the trek...

well i'm back from my trek through the mountains....oie magoie! i can't even believe that i made it through 12 days and i'm still alive. it's madness...all i can say is that i have experienced the grace of God in new and UNBELIEVABLE ways. ha! He's the reason i actually made it.

so...i thought that we would be trekking through the hills and stuff...not any actual snow capped mountains of anything masso...apparently i was WRONG! we actually trekked through a section of the himalayan mountains, and went to the highest point (without climbing the summit) on the eighth highest mountain in the WORLD. yeah. don't know how my feet took me there! amazing.

it was the both the hardest and most incredible time i have ever experienced in my life. there were times when everything inside of me was screaming "NO NO NO! don't take another step. you CRAZY!" but for some reason i just kept goin. :) the first day was the hardest i think. he hiked for 7 hours in total, and i was still getting over a stomach bug - so i threw up a few times. but hey...grace got me through that one. the second day, we were realizing how much stuff we packed and DIDN'T need, so our leaders were nice enough to let us leave some stuff at one of the lodges. i dumped SO much stuff and lightened my pack about 10 pounds...i must say...i am starting to learn how to pack. kinda.

but yeah. every day was spent trekking anywhere from 3-8 hours...and we went from lodge to lodge. most places had hydro, but there was no heat, and the showers were pretty much always COLD....hachuu! yeah. cold nepal. cold water. i can also say i may be the worlds fastest showerer now :) it was an experience for real!

it was incredible. i have never seen sights like this. pictures will NOT do any justice. i actually lost my breath a few times as cheesy as it sounds...it was completely majestic. there were times when i would just stop and look up and realize that i am SURROUNDED by huge mountains...feeling REAL small...and then there were times when i would stop and realize that i am on top of one of the mountains and i can see for miles and miles and miles...i can't even fully describe how beautiful it really is. God is seriously creative though. man.

we did some ministry while on the trek. visited some people and some churches and prayed for them and encouraged them with our stories and stuff...crazy, we're the westerners coming over here to preach truth and teach them more about the Lord, and i really feel like i have learned more and been more encouraged than they have. these people are incredible. some of them are persecuted and completely shut off from family and friends and even their ENTIRE village for believing in Jesus, but they WILL NOT turn their backs on Him. amazing faith. we actually spent a night at this one lady's house with her four daughters. it was a true nepali experience and a WHOLE nuther story in itself...oie :) made me SUPER thankful for the things i would normally take for granted. for real. it was so good though. she is an incredible woman, and her daughters are beautiful! but then...EVERYONE in nepal is beautiful!
we also did an open air one day. we did some kids songs and a drama and then a few of us gave our testimony. we got to pray for a bunch of people and play with a TONN of kids. i have completely fallen in love with the kids. i can't even explain how badly i want to take them all home with me! so adorable. i have found a new passion...

my favourite thing about the trek i think was just the time i got to spend with the Lord. we walked for hours at a time, so i would just put on some instrumental mixes n stuff and just talk to God. it was really awesome to be able to just think and pray and share everything with Him. He spoke so much to me over the trek, and just revealed more of His heart, and His process of teaching me...love it. even though i was completely physically WORN OUT every night...i was BUSTING spiritually! it was totally what i needed. this outreach is pretty different from others i think...and there are different phases...but i am really seeing that the Lord brought me here because this was the time needed to really bring new committment, new passion and bring me deeper in love with Him. He has brought me SO far over these last months. my heart is completly new...He broke me down, but has started to rebuild me with such new strength and wisdom. and He with everything He gives me, He is teaching me how to LIVE it. He is SO faithful. SO FAITHFUL. and He is now calling me to a higher walk in faithfulness, and showing me what that looks like. i love Him. i love Him. i love Him. with all of my heart. and i'm blown away at how much He loves me. and how patient He is. He meets me exactly where i'm at...He brings clarity, and direction, and He never leaves me where i'm at...He always brings me closer to Him.

i really have experienced how much more effective ministry is when it is the overflow of intimacy with God. there is such a passion when it comes out of love from the Father...ya know? i also have really started to see God's heart for people. i have been praying for revelation of that for months now, and that i would begin to really understand it...and He has really started to pour it out on me. it's cool...my leader esther got a vision while praying for me one day...of my heart and God's heart both beating seperate but moving towards each other. and then they began to mould together and my heart started to take on His rhythym...and my heart became one with His. hhhhhhhh...shivers...it was a HUGE answer to prayer to hear that...and since that, i have experienced a new sense of compassion and love for people that i know would not be possible if it weren't for the Lord. it's amazing. He's faithful. SO FAITHFUL.

i have learned so much, and experienced so much, and i really wish that i could write it all out for ya'll but it would take FOREVER! but yeah...God is so good.

i'm now in dharan. it's more south than kathmandu...and much warmer. yay. still have cold showers. but what can ya do? we have started ministry here...and it'll pretty much be full tilt till we leave for hawaii again. but it is AWESOME. yesterday we went to a little village where people crush rocks by hand into gravel, and we got to hang out with them and work with them. i sat with some ladies who were making bead necklaces, and i gave my testimony and prayed for them, and we had REALLY good conversation. we did a few prayer walks and visited some temples, and today we went and did a kids thing...kinda like vacation bible school...from 10 till 2. LOTSA kids. lotsa fun. and then we went to the ywam base here and met the staff...we don't actually work under the ywam name while here in nepal, but we are planning on doing a bit of stuff with them, and hanging out a lot with the staff and stuff...it's cool because our cultures are SO different, but we get along so well and it feels like we've known each other for so long just cuz we all love Jesus. it's really awesome to be able to come along side them and support them however we can. they have a cute LITTLE base, with a HUGE garden in the back...i'll hafta take some pics to show it off :)

man i wish i could post pictures here...i have TONNS!! between all of us, i think we have over 2000 from nepal alone...oie! we're also keeping a journal on the puter with everyone adding in their experiences and views AND we have video footage of a TONNA stuff...so we're capturing a LOT. hopefully it'll help to give everyone an idea of how INCREDIBLE and CRAZY things can be (my team is INSANE)...and how AMAZING and awesome the Lord is...

but i must go...my fingers are going to fall off, and i have to get some dinner :)

i hope all is well at home. i miss you guys SO much, and am REALLY excited to come back and see all ya'll!
thanks again for all your prayers and support. my heart is HUGE for all you guys. i feel so blessed to have you!

BIG love and hugs.

talk soon!
loves.
jes~

psst...i get online usually every couple a days so i will try and be more diligent in updating from now on.. :)