Intentional....Pouring Out... Decisions...

Jason, Alex, Brittany & I- enjoying the Plaza

Sunday School with 2 CODAs.

Me, Jason & Brittany @ Playa Santa

Plaza en Ponce :o)

after church outings :)

Buenas Dias a todos :o) Isn't our Lord so so good!

...Weeping may endure for a night, but Joy Comes in The Morning.- Psalm 30:5

His joy comes in the morning and this makes me smile :o) Regardless of anything, we have His JOY. Happiness is just with things, moments, but HIS JOY is eternal. When i woke up this morning- this verse came to my mind. How thankful i am for His joy and that every morning i can SMILE because He LOVES me. Not only does He love me, HE LOVES YOU! :o)

It has been a while since i have last written but it is a good excuse i promise. My friend, Brittany Carey came to visit this weekend (Friday-Tuesday). I had so much fun showing her around Puerto Rico with the help of Jason (because he doesn't trust me ja ja ja- i'm picking on you jay-son). We got to go to the beach, meet some CODAs at church, go to the movies, go to the plaza, eat the best ice cream EVER, buy tons of pan dulce, take a million pictures (even with gates), and talk about GOD :o) Her visit was so encouraging to me and she knows what it is like to go away from your home, family and friends. She served with the Peace Corp in Rwanda, Africa so she has tons of stories to tell. I think one of our favorite days was going to San Juan and flying the kite. Literally it has been years since I've flown a kite (or i probably never have flown a kite.. i cannot remember, mom & dad can you answer that?). I really am so blessed with my family and friends back home who loves me so much but i am really blessed to have made wonderful friends here in Puerto Rico!

Lately i've been focusing on one church in Puerto Rico- working with 4 CODAs (two are Deaf and two are hearing). It is so exciting that they run to me and hug me every time they see me. We have all really made a connection and for that i am so blessed. 2 days ago i got a phone call from the grandfather of two CODAs. The grandfather told me that the kids wanted to talk on the phone with me- they were asking me, " Ezzy- are we going to see you this Sunday? We miss you!" WOW! They like ME :o) hahaha, God is so good because those two kids have such a hard time of opening up to people. This past Sunday Brittany came to church with me. She helped out with the two Deaf girls and they had a great time. Brittany and the two girls made loads of braclets and blew bubbles. I taught the two hearing CODAs and our class was a blast! We focused on this verse

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. -John 13:34

we drew our families and our friends on a piece of paper. While i was drawing i just prayed for my family- and i was praying that these kids will understand what it means to truly love JUST as GOD loves us. These kids have such a skewed view on love- they seen a broken relationship between their parents- so what does love look like to them? This is the situation of many of these children and youth i work with in Puerto Rico. What is true love? Where can i find my true love? Many of the youth that i have seen just define themselves by their relationships- not only in Puerto Rico but in the states. TRUE LOVE IS GOD! Our first LOVE should be GOD- then everything else falls into place :o) This love that He has given us-we must SHOW THE WORLD!

God is lovely- God is good- God is my Heavnely Father- He is my everything. I could not be in Puerto Rico without Him. My time here is so important and i need to be intentional with every moment i have! I do not want to waste a minute, i just want to pour LOVE all over the place. I hope i am doing that. Also, today David, one of the missionaries, asked me, "So have you decided if God is calling you to stay longer in Puerto Rico?" This question scares me- not because i know the answer... but because i do not know. Pray for me as i seek after God's will- i do know for THIS moment i am meant to be here but for more than 6 months, only God knows. Pray for this ministry, for these Deaf and their children/teens, for our staff, for the new friendships i have made here, for GOD TO BE SHOWN!!!! God just pour me out- USE ME so YOU are known and not me.

By the way- just to let you know- i have been told my spanish is improving woot woot!!! Also- i am able to roll my R's sometimes and right now we are having a wedding cake party in the office YEA!! Gotta go ;)

amor y besos en Cristo!