Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.
Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.
Leave to thy God to order and provide;
In every change, He faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul: thy best, thy heavenly Friend
Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

Be still, my soul: thy God doth undertake
To guide the future, as He has the past.
Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake;
All now mysterious shall be bright at last.
Be still, my soul: the waves and winds still know
His voice Who ruled them while He dwelt below.

Be still, my soul: when dearest friends depart,
And all is darkened in the vale of tears,
Then shalt thou better know His love, His heart,
Who comes to soothe thy sorrow and thy fears.
Be still, my soul: thy Jesus can repay
From His own fullness all He takes away.

Be still, my soul: the hour is hastening on
When we shall be forever with the Lord.
When disappointment, grief and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored.
Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past
All safe and blessed we shall meet at last.

This is one of my favorite hymns. I know it is a song that is used a lot at funerals, but for me it brings such great peace and reminds me that my Heavenly Father knows me and loves me and that He is at work on His children's behalf...He doesn't rest and He doesn't sleep, but we can rest, and we can "be still" knowing He will take care of us no matter where we are and no matter the situation.
Today, I was reading in Genesis 16 about Hagar running away from her mistress, Sarai (later Sarah) because she was being mistreated. An angel of the Lord found her in the desert and asked where she was coming from and where she was going. She was also informed that she would have a son, Ishmael, and that she would have many descendants. The verse that I love the most and really want to share is verse 13. She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: "You are the God who sees me," for she said, "I have now seen the One who sees me." I share this because like the above hymn, knowing that God sees me...that He knows my pain, my fear, what makes me laugh, my joy, my doubt, my gifts, my weaknesses; brings me great peace. I know that He cares for me, that He "sees" me in my day to day life and because of this He knows exactly what I need and exactly how to take care of me and I can find peace and rest in Him. And that is exactly what He wants.
One of the biggest things that I am learning right now is to trust in Him. To trust and believe that He sees me and that He has not forgotten about me and to know that He has a plan for me and that He is with me always.

It is so hard to believe that I have been down here in Tapachula now for over 2 weeks. It is so weird how time flies and yet at the same time the days here are so full (I will fill you in on what a day looks like here later...). I traveled down here August 3 with the Mission Team from Isle of Hope UMC. I enjoyed serving with old friends and making new ones as well! Their time here was amazing! Hope is working on a cookbook with recipes made in the homes and also to share the children and Mission on the Move's stories. Once finished this book will be sold to help raise awareness and support for the work of Mission on the Move here. I tell you this because they were testing recipes and preparing them for the cookbook, so we ate very, very well! The kids especially enjoyed it. Time was also spent at the Water park, playing games, and loving on these kids with the love of Jesus! Two of the older boys Uli and Dany started college and just this past week we received two new boys. I also had the opportunity to venture in to La Frontera with Tio Tino and my friends Stanford and Robert. I can officially say that I have been to Guatemala and not only that but that I have had one foot in Mexico and one foot in Guatemala. It was sad to see the team leave, but I knew that was when my time here would really begin...
Since then I have celebrated my first birthday in Mexico(25!!!), complete with "the whole smashing of the face in the cake" tradition. It was a great fiesta! I have been learning how to drive in Mexico, teaching English and helping prepare the students to go back to school on the 23rd. A typical day starts for me at 5:30 am when Tia Teri, Chelsea, some of the kids, and I go to the neighborhood park to walk and exercise. Then after that begins a full day of teaching, helping, loving, and serving. The past couple of days I have been helping lead the morning and evening devotion. This is something that I love to do, but at the same time it is huge challenge for me to teach in Spanish. I know that within in time it will be easier though. I am not going to lie...it is tiring, but I love the feeling of my head hitting the pillow after a day well spent.
I love being here with these children and serving alongside these devoted house parents, but at times it has also been really hard for me. I think the biggest thing is of course, the language barrier and really finding my place here. Yes, I know I spent 2 months in language school, but it is still hard because Spanish is spoken differently here than in Costa Rica. I also at times lack confidence in my abilities to communicate. I just feel as if I am not able to express and be myself. So, I've had so many moments of feeling weak and useless, but it is amazing how the Lord works in these moments through the hugs and encouraging words of a sweet child, through encouragement and wisdom from a friend who has been there, through words read in a book, or words of scripture. The title of this blog was actually taken from some of those encouraging words I was talking about. They are from Brennan Manning's "Patched Together: A Story of My Story." I have also found encouragement in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10: But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. I know that God has a plan for me in all of this! I also know that I can do nothing without Him. He is my provider, my strength, and my joy. He is the reason I am here an He is the one I see looking back at me in the face of these precious children.

"Go back and live out your name; live like the beloved of Abba. Some may ask you, but most others will simply observe the way you live. Some will call you crazy, some may even try to silence your voice, but some will stop and wonder. Your courage in living as Abba's beloved can give others the strength to do the same. For in the end one thing remains-Abba's love. ...Define yourself as one beloved by God." Brennan Manning

I hope these words offer encouragement to you in your own journeys of faith.