Back in the USA!!

Hi family!

Big update! I’m back in the USA!!! Woot woot! This blog will be short and sweet, since I’m soaking in all my last moments with my friends here! So here we go! Before I get into our time back in the States, here’s a little reflection on my time in Guatemala!

A Reflection on My Time in Guatemala! Guatemala honestly feels like a bit of a whirlwind! So many things happened: seeing my parents, debriefing at the lake, Easter, lots of days interceding at the House of Prayer, many house visits, and many fun times hanging out and laughing with my squad! But, in all the whirlwind, the lessons God taught me during our time in prayer ministry are what will stick with me. Ministry in Guatemala was marked by a heavy focus on the importance of prayer and intercession! During my time in the House of Prayer, God taught me that prayer is powerful and that our prayers hold so much more significance than what we can see! And God calls us to live lives of constant prayer, and our intercession is pleasing to the Lord! We can trust that our prayers hold weight, significance, and power!

House of Prayer!

Easter in Guatemala!

The village where we did house visits!

Ziplining and going to the pool!

We hiked Acatenango, a volcano! It was a 7-hour hike, but well worth it!

On our last day of ministry, we got to go to a birthday party for one of the families where we did house visits! It was so sweet!

First Days in the USA! About 10 days ago, we touched down on American soil in Atlanta, Georgia! Being back in the United States has been crazy! We are staying back at the Adventures in Missions base, where we were originally for training camp! Being back in the exact same place, in a way it feels like we never left! It’s a bit of a weird and disorienting feeling, but thankfully we had some time our first two days back to process and acclimate to America! Of course, our acclimation consisted of a Target and Chick-fil-A run! After two restful days on base, we headed to North Carolina for domestic ministry!

We arrived in Georgia!

Target and Waffle House! The American staples (although it was my first time ever at Waffle House lol :))

Spikeball and beautiful sunsets in Georgia!

Domestic Ministry in Black Mountain, NC! Last Saturday, my squad along with the 2 other gap year squads headed to Black Mountain, NC to help with hurricane relief efforts. Last September, Hurricane Helene hit Black Mountain and left a lot of destruction. Even now, many families are still displaced from their homes and unable to return to normal life. So, our three gap year squads (about 100 people) partnered with the Adventures in Missions Relief team for the week! During the week, my team helped to paint a family’s home and to install insulation! This family had about 5 feet of water in their home when the hurricane hit, so the home had to go through a lot of construction. Now, about 8 months after the hurricane, the family is about one month away from being able to move back into their home! This family has a 17-month-old daughter, and it was beautiful to see how God is restoring their home and their family! Doing ministry in North Carolina was a great reminder that God moves EVERYWHERE! He moves overseas, but He is also moving right here in the United States, and everywhere we go! As I am returning home, I want to have open eyes to the ways that God is continually moving around me and to be ready and willing to partner with Him and walk into whatever and wherever He is leading me! Now, we are back on the base in Georgia for the next 4 days, and then we are headed home! It’s SO SOON! SO CRAZY!!!

Painting and installing insulation!

Worship at areas highly affected by landslides from the hurricane!

Prayer Requests! During these last few days and as I am heading back home, here are some ways you can join me in prayer! 

• Pray for a fun and fruitful last few days with my squadmates! That we would be able to spend good time together, have good conversations, and that the goodbyes would be good, and not too sad 🙂
• Pray for safe travels home!
• Pray for a smooth transition back into life at home! For Christ-centered community, fun times with friends and family, and a good, consistent job for the summer! 
• Pray for my eyes to be continually focused on the Lord and that I would be ready and willing to listen and respond to everything that He is calling me into back at home!

As I’m going home, a verse I’ve been meditating on and praying over myself is Psalm 1:2-3. It says, “His delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.” It is so encouraging to know that when I am planted in the Lord, I can prosper in any season! What a gift it is to be able to be rooted in the Lord! I hope this also encourages you all in whatever season you are currently in!

I absolutely cannot wait to see you all so soon! To wrap my arms around you and to be able to tell you so many more stories face-to-face! Love you all! Thank you for reading these blogs, for loving me, and for supporting me through these 9 months! 

Love you all,

Alia