uam's Easter break, Austin Evers of the UOG Ministry and friend, missionary, etc, along with student leaders, organized a missions retreat to work and serve in villages from the top of the island (Yigo) to the bottom of the island (Agat). We stayed at Marianas Baptist Church, assisted in community projects, enjoyed quiet time, and had three amazing 
days to just get away. This is the group I was in, lead by Davey Welle (red shirt). We had a pretty good time together working, relaxing, praying, and adventuring while we opened up for God to really speak to us.
We had four ministries over a two day period. One of our ministries was to cook lunch for everyone. Our group made pasta and lasagna, fruit salad, and regular salad. It was delicious and it was a blessing for us to serve our friends as they came in from projects such as grounds-work, handing out Resurrection Day books (which we got to do as our very first ministry), helping a church plant, and prayer walking. The leaders of our retreat prayerfully and thoughtfully set this up as a great ministry to the community, but especially as a ministry to the students who participated.
I think back to the block of time that we had as ministry for our own growth. We were given three hours to find a beautiful place near the beach for quiet time. Since we were staying down south, in the most beautiful part of Guam, it wasn't hard to find a nice place. I took this spot on a cement slab while I watched a local fisherman catch fish in nets for his family's dinner/bbq. The simplicity of this along with using nature's resources reminds me that God provides us with what we need. Matthew 6:26 asks "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" God definitely provides for us, yet we always seem to want so much that we don't need. Often, quiet time like this is what we need to have realizations like this. Our students never get these opportunities by being on campus all of the time, so this was a huge blessing for them, too. I wonder what God spoke to them?
Actually, I don't wonder too much. God really spoke through Austin in our evening chapel times. To make long hours short, we saw students experience God in a way that witnessed what Christ was doing in their lives over the few days we were there. We saw students repair relationships, make amends, and join each other in prayers and tears. I am so thankful that we had time for this. I know that in the things we did, God really spoke to many of our students. I think it's truly amazing how we can physically experience and see Him moving in our lives, and in the lives of people we love and commune with. I, too, have been amazed and blessed by this experience. Austin's challenges to our students lately have been right on track with what weighs on their hearts as young adults going into the world. His central theme has been "listening to God," and I think they are accepting the challenge.
God didn't stop speaking to us even though the sermons and projects stopped. However, much to our surprise, the last day's trip to Coco's island (named after the Ko' Ko' bird..one of the last birds on Guam) wasn't the highlight of our experience. I think that we were all equally stoked to be able to have a day to play together, but after PIU days and the retreat, we all seemed to just need a day to relax. If you Google Image "Guam," you'll see a beautiful island inside of the reef at the bottom of our island. That's where we went. It's now a day resort, where we got to play beach volleyball, swim in the pool/ocean, see some birds and lizards, ride bikes, and sleep in hammocks. It was an awesome way to end and recover from our missions retreat.
If you're praying for us, pray that students apply what they gained to their lives and their ministry: that the retreat vibe doesn't end because the retreat ended. Pray for us to continue to grow in fellowship and community. Pray for leaders such as Austin, Daniel, Leeman, and T'nel who worked together to organize this. Pray for me that I stay focused on God and continue to work on being a blessing and servant to our students. Pray for Daisy who shares these opportunities and callings with me, and other great ones that God has given her.
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