Courage.

My devotional today talks about courage...about trusting in God to have your back when things get hard or when you get lonely.  Being here, I am not only without my familiar friends and family, but I am also in a group with 13 other students who don't have nearly as strong of faith as I do...some of which don't even believe in God at all.  God puts us in these situations so that we can be a light in their darkness, but a lot of times it is easier to blend in and go with the crowd so that you aren't the odd man out.  One thing that being here has helped me realize, is that it is so important for me to stick out.   Because I am here alone and I have learned to put my focus on God and be open about my faith there have been times where I needed to take out my Bible in a group of people purely because I needed a little bit of God's word to get me through a hard situation.  A lot of people ask about my faith and I have even shared a little bit of what I believe with one of my teachers. Yes, branching out and sharing your faith is a difficult thing, but just as Jesus was with his disciples when their boat was caught in a storm...he is with me in my difficult times...all I have to do is ask.



So....speaking of school! It has been almost a full three weeks since I started classes and the work load is finally starting to accumulate. The last few days I have spent doing homework and reading TONS of articles and books for my classes. I didn't have to purchase any textbooks this semester, but I have had to copy several pages from text that was provided by my teachers. Thankfully at least two of the novels I need to read in my literature class are offered in bilingual format...so that I can read in Spanish on one page and on the next page it is in English.  I am excited for most of my classes, but they will definitely be hard work.

This weekend my host mom invited me to go do something with her on the "Malecon," the street that lines the ocean.  She didn't really give me much detail as to what was going on...but she did say we would be walking about 4 km.  I am excited to see what we will do and I am also really looking forward to spending some time with her so that we can get to know each other a little better.

I am so happy that God has touched my life and brought me here to this special place. I will keep these memories with me for the rest of my life.