This and That from Here and There: October 2018

I'm really not a foodie

Bit it looks like all the pictures I have from Tuesday are also food-related.

Breakfast at a coffee shop before spending the morning at the artisan market

Fancy food at Crepes and Waffles

Parker, Lacie and I traveled to Manta with Léster Antonio Sánchez and his wife Kiara after Las Mercedes Special Meeting was over on Sunday, June 10. We spent the night in their home, giving us easy access to the ocean on Monday morning. We didn't have long to be beach bums since we had to travel to Quito that day, but we spent an hour or so walking along the water's edge and taking pictures. Actually, Parker and Lacie must have taken all the pictures since I don't actually have any! Maybe one of these days I can beg a few from them.

The only pictures I have from Monday are from the bus and at Fortunato's pizza in Quito where we supped with Rebekah Murray.

Doritos for lunch!

And pizza for supper

We're doing it the healthy way today!

Guess that's what happens when you spend the majority of your day on the bus.

Las Mercedes Special Meeting - June 8-10, 2018

We don't want to play with our salvation.

Listening to God's word has no value unless we obey it.

One sign of spiritual maturity is when we love what God loves.

Because they are small, children are able to fit into the arms of their father.

I am responsible for what I do with Jesus.

Pray instead of criticizing.

If we don't have a clear vision of Jesus, it's easy to just focus on other people.

Our walk reveals the clarity of our vision.

After praying all night, Jesus knew how to choose His Father's will.

The world wants to take us out of our place, but it has nothing to offer us.

The story of Jesus has changed our life's story.

A few random "preps" shots

Our key didn't work to get through the gate at Sra. Neida's, so we had to crawl through the barbed wire.

No trip to Sra. Neira's is complete without a picture of the fan palm.

Getting ready for women to sleep in this room on Friday and Saturday nights

Lacie and her large leaf

Chief fan assembler

Playing it cool

Give them ice chunks, a rock and a bucket, and you've got at least half an hour's worth of fun!

And if you can eat the ice as well as play with it, so much the better!

Ipiales Special Meeting - June 2-3, 2018

Sometimes "the impossible" is a giant that prevents us from going forward.

If we don't overcome the giants, we become their servants.

Jesus didn't stay in Gethsemane; he rose up and went forward to fulfill God's will.

When we aren't willing to forgive, we give the devil an advantage over us.

When we're hurt, it's easy to do things according to our flesh.

Meekness is not seeking our own benefit, but that of another.

We want to learn to treat others as God has treated us.

Every disobedience has a consequence.

When we choose according to the will of God, we will make safe decisions.

What spirit do we show when we're stepped on?

Special Meeting ready

Esteban is dressed and ready to go!

Special delivery

Cherry sours from a dear friend made my day a little sweeter!

Special visitors

On May 31, my cousins, Parker and Lacie LiaBraaten, arrived in Quito. The following day, they traveled with one of the friends up to Ipiales, where we joined up in the evening. Here's their "We're all ready for our adventure!" picture taken in Missouri pre-departure.