Abundant Life

The pelicans landed last night excited and tired and many were getting their second wind by the time their 100 minute bus ride to the south of the island was completed! We got all the luggage unpacked and inflatible beds were taking shape before enjoying our gathering to meet with our host, Pastora Rosa and her volunteer team. We look forward to being amazed by God this week as He shows each one of us the reason He called each one of us by name to serve this week. Please keep us in your prayers on Sunday as we begin to share our stories/testimonies, engage in worship and prayer walk the community (all before dinner). We will keep you updated!

Our first full day in Puerto Rico is coming to a close. The day started by joining the Nazarene Church of Ponce for Sunday School and service. A few team members shared their testimonies to the church, followed by our team leader Linda, preaching. After lunch, we went into the city of Ponce to prayer walk, but before we went we asked God to give us a sign (or treasure!) for us to hunt for as we walked about. Our team was stretched and amazed by how The Lord revealed himself to us today! We ended our prayer walk at La Guancha, a local beach. We know God has great and powerful things in store for us, this church, and Ponce this week!

Yesterday our team went out in the hot heat of Ponce to pray and walk and engage in conversation with "strangers" and in 4 hours 91 specific prayers were uttered in English and Spanish with the young and old, male and female, homeless and not. This team of 12 year olds and up brought many requests boldly before the throne of The Lord yesterday.

Day one of ministry is finished! We started our day with a breakfast devotional before heading out to a battered women's shelter called Amor Que Sana, which means love that heals. While there, we sang songs, shared testimonies, and prayed with the women. It was a powerful experience to spend time with these women. In the afternoon, we began painting the exterior of the church we're working with this week. Rain showers brought our work to an early end for the day, but the extra rest is much needed so that we can be prepared for another full day serving The Lord tomorrow as we return to Amor Que Sana and continue painting the church!

What a HOT day it was in Ponce today!!! Over 107 degrees and not one team member complained as they scaled scaffolding; painted 3 sides of the huge church annex we are painted; plumbing upgrades to the church's current needs and a tremendous time of sharing after walking 10 blocks to serve at a battered woman's shelter...and all before lunch time time today. The entire team continued their joyfulness as we took a couple of hours at the Plaza in Ponce that included ice cream for all--plus an opportunity to buy souvenirs at a low price. But what made our evening perfect was sharing in service the people as they cried out their hearts to God in prayer. We heard testimonies of life from our own Tim AND a visiting pastor who both encouraged each of us to pray BELIEVING God heard AND will answer. We were then asked as a team to come up front for prayer---which everyone did---and then members of the church to pray over us (ages 9 and above). Our hearts have been touched by the lavished love extended to us. Pray for us as we will get up at sunrise & walk to the local bakery before we start the roof and complete the ENTIRE church tomorrow...we can handle the 80-90 degree heat...lol.

During last night's prayer service, the church had the group come forward to be anointed with oil and prayed over each member of the team.

Today was our third day at Amor Que Sana, the battered women's shelter. We taught the women how to play spoons, an had a wonderful time laughing with them. Before we left, we had a devotional with them and prayed in groups of 3 over each one of the women. They thanked us for coming and hanging out with them; they said we were a rare treat for them!

This morning the team woke up at 6 AM to begin working at 6:30. Even though they were a little tired, they had great attitudes. We were able to finish painting the church and get the roof sealed before the heat of the day arrived!

After finishing painting the church today, we went to a park in Ponce, locally known as Iguana Park. It was a great afternoon enjoying God's great creation here in Ponce!

This morning before beginning our day of recreation, we went to a men's rehabilitation center called Renacer, which means rebirth. We sang songs and shared testimonies with them before getting to hear some of their testimonies as well. It was a great time to hear from them and our team that God orchestrated that time to share messages to both groups through our time of testimonies. We closed our time there by spending time in smaller groups getting to know the men better before praying for them. God is already at work today!

For the afternoon today we went to the beach! What a great way to relax and unwind after a week of hard work. We got to enjoy the sand ons the sun as well as explore the ocean to see crabs, coral, fish, sea urchins, and all other types of God's great creation!

The team got up before the sun to leave Ponce at 4:30 AM. They made it to the airport and are so ready to be home to share with each one of you the wonderful things God has done in Puerto Rico and in their lives!