Little Blessings

How in the world is it already March? I do apologize for the late post, my life has a way of getting a little crazy here on the missions field! For those of you who are a little concerned after my last post, rest assured I am doing just fine, things are going wonderfully! Each day brings a new set of challenges and even more excitement, my life is never boring. I will do my best to recap these past few weeks in a short amount of time. Always know that if you have any questions or would like to contact me personally, please do! I will leave my personal email at the bottom of this post and I would love to hear from you.

Where to start! Well we have had some great teams visiting over the last little while, and it is so nice to have guests in the house from all over the U.S. We had a building team come and work on a house for a fellow employee, who has become a dear friend of mine. This little rascal has found the way to my heart and continues to bug me endlessly all day everyday! I must say I kinda love it. He is celebrating over 2 years of sobriety which is a wonderful accomplishment! Praise God! His life is a whole new story now and he was finally blessed with a place to call "Home". Upon finishing this project, the team continued to do much needed repairs around the office and our new building across the road. They were a huge blessing and a wonderful team!

Our second team was a medical team, and I will do my best to put into words the wonderful gift they were to this community! They came packed full with medications and equipment to fully serve the people of our community.We offered a free clinic for four days, to all of our programs and the people surrounding us. A free clinic in this community makes the world of a difference. For many of these people, the cost of visiting a doctor is unheard of, so many must suffer every single day, in heart wrenching pain, just trying to get by. We served people of all ages from teeny tiny beautiful babies to wonderful heart warming seniors. I got the opportunity to get to know some of these wonderful people, and share a little about our program with them. I am happy to report that we have many new faces in our program because of it! The team members had the most beautiful heart to serve,and made every single person feel loved and cherished by them, and by God. They worked late hours and saw hundreds of patients, not only taking care of their physical needs, but their spiritual ones as well. The team was wonderful to get to know and I have made several new friends that I cherish close to my heart. We had another team visit this week for a one day clinic, and I had the wonderful opportunity to meet a beautiful young mom to be. We laughed, chatted and got to know one each other. It still amazes me how women have a way of connecting with one another on such a truly beautiful level. We capture each others hearts, through love and understanding, even with a language barrier in place, it makes no difference. God lets us see the other women as our sister in Christ, and what a wonderful thing that is! This special new friend of mine is the same age as me and yet our lives look much different. She has a 6 year old daughter and a life time of trials, and yet she is simply glowing with love and excitement to meet this wonderful blessing from God. We had the opportunity to hear that beautiful baby heart beat and it was a magical moment it was, one I will never forget. This kind of technology in this country is rare, and it being a surprise option warmed this lovely women soul. With a steady strong heart beat and several fierce kicks, this little bundle of joy is a lot more than 16 weeks old, a surprise that excited our wonderful mother to be!I cherish moments like these close to my heart, and remember the wonderful blessings from God shows us, when things get tough.

As March waltzed in, so did a new roommate! Jenni has been a blessing and a wonderful addition to our home. We love her dearly and are so glad that God has placed her here in our lives! I look forward to many more wonderful memories of joy, hardship and sisterly love! On the missions field it is so important to have a group of people supporting you in love and prayer, not only at home but here sharing this journey day to day too.

As for the love from folks like you back home, I have never been so touched by your continued words of love, prayer and support! I have received cards, care packages and letters in the mail, and honestly, I can't put into words how wonderful it is! We had a dear couple from church visit here on vacation and they were nice enough to bring me a huge bag of goodies from back home, including cards from church friends, special spices and treats from sisters, wonderful hand drawn pictures from the nephews, and new clothes! They also brought an overflowing blessing of "Twining Earl Grey Tea", something I didn't realize I cherished so much until coming here. I am happy to report I drink it every single day and enjoy every sip, it amazes me how something so small can being me such comfort, a little piece of home! Most importantly, they were a wonderful face from home. People I knew and loved but also people who knew me, my stories and my friends back home. Having fellow Canadians here was truly a blessing from God. 

Being so far away is an incredible adventure but is also can be tough for someone who loves her family so much back home, and quite honestly almost everyone I know, I consider family. Getting mail is still one of the most exciting things in the world!! Especially here! Having you folks take the time to sit down and write to me still blows me away. It truly warms my heart to be able to actually hold something hand written in my hands. It sounds so silly I know, but it's true! I quite literally hold it close to my heart, and God's peace and love simply washes over me, a feeling that causes tears to trickle down my face. These little notes are God given reminders that I have a purpose here, and I can fulfill that purpose because He has placed the perfect supports all around me, whether that be all over Canada, or my new friends I have come to love here in El Salvador. It also continues to surprise my coworkers how incredibly loved I am. They get a little jealous!

All in all, things are just wonderful! I am constantly growing not only my relationship with the people of El Salvador but more importantly, my relationship with Christ! I look forward to more love being sent from back home, and will do my best to keep you all up to date! I pray you know how loved and useful each of you are in my life. I am so richly blessed!

Love and Prayers
Erica Byleveld

P.s I found greek yogurt to use as sour cream and have a friend bringing me taco seasoning

God is good!

2 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

Colossians 3 12

Clean Up In Aisle 4

Hahaha, yes I think the title is interesting too. Grab a nice cup of tea, get cozy and enjoy the telling of my very first melt down in El Salvador. Y'all might think that this whole missionary lifestyle is easy, let me tell you, some of the simplest things, can turn into an emotional roller coaster! Like my experience in a grocery store this past Friday. Yeah! The GROCERY STORE!

We will start from the beginning. I had a wonderful Friday at the office, I had finished up some paper work I had been doing for days, had an enjoyable and beautiful day and simply wanted to stop and get some fresh veggies and fruit on the way home from the office. I asked our driver, who said it would be no problem at all! 

I walked into the store, and was thrown into chaos. I love chaos, thrive in it actually, not today! I couldn't find some basic produce I was looking for, searched and was disappointed to find out that a spanish country didn't have Taco seasoning, (what is wrong with these people) I forgot to weigh my produce myself, was still coming to terms with the fact that sour cream just doesn't exist here ( which still bothers me more than you can imagine) and found victory when stumbling across Campbell's tomato soup! Which is the end gave me more trouble than it should have. I walked up to the counter, unloaded my basket and waited my turn. Of course my produce got hauled away to be weighed, priced and bagged (wasn't aware we had to do that), my soup wouldn't scan, so the poor bag guy had run and get another can, which also didn't scan, which led to three more people joining us to try and figure out the major soup issue. Starting to get anxious, I felt bad about how long this was taking. Just when the soup finally got scanned, I had asked for the wrong receipt, which meant we needed another three cashiers to create an account for an invoice, all while I get stared at for being a white person in an all spanish town, who couldn't figure out what she wanted, let alone try and tell the poor women at the counter in my seriously lacking spanish. It was awful. 

We finally made it out of the store (barely) and headed towards home, at a crawling pace in what was now rush hour madness. Exhausted, hungry and mentally drained, I barely held back tears when walking through the door at home. I dropped my bags to the counter and did what every girl does in a time of need and comfort. I called my mom! I dialed the number and sat on the patio as it rang, at this point I was ok, it wasn't until she said hello that I lost it. My trickling tears turned into breath taking uncontrollable sobs. The poor women!! Her youngest daughter so far away in a dangerous country, doing dangerous work, calls her sobbing, her first thought is, are you alive and what happened? I was fine physically, I wasn't shot or injured or dead, all worthy assumptions in a place like this. I had gone grocery shopping. Yes grocery shopping. I had simply gotten overwhelmed at the magnitude of this life I am living here in El Salvador! We talked it out and ended the conversation laughing and feeling encouraged.

This is how this situation would have played out at home. I would have left work on time, gone to the local No Frills in my car, by myself. Found my taco seasoning (on sale I might add), got my produce, FOUND SOUR CREAM, walked to the counter, laughed with the cashier, said hello to a friendly neighbor and walked out. I would have enjoyed this little outing, that just happens to be one of my favourite things to do. I could stroll the aisles for hours! 

Not here. Here it's all different. My favourite outing turns into an emotional meltdown! Some times the littlest things, explode with emotions all over the place! It's part of the job here. Things that are supposed to be easy, aren't always. Some times you just need to call your mom and cry. With her love and wise words of reassuring encouragement, I make it through another day in this crazy country.  Through it all, God is strengthening me, helping me through here, all while nurturing my relationship with  my wonderful mother, who is far away back home!

He will never give us more than we can handle. When life rages on, He will sustain us in His open, loving arms! Whether that storm is dealing with the horrible situations I am surrounded by every day, or the simple things like lizards in the house, and bad grocery store experiences! He carries us through it all, and reminds us how loved we are. When we doubt, He reminds us that even though we may not know where we will be in a year, for today, He needs me here, and if I'm needed here, He will insure I make it through today. 

Love and Prayers

Erica Byleveld

Trust in the Lord with all your heart

and lean not on your own understanding;

in all your ways submit to him,

and he will make your paths straight

Proverbs 3 5,6

Settling

I remember a very interesting moment, before coming here, while preparing paperwork and trying to get organized, thinking to myself "I can't wait to just get there and finally have my life settle down." I spent months figuring out fundraising, doing paperwork and attempting to pack up my life, all while trying to remain in relationships with those I love and care for. I spent a lot of nights running around, crossing things off my list. Thinking I couldn't wait to just be there, and to have these fears of the unknown overcome. If I can just make it onto the plane, then finally things will settle down.

What on Earth was I thinking? Who was I kidding? Life didn't settle down. I have settled in here, yes, but that's different! 

It continues to amaze me just how fast the day goes by. I pull myself up out of bed and then a moment later, I am crawling back into it exhausted, wondering where the day went and how someone managed to change the clock without me seeing, again? I must say though, I do sleep well!

People ask me, what each day looks like, and honestly it changes. I don't have a set schedule, nor do my days ever look the same. We never know how the day will go or the challenges we will face, but we trust that God is in control, and with Him in control, we will make it through just fine! 

We face different challenges each day, emotionally, physically and spiritually. Let me be quite clear when I tell you this. There is a spiritual battle, that is always going on, especially here. We are at the front lines. Believe me, satan is not happy with the incredible things God is doing down here. He is quite annoyed with the unbelievable ways God is using each and every one of us. He can't stand to see the life changing things that are going on here at Mission To El Salvador, or the fact that God is given all the glory for it.

So what does he do? He uses our weakness to wisper little lies into our ear. He uses whatever tools necessary, to make you doubt. Make you doubt your abilities, your qualifications, the difference you're making. He tries to make you believe that it isn't worth it, that you should probably just pack up and go home. He makes you question your motives and desires. He makes you question our saving grace in Christ Jesus.

He does his best to deminish God and to make your fears feel overwhelming.

But there are things he can't do.

He can't make you feel the peace of your Saviour.

He doesn't remind you that you are forgiven and free and therefore a new creation in Christ.

He doesn't pour out his love for you with open arms on a cross.

He doesn't care about you, he only cares about winning a battle that God has already won.

Only God can wrap His loving arms around you and wisper words of love and encouragment. Only God can provide grace and freedom. Only God can share little glimpses of  His incredible works,precious moments that take your fear and your breath away!

Only God can bring you peace, joy, laughter and love.

With Him, we can do anything, nothing is impossible. As long as trust and obey.

It is such an important reminder, that brings me such joy.

You too, are forgiven and free. You too, are loved and cherished by our Creator, and what a blessing that is!

Even though things may not ever settle down. I can at least find peace and rest, when I settle into the loving arms of Christ.

Love and Prayers
Erica Byleveld

Therefor if anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation, the old is gone and the new has come

2 Corinthians 5:17

" My God Is So Big"

"My God is so big! So strong and so Mighty! There's nothing my God cannot do!"

This song, one of my favourite Sunday School songs, has been stuck in my head all week long! It is so fitting for this place! To say my week has been insane is an understatement! We have spent the month I have been here planning for our Phase 2 of New Dawn and the big inauguration day finally came this past Thursday! 

 

We got to get all dressed up for this special occasion!

I think we clean up pretty well!

Let me just stop and say how in the world has it already been a whole month since I first arrived here! That's crazy! We have been planning and prepping, pondering and praying for this new phase of our program for weeks, and it has been so fulfilling to finally see everything come together. There were renovations and cleaning, paper work and organizing, but with the help of wonderful coworkers, and God's provision, we made it! I have come to realize that God uses many of my gifts and talents to work here, and also ones I never thought I would need or be qualified for. On the missions field, we never fully know how qualified we are! Our God is so big, and His plans are so good!

Our new program will provide 24 hour residential care for minors that are struggling with alcohol and drug addictions, giving them a safe and caring environment, to grow in Christ's freedom!

They will have a place to lay their head and food to fill their bullies, thanks to the work God is doing in the lives of folks back home. Without your support this wouldn't be possible!

I took a moment to pray for each  future child (though I haven't met them yet, God knows exactly which child will be brought home here) and mentor as they begin this long journey, and am reminded of how glad I am to be here at the very beginning of this process. I get to see God at work right here in person, building relationships with these kids along the way!

I will do my best to update on the new program, as much as I can with pictures that give you a wonderful glimpse into our work here! We have teams starting to arrive and do work here, and this house always seems to be buzzing with excitement! 

 On a personal note, it's nice to finally feel settled in here.

One month here has flown by, and yet at the same time I feel as if I have been here for ever! I love this little country so very much! The people and the culture are always interesting and I have begun to develop  wonderful relationships with my co workers and friends!

I spend my weekends with some much needed relax and adventure time! Grace(my wonderful roommate, who let's be honest, is the first little sister I've ever had, is lucky to have me around (love you! ) and I spend our weekends with our friends and family (the Palacias/ Portillos') adventuring through this incredible place!

This past weekend we ventured to the top of our volcano! Yes I call it "my" volcano because hey why not! It was quite a hike but well worth the view! Again I am reminded of just how big our God is, and how incredible His creation is! I am surrounded by His beauty not only in His landscape, but His people!

We go discover wonderful different places to eat and spend time making memories and friendships that I truly believe will last a life time! These people (especially the family) have managed to make their home in my heart and continue to bring me so much joy!

Love these people just a little too much! We are a pretty good lookin group!

 (There are so many great foods here, especially Pupusas!! Oh. My. goodness. I LOVE them! Don't ask me how something so simple can be so incredibly delicious!)

 Guess who finally felt confident enough to try the local favourite, with the best lunch in town! ~ this girl! Grateful to God that I haven't been at all sick here!

I love it here. I love what God is doing here. I love the relationships being built. I just love it!

My God is so big ~ My God is so strong ~ My God is so Mighty

There's nothing my God cannot do!

Love and Prayers

Erica Byleveld

Grieving the Life I Had

It has been said to me by close friends and other missionaries here, that when you begin an adventure like this one, you will grieve the life you used to live. 

I thought they were kidding. I mean grieve is a pretty strong term to describe the desires for the luxuries I have back home. But grieve you do. 

Most  days here are wonderful. I have incredible "God Moments" when I see the Creator hard at work in the lives I witness. I am surrounded by beautiful country scenery and wonderful people. Hurt and brokenness, yes, but I also so beauty there too.

I see children's faces light up when I simply give them a candy, or  share some crayons. (The feeling of seeing them light up still makes my heart burst with love)

Women that finally know that someone cares, simply because I take the time to transform their knotted hair into beautiful braided hairdo's, that Pintrest would be proud of!

Men who feel like they finally are worthy and needed again, when I let them carry heavy, important things for me.

I have wonderful co workers that make me laugh and feel loved.

These are all wonderful things that I thank God for daily.

There are also moments when I would give anything to see my friends. Friends I love so dearly, that they are family. Moments I long to be  back working alongside my mother, laughing and sharing our hearts over the days busy baking tasks. Moments when all I want is to hug and kiss those beautiful growing nephews of mine. Moments when I miss being teased by my wonderful father,and bursting with laughter over jokes with my sisters!

I long for an opportunity to just get into my car and drive! Be free to go where I please! Not having to worry about not being allowed to walk outside at night, gun shots ringing out all around me.

I long for my family and the comforts of home, the familiar smells and sounds.

I long for the life I used to have. Truly long, so much so that it makes my heart physically hurt!

God knows this. He also know that He will provide the perfect people at the perfect moments, to help me get through those tough times in my day. People like great coworkers and wonderful roommates, long time friends to serve with, and a new "family"

I got to spend an incredible weekend with my new friends the "Portillo/ Palacias" family. 

They opened their arms to us with true love and spent wonderful moments showing us this beautiful country.

We went to the local botanical gardens, had a great lunch together, and finished the wonderful day with a breath taking view at a restaurant at the top our our volcano! We had so many moments of laughter and fun, it made missing my family, not quite so hard! It was a true blessing to spend time with people that made me feel like part of the family. I feeling I was longing for!

God  continues to bless me with little moments, with people He has already ordained and prepared, to walk this adventure with me. Wonderful people I am so excited to become "family" with! People like the "Portillo/Palacias" family.

2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love 

Ephesians 4:2

Love and Prayers

Erica Byleveld

Welcome To The Jungle...

"Welcome to the Jungle"

I have been told that, by several different people, several different times in my first week here in San Salvador. If you would have asked me a week ago what that meant, I really don't think I would have had an answer, but as each day passes, I began to understand it more and more. Imagine you take a nice long flight, land and walk off the plane into a deserted jungle. No rules, just chaos. I mean literal chaos. 

I have never been to the jungle, but I imagine it is similar to  the experiences I have here. I wake up to strange animal cries, sun blasting in the windows. I get up and drive through streets without rules. Streets that have cars speeding, driving in wrong lanes, driving in lanes that don't actually exist, all while trying not to plow over the numerous amounts of locals that think it's totally acceptable to walk out in front of your car in the middle of an intersection. I have never been so tense in a vehicle before coming here. I arrive at the office and wave to the women with kind eyes as she exits her "shelter" (that's even in quotes because quite honestly, you can't even call it that...) only to come out and wash her only other article of clothing in a rusty old coffee can, filled with filthy water, only to have it dry over the sewer drain on the sidewalk. She smiles, I smile, wave and we exchange a "Buenos Dias" I go to my desk and work on an assigned task before our afternoons starts. People wait for over an hour at our gates before they can enter. They come in and shower, get a hair cut, relax and play a game, catch up with friends, all while enjoying this breeze of the ceiling fan and the comforts of care. I am busy in the kitchen making sure that lunch will be ready, standing guard over my frying pan, cooking hot dogs.We deliver the food, their spirit and soul too get nurtured, and then with smiles we say "Adios" We clean up the days chaos, prepare for the next and get ready to return home. On the drive back, we pass by some of the kids in our program at the place they will spend the night.  Under the foot of a statue in one of the roundabouts throughout town, in a bus corner or simply just laying down on the sidewalk, settling in. We smile and wave and finally arrive home. A long day of hurt,heartache and spiritual warfare. This is the front line. I stand at the front of a battle. The battle for Eternity. It's tough, it's hard. There so many lives on the line. 

Each day I must make a choice to either pack up and go home, or stay and fight. Most days are hard. I miss home, I miss my old life, and honestly it's just hard.  I don't always see results, and I may never fully see the results of this battle we are fighting, a battle Christ has already won. A spiritual battle, and emotional battle and a physical battle. Yet there are lives on the line. Do I give up and go back to my wants and desires, or do I face my fears (there are many I might add) and press on, knowing that one day, I will stand before God and hear "Him say, you were faithful, well done good servant", 

It won't be easy, but it is worth it. Every life we impact, makes it worth it. Makes this pain and suffering I feel, seem quite insignificant in comparison.

There are moments though, of complete disbelief, of this new life of mine.

 Times when I see a man walk into traffic and drag another man out of the street. (whether the man being dragged is dead or not, we can't always tell.) 

Times when I see groups of teens with spit all over their face as they stumble on broken limbs, stoned out of their minds, to the truck to receive a meal, their glue bottle clung to their chest, as they slip in and out of conciseness.

 Times when I am told that the building outside our truck door is actually the place where the drugs that are distributed not only here in town but supply the entire country, are made, stored and trafficked. Might I add that that same building is just up the street from my new office. Yeah, exactly. I am told not to worry though, we have good street credit here. 

This is my life now.     These moments fill my days.    

It's discouraging and hard to see the good we are doing sometimes. Yet I have never felt God so close. He sees it too. He hurts too. He is ready to welcome us home. He has already won this battle. Even in the bad times, God is good!

This is the Jungle.

 Is it hard? You can't even begin to imagine. Is it worth it? When I stop and think of the people who will be joining me in Eternity, because of the work going on here, yes, it is worth it. It always will be. I just have to be reminded sometimes.

Love and Prayers
Erica Byleveld

James 1:12 “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.”

Getting Settled

Well here we are, days two and three! Boy does time fly, and thank goodness, cause that is sometimes the only thing that helps keep me going! 

  

I promise to get more and better pictures!

When I started this new journey, I was agreeing to start a new life. A life with a different career, a different country, a different culture, a different language. I changed my clothes, my church, my friends. The food, the house, the people. Everything has changed. Even the keyboard I am typing on, in this very moment, is different... don´t even ask me how to do the ¨at¨ sign... seriously... I actually don´t even know. Yet through out all of this, one thing remains. God is faithful.

He is there in every moment. Whether that be first thing when the sun shines into my room in the morning, or while I braid the ladies hair during a program. Whether I am videoing, missing my family back home, or laying my head to rest at night. He is with me.  He remains. He is faithful.

It is by His strength that we carry on, whether that is serving here overseas or at home during our day to day lives. He is there with us every step of the way. That alone brings peace, comfort and love.

I am settling into this new rountine of mine. One of making meals, doing paper work, and seeing how 90% of the world lives day to day. It´s breaks your heart time after time, to walk out and see people lining the streets to get fed. In a world with so much, how can they have so little. 

We have an oppertunity to open our doors to this hurting community. They come in, have a hot shower, get their hair cut, have a rest and get fed a good meal. They are loved. They wait for hours for our doors to open and are so happy to see us. They too, know that He is faithful, even with nothing, they have hope. Funny how we have everything and still loose our faith. On a journey like this one, you are required to trust God with your life. It´s the only way to survive.

I get to spread Gods love in the simplest of ways. By handing out food, sharing smiles and reminding women how beautiful they are, simply by braiding their hair.. (I´ve got quite the reputation around here and it´s only day three!) I get to smother children with smiles and love, while their mothers get to finally enjoy a moment of peace, without worrying. It´s these little things, that bring me the biggest joy. 

That makes it all worth it, Every. Single. Moment.

Plus we have earthquakes.. which is just super wierd!

Not to worry, we´re fine!

These little moments are changing someones eternity. We may never know, the effect of our moments, but God does, for He has already ordained each in every one in His book, in His Master plan. A plan that´s better than any of us could ever dream of!

Love and Prayers

Erica Byleveld

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."

Deuteronomy 31:6