Surrounded by mountains and Love.

Sitting here, listening to the cars honking, the breeze of the Andes and the peace of God´s Love... no other way to live for me right now. I´ve been having a weird couple of days, unsure of how i feel about being on stand-by in La Paz , wanting so badly to be in the Amazon, being sick, having my whole team in bed, also sick- i was angry and in a miserable mood. I had also taken that anger on this beautiful opportunity that God had given me, to remain more time with the people here in La Paz, not sure of what to expect, or about how much Love i was receiving by being here.

I dont think i realized it until i was walking down this street yesterday and heard drums and flutes playing in this building- being drawn by the Spirit in this place, i gradually went in as my team followed. I was met with native dancers doing a traditional dance in thanksgiving for the new season... seriously!!??- could that have been more on point with what i should of been doing?? Being so afraid about where God is taking me on this trip and on the journey ahead, i dont think i had stopped purposely to be thankful for this new season. These dancers were there for a conference called Boldness in Identity Through Art- AMAZING!!!! just the name, almost made me fall over... we got to go into one of the sessions, and the honour and blessing towards the indigenous people in Bolivia blew me away!! I was automatically ordered by God to get out of the rut that i had placed myself in. As i looked at these people dancing i looked at one specific older man, as he danced with this deep gaze and this peacful smile- "The wailing of His people i could feel". The happiness, the sorrow, the peace, the love, the liberation, the justice- everything! generation upon generation of the Bolivian people- in my heart.

How could i deny what i could feel in my heart? Being afraid to be broken, to be a witness, to walk in Boldness- everything He has called me to be. The people here have gone through a great deal of sorrow, through colonization, through massacres of their indigneous people, the change in government and the very obvious poverty cycle that seams to be entangling itself within society here. Bolivians have constantly been struggling for acceptance, constantly they have had to leave their lands, to go off and find work in other countries. Often being hated and mistreated in other countries- for generations they have been living as a tolerated people- The Bolivian people are called to be Loved!!!

Today, i woke up with this peace in my heart, that everything was going to be fine, that God was taking care of the team and that all of this had a purpose that would shape the journey ahead!

After Lunch today we walked around some of the shops and stumbled upon this music store, that had a whole bunch of interesting instruments- i was mostly drawn to this saxaphone made of wood- i approached the store owner and asked him how it worked. As he lifted his gaze i realized that he was blind- he started to play this song- that my mother had sang to me as a child- as tears filled my eyes I realized how big God´s presence was in that moment and how much He loved me. Being brought back to that amazing childhood memory, thinking about my mom as Mother´s day approaches, i couldnt help but be thankful and so honoured to have this amazing woman as my mother. She truly has played a huge roll in setting my life up Purposely- always being supportive, encouraging, and constantly always meeting me with open arms and a smile- everytime i come home. (Gracias Mami la quiero MUCHO!!!)

After the man finished playing I looked around the store and saw tons of paper cut outs of Him playing this little guitar, I said "do you still play shows?", He said
"No i dont anymore, i dedicate my life to teaching underprivlidged youth"- that one sentence totally rocked me. It had been two days of contstant encouragment and God flashing His love and presence in every situation i was in. How can i be angry or sad? Looking at being in La Paz as a "stand-by" hasnt really helped either, because we can build connections and relationships in every situation- and it seemed that God has just put the right people on my path to love on :)

I am happy here, surrounded by mountains and Love!
Heart abandonded, arms wide open, ready to go, walking in Boldness!!
Walking in Peace!!