The Days Captured

I realize my last post was a little deep and very long.  So in this one, I'm going to tend to your visual needs.  Or some of them at least. 

This is my team. In the back is Hannah West and Stewart.
Then you have me, Hannah Morrison and Daniel.

One of my favorite pictures from Lima.
Right before our bus tour.

I'd like to say I took this picture, but I'd be lying.
Stewart is the one to praise here.

The Hannah's and I at this park of fountains during our bus tour.

The tallest fountain in the park.

A fountain tunnel. It reminded me of the old Slip-N-Slides.

So the thing to do in Peru is go to the park and make out.
We dared Jensen to go stand beside this loving couple and take a picture.

On the way to the heart of Lima.

An amazing cathedral that took years upon years to construct.

Our entire training team. One of the most fun spirited, random,
Jesus loving groups of people I've ever been around.

Bye Lima!!!

Some where over South America on the way to Brasil.

My home for the next five months. 

Baby Hannah was tired after a looonnnnggg adventure day.

Stewart after our meal at the churrascaria.

Morrison and I were invited to do CrossFit on Saturday
with people who work out for a living.

We are STILL sore. It's terribly embarrassing.

The full moon two nights ago from my roof top. 

So I noticed I have more pictures from Lima than I do Brasil. But good news is I have five more months to make up for that fact. 
I am SO very excited to capture the next five months in pictures!  This culture has such a beauty.
Ready with my camera,
Taylor Lea
And God saw everything that He had made,  and behold it was very good. Genesis 1:31

The day became two weeks...

Seven o'clock tonight marked two weeks since I've said goodbye to my family and hopped on a plain to Brasil by way of Peru.

Holy cow.

While I was in Lima, a group of us were sharing "our stories." I remember saying, in all seriousness, "If you would've told me on August 1st of last year that I would be riding around downtown Lima on a double decker bus, two nights before I left for Brasil for five months, I would've laughed you out of the room."

If someone would've told me while I was in Lima that, after only being in Sao Leopoldo for five and a half days, I'd feel comfortable enough to wander into shops by myself, I would've brushed it off. 

Forgive me, Lord, for doubting You and the work You can do in 

and through me in such a short time.

Since I've been gone, I've been asked MANY questions. Questions of all sorts. 

There were two that really stood out to me...

The first is: Who will they remember you as?

"They" can be anyone. The team training together in Lima. The team here in Sao Leopoldo. Chris and Melody. The strangers I befriend here. The host family I'm living with. 

Will they remember me as the one who laughed a lot? Or the one who kept to herself?

Will they remember me as the one who didn't put effort into learning the language? Or the one who took the time to study and was able to converse in a foreign tongue? 

Will the remember me as the one who never hung out? Or the one who was a kind and loving friend? 

Will they remember me as the one who never disconnected herself from the States? Or the one who was totally engrossed in this culture? 

Or will they remember me as the one who loved Jesus?

The one whose heart broke for the lost?

The one who shared her story with me and answered my countless questions?

The one who prayed over me?

Taylor, the one who...

I was asked what would that "..." be. What do I want it to be? Oh, I pray I learn the language. I pray I develop relationships with the people I come in contact with. I pray my host home grows to love me as their own. 

But more than that, I pray when people remember me, they remember Jesus. I pray they look past me and my flaws and see the Cross. 

The second question is: Why are you a Christian?

No, you can't answer "because Christ died for my sins." 

That doesn't count when you're sharing with unbelievers. 

In no way am I taking away from the fact that Christ DID die for our sins. I am grateful for His great desire to know me that sent Him to the Cross. I'm just saying, how can you explain it in a non-Sunday-School-answer?

Wow. I had to really think about my answer. 

After thinking this through for a while... I came up with a couple different reasons. 

Before I shared them on here, I wanted to share them at our weekly team meeting. When I did... I realized I had to come back to the drawing board.

I have to not water the message of the Gospel down, but break it down to the basics.

How do I do this, I wondered. 

I have to totally change my way of thinking. An unbeliever wouldn't understand this church lingo I throw out. I not only have to make sure it translates clearly from believer to unbeliever, but also English to Portuguese. 

Things I have to ponder: 

What is truth? What is concrete/real?

What does "repent" mean? 

Why would I leave the United States for FIVE months to come to this foreign country?

What is sin?

What made me change? 

Okay, so the answer I had isn't wrong. It's just not right, yet. I have to think things through with a blindness that I haven't had since I was nine years old. I've been molded into this "church girl" with all the "right" answers.

For the first time in my life, I'm going to be challenged on these "right" answers. What I say can make or break a relationship that I've made, that I'm making or that I will make. I have to be as prepared as possible to defend MY Christianity. 

Wow, what a humbling fact. 

So, I challenge you, as I think through my answer, think through yours. Would you be able to tell someone who has NEVER stepped foot into a church, never read or even seen a Bible why you are a Christian? Could you do it without using those "right" answers?? 

Lord, 

Thank you for supervisors who've made me think things through in a way I've never done before. Help me to seek after Your face and the words You'd have me use. Be with those I'll come in contact with. Prepare their hearts for Your message.

Working on my answer,

Taylor Lea

But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect

1 Peter 3:15

On this day...

On this day in 1991…

A king married his queen creating a mighty kingdom.

Like all powerful couples, there were highs and lows. Over time, the lows became few, and the highs multiplied.

Over the span of eleven years, the king and queen expanded their kingdom.

Creating a lasting legacy.

The king led his kingdom with a large heart and a bigger faith. He provided for the ones he was responsible for. At every opportunity, life lessons were issued.

(NEVER trust a monkey!)

The queen was steady. She was a rock of comfort, support and love. She carried an iron fist in her back pocket.

(Most of the time in the form of a wooden spoon.)

Together they taught their kingdom how to live, prosper and grow. Together they supported the kingdom’s life journeys.

Together they were a team.

The king and queen on their day in 1991.

On this day, I can only think of how awesome my parents are. There is no way I could be writing a blog post in PERU, the night before I leave for Brazil, without my parents. I wouldn’t be the person I am today without my parents.

Mother's Day 2012

Who else can say their parents sat calmly on the couch while their child laid it out there that they didn’t want to go to school any more? This past semester has been such a journey for the three of us. I didn’t want to disappoint my parents by “not liking” school and wanting to do missions. They didn’t want to squash my dream of missions, yet use their life experience to guide me.

I'm probably going to get beaten for posting this, but this is their relationship. Clowns.

I have never seen a better example of a Godly couple. They are a team. My mother honors the Father by honoring my father in submission. 

I’ve never really liked that word.

Submission.

It gives my independent heart the chills. For those of you who know me, well or otherwise, you know I like to be the boss. I like to be in charge.  HOWEVER, I can honestly say that as I’ve gotten older, I pray to be a wife like GMoney. I pray I can stand by a man and trust what he decides because he seeks the Lord’s face.

We were babies.
(Also one of my most favorite pictures of us.)

With that being said, I pray to find a man like my father. I pray that God blesses me with a diligent worker. A humble leader. A teaching father. A seeking son of the King. My father is the bomb dot com. He challenges his “people” spiritually, mentally, physically, athletically, and comically. In every way possible, he is a challenge.

They're adorable.

I can see the merging of my parents in me. I see things that GMoney has done in the past in my daily lifestyle. (Look at our fingernails side by side; it’s CRAZY!) When I notice them, I can’t help but smile. I notice past things that Padre has told me appearing randomly. When I notice those, I giggle and thank him. (I’m still waiting for the day where I have to walk away from a monkey because of trust issues.)

To get a text from him like this was the funniest thing ever. 

I have to thank them for praying through this Brazil application process with me. I have to thank them for trusting me (and the Lord) to go safely on this trip. I have to thank them, majorly, for the past instructions that have molded me into a woman honored to go as God’s messenger.

Always willing to help with homework. Always interesting times.

I have to thank them for the experiences I’ve had here in Peru. 

The people I’ve met. The places I’ve seen. The skills I’ve learned.

I love the happiness captured in this. 

My mind is over flowing with things from Lima, and it makes me sad because I can’t hold onto them long enough to type them out. I pray that when the time comes, the Lord will cue my memory, and I am able to recall on those skills.

Lord,

Thank You for GMoney and my Padre. Lord, thank You that Carter, Bailey, Ansley and I have parents who love and honor You. Father, thank You for the blessings that have flowed down, through them, to me. Thank You for trusting me with Your Good News. God, I pray I am bold. I pray I do not cower away from being used by You. Father, fill me with the Holy Spirit as I go to Brazil and try to minister to this unreached people group. Lord, I am so excited to see how You use my weaknesses to bring Your name glory. God, mold me into a woman during these five months You can be proud of.

Waiting for my flight,

Taylor Lea

I laughed when I saw this in some random magazine I picked up one day. 

I have NO clue I how I got this picture, but they're precious.

Add caption

I don't think there is a better picture to describe our family. 

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power 

and of love and of a sound mind.

2 Timothy 1:7

Just today...

I am in Lima, Peru!

As I sit here reflecting on the last 30 hours, I am blown away at how God has provided thus far.

My team is awesome.

We all (I knew Stewart and Daniel from Georgia Southern) met up in Miami, and we just instantly clicked. Conversations were immediately interesting and not awkward at all. I played a little “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” and asked “Oh do you know so and so?” “OH! I have family that lives like 45 minutes away from there!” We laughed and talked a little about our worries. Then we laughed about those.

The flight from Miami to Lima wasn’t too bad.

It was a smooth flight. I was asleep (like head thrown back, mouth open, drooling asleep) before we even took off. I woke up for a hot meal (chicken and rice) and was able to sleep off and on the rest of the way. Customs and baggage claim was a breeze.

We’re staying in a beautiful home for the next week.

It’s this gorgeous blue house with hot water and cool fans. The stairs, washer and dryer are all outside. The windows stay open all the time. It’s so neat to me and SO different than anything in the States. 

The other Hands On students are awesome. 

After our three-hour rest, we met the rest of the teams we’d be training with. Just as with my Sao Leopoldo team, friendships were made instantly. After a little more “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” (Can you tell this is one of my favorite games?) I found that I actually had connections with these people I just met. In a different country at that!

I managed not to get hit by a car.

I fully believe there are no traffic laws here. Since I landed at 6 in the morning, I have yet to see a speed limit sign. The drivers here have to be a little nuts. They just do what they want, when they want. And that’s how everyone drives. The pedestrians have to feel a little bullet proof as they walk across the street. (I did NOT! I was scared to death.) During the bus ride over to the mission house, I saw a man just mosey on in front of a huge, moving bus. Bless him!

Training was refreshing.

We “storied” Jesus calling His disciples. Conversed over an amazing lunch. Heard a great story about diarrhea. (Apparently that’s the missionary’s favorite topic.) Broke down the Lord’s Prayer. Prayed over our trips. Talked about security and health.

It was a good day.

The Lord has definitely blessed me. I am so excited to get to know these people. I am excited to see how God called each of them to their field. I hope I’ll get to use my many years of Spanish with the nationals.

I pray that as a whole, we will rest well when we can. I pray that our minds will be alert as we go through training. I pray that we will build uplifting relationships. I pray for the families and friends we left. I pray for good health. I pray that no one is hit by a car or bike. And finally I pray that we will bring glory to the Father’s Name.

“Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, 

I will be exalted in the earth!”

Psalm 46:10

(I apologize for grammatical errors. My eyes are halfway closed, and my brain is fried.)