Time has truly flown by here, and I can’t believe there are only 4 weeks left until I leave for the outreach portion of my DTS. I am so grateful for my time here and wish it would last forever. I have grown so much in my relationship with God and feel like I see the world in a completely new light. I am so confident in my Heavenly Father as I know there is overwhelming victory through Him. I’m also learning a lot about being patient with God and I continue to wait expectantly for the Holy Spirit to continue work in me and use me for His perfect will. I’m finding it so important to live a life of thanksgiving and to meditate on the Truth everyday. Lectures have absolutely blown my mind for the past 4 weeks (in the best way possible.) The topics have been Identity, Spiritual Warfare, Lordship and the Father Heart of God. Each week, topic and speaker bring their unique flavour and challenges. I have also loved been stretched in my medical compassions stream times as we continue to learn about different topics that we may encounter on outreach. In the past few weeks we’ve covered physiotherapy, dehydration and diarrhea, worldview, and most recently wound care. I love the practical time of application we have, as I’ve practiced making slings and doing stretches with my peers, and doing mock wound care on some bananas.
During week six, we had baptisms on the beach. It was so special to see many of my close friends get baptized, and to be able to celebrate and pray over them. Everyone was so filled with joy and excitement after, and it reminded me of my baptism in the ocean in El Salvador, and how special this time was for me. The next week we moved bases to another YWAM base 45 minutes away, so the July DTS students could come back from outreach for their graduation. This was an amazing week as I loved exploring a different YWAM base and seeing how it was run. The topic that week was lordship and the lectures were very intense and gave us so much to process. I felt like as a school, we grew so much and were really united after that week.
Exploring New Zealand, and our beautiful backyard never seems to get old. I go to the beach almost every weekend, and love exploring the town and adventuring. I’m really enjoying my church and feel so at home there. Even though I am starting to miss my family back at home, especially as Christmas draws near, I am still so grateful for my new family here. We have celebrated both Thanksgiving and Christmas here, both included amazing meals, beautiful decorations, times of giving and of course great fellowship. I am so incredibly grateful for all the staff and students here at Marine Reach, and the amazing culture. Last week, we decorated the base for Christmas (including a real Christmas tree), and even though it is summer here, I am getting very excited to spend Christmas here with this family. Thank you for all those who continue to pray for me. As outreach draws near, prayer for team unity and opportunities to share love of God with the people of Vanuatu would be appreciated.
Much love,
Kiara
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