The Caribbean Sea: Holy and Beautiful

Well it's been officially two weeks since I've been home from Puerto Rico, and a month since I have been home from Mozambique. I'm readjusting to life in Indiana and certainly enjoying foods other than rice and beans (I do love rice and beans, but not everyday for two months.) I can tell you what I miss most, but I can't tell you who I miss most. I miss the people. Second to the people I miss the way of life. Third or fourth or fifth to that, I miss the beach.

Here are some pictures taken at Campamento del Caribe, where we lived in Puerto Rico:

Do you have a favorite tree? Mine is the palm tree. :)



This view was only 30 feet from my back door! I found that umbrella bench to be a beautiful and holy place as I met with God there during morning devotions. I remembered His Word as I heard the waves crashing onto the shore as I slept at night.


The coast here looked dirtier because of the brown volcanic sand,however it was the Caribbean Sea I was living on!

Here are some pictures taken at the pristine Coffin Island (Isla de Caja de Muerto), where we took a vacation day:

Approaching Coffin Island by a 1-hour boat ride


Look at that white sand and blue water! It was dreamy.


It was snorkeling around those rocks where I saw schools of beautiful colored fish, found a huge conch shell, and was stung by a sea urchin.


Our group of 26 spent between 4 & 5 hours in the water. The water was perfect and it was a beautiful day!
Wherever I go and whichever beach I am standing on, I cannot help but gaze across the expansive waters and think, "Therefore God exists." The feeling of the warm sun, the cool breeze, and the soft sand between my toes is a feeling of peace and serenity that only a supreme God could give. No one else could create those colors! It was my first experience snorkeling and I was absolutely amazed to see so much life below the surface of the water.

Papa God, thank You for revealing Yourself in creation!

People Time

In addition to using my Spanish and hanging out with 16-year-old Carla, my favorite part of Puerto Rico was the quality time that I spent with my team. At the end of every day we had team devotions and worship, and then the teens left and the leaders had prayer, discussion, and laughter.

The 8 fearless chaperones for the 18 youth::

Myself, Laurie, Marlane, Michele, David, Tony, Jefe, and Scott

On the 1-hour boatride to the pristine Isla de Caja de Muerto (Coffin Island)::

The island was a very beautiful place. We packed lunches and were there from about 10a to 3:30p; and I was in the water almost five of our five-and-a-half hours there. It was my first experience snorkeling and I loved it. Even after I encountered the sea urchin, who left quite a few stabbers in my arm, I took a Benadryl and went back in!

We all felt a little guilty taking a vacation on our first full day in Puerto Rico, but it really was bonding experience that had a positive impact on our unity as we worked and ministered together later in the trip.

Enjoying the beauty of God's creation::

The Caribbean Sea

Shopping Day in the downtown square of Ponce::

Noelle, Megan, Katrina, Myself, Michele, Lauren, Tiffany, and Paola

At the famous Casa del Frape, where they had the best fruit smoothies:

David, Jacob, Myself, Levi, Megan, and ElizabethI believe we visited this four times in eight days. They had 71 varieties including: Orange Lemon, Strawberry Piña Colada, Carrot, Mango Papaya, Peanut Butter Banana, Tropical Fruit Mix, Kiwi Coconut, etc. So good!
Jefe and I showing Matt, Levi, and Derek who is the Boss in Eurche::


In the San Juan airport with some of the girlies before our departure home::

Myself, Tiffany, Katrina, Brittany, Lauren, and LaurieWe had matching shirts for our travel day to Puerto Rico, our travel day home to Indiana, and for the 4th of July when we went to the rainforest. It definitely was much easier to collect 26 people when we are wearing matching yellow, orange, or blue shirts!

Having been out of the youth group now for three years, there were only two or three of the teens that I actually knew well. I'm not a regular youth group sponsor, but Pastor Tony asked me to put together a reasonably cheap and reasonably safe missions trip because I've done it already many times and I know what I'm doing. I agreed to plan but couldn't agree to go because I already had Mozambique and Cambodia on the calendar. Then when Cambodia was canceled, I felt God really pushing on my heart to join the PR team. I truly am grateful for the opportunity to go and become much better acquainted with 25 awesome people.

Pieces of my heart all over the world...

I am amazed and feeling incredibly blessed as I sit and think about all the places I have been and all the people that I have met as I have traveled and participated in missions trips in Mexico, Honduras, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Cambodia [twice], Mozambique and South Africa, and Puerto Rico. There are pieces of my heart all over the world.

Today, six years later, I have vivid memories of the two little twin boys Adrian and Jorge in Ensenada, Mexico. I am still in contact with friends that I made at La Escuela el Sembrador in Olancho, Honduras, five years ago.
In 2006 I went to the Dominican Republic and I will never forget Papucho [above], Tata, Jose, and other children in Pancho Mateo where I taught, played, and loved my heart out. The following year I went to Ecuador and the relationships I made there with Pastor Geovanni Saltos and his family still affect me today. The next two summers I went to Cambodia and my life has never been the same. I left my heart in Cambodia; it is my home. Earlier this summer I went to Mozambique and South Africa, and had the time of my life with Mario, Abrao, Calisto and the other students at the Bible college in Xai Xai.

And it all started here, with him:
My granddad and my hero, Rev. Harvey Ellsworth Ache
Granddad was a missionary and a world-traveler. His passion for missions is still alive in me, as I live in his love for people and for preaching God's Word. I like to think that if he were still living [he died when I was in kindergarten,] that we would go on trips together - to Africa, to India, and to Cambodia.

In Puerto Rico I met three sisters - Stefani (21), Carla (16), and Paola (12). Over a period of only ten days, Carla and I became close friends. Initially I was unsure how to relate to Carla, whose son Jamuel will be two-years-old only three days after her seventh birthday, but one thing brought us together - shopping. As we were looking at purses, shoes, and dresses, Carla and I realized that despite many differences, we're both two girls who are trying to find our own identities. Maybe I have things a little more figured out than she does, and maybe I haven't made the same mistakes that she has, but I'm still working towards christlikeness.


Carla, Stefanie, and I - our last evening together
I'm going to pray everyday for these three sisters, especially the youngest, Paola, who is in desperate need of guidance, consistency, and a father figure. Thank you Jesus for allowing me to meet the Torres sisters.

Vacationing at home: Priceless

After seven weeks of living on the Indian Ocean, and ten days of living on the Caribbean Sea, I am finally at home and feeling like I'm on vacation! I have never been more glad to be home than I am today, even if it is only for two days. [Sunday afternoon I leave for one week at Junior Bible Camp.]

The Caribbean Sea


The Indian Ocean

Somehow I have to finish blogging about my Mozambican experience, then tell you all about Puerto Rico, and meanwhile tonight we're celebrating my niece's 2nd birthday, then I leave for a week of camp. ¡Ay caramba! Here goes...

Puerto Rico was nice, and the youth were really great. I was one of eight sponsors and there were eighteen teens. We lived at Campamento del Caribe - a Christian camp in Juana Diaz, thirty feet from the shore of the Caribbean Ocean - and worked in the barrio Singapur. Barrios are the ghettos of Latin America.

We worked with missionaries John and Kerry Cox, who have a house church and strong ministry in the barrio. In the mornings and afternoons our team of 26 worked alongside John, preparing for VBS and doing hands-on work projects, such as building these concrete dam to prevent flooding at Carla's house. Other work included: weeding, planting flowers, wiring electricity, digging a sewage line, and more.

In the picture below I am riding on the back ledge of the van, holding onto a wheelbarrow as we drove down the streets through the barrio. I knew this idea was a little ghetto because even the Puerto Ricans were laughing at me. I saw a horse tied to a rope, and being pulled behind a moped - yet apparently this seems strange.

One evening we had youth group, another evening we walked through the barrio and invited children to VBS, and the second week we had VBS. I'll write about this tomorrow. :)

Reminder: I'm NOT going alone!

I have prepared this prayer card with seven specific requests - one for each day of the week. My hope is that you and all my supporters will display it on your refrigerator, mirror, or desktop – a place that you will go often and be reminded to pray for me.

How to pray for Jewel’s ministry in Mozambique and in Puerto Rico:

• That I will be empowered by the Holy Spirit and be effective in my ministry, and that the Lord will bless the time that I commit to preparing my sermons and lessons. Again, my ministry will include a variety of: VBS, teaching English, youth ministry and outreach, ladies Bible study, visiting daycare centers, and teaching at the Bible college.

• That there will be unity on my Mozambique team; and that my relationships with everyone will be an encouragement and a blessing to them. Also, during my last month in Mozambique I will be alone, and I ask you to pray that I will find encouragement during that time.

• That I will be disciplined and kept accountable in my own spiritual walk and make the time for prayer each morning to commit my day and my ministry to Him. It is especially difficult to not be “fed” at church, as the services will be in Portuguese.

• That my body will be protected from sickness or exhaustion, and that my eyes will be protected from irritation and dryness, which frequently plague me.

• That I will have discernment and guidance from God as I lead my team in Mozambique. I sometimes feel inadequate because Africa will be new to me, therefore I cannot adequately prepare them to face difficult situations. I am also one of eight chaperones that will be leading our youth group to Puerto Rico.

• For traveling mercies: for safety during flights, on trips between provinces, and during the long drive between Johannesburg and Xai Xai. Also that I will be able to rest during the long flights (13 hours, 5 hours, 16 hours...) and that my luggage will be protected and arrived when and where it should.

• Finally, that I will have adequate rest and rejuvenation between returning from Mozambique on June 21st and soon after departing for Puerto Rico on June 29th.

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