Overdue.

Reader,

Sorry this one's gonna be long. I'm a bit overdue for a blog and you probably won't hear back again for a least a  week or so. Why, you may ask? Because this Thursday marks day 1 of my trip to Ecuador! We leave in the afternoon from St. Louis to Atlanta and then to Quito late that night. I believe at that point we will take a bus ride through the jungles to the village of Tana. I'm so excited, Reader, to share with you and the others here in the U.S. what we will have experienced there. People keep asking me how I feel about the trip. To be honest it feels no different than what we do here, it's just a longer trip to get there.

Yesterday Matthias' Lot had a block party in Fox Hill apartments, the neighborhood of many of the single moms we help out. This was such an amazing experience (and in my mind this is how I assume serving in Ecuador we be). My plan was to take Melissa and her  family, however her and the boys got sick, so it was just Lexi and I. I think God was able to use that in a more fruitful way. I love that He keeps providing me with opportunities to grow closer to her and this time there was opportunity for others to build a healthy relationship with her as well.
When we arrived, Ben, Lexi, and I stood around for awhile not really knowing what to do. I had signed up for face painting and things were still getting set up so we waited around and Lexi was still being shy at that point and didn't want to leave my side to go have fun. Finally I forced her to. I gave her into Ben's hands and let Lindsey guide her around and she was able to do a lot more than sit by me quietly. Meanwhile, I was testing out my painting skills. By the end of the day I had built relationships with the other girls painting, including Danielle, who I was excited to get to know better, and I had laughed and smiled with a bunch of kids, which was my favorite part. Lexi came and went, enjoyed helping me paint people and seemed to have a blast.
Some of my favorite moments at the party were painting Jackie's entire face yellow so she could be a lion, painting a little Hispanic girls face and watching her wear the biggest smile when I finished, and talking with two middle school girls as they pretended to be all tough and just loving on them.
After we left, Lexi and I jammed out to music on the ride home with Ben following us. I taught her how to make her hand a dolphin outside of the window in the wind and tricked her into saying "Hotototot" like Toby when she got into the warm car (HA!).
On the drive home I felt so at peace. There's something about working with children that just does that to me. That and the beautiful weather. 70 degrees, cloudy skies, cool breezes, and the coming thunder storm, with the radio playing Phil Wickham and Greg Laswell and my hands covered in paint. At that moment I felt God being intimate with me, holding my hand over my heart and making me smile. I love those days.

After a few hours of hanging out at the house I went to the sleepover Kim and I had planned. We laughed and talked and watched Mr. and Mrs. Smith and Beth Ann painted my nails and we had a lot of fun. I woke up on their couch this morning having had a good nights sleep and no plans for the day and it just felt wonderful. I cannot believe I only have a few days left and I will be in Ecuador.

Reader, the real contention on my heart is this: I don't wanna stop living the gospel. I know for me that looks like serving God's children. I'm just so desperate to see Him move in the next year. I know not the plans of the Lord, but that's why they're His plans and not mine. So let them be done how He desires.

Have a wonderful day,

Chelsy.