Day 34 in Ecuador

After my usual morning routine of quiet time and breakfast, Dale and I Skyped Nate Taube, the head coach of Cumbre Alta who is currently in the States. We had a very nice chat in which Nate affirmed that Dale and I were doing a great job and that he wants us to consider coming back someday. It was really encouraging to hear this as at times it can feel like we aren't making much of an impact. 

More Pichincha pics

Once we were done Skyping, we were asked to lead the World Race team that is living in la Casablanca to Pan de Vida. World Race is where a group of people go to 11 countries in 11 months doing different service projects in each country. Taking them to Pan de Vida was a cool opportunity to get to know the people on the team more. 

It turned out to be about a 2 hour round trip, so when we got back it was about lunch time. After eating lunch Dale and I got started on some financial work for the afternoon. This afternoon we worked on creating financial templates for Interns that Inca Link can use in the future. Once we were done working, I was able to rest a bit.

I then cooked myself some dinner before heading off to Cumbre Alta practice with Dale. Practice tonight was at the new field built at La Luz. We did a hard workout at the beginning of practice and then finished by playing some 5v5 on the field. Overall, it was a fun practice but also frustrating for me personally. Sometimes players will try to speak to me in Spanish and I really struggle with understanding them. I also would love to be able to interact more in their conversations so that I could get to know them better and they could get to know me better. These frustrations were highlighted tonight at various times. Please be praying that I would be reminded of the impact I am making and that God's love can be spread even despite language barriers. I need to trust in God and know that He is at work, despite my incapabilities.

Practice at La Luz.

Once practice was over, Dale and I got a ride home with a couple of the players. This was also frustrating for me because our conversations in the car are usually awesome chances to get to know the players more. The players we rode with tonight were quieter and didn't seem to want to talk as much.

As I reflect on the day, I realize how God is revealing to me to just trust in His work. He gave me encouragement this morning through Nate and then I was faced with some frustrations in the evening. God provided the encouragement I needed and that should be enough for me to realize that God is at work despite what may seem otherwise. Be praying that I would learn to trust in God more and that through my frustrations I would continue to glorify Him.

Dios Bendiga,

Nico