Overseas part II: Bolivia

I decided to go to Bolivia in August of 2011. A good friend of mine had lived in Bolivia on mission with International Teams several years ago and had returned each year with a team since then. I told her I was interested in going, so we began fundraising. Mostly we had bake sales. After months of baking and selling everything from brownies to sugar cookies to pumpkin *fill in the blank* I was ready to never crack another egg again. We also held a 5k, sold handmade hats, and the very generous members of our church gave their support, so we soon had the funds we needed. January of 2012 came, and I was going to Bolivia!
The team consisted of the five of us from Texas, four from Ohio, and five from Bolivia (but several others joined us from time to time along the way). We traveled with a doctor who was part of a ministry called Red Vida de Epseranza (Life of Hope Network) that brings medical and dental attention to people in needy rural communities. They also take donations of hygiene products, toys, school supplies, clothes, food.....you name it. Our job as volunteers was to bring as many donations with us as we could and then help distribute them in the villages we traveled to.
Each of us brought at least one suitcase (some brought five) packed full of donations. It wasn't easy to get these suitcases there. First, the team from Texas arrived a day later than everyone else because of a canceled flight (and every flight after that was delayed), and a suitcase was lost. Our other team members had luggage lost by the airline too, that weren't found until much later.
When we finally arrived in Cochabamba, Bolivia, we visited two orphanages. This proved to be a kind of warm-up for what we would expect in the villages later. Children grinning from ear to ear, heartbreaking testimonies from adults, and the overwhelming feeling of being completely unworthy of the work. I didn't feel like I was ministering to anyone as much as being ministered to. Each time a little kid smiled.
Then, when it was time to depart for Potosi (what would be our home base)--OUR BUS LEFT WITHOUT US! After we'd loaded half our luggage onto it! We gathered up the rest of our luggage and ran after the bus! We made it part of the way down the road when the good doctor pulled up and we loaded what remained of our luggage onto his Jeep. He told us he would try to beat the bus to its next stop in a town not far away and try to convince it to wait. My eyes locked onto my suitcase tucked into the rack atop the Jeep as it pulled away and I pictured my passport and cash zipped safely (I had thought) inside. It didn't seem so safe anymore!
Well, we didn't catch the bus in the next town. Or the town after that. After two cabs and another bus (and sleeping overnight on said bus) we procured a van to take us the rest of the way to Potosi. We crammed ourselves into that van and prepared for an eight hour ride. We quickly got used to very long rides in a not-so-comfortable vehicle.
Upon arriving in Potosi, we caught up with the rest of the luggage (though one suitcase was never found) and sorted out the donations. We divided everything into little gift bags; each bag was designed to go to either a boy or girl and had a toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, shampoo, a toy and a snack. We took enough bags with us for the children of several villages. Another bus arrived that would be our personal transportation for the next week. We grew very, very, very, very, very grateful for our driver. We were basically entrusting him with our very lives on those roads (did you know that the most dangerous road in the world is in Bolivia? ...before you get excited, we didn't drive on it. But there's little difference, they're all death roads).
We visited three villages. In each one we distributed donations and two clowns that were travelling with us did a show, and the good doctor treated some patients and gave a short sermon. In each one we felt our hearts break for the children who were sooooo happy to receive the little gifts we gave them. We heard stories from adults, and wished we could stay longer! Years! It would really be a full time career to meet all the needs there. Nutrition, exposure to harsh weather, disease, and children being abandoned by their parents who leave for the cities to drink are a few of the terrible problems we saw in the campo.
In the States, yes, we do have issues. But it is appalling that so many problems people face in other parts of the world (well, in the States too) are so fixable! I saw toddlers with no pants or shoes, walking around in the cold, shivering. Elderly folks with pneumonia. Many, many people with diarrhea from bad water. It wouldn't be hard for us, who have so much, to fix some of those problems. And they are just grateful that you took a little time to come visit them (and brought some clowns for a show).
God taught me many things on that trip, but I'll break it down. First, he taught me that I am not helpless. It's easy to feel like I'm not going to make much of a difference. Who am I? I'm 5'4'', not very strong, I don't have  many skills. I couldn't even speak Spanish that well. But God can use me anyway, in spite of what I lack. I felt useful there, even if it was just making kids smile.
Second, He taught me that there will be problems. You can't avoid them. I foolishly thought that once I had my ticket everything else was going to be a cakewalk. WRONG! It seemed to us that once one problem was taken care of, another one dropped in to take its place; we dealt with everything from canceled flights and missed bus rides, to broken axles and a twelve mile hike (two out of six total hours in the dark, and we weren't 100% certain where we were going). We soon decided that nothing was ever going to be easy. But the work was worth it. After that very long hike to the last village we visited, the people there told us they knew God was with us, and what a blessing we were. We prayed with dozens of people, and tears of joy were shed by everyone. No way I would have missed that!
Third, God showed me that He is in control. Actually, He beat this one into me. And you know you're going to get it when the Creator of the universe is beating a point into you. Satan threw problem after problem at us, and God turned it into another lesson of how wonderfully awesome He is. For example, our bus broke an axle so we had to stay another day at a church in Uyuni until it could either be fixed or alternate transportation could be arranged to get back to Potosi. Did I mention we had a flight to catch, and we still had to get to Sucre and then Santa Cruz to catch it? But God had a plan! While we were waiting, we each began to share what we thought God had taught us on the trip. It turned into people sharing testimonies, family members sharing with family members testimonies they'd never heard, and two got saved. People were crying all over the place. Who knows if that would have happened if we'd left on time? God has His Master Plan. We're just along for the ride. And what a ride it is!
So if you're thinking of going on missions, or if you are already, remember to trust God and keep your eyes open. It is so worth it.

"But I will reveal my name to my people, and they will come to know its power. Then at last they will recognize that I am the One who speaks to them.
How beautiful on the mountain are the feet of the messenger who brings good news, the good news of peace and salvation, the news that the God of Israel reigns!"
Isaiah 52:6-7