely rely on and trust will never leave me! Praise the Lord!

Saturday was very busy! A local supporting church came to the House of Hope and helped out with micro business and cleaning. It was a fun time with lots of Spanish! After they left all the girls were starving for some carne (meat), so we had a Chilean barbeque! I’m finding there is nothing like an Iowan/Nebraskan barbeque, but it was still tasty. I remember looking at the table at all the dishes and asking myself, “How can you mix peas, lettuce, salt, lemon juice, and corn together?” Like I said, nothing like the delicious corn on the cob, cheeseburger, and baked beans! Then, we all decided to take a taxi to the movie theater with Tom! What a blast! Most of the movies at the movie theater are in English with Spanish subtitles, so I was even more excited to watch Fast and Furious. We got a tub of popcorn and a Coca Cola to share and I was shocked when I took my first bite of popcorn. It was sweet kettle corn, the complete opposite of salty, butter popcorn like in the states. I had no idea Chile had different popcorn! We got back about 1:30 a.m. so I was ready for bed!

Sunday I went to church with Tom and it was very enjoyable getting to know him better. I am really going to miss him when he leaves Monday night! He has been such a blessing and an encouraging person to talk to. I also went to Lilo’s house and got to spend time with her family. Her niece and nephew showed me their Chilean dance outfit, known as the Cueca. Adorable! The weekend was a blessing and I am excited to see what God has planned for this week! Please pray for my English class tomorrow night with the adults and that it will be God’s class first and foremost and the communication wouldn’t be an issue. Also, keep in your prayers Tom as he is traveling back home! Thank you all so much for your encouragement and blessing. God is good!

This week at the school the students take tests for an hour each morning. I have had to observe the 8^th graders testing alone quite a bit. I find it hilarious how once Tia Lucy leaves the room and leaves me in charge, they think they can cheat on their tests. Oh boy were they wrong today!! I caught a girl with numerous cheat sheets, another girl with answers written on her arm, and answers being spoken in Spanish many times that numbers can’t even count. Though, the funniest moment was when a student was asking me a question and I saw a girl whispering an answer to another girl in the back of the classroom; I just gave her the look while smiling and waving! She saw I caught her once again and she shook her head in disbelief. There will be no cheating in my classroom!

Tia Lucy and I had time to just chat together and she told me how tired and stressed she is. She has had numerous talks from the principal because her students are doing very poorly in their academics, half the class has been suspended for behavior, and her class has been accused of stealing from the school. I asked her if she still enjoys teaching and she replied, “Yes, but the students make it very difficult and stressful. What keeps me going is the love I have for the students and I believe in them.” It brought tears to my eyes to hear her say these things because I have seen these students treat her so disrespectful, but she loves them with the love of Christ. I admire her strength, courage, and kindness as a teacher. I have and am still learning so much from her. She is a blessing and needs a lot of prayer. Please keep praying for her health and strength.

(Above picture is the playground at the school) Tom Orme, the director of Vision for Chile, arrived today and is staying till Monday! It is a blessing to be able to talk with him in English about how I’m doing and just to chat about what God is doing! Proverbs 16:9 “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.”

I felt God telling me to share this with you; it is from Jesus Calling:
"Learn to laugh at yourself more freely. Don't take yourself or your circumstances so seriously. Relax and know that I am God with you. When you desire My will above all else, life becomes much less threatening. Laughter lightens your load and lifts your heart into heavenly places. I rejoice when you trust Me enough to enjoy your life lightheartedly. Do not miss the Joy of My Presence by carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders. Rather, take My yoke upon you and learn from Me. My yoke is comfortable and pleasant; My burden is light and easily borne. Matthew 11:28-30"
God loves to hear our laughter!

What a weekend full of blessings! The Palacios Family were so welcoming and loving towards me! I absolutely loved every moment with them. They wanted to give me a weekend full of typical Chilean activities and food, so I really got to experience Chile! Saturday, we first celebrated Father’s Day with a huge breakfast (waffles, bacon, eggs, and fresh bread) which was sort of Chilean, and then Cecilia and Pamela took me all over Santiago! We went to Santa Lucia where the “White House” and downtown area is and climbed a famous mountain/hill which was so beautiful! We ate some Chilean peanuts which were coated in sugar and butter and then went shopping in a vending market! A fun time that was! They also took me up another mountain where statues and a catholic church were; Catholicism is the main religion in Chile. I tried Mote which is a peach drink with rice; not my favorite dessert I may say! Also ate my first Chilean ham and cheese empanada; nothing like the ones at Taco Bell! It was so much fun being at the top of those mountains and seeing Santiago. It was sad you couldn’t see far though because the air was full of smoke from all the pollution. Saturday night I went to a young adult’s gathering at their church, which is where my mom served at during her mission’s trip! It was a neat experience to see all the work my mom did in person! Sunday morning was church and celebrated Father’s Day more! I got to see Giovanni, whom stayed with my family for a while when he visited Iowa. The church has an area of pictures from our churches past mission trips there and when I saw them I just started crying. It made me miss my family and church family so much! Thank you Lord for the loving and amazing church family you have blessed me with! I don’t know how to explain my experience at the church…but it was a blessing. After church the Palacios made me a Chilean barbeque, full of sausage and all those meats whose names you can’t pronounce! Also, there was the typical Chilean salad (tomatoes with onions on top with lots of salt and oil), corn with mayo, and 3 Leches ice cream! Yummy! It was hard to say goodbye to them, but we are planning to see each other before I leave one last time!

As I reflected on my weekend I thought about what God showed me. He really showed me that He is my STRENGTH! At those times when I missed my family and home the most, He was my comfort and strength. He also showed me that there is no need to worry about what is ahead. So often I worry about what is next and what I need to prepare for, rather than just BEING. This weekend I had no idea what was next and I could just focus on being and enjoying life. I thought about how difficult it is to just BE in the U.S. because life can get so busy and we get caught up in planning ahead while what we need to do instead is TRUST God will direct us and supply our needs. Jeremiah 29:11

Happy Father’s Day again Dad!!! God sure blessed me by having you as my father. Thank you for being such a godly and loving man. I love you and miss you so much!! Enjoy the snickers ice cream!

 

“I caused a lot of trouble when I was little and went to a girl’s orphanage at the age of 7 in La Pintana. I grew up believing that once people turned 18 years old they were bad. I never wanted to turn 18. As long as I can remember, I wanted to kill my mother, my brother, and myself. For my 15^th birthday when I was blowing my candles on my birthday cake out, I wished that my mother, brother, and myself would die. No one knew I wished that, only I did. I tried a lot to kill myself, but it never worked. Then my last year came at the orphanage and I went to a mandatory week-long church camp. It was very boring and every time Jesus was talked about I would say, “Oh yeah…that is great.” Then the last day came and it was like a light bulb came on. Jesus was there with me and I changed. I didn’t want to kill my mother, brother, or myself anymore. I asked Jesus into my heart. Then somehow before I was to leave the orphanage, someone told me I could go to the House of Hope. That is when I met Tio Tom and when I started living at the House of Hope. The House of Hope has helped me grow closer to Jesus and helped me have many opportunities.”

This is one of the girls’ testimony, at the House of Hope. She said I could share it with you and I wanted to share it exactly how she told me. She is one who I have gotten to know very well and I’m able to speak fluent English with. Her name is Lilo (picture above is of Lilo and me) and I want to ask if you would pray for her. Please pray she would keep drawing closer to Jesus Christ. She is a Sunday school teacher and also goes to school. She is a strong young woman and has been through a lot, but has learned from a lot of mistakes.  She is a beautiful daughter of God!

Today I had an awesome spanish moment!! I was helping this lady who works at the House of Hope and is like a mother to everyone, but she doesn't speak any English. It has been very difficult for me to communicate with her and often have felt discouraged. Though, today it was like God just spoke words out of my mouth and we were saying multiple, full sentences to each other in Spanish; I actually understood our conversation! Praise the Lord!!! This weekend I get to spend time with the Palacios family, whom my mother stayed with when she was down here. I am very excited to see them and build a stronger friendship with! I also get to visit their church, which is where my mother served at! Have I said how excited I am!!!??? Can’t wait to tell you all about the weekend!

Hey everyone! I am so sorry I haven’t updated in a while!!! The internet at the House of Hope is awful and when you call an internet company to come fix your problem in Chile, don’t expect them to come when you ask them to.

I can’t believe it is nearly the middle of June already! Time sure flies by! This past weekend I was blessed to be able to go to Los Dominicos, which is a really rich, beautiful, and clean place in Santiago. I stayed with an English speaking family, who supports and helps out with Vision For Chile. It was a nice change to be in a family setting again and be with people from the United States. Three of my favorite things from the weekend…the beautiful view of the city, attending their English speaking church, and eating at a pizza place where you could watch them make the dough and cook your pizza! It was absolutely tasty as well! The scariest moment…I had to ride the metro/subway there and back alone. I know for a fact it was all God because I had no idea where I was going, but God just kept directing my feet and somehow got to where I needed to be. There was one moment I was on the subway and a lot of sentences in Spanish were being said over the speakers, but I had no idea what was being said. The subway stopped like usual and I noticed a ton of people were getting off, more than usual. I looked one way and there was no one else on and I turned the other direction and it was empty as far as I could see. I quickly jumped off and good thing I did because the subway went a ways and then stopped in between walls to be fixed. God is good and always with us! That is all I got to say!

I started an English class yesterday with four girls at the House of Hope! It was a lot of fun just laughing together and building friendships! It is nice having a class where the students are respectful and keep their hands to themselves. I had my weirdest food in Chile also recently…flan. I heard about it in the United States, but never tried it. Not my favorite, but it is edible!

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” God has been challenging me with praying continually and asking His Spirit to take charge of the details of each and every day. God never wants us to lose sight of His presence. Thank you so much for praying for my parents! They are back safely and had a blessed trip!

I am doing very well this week however I am unable to update everyone due to the House Of Hope internet being out of service. I hope to update everyone as soon as it is repaired. Allison (Via Rick)

Days are going by faster each day! Monday, Megan, the other intern left and it was hard I have to admit. That night God really showed me how often I rely on other people rather than Him. It is so easy for me to find comfort or satisfaction in someone’s words or presence; it is very dangerous. Of course God kept at it and in my quiet time I read all about finding satisfaction in God! It is really cool when God does those things, even if you don’t appreciate them at first! Isaiah 55:1-2 says “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare.”

Every morning I look forward going to the school and just being with the young children! I can’t describe in words how much excitement I get from teaching!! Even though the student’s behavior is often very bad, you have those moments where it all makes it worth it! Please pray for Tia Lucy, who I am teaching with. She gets so frustrated and worn out from the student’s disrespecting her and causing disruptions during class time. I admire her patience when a student just gets up and goes and hits another student for no reason. She is a blessing and a wonderful teacher! This morning I had a horrific sight on my way to school. Every morning I walk past a house that has little puppies in the front yard and for some reason they were out of their fence today. The puppies mom ran across the street and of course one puppy followed. I could see what was going to happen, but it happened to quickly for me to do anything. A driver ran over the puppy’s little leg and it cried helplessly limping back to its’ home. I just started crying because the driver never stopped to see if it was ok and I don’t understand why dogs here in Chile are treated like trash. It made me miss Lizzie even more!

Last night was my first time leading devotional time with the girls. We are going through the book Jesus Calling. It is a little difficult translating what I want to say into Spanish, but the girls are wonderful and patient! After devotional time I spent some time with one of the girls who speaks very good English, Stephanie. We were talking and I asked her what her story/testimony is. God truly blessed our conversation. We just sat together crying, laughing, and telling each other our pasts. Each and every girl here really has a unique story and I hope to get to know each one.

Thank you for praying for the other interns safe travels home! They both made it home safely!

What a weekend! Saturday was very busy at the House of Hope. In the morning we had an activity with young students from a really nice school. We taught them how to cook some Chilean food, make bracelets and earrings the girls sell, and played games with them. We made 3 leche (milk) cake, braided underwear, and sweet bread! It was a lot of fun and I met some amazing people! Kelley, a mom of some students was one of those people; she helps out with the House of Hope and the interns. I was able to be very vulnerable with her about my homesickness and worries. She was very encouraging and told me she has already been planning my weekend schedules, which was one of my worries. I get to spend this coming weekend with her and her family! I am super excited for that and she is planning some weekends in July for me to stay with families from her church. Thank you Lord! After that high schoolers came from the same school that we met last weekend! It was a blessing to see them all again and get to know them better! Once everything got cleaned up, we had a girl’s night with some of the girls, Megan, and me. We made cookies, chatted, and laughed together! One of the girls I have gotten very close to at the House of Hope shared some exciting news with me…she has been praying to go to Africa for a long time on an intern/missions trip and yesterday found out that someone has paid for her to go! Praise the Lord!

Today is Megan’s last day so we are spending it together and tonight are going out with some girls and having a fun time! Don’t know what God has planned for us yet, but excited to see! Praise the Lord my parents got to their cruise ship safely! They deserve a trip like this, just the two of them! I am teaching an English class tomorrow evening with older adults attending it. It is really out of my comfort zone level because I am very comfortable teaching little children, but not adults older than me. Please be in prayer about that and that God would be glorified through it.

 In my quiet time today I read this and really needed it…needed His Peace about a situation and wanted to share it. “Peace comes in situations that are completely surrendered to the sovereign authority of Christ. Sometimes when we finally give up trying to discover all the answers to the whys in our lives and decide to trust our sovereign God, unexpected peace washes over us like a summer rain.”