upcoming adventures

Cuilapa, Guatemala

Mitch and I are so excited to say that we're moving to Cuilapa, Guatemala. As you can see in the photo, we will be surrounded by some beautiful scenery. Cuilapa serves as the capital of the department (or state) of Santa Rosa. We will be about 40 miles south of Guatemala City and about the same distance from the boarder of El Salvador. Our boss just returned from Cuilapa where he was making preparation for summer teams and also for Mitch and I when we move there. 

Other exciting trips:

-Mitch and I, along with two other Trek-X guys will be heading to Asheville, NC this weekend to represent Mobilizing Students at a Student Life Conference! We will be talking with middle and high school students about how they can get involved with our ministry

- I will be leading a mission trip in Atlanta with two fellow Trek-Xers in March! We will be leading a youth/choir group from Florida. We will be doing apartment ministry, similar to what we do in Nashville.

-This summer, Mitch and I will get the opportunity to choose which country we want to serve in. Originally we thought we would be leading teams in Puerto Rico, but turns out there are no teams going to Puerto Rico this summer. All of the other staff members are already placed and will lead teams in the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, and Romania. We are praying about possibly going to Guatemala for a few weeks to look for a house/apartment (Somebody call House Hunters International!).

We are so excited about the adventures we're going on in our near future! Stay tuned! :) 

(via)

"Do not be afraid, little flock, for you Father had been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Luke 12: 32-34 

Video

 Some of us in Trek-X have been documenting our days to give everyone a little insight into our lives. While the video doesn't quite do justice, I hope you enjoy seeing the culture and variety our days bring. These are just tidbits of our day. Some days are completely different than what's shown, but that's a part of being a missionary- rollin with whatever you're given. This video makes me realize how much I am going to miss living and working in Nashville. But there are plenty more adventure's up ahead, which will make for plenty more fun videos!

Enjoy! 

Trek-XD

I'm going to do a little advertising today. Hope you don't mind!
We have had some wonderful changes take place within Mobilizing Students. So I'd like to present to you Trek-XD. This kinda seems like our baby. We helped "put legs on it," as Mitch says, so we could get this up and running. What a great opportunity for middle & high school students!

Check it out! More info @ www.mobilizingstudents.com

How to learn a language

I'm convinced that when it comes to being a "missionary" (we're all missionaries as Christians) that language is crucial. Here in Nashville we are surrounded by people from all over the world. Nashville has the largest Kurdish population in the United States and there are more Nepali and Burmese people here than I've ever seen anywhere else. 

It's really hard to share the Gospel with these people if we can't speak their language. It has made me realize how important the language will be when we move to Guatemala in September.  

I know many of my readers aren't in the same shoes I'm in. You're probably not gearing up to move to another country anytime soon. But that's ok. I'm going to share some language tips with you anyway :) 

Learning another language, or just brushing up on the Spanish you were taught in high school, can be helpful even if you aren't planning on living in another country. 

Mitch and I are by no means language experts, but here are some tips that have helped us. 

1. Go to your local library and begin reading children's books in another language. 

2. Watch your favorite tv show's or movies in another language and/or with subtitles. 

3. Make a LiveMocha account. livemocha.com 

4. Set your phone, Facebook, or any other media site to the language you're wanting to learn. 

5. Listen to music in a different language. 

6. Practice reading out loud in the language you're trying to learn. This will help with pronunciation. 

7. Label your apartment/home with sticky notes. 

8. Download apps for your iphone or android.

9. Buy some workbooks and practice working through them. 

10. Memorize a lot of vocab! Here is a link to more specific ways to do so: vocabulary

11. Study, study, study! Language is repetition and if you don't use it, you'll lose it! 

I hope these tips can be useful to someone out there. Please pray for Mitch and I as we continue to study Spanish. Most people consider us to be fluent, however we have not yet reached our goal of what we consider fluency. We want to effectively be able to communicate the Gospel in Spanish! 

Antigua, Guatemala

Dios te bendiga (God bless you),

Amanda