My Sponsored Child Jazmin in Medellin

The Girls At the Orphanage

Pictures of the city!

This is my friend Edwin and I in the Centro de Bogota! Aren't the mountains beautiful? Edwin is a friend that I met last year through Compassion International. Right now he writes for his fathers magazine.

This a church in the Centro de Bogota. It is really a beautiful city!

The Kingdom of God on the Streets of Bogota!

These boys were hungry and my friend Andres and I fed them and shared the gospel with them. Andres translated for me as I shared the gospel, and then we asked them if they would like to pray with us. They said yes! It was awesome! Jesus said in Mark 10:14 "Let the little children come to me; and forbid them not; for of such is the kingdom of God."

!Hola from Bogota!

I just want to touch base with everyone! Bogota is such a big and busy city! It is definitely a different experience! The major way people get around in Bogota is by bus. It can get pretty crowed in the busses, but at least you get where you want to go! Really, if you just know just a little bit of Spanish it is easy to get off at your stop! Colombians are very nice people and it is not like most people think it is. Yes, you have to be careful and smart, but in general the people are very nice. Please pray for me that God will open up opportunities for me to share the Gospel with the people I come in contact with! I need your prayers and I thank you again for being there to support me! I miss you all! May God bless you all with His benefits! I love you from Bogota!

These are some of the girls at the orphanage. It is a girls only home. Mainly I am teaching them English and play the guitar a little. I will post some more pictures soon hopefully! I love you all and God bless you! Thank you so much for your support!

Ariel is sharing Christ with the girls.

This is me speaking to the girls and Alejandra translating.

This is us with the girls we prayed with Sunday night!

Praise the Lord!

The most amazing thing happened Sunday night! I wish you could know how excited I am! I have a friend named Alejandra, who speaks English as well as Spanish. She and her friend Diego, and his brother and two other friends and I went out Sunday night so that I could see some of Bogota. Little did we know that we would be used by God to help further His kingdom!!! The extent of our trip was going to restaurant. We decided to only get coffee and lemonade because of the expensive price of the food. It was the perfect atmosphere, because we were in this little room to ourselves with two girls, whom we did not know. It was a restaurant that is very typical of Colombia, and we sat on the floor on cushions and mats. As we were drinking our coffee and lemonade, Diego asked me to share Jesus with the girls. I knew I could not pass up this opportunity. First, I started by introducing myself, telling them where I am from, and that I was here as a missionary. I told them that I didn’t know if they knew Jesus, but I felt like God wanted me to tell them about Jesus, and about the relationship they can have with Him. I told them what He has done for me given me peace, hope, eternal life, purpose, and meaning in life. I told them that I will tell them what I told my friend from my school. I started in Romans 3:23 “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God,” then on to Romans 5:8 “God demonstrates His own love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us,” Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life,” next Romans 10:9-10 “That if you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead You will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses resulting in salvation.” After this Diego’s brother, Ariel, shared his heart about Jesus, then we all took turns responding to their questions and comments. It was so awesome! The whole time Alejandra translated for me. Finally, we told the girls that we would conclude, and I asked the girls if they would like me to pray with them. I asked them if they would like to ask Jesus to be their Savior and Lord. They said yes, because they believed that God was in this situation and that He probably wanted them to give their lives to Him! It was beautiful! I led them in a simple prayer asking Jesus to be their Lord and Savior! I thought about all the angels in heaven rejoicing as they were born again! I would have to say this one of the most amazing things I have ever been a part of!!!!! All the glory goes to Jesus! Thank you so much for being a supporter of the Kingdom of God! You will have such a great reward in Heaven! Alejandra and I are going to start English classes/ Bible studies in order to reach more people for Christ! So please pray for us! Please pray for the two girls who received Christ last night! Thank you so much!

Life Here In Bogota!

Life in Bogota is definitely interesting. It is a bustling city with billions of people going here and there. There are always people everywhere. Riding the Trans Milenio is definitely an experience. My first day riding the bus was traumatic, maybe because I do not know the language very well, but I think it was also because I had a rough first day of class. I was placed in a class that was above my level, and it was a little trying. After that first day of class It began to get better. Riding the bus became an easy thing, and my second week of school was much better. My comprehension in listening and reading is improving, and I am also improving in my speaking. It takes time, but I am learning a lot.

Hey! I hope everyone is doing well! It has been going great here! My first day of riding the buses was difficult, but I've got it all figured out now! I am so excited because someone asked me to speak and sing at their church in a couple of Sundays! Today I was able to speak to a man about the Gospel! He works at my school and I was telling him the story about how God told me where He wants me to be a missionary. He wanted to know how to hear from God, so this opened up doors for me to share the Gospel with Him. I shared the scriptures in Romans, commonly known as the Roman road. I explained that God wants him just the way he is. He was very receptive, and believes that he is one of the reasons I came to Colombia! He promised to start reading the Bible, and I told him to pray and ask the Lord to speak to him through His Word. He said his girlfriend just recently gave him a Bible, so he believes that God is trying to talk to him. He made a comment about me being the only real Christian he knows! This really made my day!!! Well, I am also teaching English to a fellow student from Korea. I am hoping this can be a way I can share my faith. The book I am using is an English book from the Gospel of Mark. I believe God will probably open up other opportunities for me to teach English, and thereby share Jesus with people! I have been volunteering at the orphanage! I am teaching English and playing and sing with the children! I am trying to learn some Spanish songs as well. Also sometime I will be singing with a Christian band here in Bogota! The people I stay with have a band and they want me to sing with the band! Well, I want to thank you all for your prayers and support! It means so much! God bless you all!

Hey!
I got here last night at 8:30, but it took a very long time to get through customs. I finally got out and Angela was there to pick me up. It was probably about 10:00. They are taking very good care of me! They are feeding me well! I am trying to remember the Spanish words they teach me. Pray that I can learn the language quickly so that I can be effective for Christ! I love you all! God bless!
Love in Christ,
Jessica

This is my Colton, nine month old nephew at the airport! He is so cute! He's a good boy!

Heading of to Bogota!

This is my sisters and I right before we said goodbye!

Reflections

God is really good! I am excited about what He is going to do in Colombia this summer! I love Isaiah 8:11-13 because in it God says not to fear what the world fears! He says "It is the Lord of hosts whom you should regard as Holy. And He shall be your fear, And He shall be your dread." God is telling me that it is him I should fear, not danger, sickness, or anything else there is to dread! That is the way I want to live my life. Jesus should be the center of our lives. Everything for Him!

Figuring it out! ;)

This isn't that hard you know!

Getting Ready!

So much to do! Not much time! lol.