2 weeks till outreach!

I cannot believe that I am leaving for outreach in 2 weeks! I am half way done the school which means only 10 weeks left in Panama! This week we were challenged a lot by our teacher Christian who spoke about conflict resolution. I have learned a lot, and hopefully I can successfully put it into practice. I learned that conflicts are part of life, and unavoidable. They need to be dealt with to move on and build stronger relationships with the people around you. I also learned that when confronting conflicts everything has to be out of love and sincerity. Conflicts are an opportunity to glorify God. I've been challenged this week to confront some of the conflicts in my life, big or small because holding on to that unforgiveness only creates bitterness towards the person and the situation. *note: this is a work in progress*

This week we have also started preparing for outreach, going over some of the things we will be doing and researching about the people groups. We are expected to know common phrases in 4 languages: Spanish, Bribri, Ngobe and Cantonese! Here is our letter to let you know what we will be doing:

love & miss you all
Kayla

Outreach

I am super excited to finally announce our plans for outreach! The group I am in consists of Alison, Jessica & Lucas, David, Gerardo and I. It will be led by John & Kristina Henry with their kids Natalie and Asher. Here is an outline of where we will be working and what our focuses in those areas will be:

Our focus is West Panama & Ngobe Reservation

-1 week in Panama City Chinatown:
building relationships, storytelling, teaching english & spanish, visiting families and bible studies

-2 weeks at the new YWAM Panama base in Chiriqui:
construction, orphanage visiting and building relationships

-1 week at the Costa Rica YWAM base
supporting the people there and working with the surrounding Bribri tribes

-1 week at the  Bocas del Torro:
 refreshing the current missionaries, storytelling and community development

-2 weeks on the Ngobe reservation:
storytelling, supporting the local missionaries, supporting the local church & working at the school.



Please pray for our group and the work we will be doing :) if you have a question i'll try my best to answer!

love & miss you all
Kayla

Isla Grande

Last week Carlos Gomez a missionary in Panama from Costa Rica taught us about the missions field. He talked about what a missional church is, and about the kingdom of God which is the great mission throughout the bible. At the end of the week he showed us on google earth all the places the gospel hasn't reached and posed the question "What is your job in all of this?" As I thought deeper about my role in God's kingdom I realized that I didn't really know but that I have to be open to God's calling on my life, whatever it may be. Here is a short video he showed us about being a missional church:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arxfLK_sd68

Since it was the last weekend that Karli's brother Nate was going to be in Panama we decided to venture out to Isla Grande (the closest Caribbean Island to the coast of Panama.) After a 2 hour bus ride we took a 10 minute boat ride to the island. The island looked straight out of a postcard, white sand beaches, palm trees, clear water. On the boat ride there we met two guys from Panama City who had been to the island many times. They showed us to a hotel which we thought was too expensive so we went to the house they were staying at. It was an older Panamanian lady's house, she was very welcoming and even though they had run out of bed space she offered to put mats on the floor and let us stay there for $5. So we dropped off our stuff and headed for a day at the beach! The beach was beautiful and refreshing! After we went to eat dinner and drink batidos! (fruit smoothies) That night we spent mostly on a dock eating double stuffed oreos (do we have those in Canada? because we should.) and watching the brilliant night stars. Then we settled into bed while the carnival festivities continued. (Carnival is a week long party that happens in most Latin countries. we planned this trip without knowing before hand that it was the week of carnival.) In the middle of the night we woke up to bugs surrounding us and eating us alive so we decided to sleep on the dock. It was a bit uncomfortable but was better than itching all night. The next morning we headed home, it was quite the interesting experience but great none the less.

 

Nate, Alison & I

sleeping on the dock