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