Florida!!

Hey guys!

I wanted to give everyone an update on what God’s been doing through me and my team.

This last week the girls on x squad and w squad had the opportunity to go to Fort Myers Florida where we partnered with the AIM Base there to help rebuild the community after hurricane Ian. While we were there, our boys went to Kentucky to work with Samaritans Purse.

Each of the girls teams were assigned with houses that they would be working on for the week. Some were painting houses, some were installing cabinets, others were doing yardwork and landscaping. Me and my team were working on installing drywall in a house that flooded with 6 feet of water from the hurricane. Most of my days were filled with cutting drywall, sanding, mudding and taping the walls of the house. We also were able to write Bible verses on the walls and pray over the house. I’m not going to lie, it was hard work, and I’m not used to the heat or the humidity, so that only added to it. But no matter how tired I got, no matter how much dirt and dust covered me from head to toe, I was so thankful to do this work. I enjoyed every second of it and I was filled with this giddy happiness at being able to impact these lives.

I’ve done some remodeling stuff with my mom in the past, so while a lot was still new to me, a lot also wasn’t. I got to use old and new skills to bless the people around me and it’s hard to explain the complete satisfaction, peace, and joy that came from that. The owner of the house came by one day and we gave her a little tour of what we had been doing. The house was by no means pretty, but walls were up and you could see the potential that was there. Talking to her and realizing how long it had been since her house looked like a house was heart touching, I was able to share the joy and hope she felt as she imagined what her finished home would look like and it gave me so much joy to be a part of that process. Me and my team also got a lot closer through that. We hadn’t spent a lot of time with just our team, so this was the first time we had spent a majority of our time together and I think it was very good for us. We got to learn a lot about the way we work and the way we deal with being tired, excited, annoyed, and happy. It’s going to be both fun and interesting to see the way my team both works through issues that arise and come together in unity to grow closer to each other and God.

Along with actually building the house, our squads were able to participate in two community outreaches. The first one was a community dinner we were able to host. We got to feed and talk to everyone that came. For me, I love cooking, I love the way that food and meals bring people together and make us feel like family. I love dinner conversations and I love the community that comes with sharing a meal. While I didn’t actually get to cook anything, I was able to serve them and it’s so funny the little conversations you can have with a person as you prepare their food. I got to talk to this lady and her aunties and hear how they were doing. They had lost a family member just a few weeks ago and it was amazing to see the way they had bonded through it and been drawn closer to each other. The other ministry we got to be a part of was a beach worship night. All of the girls got all dressed up and we went to the beach and spent the first 20 minutes finding and inviting everyone to come and worship with us. We didn’t have a speaker or anything, just a guitar and our voices, but the songs and the unity I felt there was truly amazing. But I think the most touching part for me didn’t have anything to do with the worship. I remember sitting in the white sand just after the sun had set below the water. It was gorgeous, the sky was still glowing a deep orange color and the water was reflecting it back up. As I was sitting there I couldn’t not appreciate the beauty of God’s creation. I had this realization that I was completely unfamiliar with the area I was in, I didn’t know the people, I didn’t know beach, I didn’t even know what was on the next street over, and I hadn’t seen anyone from home in over a month, but I was satisfied. I was doing God’s work and I was helping people. I remember thinking: I’m going to be ok, this is something I want to keep doing and I know that God is going to be there for me in every foreign country I go to and he’s going to be there for me when I get home and figure out my next step. I had so much peace in that moment and I could feel the passion I had for serving and ministry begin to bloom and grow. The only way I can think to describe it was satisfied. I don’t think I ever actually understood what it meant to be satisfied in God, but in that moment I knew that it didn’t matter where I was in the world and it didn’t matter who was with me, but I knew that God was with me and as long as I am serving him, I will be satisfied.

Thank you so much to everyone who is praying for me and my team. This week will be full of rest and time to get our last few things checked off as we get ready to head to Cambodia on Saturday!!!! I’m so excited and u can’t wait to share how the Lord works. Shout out to Kip who lead my team on building the house! We miss you lots!!

Thank you!!

Gianna Ramirez