a few pics to tide you all over

the view from the overlook at UWI

all the girls at Bubba's to watch the NBA finals...or just take pictures

an amazing old church in Barbados

Brad, Graham, Brant, and Daniel on the rocks

Katie, Atalie, and me on the rocks (it was windy--forgive the hair)

some pretty cool-looking buildings we saw whilst on our tour

an old hotel in Barbados that we saw on our tour of the island

Our first full week is over!

Just a quick update today, as we're spending our Fun Day at Crane Beach (which is apparently a big deal--it's on the Travel Channel and stuff).

Wednesday on campus, we met a lady named Marlene who really confused us. She said that she was a Christian, that she had a passion for God, that she walks with him closely, and all of her answers were right. She talked about accepting Jesus as your saviour, and she knew what she was talking about. But she was only 95% sure of going to Heaven. We asked her what was keeping her from those other 5%, and she said something like, "I'm just really hard on myself and if I get to 95, God will give me the rest." I'm not sure what that means, but no matter how much we told her that God's grace could assure her of 100%, it was like she didn't want to hear it. 95% was all she could get to. We all left her very confused. It was difficult to even know what to ask her, just because she HAD all the answers--there was just something off. Continue to pray for her, that things will click with her, and if she's not right with God, then she will be. And if she is, then pray that she realizes that her sins are covered, so she can be 100% sure.

Also, we met a girl named Sasha. She seemed very reluctant to talk to us, but she did it anyway. Most of her answers, though, were just, "I don't know, I'm not sure, I really don't know." She wasn't sure she was going to Heaven, didn't know how to tell anyone else how to get there, etc. We went through the book with her, and it was like she understood it all, but just didn't want to accept it. It was kind of tough. We discovered later, though, that Atalie and Michelle had also talked to her--not shared the Gospel, but made another appointment to hang out with her on Monday. So we'll see how that goes.

Thursday, Graham and I were supposed to meet back with Adrian and Paula. They didn't show up. We have to anticipate that that kind of thing will happen sometimes. It's not the end of the world. Just be praying that God would keep working in their lives. I know that He was.

That was the only thing I really did on Thursday, because Graham was sick and I stayed with him until close to the end of our time, when I met up with some of our other team, but we didn't find anyone else to talk to.

Friday was our day off, except that we hosted the lime last night, which was lots of fun (though it's difficult to host things when you just want to go to bed, as all of us girls discovered. We played Apples to Apples and Catchphrase and had jello and cupcakes and sat around and chatted. It was lots of fun. And today we're going to Crane Beach, as I mentioned, so that should be fun. Keep praying and commenting and emailing, etc. It really just makes my day to hear from you guys. I love it here, but I'm definitely missing you guys, and it's good to hear your...well, not voices, but your words.

Update after a few days on campus

Our wireless Internet at the apartments has a virus, so we're unable to get anything. I am currently pretending to be a businesswoman at the swanky resort next door so that I can use their Internet. What escapades we have down here.

We started on Monday going to the campus (University of the West Indies, for those of you who don't recall). We've already seen some cool things happen. Graham and I were paired together the first day and immediately met a guy named Adrian and a girl named Paula. Adrian knew a lot about the Bible, but felt like he didn't really know God, and Paula was pretty certain that she was going to hell, though she had recently begun reading her Bible (which makes me think that our timing--God's timing--was pretty awesome). Both of them rated their desire to know God very high, and we went through the Knowing God Personally booklet with them. They were VERY interested and you could tell just by looking at them that God was working on them. We're meeting back with them tomorrow to see what questions they may have.

Then, we met a boy named Saabir. He told us that he was very organized and liked to plan out his future, and that one of his short-term goals is to accept Christ. He just hasn't taken that big step yet. So we went through the booklet with him as well, and he definitely understands everything, he just is timid about taking the plunge. We met back with him yesterday and he said that he hadn't made the decision yet, but that he thought he might be ready by next week. He just didn't want to make a rash, emotional decision. Which is valid. We told him to think it out, be sure, but once he's sure, not to wait, because you never know what tomorrow will bring, which he thought was a good point. So we'll probably see him again next week and see where he's at. Be praying for him, for Adrian, and for Paula.

Also be praying for Rosanna. She is a Jehovah's Witness that Atalie, Becky, and I met yesterday. She has a lot of knowledge, but she's still operating under the assumption that she may or may not be one of the 144,000 that make it into Heaven. So we went through the book and told her that she didn't have to live life wondering if she would make it in or not. She was kind of closed off. It was like she believed what she believed and that was it. But she rated her desire to know God as a 10, so she knows that she doesn't have a relationship with him.

Everyone here is so willing to talk about spiritual things in a way that Americans never are. If you bring up spirituality in America, it will almost inevitably lead to a political debate and people are always belittled and insulted. It is not that way here. Even when people don't agree with you, they are willing to talk to you. People are ready to hear the Gospel here--they just need someone to tell them. Lucky for everyone, that's why we're here.

The very first day, Brant and Brad (our director) led a guy to Christ. The very first day. That was so far beyond what anyone could have anticipated. God is definitely doing things here. Pray that our team would remain encouraged, that our attitudes would remain positive even when we are rejected or shut down (which we have been).

Other than that, things here are good. The tops of my thighs are very burned right now, which is weird, and the bugbites are really getting me down, but everything else is good. I've been really getting to know my team a lot better this week, which has been great for our bonding and for my attitude. Especially since we had our women's lunch, things are going a lot more swimmingly. We're getting to know one another on a deeper level, and that is so important for our enjoyment of our time and for our ministry. The four of us girls are going to be sharing our stories with one another in the next couple of weeks, which I'm sure will increase our closeness even more. I'm looking forward to finding out what has shaped who these girls are.

View from My Balcony

Training Continues

Yesterday, we went on a scavenger hunt in Bridgetown, which is the capital. I had to chase down a lady to ask her for directions, but apparently that was a positive thing. I guess it said something about my initiative. We got offered drugs four times on the street. The buses here, called ZRs (pronounced Zed-ars) are ridiculously crowded, and when you think more people can't possibly fit in, they do. And they play really loud reggae/rockish music. It's crazy and awesome.
We met the STINT team, who are all very nice and very helpful and very interested in us. We ate dinner with them at Chefette, which is the Bajan fast food place. I had roti, which is like curried chicken and potatoes wrapped up in a tortilla. It was pretty good, though I didn't really care for the potato/chicken ratio. Too much tater.
Then we got back and played a fun and ridiculous game with them, which was good just for getting to know one another.
Today, we did some training, which I actually really enjoy. It's good to have the STINT team here to help us figure out what we're going to say to people on campus when we meet them. And just the training and intense prayer we get in is awesome, and really puts me in the right frame of mind to spend my summer serving God.
Later on, we did some team-building activities on the beach--four-legged races with three people, sandcastle building, human wheelbarrow races, etc. It was fun. I got to know a couple of the guys a little better. And then we just chilled on the beach together, and I went further into the ocean than I've ever been before. Everyone is very cool about my inability to swim--a couple even swear they're going to teach me.
It's fun getting to know everyone. It's not something I'm particularly good at, but then again, that's probably just another of the reasons why God put me here for the summer.
We have a "lime" tonight, which is their word for party, pretty much. We'll have one every Friday night, where we just chill out, eat, play games, watch movies, etc. There will probably be some Bajan students there, which I am looking forward to.
Thanks for your prayers, emails, comments, IM's when my connection works, etc. It means a lot.

At Last!

I am here in the Caribbean.

I got into Miami last night at about 6, where I was picked up by two of my PD's and started out expanding my horizons by going out for Thai food (not too shabby, by the way, though I still prefer Indian). We spent the night at Brad & Michelle's house--them, our 2 other directors (Chris and Daniel), 4 guys (Graham, Dwayne, Brant, and James), two of the girls (Atalie and Katie), and me. Close quarters, but it was fun.

We left for the airport at about 6:30 this morning. Miserable. I wasn't even conversational yet. But it was okay, and the flight was good. I slept a little. We got here at about 1:30, and I can promise you that the Caribbean is just as beautiful as you always thought it would be. Turquoise water with white surf, palm trees swaying in the breeze... that kind of thing. It's a different kind of heat than we have in SC. In SC, it's just burning sun, beating down on you all the time, and you kind of hate to even be outside in the summer. But here, it's like a heater is on all the time--it's weird. It's like the heat doesn't even come from the sun, it's just in the air. But near the sea, it's perfect. The breezes keep the heat down to a minimum, so it's just warm and perfect. The ocean feels like bathwater. It's pretty incredible.

Last night was fun. We played Apples to Apples for a long time. I almost won, but the last turn got me. Apples to Apples is a good way to get to know people.

We're still in that stage, of course. You know me. I'm ridiculously shy and the only things I ever get stressed about are my relationships with people, so this is the thing that I'm going to have to work on during this trip. We are making friends, of course. I like absolutely everyone here. I just want us to be really tight and for this to be a summer that really means something to all of us. Pray for that.

I made a Bajan friend on the beach today. (You pronounce that BAY-juhn or BAY-zhun, by the way. Like Asian, with a B.) It was an old man (Bajans are VERY dark, by the way. Don't let Rihanna fool you) and he was talking to Chris and Graham and asked me to come over and he asked if I was on a Christian mission, and I told him that I was. He asked my name and where I was from, and said he was more familiar with the North in the USA. He was asking if I knew any good Christian songs and stuff, and he asked if I was behaving myself as a Christian. He told me to keep God in my heart. I told him I was very glad I had met him.

I hope that was a hint at things to come. I mean, it wasn't a big deal, but you know how much I love foreign people (though I suppose that I'm actually the foreigner here) and that's a major part of why I'm here, and I hope I have many more encounters with people like Anthony (that was his name) and some who are maybe less confident about their relationships with God than he was. I hope to have enough confidence of my own to share Him with them.

This is so unlike anything I have ever done. It's scary in a way--the nervousness finally did hit me. There was a point today when I was just like, "WHAT am I doing here?! I don't know these people, my family's not here, I could be at home playing with my dogs and talking to my sister and I'm here with strangers in a foreign country! I don't even have iTunes here!" But I prayed and calmed down and I AM praying, as constantly as I can manage. I would love it if you would do the same. We've got a lot to deal with here, with each other and with all the new people we're going to meet.

Here's the deal: I think that, each time I update, I'm going to ask you to pray for something specifically. Today's charge is to pray that my group would get really close and form lasting friendships. Get past the initial awkwardness and really get to know one another as brothers and sisters. Pray for that, and everything that follows will become much easier.

Also...to bring my straightener was utterly pointless. There is no use for it in this kind of weather. It will be a waste of energy.

We start briefing tomorrow, and we'll meet the STINT team and do a scavenger hunt they put together for us so that we can get to know the island and what sort of things we need to know to do our job. Stay tuned, folks.

Today is the day!

This time tomorrow, I'll be in Miami.
This time the next day, I'll be in the Caribbean.
It's all a little surreal.