...and here we are...

Another week has passed in my journey through Panama, and I wish I could count the many times that Rachel has said, "Oh, to be a fly on the wall watching us." or "If only someone else could see what a ridiculous mess we're making right now." For those who know us well, and especially know us as "Rachel and Jami", the team, the troublemakers, the adventurers, the secretly blondes, you knew when we decided to scourge the seas together and travel afar to the skinny isthumus we now call home that in your kindness you knew it to be necessary to pray for the land to which we travel, asking us often, "Does Panama know what they are getting into?" So, as we press on to an unexpecting day each morning, I felt compelled to share with with you the lessons we have learned thus far in our little time here.

1. Youth Conventions...some things that the Panamanians forgot to mention in warning to the gringas:

* All conventions are BYOTP...sound it out, yes, we learned the hard way!

*One would think that purchasing sleeping bags for church camp to be a good idea, and since they sell them at a number of stores here, one would also think that they are a common church camp object. However, if you want to ensure to get even more stares from confused teenagers, unroll, unzip, and slide in. Don't worry, like Rachel found out, you'll just roll over in the morning to the gazes of curious Panamanian teenagers watching you sleep.

*Somehow in our language challeneged communication, we mistankely packed sports shorts, t-shirts, no make-up, no jewlery, no nice clothes for church camp. Who would have thought that Rachel's first words to me on our first morning there was "Jami, do you see what they're wearing". The phrase, "dressed in ribbons and curls" took on an entirely new meaning. Church camp attire here is lacey shirts, high heels, makeup, and a new outfit every few hours. And we were scared we'd pack more than the others!

*Did i mention, BYOTP?

*When the youth group suggests doing the skit on Joseph, and therefore speaking in jibberish aka "Egyptian", it's a creative idea, especially when you can just continue speaking English and no one will ever know the difference. (At one point, Odilio, one of the boys from Curundu, asked Isaac, the missionaries' son and our "Panamanian brother" if I was speaking English or jibberish)

*Entertainment consists of daring a boy to run up, wave, and say "where are you from?" to the gringas and running away.

*The middle school boys are not too shy to sit and stare at you for the entirity of the worship service and sermon.

*Panama youth convention food is better than US youth rally/camp food. For sure.

2. When teaching a Panamanian a US Tex-Mex favorite called Taco Salad, make sure to actually buy lettuce and not cabbage. Otherwise, when she goes to teach her husband and others the receipe she will excitedly list cabbage aka "repollo" as a main ingredient and include it next time she makes it. Woops. And, in case you were wondering, cabbage in the taco salad did not taste good the first time when we made it or the second time when she made it!

3. When the missionary parks illegally at the bus terminal, blocking several vehicles in their spaces and leaves you in the car saying as he departs, "Do you know how to drive one of these? (Meaning a stick)...No, then just push it", you should run out and follow him. Do not stay in the car unattended, because, as Rachel and I learned, within seconds of his disappearance, a huge pick up will come at you followed by another car, all laying on their horns for you to move, at which point you are laughing so hard and attempting to drive a standard car that you become frantic and the car of course stalls out. Then, you hear someone coming at you yelling, "Hey! Hey!", and you will of course assume it is the big man with the big truck coming to get you, so in order to protect you and your friend, you will not only now try to manage to drive this car but also roll up the window at the same time, just to see it's the missionary returning with the brother he was picking up and all he knows is that his car is somewhat driving away and that the last thing the gringas said was that they did not know how to drive!...Learning to drive a stick was on my list of things to do before I left...the list that I did not fully complete.

4. Country music is the "real" music of the United States. Or, at least, this is what I've told them. And, later changed.

5. Do not get in a taxi late at night if he has a knife stabbed into the dashboard and the inside door handles ripped out of the door, allowing him to be the ONLY one who can let you out! Check this out before you start down the road with him.

6. The "real deal" Americans apparently have blonde hair and blue eyes. A direct quote said to me and Rachel was, "I was expecting blondes. You girls look Latina. So, you're not the real deal, right?"

7. When you attempt to make an American treat for an English class and the cookie dough goes crazy for whatever reason and the cookies look more like baked peanut butter smudges, it's ok, because you're the American and they're the Panamanian and you can tell them whatever you want to tell them it is and they'll just think it's some weird North American thing, kinda like taco cabbage.

So, if you can't tell, Rachel and I are having our fair share of challenges, surprises, and laughs along the way. We had a horribly hard day yesterday of back blistering mission work. We spent the day with two of my readers, Karolina and Betel, introducing them to some other girls from church, hoping it will help them form more relationships with the church and entice them to visit one day or desire to know more about Him. I say back blistering because the sun really took it's toll on my upper back when we were canoeing in the Pacific, laying on the beach, and exploring the alleys of Isla Taboga, aka the island of flowers. Ya'll, it was tough, but someone had to do it:)

Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Please especially pray for our readers. I want to tell you about Isabel, and ask that you will especially keep her in your prayers. Isabel speaks fantastic English. She's married, a mother of three, and in her early thirties. Isabel and I have spent a lot of time searching the Bible. Through our time together, I have really been amazed by almost being able to see the battle between Satan and the Lord, each fighting for her soul. In one hand she wants to know more and already has a belief in God, but on the other it's almost as if she's scared of what she might learn and therefore embrace, and for this at times, almost seems as if she is trying to disprove the Bible. For this, I have really been trying to study more in preparation with my time with Isabel. Finally, last Wednesday God exposed what has possibly kept her from an intimate relationship with Him--an understanding of the immense love God has for His creation, and from that an inability to recognize that not all will come to call Heaven their eternal home. We have begun to study this together a lot, and I beg that you will pray that her heart and her mind be open to His words. I really am trying to emphasize to her that I will only tell her what the Bible says, not what I think , and I have made a promise to her to be able to follow whatever is said with scripture if I present it to be the Word of God. Pleas pray that God will reveal His word to me so that I might share it with her. I believe that all souls are precious to God, but for some reason, I feel God fighting very strong to win this woman over to Him. Please, please pray for her. She seems to be searching and continuously pursuing a more personal relationship with Rachel and me. She feeds us often, and even went to a movie with us last week. Please keep her in your prayers.

The following is a list of all the individuals Rachel and I are studying English and the book of Luke with right now. Please take a minute to lift their names up to the Lord. Rachel: Sirsa (who is taking us to her parents' farm this upcoming weekend!), Maxima ( a member of the church), Allen (a young, teenage boy), Yazmin (She rents the room below our's), and Renee (A very excited married, father of two). Me: Karolina (she's 24 and went to the beach with us yesterday), Lesliee (she's 18 and started with me in Brisas del Golf), Isabel, Felicia (a strong leader in the Catholic church in this area), Betel (she's 20 and also went to the beach with us yesterday), and Maria (who also started with us in Brisas del Golf). We are also doing a Wednesday night English/Spanish Bible study, singing, and games, and I ask that you will please pray for this effort, as it is a way for us to introduce our readers to members of the church, give them additional language practice, and expose others to the Word and church that our schedules do not allow us to meet with individually on a regular basis. And, please rejoice with us and our nine new, young brothers and sisters in Christ who were baptized at the youth convention! Keep them in your prayers as they begin their renewed lives on this earth and their spiritual journey!

As for me, I went to the doctor last night after the beach and I have some type of Strep throat. I did not go to church this morning, but stayed home to rest and will join the congregation in Brisas del Golf this afternoon. Please pray for our health, as we both do not get a lot of time to rest during the week, and will be traveling the next few weekends. Please pray that Rachel will not get sick while she is so lovingly caring for me!

Lastly, as our brother Paul once wrote to the Ephesians, "Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that i may declare it fearlessly, as I should." Granted I'm not in chains, but please, pray that our words will be His.

Thank you for your prayers. We ask for so many because we know that with faith the size of a mustard seed a mountain can be moved and that whatever we ask the Lord for in His good name with faith He will grant. May it all be to His glory. He is hearing your prayers now and we look forward to us all enjoying these answers to prayer with the souls He saves in Heaven. May God bless you all!