Let's talk MISSIONS.  So how many of you reading this are missionaries, and how many have considered a mission trip?  Well, missionary life is definitely a calling from God.  It's not easy, sometimes it's absolutely exasperating.  And the stress level of a missionary is very, very high.  But do I love it?  ABSOLUTELY.  I wouldn't be any other place (except maybe Texas)   My family has received many blessings through our missionary work, and my children have experienced things that they otherwise would not have.  When your 5 year old is adamant about following Christ and obeying God and wanting to do his Bible study, then you know you are doing something right (or even if you're not, God is at work). 

We see a lot of things here in Ecuador.  Poverty, family abuse, families that are disintegrating, more poverty, begging.  But we also see a people group (the Quichua, pro. "kee-chu-wa) who need God.  And we see people in this group who want to share the Gospel with their families and friends and strangers.  God is at work here and we are merely a part of God's great big plan for our people group.  Every day we see snow-capped volcanoes and beautiful mountains.  And the beauty of the city lights at night are unimaginable. 

I am thankful that God is using us here.  I am thankful to be here.  I am thankful for the friends that I am making, and things that I am learning.  I am thankful for God's provision.  I am thankful for the struggles, because through them I learn endurance and perseverance.  I am thankful for the failures, because through them I learn to rely on God's plan and not my own.  I am thankful for cooking from scratch, because the food is really much better that way.

I am thankful for my parents and grandparents who taught me so much as a child.  It has really come in handy.  I am thankful for e-mail and Skype, so I can keep in touch with friends and family easily, quickly, and free.  And I am thankful for friends who keep in touch and let us know what's going on in their lives.

Missionary life is different.  The struggles are different.  The international mission field is different.  But the joy is the same as long as you are serving God and doing what He has called you to do -- wherever that may be.