7/1/2024 9:24:46 PM

Hello everyone! It's now week 5 of trips here in AZ, and I wanted to update you all on how the past few weeks have been! After week 1 we had a team of 38, then 50, and last week we had a team of 62! It has been such a joy getting to meet many new people from all over the country! Everyone and every Church has a unique story and I have loved getting to know them as I lead different work sites and projects! I also have developed strong relationships with the community members! Pastor JR is such a hoot to work with, and some of the local ladies have become my family here. For my birthday, they made me a cake and gave me an awesome blanket! I feel so loved, and I treasure the relationships that I have with those ladies and their children. The Church I'm partnering with is called House of Joy Church, and Pastor JR has named me and my teammates the House of Joy band and he has us play at every Revival. At last week's Revival, I sang Amazing Grace and I had Pastor JR join and sing every other verse in Navajo. He really loved it, and it was such a sweet moment! I also have developed relationships with the homeowners on our various worksites! The biggest needs on the reservation are physical needs, so most of the service we do is construction. I have learned so much about construction as I have been leading different work projects! YouTube has been my friend as I have googled how to stucco a house or properly pour a slab! But I am getting the hang of it, and I am really loving it and growing in confidence! One of the main projects for this summer is building a house from the ground up for a lady named Miss Kim. She is a single lady who has been living out of her car, but the winters here are brutal, and she desperately needs some real shelter. So every week there has been a team out there working on the foundation, footings, and last week they finished pouring the slab! I had a team write Bible verses and pray over the foundation of the house and it was truly a beautiful moment. Every day before we start work on her house I have the teams pray over the house and Miss Kim. My prayer is that the house may be a reminder of the Lords goodness and love and that Miss Kim may remember all the different people and churches that worked on her house and be encouraged in her faith. It truly is a huge thing that we get to build this house for her! In addition to that, there are several other work projects! We have been working on a 2 story house for a family and have finished roofing, siding, painting, and electrical work! This is also the house where Kids Club is held, so there are always children running around and wanting to help build their house, which is so cute. Last week, one of the team members was chatting with the teenage daughter of the family, and they exchanged testimonies and the girl decided to give her life to Jesus! I was so excited to hear that! In addition, we also finished stuccoing a hogan, which is a traditional Navajo home. The homeowners were fun to work with at that site, and the older man would bring his guitar out and play while we worked! It was a great time of fellowship! I love how eager the locals are to connect with the people coming on the trips to serve. Another project we worked on was siding a house. The man who lives in the house is an older man, and before we started working he was praying for the team and he was emotional because of his gratitude. He explained how all his children live off the reservation and are unable to visit and help him, so our help means so much to him. It was funny because him and his friends and wife sat outside everyday while we worked just to observe! But the youth on the team had many good conversations with them which was awesome to see! That same week there was also a middle school team at an older ladies home, and they were tearing down some interior walls to check for termites. The lady was so kind and cooked them lunch every day and when the middle schoolers came back at the end of the day they were so excited to tell me everything they learned. The lady shared her testimony with them, and they memorized it so they could retell it! It was so sweet! We also have done several roofing projects at different homes, so I have got to know many different local people! The missions work I'm doing here is different than I am used to because I am used to more direct relational work. With that being said, I kind of struggled for a moment to find the purpose in the labor, but God showed me the beauty in the simplicity. What I mean by that is when we build a house or pour a slab we are physically blessing the community. A blessing that will withstand time and be a reminder of God and his miraculous love. And when I see how genuinely excited and grateful the homeowners are, it makes all the hard work so worth it. Another thing that is really cool for me is seeing everything come full circle. I remember going on missions trips as an early teen and I remember specific moments that changed my faith and sparked a flame and passion inside me. And now in my role I get to help create those moments for so many others. Going on a missions trip makes you uncomfortable and disturbs your normal flow of life, which allows you to see and experience God in new ways. I have seen so many people have moments like this and it is exciting to see the passion and excitement people have for the Lord. God is moving in powerful ways in both the locals and the people coming to serve! This week we have a week of 10, which has been really refreshing after the several large groups we've had. I was able to go to Kids Club today and one of the little girls fell asleep on my lap and it was the cutest thing. In any downtime I have I have been playing my guitar, and also trying to learn the drums! My heart is overflowing with joy! I love my role here and I love the community so much! I feel very blessed and grateful for this wonderful opportunity. I also want to thank you all! Your prayers and support mean so much to me. I apologize for the length of this update, but there is just so much to share! I will post another update soon, but for now I ask that you continue praying for the locals we are serving and also for the people coming to serve. Also please pray that I am able to get some good rest this week! Thank you again for your love and prayers! May God bless you!
With love,
Maddy 🤍

6/7/2024 10:04:41 AM

Week 1 is complete!!! This week was the first week of having teams come to serve, and there were 36 people who came from three different churches! I want to share an update about how God is moving and ways you can continue to pray! I am beyond grateful for all of the support and prayers! In the photos is a picture of my teammates who I will be working with all summer! I have already made such good friendships in the time we've been together! Also included is a picture of Pastor JR Wilson standing infront of a traditional Navajo home! Pastor JR is such a sweet man with a great sense of humor! It has been a joy working with him already! As week one comes to an end, I have a better understanding of my role here! Essentially my role is to serve as a bridge between Pastor JR and other community members, and the teams coming to serve. One thing God has put on my heart is the power of story and testimony. I want to listen well and learn from others. This position is very unique because this week alone I have already heard stories from the people serving on the trips, local women who I've gotten to know in the kitchen, Pastor JR and other leaders, community members who we are serving, and my teammates. I'm reminded continually of the Lord's faithfulness and goodness through the testimony of others. I think there is true beauty in hearing what God has done in other people's lives. In addition, we have got a lot of good work done! This week alone the teams were able to build a shed for a local partner, clean out an old Church that will be used by a youth group, complete an outhouse for a community member, haul sand to mix concrete, and also work on building a warehouse next to the Church I am staying at. The warehouse will serve the community, and the more square feet they have, the more food they will be given to distribute, which will be a huge blessing to the families here. I was able to work with each team and help direct them and support them, which I really enjoyed doing because I was able to build relationships with the locals who we partner with and also several people from the missions teams who came to serve! More than that, what I really appreciate about Experience Mission is their value of relation. We have a saying that is, “people before projects”. The work here is very construction heavy because that is where the greatest needs are, but the emphasis is on building relationships with the people we are serving. I am able to lead devotionals with the teams every morning where I talk about the heart of missions and service. I am really growing my understanding of what it means to serve others with the love of Christ. I also want to continue growing in my confidence and leadership skills, and I ask that you pray for my growth in this as well. In addition to all the work we did, we also had a lot of time for worship and fellowship! This week there was a tent revival here next to the Church! Every day they have services at 10 am, 3 pm, and 6 pm! I have been able to attend the evening services, and I have loved every moment of it! It is special to enter into their worship service because most of the singing is in Navajo! My goal is to learn a song in Navajo to sing and surprise Pastor JR with by the end of the summer! I also got to sing and play with some people from the Cowboy Church that joined us this week! There is a canyon that is only a 10 minute walk from the Church, and one night we went down there and worshipped! Several people told me how much they loved it and that it was the highlight of their week! I love how worship and music can bring people together. If you have made it this far in the post, thank you! I realize I may have gotten a little wordy, but I can not express how much I absolutely love it here! I feel like I should also mention that the rustic living has not been bad at all! I guess being raised in Iowa has prepared me well! The only challenge is cooking for so many people and not having running water to do dishes, but I am managing and having fun doing it! Some ladies have taught me a few traditional Navajo meals, so I'm thinking I will have to cook for you all when I come home! As I wrap up this post, I ask that you please pray for me that I can have an open heart to hear and see what God has to teach me. I feel like God is building a foundation in my life and faith for wherever He will lead me next, and I feel that this experience is going to be a significant part in that foundation! Also please be praying for the people coming on the trips. In the next few weeks we have several youth groups joining us, and I think it will be a great opportunity for them to deepen their faith and learn more about God. Also please be praying for Pastor JR and his ministries, especially the tent revivals that will take place every week this summer. And lastly, I want to thank you all! I can't express enough how grateful I am for your support! I feel truly blessed to have such wonderful people who love and support me so well! May the Lord bless you and keep you and may His face shine upon you.
With love,
Maddy 🤍