Ecuador!

The posts may have stopped for a while but the beat of a traveling heart continues! This past December, at the beginning of winter break, I traveled to Ecuador with my father, my head pastor, and another pastor from my home church: International Full Gospel Fellowship (IFGF) of Austin, TX. My time in Ecuador was very beautiful very fast! Three different cities in three days plus a day on either side of travel time. 

 I never realized how diverse the country of Ecuador is! Imagine beach, jungle, and mountain climates scattered with villages, towns and cities that are filled with over 21 different ethnic groups. The capital, Quito, has a population of around 2 million people. 

We enjoyed some wonderful food on our trip, which included fire roasted tilapia wrapped in banana tree leaves, armadillo meat, and roasted palm tree weevil larvae.

The purpose of this journey was not, unfortunately, to eat but to conduct training sessions for leaders of several IFGF churches in Ecuador. Each of the four of us on the team had a topic to present concerning an aspect of the identity of an IFGF church and, really, of any of God’s churches. I spoke on the importance of the Great Commission and how to act it out in practical ways, largely following the discipleship model presented by Timothy and Paul. Others spoke on compassion, covenant, being a cutting edge church, and being champions (more than conquerors) in Christ. 

In my brief time there, I made many new Ecuadorian friends, tried my hand at translating between Spanish and English, and got to experience the dramatic mix of indigenous, colonial, and modern cultural influences that is Ecuador.