Full Schedule, Full Weekend

Hello! Thankful for all the prayers and support from back home as I miss my family and friends during the Christmas season. It really is almost Christmas, but it really does not feel like it most of the time. There is a little Christmas tree on our kitchen table and in the living room, some Christmas lights in the town, but Christmas is not advertised as it is in America. In America around this time of year everything surrounds Christmas but it just is not the same here. I miss the Christmas feel of home some, but for the most part it's surprisingly okay. I think because everything has changed the idea of Christmas not being the same as it has been in the past has just been adapted in my mind. I miss home some, but this is a season that the Lord has been giving me peace and contentment in which is a blessing. Our schedule for the past couple of weeks has been changing and full, but our ministries have been good and we are being challenged in new ways like teaching in Kriolu, meeting new people, and will continue to be challenged more and more.

This past weekend my team and I had the opportunity to witness two important events: a wedding, and baptism Sunday.  

Saturday my team and I had a special opportunity to witness the first wedding in a village called Ribonegua in the interior of the Island. The wedding was in the village church, decorated with banana leaves and other green plants and participants of the wedding wore red and white. It was beautiful and simple. my favorite part of the wedding was the vows as the bride and groom repeated the vow Ruth made to Naomi. I had never heard of these vows being said at a wedding but I thought it was so beautiful and strong. It was cool to witness a wedding in another country, and I loved spending time with my team that day. 

Sunday my team and I went to baptism Sunday! I loved the whole day! First a few of my teammates and I went to pick up people, then we arrived at the beach Gamboa. It always brings me joy to see our friends from the churches and I am thankful I got to see everyone yesterday. We began, praised the Lord, then headed to the ocean for baptisms. They took people down to the water two or three at a time and baptized. We stood on the shore and watched or praised the Lord with variations of singing, clapping and of course some dancing. I love the way they worship. It is not just a song to them, it is joy and a way of fellowship and this moment was no different. As the baptisms concluded, we went back to our seats. A pastor preached a short sermon on baptism  and shortly after we took communion. I thought taking communion right after baptisms was beautiful as it seemed to really emcapture the new baptized believers into Christ's family. The day was great and was a celebration even in the heat and sunburn that was a result of being outside.