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Hello from Bolivia!

First, I want to say a HUGE thank-you to those of you who have been so generous as to financially support this missions trip. I would not have been able to launch on this particular route with my squad in October if not for you.

So far, this experience has looked different every single day in each country I’ve visited. In Chile, I spent time with American missionaries helping them plant a church near Santiago. I learned so much from them about long-term missions work and serving the Lord faithfully over a lifetime. My team and I did some repairs and construction work on the new church location so they could hold services there, and we spread the word to the community about the church. We spent a lot of time fellowshipping with and encouraging our hosts, and it was amazing to serve them as they served us through the month.

In Argentina, my entire squad was together at a YWAM base in the city of Mendoza. We did some manual labor around the base, assisted groups of kids doing the ropes course on base, and visited various churches. My team spent a weekend in the Argentine desert, called El Campo, and visited some contacts there. We shared some of our testimonies, sang worship songs in Spanish and some in English, and prayed over the area. On Thursdays, the whole staff and our squad got together for worship, prayer, and a message. Getting to know the staff and my squadmates better and hearing their stories of how God has been working in their lives was awesome, and encouraged me to continue growing in my own walk with the Lord.

This month, my team is working with a rehab center. There is a girls’ house, a boys’ house, and a kids’ house. I am at the girls’ house most of the time, and will be at the kids’ house a few times through the month. These girls have all struggled with some sort of addiction– mostly drugs or alcohol– and have all suffered some type of abuse. The youngest girl is 13 years old, and the oldest is 23 and she lives in the house with her two young children. Our job is to assist them with their daily chores, help with cooking and going to the market for groceries, and just spending time with them. We can encourage them, talk with them about whatever they want, braid their hair, play volleyball and soccer with them, and hopefully be a light in their lives and point them to Jesus. 
Today was probably the best day of ministry I’ve had so far in Bolivia. I spent the morning driving around La Paz to run errands for the rehab centers, and lunch was special because it was the last day at the home for one of the girls. Then I spent the afternoon helping the girls decorate the house for Christmas, and we played some card games and soccer. It was great to really feel like I loved them, and I hope they felt the love of Christ through my teammates and I today.

I wouldn’t trade this time for anything, and I can’t wait for all of the other wonderful things God has in store for me and for the people my team and I will meet and serve through the rest of our time on the World Race.

But right now, I’m struggling finding funding to keep me here. I still have a little over $5000 to raise by mid-January. I’m asking you to invest in the people living in Cambodia, Thailand, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Ethiopia, Rwanda, and Uganda, all of the countries we will go to next, and send me with my team to love and serve them, and introduce them to or encourage them to grow in Jesus, our beautiful savior. 

I’m reaching out to you in faith that God will provide for me, and bless you for following where He is leading you to get involved with this missions work.

Please prayerfully consider giving by clicking the “Donate!” button above, and reach out to your church, or other believers you know, to contribute to the work the Lord is doing all over the world.

Plus, donations are tax deductible!! What an awesome bonus!! (wink, wink)

As always, feel free to leave a comment below or reach out to me with any questions.

6 responses to “I Need You”

  1. Love reading your blogs, Lauren. Thank you for posting them. Love and Merry Christmas to you, Shirley

  2. Thinking about you my sweet as Christmas draws near. So happy for you and your work but missing you. Keep walking with the Lord my dear. Robin.

  3. I love you, sister. The Lord is doing wonderful things within you and through you. Keep up the good work.