On March 4th my team and I began our new ministry in the little town of Rio Grande. We were welcomed by one of the local pastors, Hector, and his wife Patricia. They had never hosted a group from WorldRace which meant we were going in blindly and had no idea what to expect.
Team Refuge lived this month in the pastors daughters house. It backs up to the families fruit farm so we woke up to a view of papaya trees in the backyard and guyava trees in the distance. We spent the early mornings working in the garden with the locals pulling weeds and planting lettuce and cilantro! Rio Grande is at sea level which means it is really really hot. Because of the heat, the locals work from 6am-9am and return to work 3pm-6pm. We worked alongside the locals in the garden in the mornings and once it got too hot to work we spent time reading, journaling, coloring, spending time with the Lord and with eachother. It was definitely a challenge to keep focus during these hours because of the heat!
In the afternoons we went to several different beach communities to evangelize. The pastor, Hector, had a translator set up for us which was a blessing. Our translator, Elias, did a phenomenal job. Because of his willingness to say yes, to sacrifice his free time to translate, we had the absolute privilege to get a glimpse into the lives of the people in these communities and share the Lord with them. A lot of our evangelizing stories were us sitting and listening to experiences people have walked through. Many times evangelizing may just be sitting with a person and hearing their story and then letting them know they’re seen and heard and loved.
After evangelizing we had the opportunity to teach at the churches in these communities. One night I taught on the Fathers Love and how that is displayed in symbolism through the parable of the Lost Son. They were small house churches with a tight knit community which has challenged me reflect on the church I attend at home and how community and fellowship is within that church.
I won’t lie, this past month was really hard. I was challenged both as an individual as well as a member of our team.This month my team and I shared laughs, cries, and hard conservations. This month allowed room for each of us to face hard things and grow through them.
During this ministry we also got an email informing us that teams will change. This was a whirlwind of emotions that we sat to sit in, talk through, and bring to the Lord. After taking time to process, I can now say I’m very excited for this new team but I am going to miss Team Refuge so much!
As I enter my new team I would love and deeply appreciate it if you partner in prayer with me. Prays that this new team is a space where we constantly are inviting the Spirit in. A space of vulnerability, honesty, trust, boldness, transparency, worship, depth, and growth.
Another exciting announcement is that tomorrow morning we leave for Panama!! We will be living at the YWAM base in David, Panama. I would also so appreciate prayers over this next ministry and the people there!
Thank you all for your prayers, love, and support. I can’t wait to share more of this crazy journey and what the Lord has done, is doing, and what He will do.
Many times evangelizing may just be sitting with a person and hearing their story and then letting them know they’re seen and heard and loved.
I absolutely love this, so many times we think we have to have this elaborate agenda to spread the gospel and Jesus’s love when we really just need to be available – and yes we will be prayingFor you and the “new” teams.
Much love
Stephen and Teri
Bree – First off, you are a beast!! …….In a good way:).
I am so proud of you in this walk and journey you have taken. Just reading your words, processing what you are saying, and how you are saying it, really tells me that the Lord is continuing to move in you. I am also reading your appreciation for your team and all of the learning opportunities that you all have had to face. No doubt, you all are growing in this experience. I loved reading your story and miss you dearly BUT work is still to be done on behalf of the Lord. Continue to love on those and lean in to this experience as you have so far.
Did I mention how proud I am that I am your Dad.
“143247365”, Love Dad
So happy to hear from you and that you are moving toward the end of this missionary journey. Appears you have had many unique life experiences and challenges but with God’s presence you have dealt with those challenges. We love you and we are so proud of you. ?? grandma/grandpa Patton
My 1st message to you 4/4/2021 had a typo. I struck ?? key instead of !! key. When you read ??, you probably thought WHAT. We are very proud of you. You have been blessed with the opportunity to travel, experience different cultures, and fellowship with Christians. We love you. From: grandma/grandpa