Witnesses to His Sovereignty 

Post for July 6, 2024

What a full day we’ve had! Our team met early this morning at 4:15am at Richmond International Airport. We gathered our 23 bins of ministry supplies and worked through the process of getting each team member checked in. We had the nicest Delta employee helping us through all of our 20 passports and 23 checked bags. We walked away from the counter without having to pay a dime for our checked bags of ministry supplies! The team at the Delta counter saved us over $900 that we expected to spend this morning. What a way to start the day! Afterwards, we gathered as a team with the family members that were still at the airport for prayer. Hand in hand, we thanked God for His provision and prayed over our trip. Then, we said our goodbyes and headed to security. To our surprise, when we rounded the corner, there was no line for security – we practically walked right through! 

Once we all made it through security in Richmond, we dispersed in buddies to grab something for breakfast and a snack for later since we wouldn’t have time to stop in Atlanta. We secured coffee and breakfast sandwiches before boarding our first flight of the day! Richmond to Atlanta is a quick flight, so we were in Atlanta in no time! We did have to sit on the plane for a while until our gate was ready for us, but we landed early so it didn’t make a huge difference! We made our way from one end of the Atlanta airport to the other, only to find out that our gate had been changed to the other end of the concourse. It was a nice little walk, before boarding for the second leg of our journey! 

Our flight from Atlanta to Belize was smooth and beautiful! We flew right over areas that had just experienced Hurricane Beryl, but you would never know it! We did experience a little turbulence on our descent into Belize, but nothing crazy! Since our gate and plane had to be changed, we were about 25 minutes late getting in to Belize. That alone made a HUGE difference in how busy the airport was. We waited in the line for immigration for a good bit, BUT we were so happy to see our 21st team member on the other side! James had landed about 20 minutes before us and had already pulled all of our bins off of baggage claim. Every single one of our 23 bins made it here safe and sound! The next step was to get through customs with all of our ministry supplies. This part of our day can be quick and smooth or slow and tedious. Today, we made it through customs in record time only having to pay exactly what we expected to bring our supplies in!

When we got outside, we waited about 15 minutes for our vans to pull around so we could make our way to Pomona! We loaded every bin and suitcase (a total of 44 bags) plus all 21 team members! We split between two vans and were on our way to the hotel! It’s about a 1.5 hour drive along the Coastal Highway to get from the airport to the hotel, but today felt quicker than ever! It felt so surreal to be in Belize when, less than a week ago, we were wondering if Hurricane Beryl would force us to alter our plans. 

Before we knew it, we were pulling into our home for the week! We got all of our luggage unloaded and stored away before heading upstairs for a long awaited lunch. We were greeted by Annamay and Rodwell Ferguson, Hez, Christy, Marvin and Maggie. They had worked so hard to set up the upstairs area for our arrival! A balloon arch, beautiful centerpieces, and yellow ribbons on the chairs. It made our team feel so honored and welcome – like they were home.

The staff at the hotel made delicious chicken quesadillas for lunch! They also prepared a garden salad, fries, cantaloupe, sweet tea, and orange juice. Every bit of it was delicious and gave us the energy we needed to finish our day! After lunch, we had a couple hours to settle into our rooms. The team leaders sorted through ministry supplies to get everyone their personal items (including the bug spray lol – if you know, you know). Once we got through all of the bins and distributed personal items, it was just about time for dinner. The team leaders snuck up a few minutes early to place “Go Bags” at the dinner table. Full of supplies that will come in handy throughout the week, the bags marked each person’s seat at dinner. 

Although it felt like we had just eaten lunch, it was time for dinner! AND IT WAS SO GOOD! We had cilantro rice, baked chicken, garden salad, and a beautiful cake that said “Welcome Home 28:19 Ministries! We love you!” When we say this is family, we’re not kidding. When we say this is home, it’s real. Dinner was full of laughter and sweet conversation.

The last piece of this very long travel day was team worship. We gathered in the small church directly in front of the hotel for worship and devo time. We started out by talking about how each of us had already witnessed a miracle on this trip – the reality of being in Belize hit us. We are here. The people we love, the country we love – it was all UNTOUCHED by the hurricane. No rain. No wind. Nothing. Hurricane Beryl had NO effect on Belize. After a week of watching the forecast, we were never more convinced that God did the impossible. Not just for Belize, but for so many. This is our expectation for the rest of the week – that God would do the impossible. As a physical reminder of this miracle, each team member was given a tile the color of beryl. We can only do so much on our own, but we serve a miracle-working God who can do impossible things.

We sang “More Than Able” before Amy shared a quick devo about the Good News and why we’re called to share it. We read through scriptures and talked through them as a group before breaking into small groups. In our small groups, we shared moments from the day where we saw God show up. There were so many different areas where we saw God at work today. His provision. His hand. His fingerprints – at every step.

Then it was time to call it a day! After a full day of traveling, a shower and sleep is exactly what everyone needed. We are SO grateful to be here, and we cannot wait to see how God shows up throughout the week! Thank you for your prayers – today couldn’t have been smoother!

If you haven’t already, sign up to join the prayer chain this week! You can do so at this link.