Posted in Thailand by Lauren Maldonado on 6/14/2010
Y-M-C-A...
Oh sorry, moving on to what I was about to say... Leaving Africa and looking back has been harder than I ever thought it would be. I really thought I wanted to leave but what I wanted to leave was the malaria and maybe the living conditions. I am really sick of thinking too much of myself which I do a lot. I tell people that I need nothing more than God, but I cant wait till I prove it. It's been really hard for me this year, I think it comes from being a spoiled American. It's funny too because overall our squad has had it easier than most other squads. I was wrong, I miss you Africa, I miss my street boys and the red mud that stains everything. I love my life, I get to travel the world and serve a mighty God that loves me to pieces. I am so blessed.
We left Nairobi airport to Qatar (I never heard of this country in the Middle East, that happens a lot) about a two hour flight. Then after a very short layover, we catch another flight to Bangkok, Thailand. Asia, wow I never thought in a million years that I would be here. From Bangkok to a beach town called Hua Hin for our 2nd to last debrief. It was one of the most free and relaxing ones. The ocean, my own motorbike and Subway, Burgerking and many other adventures. What else can I say?
I'm in my 9th month and this is an exciting month. The men get to go and do "manistry" and the girls get split up into smaller groups to do individual ministry.
Bangkok was a little scary at first because there was rioting going on. Also we learned that 60% of the men that fly into Bangkok airport come to have sex with the women that I came to know and love. Around this time was their New Year and with that came Sungkran a water festival. No one is safe and you will get wet with everyone else. iPod or computer so don't be dumb or it will get ruined. For almost a week, everyone plays and gets wet. They're smart it's the hottest time of the year and it is so much fun.
From Bangkok to Nam which is 12 hours North of Bangkok. Martha, Dez, Jennifer, Leize Marie and I boarded a bus thinking we were going to a "JUNGLE". I was scared, but excited to be working with my old teammates and the other girls for the first time.
Nam is so beautiful, full of mountains and amazing people and sites. This month I can already feel the 9 months on my mind and body. I thought that when people say you age over 5 years on the race it was a lie but this is when I have started feeling the weight of the race on me.
We end up in a beautiful town where the first day we get on the back of a pickup truck with a huge drum filled with water. We go around with buckets smashing people with water. Then we walk over a 26 year old bridge which was kind of crazy and not safe. We feed fish and we went swimming in a river, and we went to a look out were they had huge gold statues of one of their Gods. We had a great first day. Our contact and his family were amazing and great servants of God. Our translator Nat has the most beautiful heart. (don't cha know).
We taught an English camp and built long lasting memories with the youth. We went to villages and spoke life into many people. Prayed a lot for healing, went door to door and blessed people in the name of Jesus. We went to a prison and I spilled out my testimony with many tears. We met amazing German missionaries. Had an amazing, and most peaceful birthday of my life (thanks to you Martha!). This month was shortened because of debrief and I had to go back a week earlier to get visas for our team.
This month was very advantageous and meaningful. I never would take it back and am thankful that everyday God was there helping me grow with every passing breath...
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Posted in Africa by Lauren Maldonado on 6/7/2010
These three months I sure grew a lot. I am going to summarize the three months of Africa into one blog post. Leaving Cairo we stopped in Sudan and from there we went to Nairobi. We stayed at the Milimani Backpacker's jungle-like hostel. It was right in Nairobi, the hub of Kenya but it felt like you were in a jungle. We had our squad debrief there and it was so amazing. Within 48 hours I was in the middle of Nakuru national park. The most beautiful images and clouds and animals that I had ever seen in my life. The colors were unbelievable and every picture I took felt like it did no justice to the beauty that I saw there. We went on a safari at the park because in most of Eastern Africa there aren't many wild animals outside of a national park. The first animal that I saw there was a zebra and the last animal was a lion with blood dripping from it's mouth.
We left Nairobi and headed to Eldoret, Kenya. This is actually the place where 95% of all Olympic Kenyan runners come from. Like any place that I have traveled to it takes a minute to get used to some of the things that we experienced there. For example the outhouses that were simple squatties, just holes in the cement floor. We got water from a well, and stayed in a mud house lined with dried cow manure. The food was hard to get used to but amazing all at the same time. At first we thought we were roughing it but then we realized how amazing we had it. This month I would say that I was pushed to my limits and stretched beyond what I thought I could bear. I got to preach this month to over a hundred Kenyans that gathered on the street as we played worship songs and sang. I got to meet an amazing family, Moses and Bilhah and little miss Joy. I tell ya, this little girl is so smart and speaks such proper English it would amaze you.
From there we arrived in Kampala Uganda by bus. It was raining and weary when we got there. It was just so hard for some reason. We had just taken a 14 hour bus ride from Nairobi. We were tired and hungry and all that I could think about was getting horizontal and sleeping. There was mud on the streets (feces) and we had to carry all our packs several blocks through traffic and people, and slippery roads. It was just really frustrating. Then we took a bus that was packed to the roof with people and chickens and everything else. We arrived in Lira that night and were very surprised and excited to stay at a resort hotel. Which may not have been amazing to american standards but was absolutely amazing to a world racer. I got my own room for the first time on the whole race. I lit a candle and put on music and spent the most beautiful time with Jesus, and took a WARM shower! Lira, I will truly miss you, the church the people the hospitality and the food.
After two days we traveled up to Amolatar district. No electricity. No running water. No nothing. This was the most difficult living situation we have had on the race so far. I don't know about you but I ate purple chicken everyday. Rice, chapati, potatoes, we had every single day without fail. We didn't have transportation for our team to get to ministries so we were stuck in a cement storefront building most of the time. Can I remind you that it's a hundred and maybe twenty degrees? However, many people got healed, and many gave their life to the Lord. We made some really great lasting friendships, and our contact was so nice and amazing.
Our squad had a chance of a lifetime to go whitewater rafting starting at the source of the Nile river. We camped for a couple days at a beautiful riverside location. I got to go bungee jumping for the first time in my life and feed monkeys daily. The rafting was amazing... until I almost died. On our last rapid which in my book is a class 6 rapid. We started going off into the most terrifying part of the whole rapid where we were not supposed to be going. As our boat was flipping I tried to hold to the rope and it practically dislocated my shoulder. I get thrown under the boat, but I didn't realize that. I was so disoriented and confused. I tried swimming to the top. I didn't know which way was up and down. When I started swallowing water I knew I was in trouble. I knew that I had no more strength left, so I gave up trying to swim. In some weird way everything started becoming peaceful and I knew that I was either going to die or go unconscious any minute.
I started to pray and immediately I popped out of the water. I don't know if I had said "God" or "Jesus" but immediately I felt someone pulling my life preserver up out of the water. I still couldn't breathe because I had swallowed so much water. There was too much water in my lungs. I immediately began violently throwing up, I couldn't take in a breath, it was so scary. I was so tired I couldn't even swim to the boat and a rescue kayaker came and helped me get to the boat. Even at the boat I was so disoriented that all I remember is Danielle pulling me out of the water. All I could do was cry. That night I called my mom telling her I loved her and that I almost died. I was so thankful for my life.
We found out that instead of going to Tanzania with the other teams we were going back to Eldoret, Kenya. We were the first two teams on the world race to ever go back to a contact for another month. We got to make it even better than the first month, to really give it our all. God really broke my heart for the street boys of Eldoret as you can read in other blogs that I have written. I got Malaria and worms and heart problems, and a swollen spleen. You name it, I got it. That took a lot of time out of the month just being sick. We got to work with the church that we had planted in January. Also there was an orphanage that we got to help out with.
I thought I really wanted to leave Africa, but sitting here in Asia I realize that I miss it so much. My heart will continue calling me back to Africa.
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Posted in General Posts by Lauren Maldonado on 5/26/2010
For so many years I've put things before Christ, and I still do. Back in September I gave my hand in marriage to God. I promised Him that I won't even give my heart to anyone until He says "ok baby this is the one". Even to this date I put so many things in front of my Lord. I could list them, but we all know what they are. When people say they are missing something and feel lost and scared, it is many times because they have so many other priorities before God, separating them from God. God is our protector and our helper and our strong tower, He is in short, our everything. When we put things in front of God, that is when we feel lost or scared, because we have put Him far away from what He says He is to us.
This month has been the hardest yet, not just because its almost the end, but He is breaking me. I see it, feel it, and know it. It is unbelievable pain. Testing me inside and out. Strengthening me with His iron.
My attitude is breaking me and maybe everyone around me. I'm not happy, someone told me that maybe I would never be happy and to just deal with it. We all know how honest I am, and today as I'm writing this I feel like all I can do is be honest.
I've seen so much. No blog or words could describe. No perfect picture of a naked, homeless, aids infested baby with flies in there eyes can make you see. No perfect video of the lost woman selling her body can make you understand. I think for so many months the reason why I haven't been able to write blogs is because there is just so much. So much in the world and within me.
Of course one of the reasons why we write blogs is so you can come along side us and get to see what God is doing through us. But until you experience it yourself you'll never understand.
So many people say that they are jealous of what I'm doing. My reply is, "I dare you!".
If you are looking for a peaceful missions trip this isn't it. Maybe for me it wasn't because instead of running from my problems, I ran directly in front of them, facing them scared as hell. Facing 24 years of baggage looks like a dump site of unworthiness and can be unbearable.
Jesus, thank you for dying for me! And taking away the baggage that was there and that sometimes I still see, but only when that pile comes back. One bag at a time we open it wash it and fold it. Than in a separate area I create new beautiful piles.
I'm the type of person that wants it now, but patience is a process that you feel like will take years.
I wish what we were doing was some kind of vacation, but sometimes, really, its hell. You maybe have read peoples blogs about abandoning everything and giving everything up for God, but its so much more. Its taking off all the fig leaves and standing naked in front of your God and the world.
You can walk in the freedom and all the truths, but there are also lessons that you have to learn through pain and suffering. And I believe that's how you get your inheritance.
Sometimes I think that's why so many people can't not raise the dead and have the power that they could have, because He cant trust you with His power. He looks at your heart not your flesh.
Saying all this I have another blog in progress...
Again this is my mind.
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Posted in Kenya by Lauren Maldonado on 5/14/2010
One day, while trying to get more answers about street boys, our translator told us about an orphanage/school that had some street kids living there. So Joe and I went out to what we thought was just with a couple questions and a note pad. Well I found another purpose for my life that day!
We drove to the local slums that day and got out of the car with no clue. The streets looked like a dump site and the smell I can't even describe. I couldn't understand how an orphange/school could be in a location like this. The worst was yet to come. We walked down a short hallway into an apartment complex which consisted of small rooms that made up a house. The first thing I saw was green water that was running off from laundry,pee, rain water, pretty much everything. Which ran into a well that I knew was contaminated. Then I saw a black room filled with about 80 kids sitting having class. The ages ranged for 2 to 14 all in the same class with one teacher. From that moment I was holding back my tears. I told myself I would not cry. I made God promise me that I wouldn't break down until I came home. Tears making a glass like film over my eyes, they started to sing for us there little voice sounded like angels.
The room was so small, the mud house had two rooms no bigger then my bathroom. So, my first question wasn't about any of the street boys, it was how many kids stay here? "Thirty two", pastor Justice said. He was the headmaster and starter of the Shriey Center. This man is amazing, not only does he try to help orphans but he helps mothers that can't pay for there children to go to school. The entire orphanage is run by all volunteers which includes 6 teaches that come in almost everyday and widows.
They wanted us to talked to the kids. I though I would sing to them and Joe talked to them about God. When I sang to them I couldn't think of a song to sing and I couldn't talk because each second I was going to cry. Just by looking at each kid. you knew that some had HIV/AIDS. Most not, if all of the kids had scabies or some skin disease. They all were sick from the contaminated water and sleeping so close to each other. They all have worms and were malnourished. So this was when I knew I had to talk to everyone about this. I knew if our teams heard about this place something would be done.
After talking with the kids and praying for them, our translator, Moses, told us to talk to the widows. So Joe and I went over to them to talk and pray for them and to thank them for what there are doing for the children. This is were I lost it. So I told them how God wanted to bless them and about what Jesus says about if you help the least of these. I looked in there faces and cried. I saw that they looked at me like I was the Light. I wanted to be a light in the darkness. They saw God in me. We wrapped it up with hugs and prayers and when we left I knew I wouldn't leave Kenya without doing something.
That night I told my team about what I had experienced. Everyone was on fire for it.
The next day we went with a purpose to make 80 kids smile. We took the kids to a field and sang to them and talked about God. Some played soccer, Red Light Green Light, and some got their faces painted. I sat down with the pastors and they all told me I needed a African name. I told them that I was Puerto Rican and African American so they gave me the name Nakhumicha, which means "seed sower". They told me that all the children wanted me as their mother yesterday. I kepted telling them it wasn't me it was God.
My heart was left in Kenya! I will be back!
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Posted in Kenya by Lauren Maldonado on 5/13/2010
I knew from the first day on the streets with Matt that I needed to impact the lives of the street kids and just love them. I new I couldn't feed them all, all I could do is show them God's love. So Joe came up with a plan. The plan was to talk to the locals and shop owners and figure out what we can do for these kids. Check out Joe Bunting's blog to find out more about his heart and vision.
So with a small team of 3 we went out. Asking shop owners about the street kids. ( I felt like a journalist, I asked the questions and Joe wrote them down). I asked everything I could to find out, anything I could. I didnt hold back. I opened a place in my heart that has never been open. In a week we new personally about 15 street kids, found out there stories and listened to them. I don't even know where to begin with what I know about the street boys. Most of these kids have had to fight for everything that they have.. They do glue not only to help with there hungry pains but to make them feel strong like they could take on anything. They are on the streets for many reasons, some are one the streets because they have nowhere else to go, but some see it as there job, they go out there all day to get food or money and bring it home to a drunken mother who has lost everything. Its sad, you never see anyone older than 30, they spend years on the streets only to die on the streets.
I love hugging them, they run up to me with a great big smiles and they know how to greet me with a great big hug. Hugging them does something to my soul.
Everytime I talk about my boys I feel like they were ministrering to me instead of the other way around. I'm the one that is supposed to be changing peoples life but every time I meet someone that I think "Oh they need Jesus," it just turns out they teaching me a lesson. I never knew how many people just wanted someone to talk to. If every time I went out and just loved and listen, I think that would change people lives more then telling them they are sinners and if you don't change you are going to hell.
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Posted in Kenya by Lauren Maldonado on 5/11/2010
Addicted to the devils plans of destroying a heart of hope can exclude a helping hand.
One day Matt Patton and I went shopping and then to the internet cafe. We only had about two hours in town after we had lunch for Dez's birthday before going home. I was walking and the first time time I really felt the need to stop for a street boy. I don't know if you can even fathom this but take a homeless person in a America and mulitply it by one thousand times. Then add addictions and and hunger into the devil ploy and you have a homeless person in Africa. I have prayed for some of these kids, some of them came onto the streets when they were 5 years old. As you walk around you even see these little kids holding babies. The day my eyes opened and had a heart for the street boys, I saw myself.
Andrew Babboo was his name, the first street boy I fell in love with, he was about 16. "Give me food" he says.. and me and Matt look at each other and say "OK". From this day froward I had to feed in some way everyone that said to me "I'm hungry". Andrew is a great actor, the best there is, but I saw through all of his schemes. I had to do something. We bought him some bread and milk then we prayed for him and he left with a cute little grin . Then we saw two others,
one little boy I will never forget, he was about 5 or 6 years old, the white of his eyes where brown and yellow it scared me. His face looked like he was in hell and he gripped Matt's hand and said nothing. Not once did I hear his voice. Then we bought him and the others more food
.
Let me tell you that these boys are all addicted to glue. They huff it to get a momentary high. Its shoes glue! When they breath it in they insistingly feel like there on top of the world like nothing matters like most drugs. Its about 5 bob (5 Kenya shillings). The conversion rate is 75 Kenya shillings to one American dollar. The first time I saw a little boy younger than my niece huffing glue in a dump, I was wrecked. The first time I saw it was in January, the first time I was in Kenya. It didn't click in my head I could help, I was looking down into the dump with all these men looking at me. I was so scared I climbed into the car and locked the door.
Then we were about to leave and Katie West, my team leader, said this little boy has been sitting here all day, come over with me and lets pray for him. He was one of the best actors I saw to date. He had a cut on his foot and he was shaking and holding his hand out begging for money at that time, I bought it. I almost took him home, I thought he was dying or something. But we went to work with prayer and we washed his foot and gave him some medications for the infection. Then more and more street kids came to see what we were doing, and when I saw them I had to do something. Matt and I went into the same store about 5 time buying milk and bread for every kid we saw.
The highest one of them all, with puke running down his shirt, I don't even know on him. He said "I'm hungry". I was so mad at him, I cant explain it and then it clicked in my head, I said "if you give me your glue bottle I will give you food". It took about 10 minutes for him to decide, ok I will give you my bottle for food. That was the first of many times I took glue bottles in place of food.
I knew my heart belonged there when the first kid hugged me goodbye. He hugged me so tight and nestled his head in my chest like he has never been hugged before.
God put something in my heart and at all cost I was going to see that I was on those streets doing something to help them.
More to come
Also see Joe Bunting blogs
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Posted in General Posts by Lauren Maldonado on 5/7/2010
Working in the medical clinic in Kenya Africa is a life experience. I saw my first HIV positive patient today. In my thoughts from far away she was a beautiful young women with maybe a cough but getting closer to her you could she see that she had some kind of skin disorder. I knew after that what she had, I knew from reading and talking with the doctor what kind of side affects HIV or AIDS gives you.
Living a normal life is out of the question around here if you have AIDS. First, if you are a single women with HIV your family disowns you, then your neighbors. No one wants to touch you let a lone eat with you. Then the stress, you can't afford a good diet so you immune system starts shutting down, then you get AIDS, then you die. Your eyes open up when you travel outside the States and get dirty with the locals.
I told God, "send me, I'll go". There's a song by Lecrae, "Send Me" and before I left for the race this was my anthem. Send me to the place where others don't want to go. Send me, Lord and he has. I knew if I stayed home my life would be dead and lived for nothing.
I knew from a very young age I was going to be a missionary, well here I am a missionary. Then I figured out that missionaries don't get paid and the only reason why I'm here is because of people like you. Support raising is so hard especially on the field but I know God has it all under control. He is going to melt peoples hearts to financially support me, I am hoping it is yours. I need 3,700 dollars to continue my dream, the will that God has for my life its not a big amount. God will bless you if you bless me. In Luke 6:38 it says: "Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full-pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap". The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.
I know God is going to honor you in giving you back 10 times more then you gave me.
Please support me by Clicking Here
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Posted in General Posts by Lauren Maldonado on 5/6/2010
Poem
Sometimes you don't know it and your standing still in what you imagine a whirlwind of absolutely everything and nothing all at the same time. Calculated decisions were all calculated wrong. What once was, is no more. What can you do, other then fester in it... screams are nothing, no one can hear because its all locked behind a wall of lies. A temple of secrets, a smile of depression. Will it always be this, were you not there, will you always be! Temptation and sin don't control you, you control you. And yet, its all there in front of you and you do nothing, you let in. I should have never let you in, breathing is impossible. I don't even think anymore. Numbness! I see you out of the corner of my eye but its all blurry and ill never see you again, its all a forging lie...
Tears on fire, no words can hit the pain inside. I cant lie anymore, what I did. Does anyone hear me, Screaming HELP! Crying inside, the tears are like acid ripping and crippling slowly at my crazed soul. I know what it needs but it doesn't need me! Laughs become irritating, your light becomes dark. I CAN't get out...
Its like you have ear plugs with loud music of lies and the outside is silent but only you know. No one can hear your madness... So you can crave for normalcy and it will never happen, it will never be, to find it, will never happen. Your able to find just one thing in your swamp of demotic rampage ..... foreigncy...
The depth that you can be loved is the depth that you can be hurt. The depth that you love someone is the depth that someone can hurt you. The depth that someone can hurt you is the depth that they can love you. Someone once said..........
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Posted in General Posts by Lauren Maldonado on 5/1/2010
God gives us a purpose everyday we wake up. I think if we just listen to what our purpose is for that day, our days would be filled with happiness and hope. I know dying to self is something I've been learning a lot about. I found out that the less I focused on my problems and helplessness and the more I focused on others and did what I need to do, even if it was just a pray. I found that I could get through my days a lot easier.
I think your purpose can be an a rare of colors and be fruitful to your soul. I know just sometime its hard to even wake up. But when you do and you walk out your door ask God what is my purpose today. Say God says pay for someones boat gas and when you go to pay its 200 dollars are you willing to do Kingdom? If God says stand up in the middle of a baseball game and preach the gospel? Do you have the balls? When God says your purpose today is to just smile at the mail man is that OK with you? I know that we pass up a lot of God's will but when you don't do it, there is always someone else to be that someone!
Love someone that doesn't deserve it because you don't deserve Gods love. Give someone grace because Jesus gives you more grace then you know. Help find a persons will because God's shown you that He has a will for you.
Someone told me once that love looks like something. And I thought what does it look like and of course God is love but so are you, you are what love looks like.
Go and just love!
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Posted in General Posts by Lauren Maldonado on 4/30/2010
What have I become? Who am I? Sometimes I think I opened a box and I can never close it. Since I was young I've known that God has been there. I never went to church until I craved for it, God put that there. I knew I had freedom but never lived it, I always knew one day I would be a missionary but cant believe I am. I knew I would walk away from sin for good but I'm scared of this new life. What about my future? What about my husband to be? G 42 or college? What if what if...... I worry sometimes about worrying so much.
After reliving some of the most horrible times of my life a hour later with exhausted breaths trying to keep up with my rapid heart rate and over run mind, I have to stop myself. I left home for a reason half running away half just wanting more of God. I knew without a shadow of doubt who I needed to be and who God was and is.
I laugh sometime at what the devil tries to throw at me. I cant believe sometimes I fall into it day after day. He tries to make you think he can take away your freedom, the freedom you know no one can take away.
Thank you team Fanatic you are my family! I know each one of you would die for me. You hold me up when I can't hold myself, you are there for me anyway I need you to be. Thank you Fanatic!
Without great people in my life sometimes I don't know if I can truly know Gods love and grace. Until I came on the Race I had no idea that community would save my life, that a few people would show me what I needed. God has shown me all this but He used my family, the K squad, to show me what I've been missing.
I don't know where I'm going with all this or even my life. But what you choose everyday or who you chose or what you don't do, if you obey or not is crucial. I've never chose God. I heard so many lies about who I was and until now I believed them. But ever since I was young, God chose me for what I still don't know.
This year is to find myself, to truly deepen my roots. Do you know that a trees roots are 10 times bigger then the tree its self?
So when I face what people think normal is I wont get suck in to the whirlwind of life but I'll stand firm in the Kingdom. I want kingdom here in my heart not just in my words or my mind. Nothing can fulfill the hole inside me, nothing can quench this ripping desire,except the Lord.
Why else would I be here? How can I ignore a purpose driven life? I salivate when I don't hear His voice. It's just not enough to just have a normal life, a house, or a car, a dog. Not for me. I signed up not for the World Race, I signed up to be a disciple, to have rabbi Jesus Christ the perfect teacher.
The person that tells me who I am is the Spirit that calms my soul. The daddy that has a perfect plan. In turn I still can't believe how big God is. Once I think I figure Him out he totally blows my mind. Thank you for reading my blogs and supporting me.
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