A New Life in Christ - Miracles All Around

August has once again been a busy month...so much so that I haven't had a chance to update my blog until the halfway mark! Crazy! God has been more present than ever through all of that craziness! In fact, wait until I tell you the HUGE miracle He did in my life the first weekend of the month!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Cassidy and I attended a women's retreat August 1-3 entitled Encuentro con Dios (Encounter with God) in the city where our church is (about 30 min. away). I don’t want to say that I entered the weekend not predicting God to work in my life, but I certainly didn’t expect to be permanently transformed from the inside out! To say that this retreat changed my life would be an understatement. God’s forgiveness was truly revealed to me, as was the victory that I have over my sin and the fact that I know I am in a good position with Him right now. There were at least thirty "naranjitas" (helpers in orange vests) who had fasted and prayed for weeks leading up to the retreat and who were there for us, the attendees, 24/7 during the retreat if we needed to talk, pray, ask questions, or cry. During each message that was given that weekend, I sat attentively waiting for God to speak to me. Every chat was powerful, but it wasn’t until the final afternoon during a talk about internal cleansing that I realized how desperately I needed to surrender to God, my God who has patiently been waiting for me to come running to Him with open arms. I was baptized by the Holy Spirit and will never be the same. Years' worth of pain were nailed to the cross! It was powerful to see so many people slain by the Spirit..something I had experienced before during services in Cuba...but something I didn't realize how powerful it was until this retreat. My good missionary friends Colleen and Mary worked as "naranjitas" and were two of the people who prayed for me and anointed me with oil throughout the weekend. What a blessing it was to be in the presence of so many believers all with the same mindset: to be more Christlike. God's patience with me and love for me never ceases to amaze me! :)

August 14 was Día del Niño/a (Children's Day) at school. The day (both the morning and afternoon sessions) began with a chapel service, where the students watched skits, sang songs, heard a message, and participated in games on stage. An offering was taken for Susana Wesley School in Connecticut. As you can see from the pictures, many of the teachers and administration dressed as clowns. Following the service, each grade level had its own celebration in the classroom for the remainder of the school day. Every student received a gift (Ex: cars for the boys, journals for the girls), and several parents from each grade decorated the classrooms and prepared food for the entire class. Food included hotdogs, other types of sandwiches, pizza, and empanadas,. Every class also had a cake made that said something along the lines of "Feliz Día del Niño/a" ("Happy Children's Day"). Being special subject teachers (English), Cassidy and I had the privilege of eating and celebrating our way through the school. We visited nearly every classroom and even had the chance to make cupcakes with 2nd grade! :) I played some games outdoors with my 1st graders. It was interesting to see them actually behave and have fun simultaneously for once. If only that would happen in English class! Haha!

praying over the offering during the assembly

the student body - afternoon session

decorations for Día del Niño/a

1st grade girls - afternoon session

1st grade boys - afternoon session

celebrating with my 1st grade afternoon class

I made a cupcake! :)

Roommies and cupcakes!

the boys waiting their turn in a game

Can she score a point?!

Right before Cassidy and I left for Encuentro con Dios on August 1, five more people joined our household (we already had eight). My host mom's sister, her husband, and their three daughters came from southern Argentina (about six hours south of Buenos Aires) for a visit. We had been told they were going to stay up to a month (at which our jaws dropped), but they ended up leaving after about a week and a half. They all slept in the room directly beside Cassidy and me (our host sister Ruth's room), and Ruth slept in our host sister Andy's room while they were staying. The three girls definitely made their presence known, as most of the nights were filled with slamming doors, screaming, and running up and down the stairs. They are very cute, but it is safe to say that we were all really happy to have our sanity back, especially after thirteen people shared a bathroom for hot showers and a kitchen table for meals. It was interesting hearing the "che" accent that is very typical of Buenos Aires and farther south :)

We celebrated my host mom Felicia's birthday on Saturday, August 9 with a big family meal of chicken, pork, salad, and Argentinian empanadas (since her sister's family from Argentina was still here). Of course we had a delicious birthday cake as well! The cake in this country is so different from that in the U.S, and I don't think I'm going to want North American cake anymore. Paraguayan cake is a combination of fluff and ice cream, with an added twist...dulce de leche...YUM! Mom Felicia received a bright pink bathrobe from all of her daughters (both biological and host :), as well as several gifts from church members, such as a thermos and jewelry.The church congregation also gave her a cake, so we were eating leftover cake for several days (perks of being part of the pastor's wife's family)! :) She was completely overwhelmed by the amount of time, energy, and love put into her special day, but after all she does for everyone else every day, she deserves some luxury :)

God is a jealous God, and He desires that we come before Him in full surrender. That is the main lesson I have learned so far this month. I pray that each of you can experience an encounter with God the way I did at the women’s retreat, no matter what form it comes in. Thanks for your continued prayers! It is because of them that I am thriving so much and experiencing God’s peace that surpasses all understanding. Time to sign off for now. Until next time, God bless you all!

Ways you can be praying...
1) my health (I have been healthy for quite some time now and would like to stay that way!)
2) my English classes, students, and their families
3) the spiritual darkness in Paraguay
4) my daily walk with Christ (that I may continue to experience the joy of my salvation in Him)
5) the major flooding in Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay
6) my future after Paraguay (I am trying to get into The Univ. of California at San Diego for a Spanish      Translation & Interpretation certificate.)
7) my host family and roommate (Cassidy is trying to raise funds for the rest of this year and next.)