Since the last time I wrote you guys lots has happend! We have the whole team of Hope Christian Aacdemy here and we are in full swing of ministry activities! 

Yesterday was our first day of getting our feet wet into ministry. After a good orientation and practice we went to the Community of El Cortezo and did a lot of visits home to home to share with the people from this community and at the same time invite them to our program that we will performing at the church sometime later. On my team we were able to pray and visit with this 85 year old grandma call Ignasia, she was the sweetest grandma you can imagine and she felt so bless to have us over for visiting & praying specially when she was feeling very alone and was glad to catch this "gringos" and panamenian for a visit! :) Later that same night we had an evangelistic presentation at the church and we were able present people the good news of Jesus! 

Today we went to a tiny little school call "El Higo de San Juan" it is a rural multigrade school (1st-6th grade) with only ONE teacher {which she also is the principal} for all twenty five students . This woman name Orquidea {orchid in english} is a super hero for me, she loves Jesus so much and the calling God has give her to be in this school for the last 8 years, it also helps that her name is my favorite flower :) In this school we did a fun variety of things today like: a children program, crafts, dig a latrine, plant new flowers in pots, help cook lunch for the students and ourselves, cut the grass with awesome machetes and paint new designs in the school walls! I was SO AMAZE by how much we will able to do in this school in such short amount of time! 

Later today we also headed to a new community call "Churube" and we also did 
a lot of visits home to home visits and a evangelistic presentation late that evening! It was fun and we can't wait for what tomorrow brings which includes a tour to a Sugar Cane Factory {sugar, sugar and mas sugar} 

Much love to all of you! 

Cristal {Luke+Asher}

prayer are appreciated! 

We arrived in Panama Friday afternoon! Asher did great in both flights and he LOVE it the airport, specially riding in the "choo, choo" also known as train. 

We have been here for almost 2 days and we are almost ready to receive our first team tomorrow: Hope Christian Academy. It is always fun to receive this team, specially because Luke went to this same school. 

I will keep you guys posted! 

Much love and warm for all of you from Panama

Cristal {plus, Luke & Asher) 

P.S. We will send an update sometime this week!

Today as I wake-up everything on me feel that had the right to be crabby....Asher wake up at 4:30 am, the dog was crying the whole night, I thought that I have had sleep an extra hour just to discover that it was a lie and to top it off snow...tons of snow falling from the sky. Let's just say that it was't the smooth beginning I was hoping for my beginning of the week. 

I sort try (heavy on the sort) to have a good attitude and as I serve Asher and myself breakfast. I grab my little devotional book and read about God's willingness and unwavering desire to bless His people...I feel his little whisper right away in my ear telling me that today he wanted to go out of his way to bless me WHHAAATTT? Do you think that the day I was the most perfect, that I have fulfill all my christian "to do" crap will be the day he whisper such a gentle message to me but NO! HE CHOOSE TODAY! the day I have secret thoughts of strangling my dog and my toddler while they took away my sleep, the day I felt like giving my husband a bad attitude just for the simple fact that he gets to go out of the house and I need to spend the rest of the day with a toddler and a chihuahua, the day that I have such a rebellious attitude inside of my heart. 

I felt right away my body get soft and my eyes quickly fill with tears. Tears of shame for my attitude and gratefulness for this Jesus I believe in. For this Jesus that is my friend and lover. Days like today I so grateful that I have a God that loves me not matter what, and no matter what is going through my heart, mind and soul he is always ready to take me in. 

Thank you. For your love and kindness to this spirit today and always. 

Love, Cristal 

"Gratitud" is the Spanish word meaning thankfulness (like the English word gratitude). I have been pondering this morning all the things in my life for which I am grateful. I have come to realize that many of them I take for granted everyday:

Having food and actually choosing which foods I want to eat.
  Having a comfortable home and bed
  The privilege of having a baby 
  Enough clothes to wear everyday and plenty to give away
  Not being cold at night (Darjeeling, India taught me about this one) 
  Family, Friends and an AMAZING YWAM community that loves and cares for my family and I 
  And probably so much more that I am forgetting!

This coming Holiday season I want to allow God to interrupt me, and even when everything around us is yelling at us BUY MORE, GET MORE, YOU NEED THIS, YOU DON'T HAVE ENOUGH...

 I want him to fill my heart with enormous "Gratitud" for all that I DO HAVE.