Thou, Oh Lord

What a beautiful reminder of God's faithfulness....If He is big enough to hold this in the palm of His hand, how much more is He able to care for and provide for us, His precious children?
May we never doubt His daily provision and Almighty Power!

My sweet friend, Elena, recommended to me this song that was sung in church Sunday. It brought joyful tears to my eyes this morning as I was again reminded that "Thou, Oh Lord, are a Shield for me. My glory and The Lifter of my head!" Be encouraged today that nothing is too big or too small for Him. He listens and gently cares.

Love to you from a rainy morning in Macas!

Holy! Holy! Holy!

Good Morning! I wanted to share these precious videos from VBS with you! The first one is from the English Listening and Speaking class with Patty. The oldest group (12-15yrs) learned this song, with Moose from Florida playing the guitar. I can't tell you what a worshipful experience it was to hear these kids singing to Jesus! God is so good.

This second video is of my 5-6 year old class singing the same song with Moose. They don't understand all of the words, but they know that God is HOLY! Some of them are singing from the heart! :)

I hope that you can rest today knowing that God is HOLY...and that's all we need to know. God knows exactly what He is doing, no matter if it's in Tupelo or Macas. What a peace that brings! I pray that He opens the eyes of these hearts so that they can see Him "High and Lifted Up, shining in the Light of His Glory!" That is why we're all here, right? 

Love to you from an early morning in Macas!

-Laura

VBS Days...

We have a team of 10 here from Marathon, Florida doing Bible School this week, so I get to be a rotating teacher with the 5-6 year olds! Still having lots of fun! The kids were interested to see some new faces and more "gringos" who don't have any idea what they're saying! :)

Our precious kitchen ladies who make rice and lots of other great things to eat...and Alejandro, our selfless Janitor and handy-man! He also makes a great nurse, helping us to find the Band-aids!

This is an example of what we eat at 10:15 for a morning "snack!" Because lunch is not until 1 or 2 pm, such a hearty snack is helpful! And as always.....RICE!

Learning about God's promise of GOOD plans for our lives if we trust and follow Him!

Lining up after recess...chaotic. But look at the mountains!

Mr. Moose, from Florida, leading the kids singing "Holy, Holy, Holy...I want to see You" Realized how much I miss worshipping in English. Such a refreshment!

I am praying that these kids would feel and see God's Great LOVE through our attitudes and actions. That they would really want to see Him, as they sang today. Pray for all the teachers as several of us are feeling a little "under the weather" this week!

Love to you from Macas!

Summer days in Macas

Well, today was "hump day" for VBS/summer school at Emmanuel Christian, and we've had an awesome three days! What an exciting time to finally see the kids who we've been preparing for all week! Monday morning began smoothly (thanks for your prayers!) and we've had non-stop action ever since! School starts at 8am, when my 5-6 year olds come in sleepy and quiet.

By the time I see them at 11:30, it's quite a different story! :)

This is Patti from Ambato! :) We are praying for the details to work out for her to stay for this coming school year!

Every one really enjoys Recess and Snack time!

We've been singing in my classroom....and playing games! (note- Macabians are not accustomed to smiling for pictures! It's like pulling teeth to get a sonrisa (smile) out of them...when they're looking!)

More pictures to come! Please pray that these children would open their hearts to Jesus and understand who He is...their parents as well! Thank you for all your prayers! Our stomachs are adjusting to the new cuisine as well! :) Language learning is progressing more quickly with the challenge of teaching these children who speak a different language, which is lots of fun!

Love to you from Macas!

Snail Mail

Several people have asked for my address in Macas and I've forgotten to post it! It's better to send things through the school here to ensure its delivery!

Unidad Educativa Cristiana Emanuel
(Laura Loftin)
Juan de Salinas y Amazonas
Macas, Morona Santiago, Ecuador

Love to you from Macas! Thank you for your prayers! :)

Visa Paperwork

My Visa paperwork has been a bit confusing...trying to be registered to stay here for a year! I am sending my passport via avion to Quito for a lawyer to work on it for me. Please pray that there will be no more complications and that the office of "foreign travels" will accept my applications!

Hope you had a happy 4th of July! I was blessed to have apple pie and blackberry (mora) pie for a celebration here!

Love to you from another rainy day in Macas!

Shuar Wedding

Saturday was a big day for Emanuel Church plant in a city outside of Macas! It was the very first wedding of this small church in the Shuar community. The Gutierrez family, Sarah, Karina, Alyssa and I went early that morning to the market to buy flowers to decorate and then headed out to the country side. (by the way--a dozen roses only cost $5 here!) This is Joshua posing in front of the venue we were to transform into a beautiful wedding!

And the work began!

This was mine and Alyssa's big project

Then lunch was served--yucca and pork on big green leaves!

Then, we traveled back to Macas to change for the wedding and the sweet ceremony began.

After the ceremony, Wendy was in charge of leading the games for the guests! Married couples had to race against each other to see who could eat the apple on the string without their hands the fastest! Robin and Wendy were asked to demonstrate first! :)

Then, all the guests walked down the dirt road to the family's home to eat soup, rice, and chicken!

Sunday was my first worship service in Macas, and what a blessing it was! Worshipping in another language is such a neat experience. Even though I didn't know all of the songs, I could understand some of the sweet words of praise. God is so good!! What a beautiful way to spend my (23!!!) birthday, worshipping Jesus with Spanish praises! I am looking forward to being able to comprehend more soon! It's amazing how quickly I can pick up phrases, being surrounded and forced to practice! :)

Thank you for your prayers! I can really feel them. I can realize even more now how blessed I am with such encouraging friends and family. Please continue to pray for the children and parents who will be a part of our summer school/VBS next week. Also pray for families to notice a difference in the church here and desire to know more about Christ.

Love you all!
-Laura

Hola from Macas!

What a blessing to finally be in Macas! I'm so thankful for all your prayers during my two days of travel. I really felt them. I arrived in Quito late Tuesday night and was so glad to see the Nichols family there to pick me up! I flew into Macas Wednesday afternoon with two other girls, Sarah and Karina. This is the (tiny) plane we took from Quito to Macas. I was glad to have their company!

I am staying at Robin and Wendy Gutierrez's house for a few days until some other girls move out of the guest house, which makes for an easier transition. I'm enjoying helping/watching Wendy cook and learning how to get around in Macas!
Last night, we went 45 minutes out of the city to another town to pick mandarine oranges, lemons, and papayas at a friend's house! What a fun adventure! This is the house we went to, but unfortunately I was so busy picking (and eating) fruit that I didn't take any pictures! :)

We are preparing for two weeks of Summer School/VBS beginning week after next, so I'm enjoying writing lesson plans and decorating rooms with the other girls here! Please pray that the children that attend will be hungry for God's love and see it through our teaching, attitudes, and actions. Pray that the teachers would make wise decisions and overflow with The Lord's love and joy!

The view from my window :)

Love to you!
-Laura