slow down

Ok now I have a little bit more time to write.
So we got back the base last Wednesday and had a good time there but on Thursday night I started to feel bad. I had a throbbing headache and my lower back had crazy pains. I am a sarcastic person so I started pretending like I couldn´t walk and doing a bunch of things to just make it seem worse than it really was so no one really took me seriously in fact I didnt hink it was too serious. Then my head got worse. I went to sleep that night hoping it would be all better the next day, boy was I wrong. I spent the night tossing and turning not being able to find a position that would not strain my back. When I started to hear others arise the next morning I got up a well to find that I was in way worse shape that before. All of Friday I dealt with this horrible back pain. We were planning on leaving for Guanacaste on Friday but somthing happened with the ride and they postponed it to Saturday, lucky for me. Friday night I started getting bad and not just a little bad but to the point where I could no longer stand up. Then the worst part hit me, vomit was arising in my throat. Oh no. I was laying down trying to keep it down but I couldn´t hold it any longer. Friday night I spent throwing up every hour or so. I finally drank some tea and took some pills to try and make it better but that night of sleep was even worse than the one before. Two other girls were throwing up as well so I didn´t think I had anything special we thought we just caught a bug. Saturday our ride came at 6 to come and pick us up. I wasnt doing good at all. Katie and I, who was also sick, layed in bed all of Saturday until our ride came. Lucky for us our team really stepped up as our parents and was waiting on us hand and foot. Very nice of them. We made it to Guanacaste without throwing up and by the time we got there it was late. So we went upstairs and tried to go to bed. When I woke up I was doing a little better but not to much. Okay sorry guys Im making this way longer than it needs to be. It goes on and on and eventually a few days later we decide that I need to go to the clinic. Just to let you know where we were staying was in the country so the closest... anything was an hour away. So one of the base leaders where we were staying at drove me and another one of my leaders to the clinic. Turns out I had a kidney infection that wasn´t getting better. After they did some blood and other tests they told me what was wrong and what I needed to do. The funniest part about it all was that the doctor didn´t care as much about what was wrong with me as he did that I didn´t speak spanish! I was baffled when we went in to talk to him he started asking about our missionary work before he said even how are you doing. At the end when we were filling out papers he started asking the questions for my medications. He asked did I drink I said no he asked if I smoked and I said no and his response was.... BORINGGG! I was seriously shocked. I couldn´t believe it. For so long I have been dying to say that proud and then he tells me I´m boring. My leader told me...¨you should tell him that you used to do that but not anymore¨I was a little to upset to try and share my testimony but when we walked out of the room I said hey you know, this was in spanish, I used to smoke and drink but I don´t anymore and I have a great fun life! He was shocked I even said anything! haha
It wasn´t about shoving it in his face because that was not the point at all the point was that we could tell he was lost. I don´t think he really knew anyone like us. I don´t think he had ever met people who didn´t spend their life living for the night time. I don´t think he had ever had a good experience. So we showed him love and kindness despite the way he treated me. The way I told the story didn´t make him sound too mean but boy it was crazy how he treated us. I haven´t seen that in a long time. It wasn´t kind or right but thats how this earthly life is. But we need to be lights. We need to be the change. We cannot retaliate. Forgive always and in ever circumtance. Never drink poisen and hope it will kill your enemy. Thats what bitterness is. Thats what unforgivness is.

Anyways I am doing much better now. They gave me a shot in... an unpleasent place and a few medications. I am now able to walk and talk and laugh! Everyone said they hated the sick nina, that she was boring and lifeless. haha. So I´m back and I will be around the internet more so I can update you. While in Guanacaste we did Bible distribution. I wasn´t looking forward to it but it turned out to be one of my favorite weeks! It was so incredible to actually see the Bible trasform this communities lives. The base that we are at is pioneering the movement to put a bible in every home in Guanacaste Costa Rica. They have already handed out 5,000 they have 89,000 more to go! So if anyone feels called to watch God reach families by the Bible they need as many teams as they can to help them out. We saw 15 salvations. One drug addict was saved and got a job in just the week that we were there! These people are hungry. They wan´t God and they want that life. If anyone would like more information on the Bible distribution ministry let us know. Loren Cunningham, the founder of YWAM, has really felt from God that we are supposed to put a Bible in every home on this planet and YWAM is starting that job. Costa Rica is striving to be the first country and they are well on their way! We are the country that began before Loren even said anything to anyone so lets do it!!!!! but we are going to need help.

Tomorrow is our freeday and Katie and I are hopeing to go to the beach but we need to buy bus tickets and they will probably close.... soon so I gotta go!!!! But I will update soon. Tomorrow is freeday in Liberia, unless we leave somewhere else, then we go to Honduras on Sunday!!!!

PS. I GOT ACCEPTED TO THE CHILDREN AT RISK SCHOOL IN TIJUANA MEXICO! I am so excited starting Jan. 10, 2010 I will move to a YWAM base in Tijuana and work and learn about the risks and injustices going on in the world with Children and then going out and trying to stop it! I am really going to need your support the school is more expensive than I would like but I know God will provide. Please keep my finances in your prayers! I need to raise $3100. Thank you all so much!!!!!
I hope you all enjoyed this
Pss. MY BIRTHDAY IS IN 19 DAYS

nicoya to liberia

this week has been great I just wanted to write somthing supper quick we havent had email and we are about to catch a bus. I got a kidney infection and I wasnt able to be of too much help this week but we distributed bibles in Guanacaste, Costa Rica and it was was more impacting then I ever thought it would be and I am so greatful for this experience. We saw such incredible transformations in peoples lives and has several blessings poured out on us!
Ill write later I dont want to miss the bus!!!!
Love you all
nina

back to the base

Back to the base

Hey everyone! We got back to the San José base yesterday at about 6:30 after some rough traveling. We left Panama at 7:30 and took a boat to the main island. From there we caught a shuttle to the bus station by the Costa Rican boarder where we got our visas and passports stamped. Then we walked over the boarder which is actually a bridge that looks as if it’s about to crumble into the river below! It was a bit intimidating walking across that bridge but I had to remember that if Semi Trucks and big buses can make it across without breaking it than I can too. I am here alive luckily the bridge is still in tact too! The bus crossed over and we jumped in to begin our 6 our bus ride to San Jose. It wasn’t too bad besides the lack of leg space and there was a cockroach in the bus… how it got there, I’m not sure. I do know that we had cockroaches at our hostel so maybe it sneaked into someone’s bag. I am still recovering from the bed bug and mosquito bites. I thought I had hives from an allergic reaction but then I found out we had bed bugs and they were serious! It looked like I had chicken pox or something disguisting. But I’m alive almost fully recovered and getting ready to leave for Nicoya, Costa Rica tomorrow.

We got to the base in time for dinner and the leaders told us to get rested up because we would be leaving at 6:45 to do ministry at the Salvation Army serving the homeless breakfast and picking up trash. We were all exhausted but we signed up for an intense 5 month long missions trip and that sure as heck what we’re getting. It was really great although a ton of us were dragging from exhaustion we did and had a big smile on our face. It was so crazy all the homeless had so much knowledge but the problem is it was all in their head. They didn’t put it into action. I was talking to this 31 year old man who had been trying to get off crack for some time and began preaching to me! But the funny part was that he knew so much about the bible and God it really put me in check. I don’t know nearly as much as I wish to so bible here I come! It will be the only book you see me reading for the next… long while.

So here we go tomorrow we are off on the second part of outreach. We go to Nicoya, Costa Rica for about 6 days and do bible distribution and from there we get on a bus to go to Honduras. We stay in Honduras for 2 weeks then go to El Salvador. I can’t believe the end of this all is just a few weeks away. I’m getting sad already. But this isn’t the end of YWAM for me. I have done my application for my Children at Risk School in Tijuana, Mexico and I just need to make the application fee payment on it and then I’m good to go!

So that’s whats going on down here on my end but I have to get back to the base now. Oh but I have a quick testimony to tell you all about God’s faithfulness.

I have a friend here named Katie who is 21 years old from Florida. She came to Costa Rica in June with a friend who was coming down to be a staff for the summer at YWAM San Jose since she did her DTS here but Katie had no intentions of being involved with YWAM anymore than volunteer work. Their first month in Costa Rica consisted of traveling around and just enjoying the country. Then they were planning on going to the base for a month to volunteer. Right before Katie and her friend were going to come to the base Katie decided that she felt she was to do a DTS, the school that I am doing, and applied. She applied a few days before DTS started and the leaders did some serious praying about it and decided that God wanted her in this school. She came to the YWAM San Jose base with $200 in her bank account and that was it. She hardly had anything that was on the packing list. The school lecture phase cost $1,800 and the outreach was $1,500. Katie paid them the $200 that she had and left the rest up to God. Throughout lecture phase she got donations as small as $5 to as big as $800 to material things like sleeping bags and clothes to food mailed from the states. Today she still had $700 to pay and the deadline is tomorrow. When she saw how much she owed she got very discouraged. She didn’t understand why God would bring her up to this mountaintop just to drop her off and leave her there. She cried out to God angry and upset. “Why would He do this” is what she thought and told Him that she was okay with whatever was to come but she didn’t want to leave now. Minutes later the leaders came up to Katie and said, “We need to talk to you.” The leaders were holding the finance board and she knew this was it… she was going home. “Your outreach is paid for Katie” her expression dropped. She didn’t know what to do. Just a few minutes before I was with her as she was telling God how she really felt about this whole situation and now the outreach was paid for! Once again God is faithful. Someone donated $700, the exact amount that she needed at the exact time that she needed. God is faithful. Then she goes and checks her bank account and there sits $100 for living expenses. God is faithful. Wow. Everyday I just see more and more… how can you not believe. Why would you not want to believe? Look at how He spoils us! God is faithful.

I love my life and I love you all!

Feel free to write me emails! I’d love to read them and hear from you.

ninajbarbour@gmail.com

here is the link to my photos

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=35243&id=100001255764833

lovenina

beautiful boca

Yes we still are having an amazing time here in Boca del Toro Panama. Today we did some kids ministry in the central park which was awesome. We haven´t done kids ministry in a while so going back to that was pretty fun. We rounded the kids up and invited them to come hang out with us. We did a few dramas, played some games, and painted their faces. But for me I get really into anything that involves getting messy and at the end of the day I walked away with a unibrow, mustache, beard, tree on my face, and some kind of abstract masterpeice on my arms. I started to wash it off in the bathroom when I realized it was going to take a while and I decided to just jump in the ocean to take it off, perks of being on the water ay? So we swam for a bit today and then I practiced my front flips which are still not.... not quite there BUT I am hoping they will be perfected before I go.
I´m getting really excited about the rest of outreach and I know it´s still a while away but I am also very excited about my Children at Risk School in Tijuana, Mexico. It is such an amazing base right outside of Tijuana and I hear they have great food and the building is awesome. We hear it´s the most ¨happening¨ base. That is not why I am going but that is a plus. The school costs $3,100 so I´m going to have to get on that somehow. I wish I had time to get involved in a church but I come home December 12 and the school starts January 3 so there is a bit of a time issue but I am going to do all the funraising I can. I will sell photographs make cultural dinner and if you guys have anymore suggestions on fundraising please let me know I need to raise quickly once I get home!
Tomorrow our leaders have planned the ministry and they have kept it a suprise but we do know that we will be going to a private beach that we hear is the most beautiful out of all of the islands. I overheard somthing about snorkling but I may have overheard very WRONG. I will let you guys know what happens.
Tonight we went into our hangout spot because we were waiting for the rain to calm down and I ran into someone I knew. THE MAYOR OF THE ISLAND. How cool is that. I really do love this whole island living thing it makes ministry and building relationships so much fun. We run into people all the time and they recognize you too! The locals are not used to tourists helping out or even taking the time to talk to them so when we start to make relationships with everyone we meet they are a little thrown back but also enjoy it.
I wish we had more time here. We leave Wednesday morning to go back to San Jose untill Friday morning where we head off to Nicoya which is in Costa Rica for about 6 days doing Bible distribution then off to Honduras and El Salivdor for a month! whoooo it´s going to be a crazyyy ride. I will definitely begin to hate the clothes I have.. I hate to say it but, I´m already sick of the ones I brought on this trip.... well oh well! I´ll live.
I gotta get back curfew is in a few moments time and we got to walk back!
love
nina

a day in the life

We are having such an awesome time here in Bocas. It is such an increidble experience to see all the needs on this island and do somthing about it. We have really become part of the community in the way of learning about the culture the needs and different aspects of this island. We have been doing ministry at the old folks home here in Bocas which many also call the poor house. As some may be able to conclude a ton of the old folks there have just been thrown into that place to be taken care of. It is such a sad sight. These old folks, some still here some not too much any longer, are just dying for love and affection from others but they are not recieving it. The look on their faces when we walked in a second day was absolutly priceless! They were astonished that we actually came back just to talk and hang out with them. Today we actually painted in their rooms some cool stuff and a few of our guys made some shelves for the rooms because they didn´t have any and have been using bags to hold all of their stuff. I am unsure if we will be visiting them again on this trip but I hope we do. They are so cute! I painted this one womens nails who was so cute and petite and just appreciated everything about what we were doing. But then there was another women who just wanted us togive here things which could have been a bit iritating if we didn´t think it was so funny!
Last night we were on the local news as well!! Pretty cool ay? So I guess this guy was just so baffled when he saw tourists cleaning up the streets so he began to follow us around and did a news story on us. He then videoed us the following day when we were at the old folks home. Last night he did a live interview with us so I will have to go and get that tape to try and put it online for you all to see!

Well we gotta go now cerfew is 10pm haha
So I love you all and will get on and update asap!
lovealways
nina

Made it to Boca

Hey everyone! I can't write much because outreach has officially started and we are busyyy but we had an amazing time on NIKO and I learned a ton. Sorry thats all I'm allowed to say about it. If you want to know more.... do it! We spent Saturday and Sunday in Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica which is a party town on the Caribbean coast full of new agers and witch craft but we had an amazing time doing spiritual warfare. We met many people and talked to them about life a few of the people did some bar ministry at night but due to my age I am not allowed to do that. It was pretty difficult for me because my passion is to help people that were in the same pit as me. I guess for now I just have to hold off and wait until my season comes. We originally were going to stay at a Pastoral house of one of the church's but they forgot we were coming and we ended up staying in a restaurant that was shut down for the rainy season right on the water. It was beautiful but the lack of electricity and blarring music from the bars next to us made it a bit difficult but I believe it was just part of the experience.

We took a bus to the Panama this morning where we then got taken to an island called Boca del Torro. It is a beautiful touristy island that needs a ton of help. All the locals believe that white people are only here to party, make a mess, and leave but we are here to wreck this city for God. We are here to show them that we can have so much fun without a drop of alcohol in our system! We will be doing prayer walks around the island, beach ministry, and picking up trash. There are so many other things we will be doing but the leaders have left it up to us to really listen to God's voice and see what He wants us as a group to do for this city. I can't wait to see whats in store. I have a ton of videos and pictures of this week already but until I get back to my computer in San Jose on the 19th they will remain a mystery to you all!

Our hostel is right on the water front and we have been jumping off our deck into the Caribbean Sea. It's a bit difficult to remember that this is outreach and not vacation. This place is so beautiful! I will try and write as soon as possiblee once again but please bare with me.

I will try and do a little entry every few days instead of one big one every week. If there is anything in paticular you would like to hear about shoot me an email. ninajbarbour@gmail.com

love you all

nina