Olivia
Praying that you get a good night’s sleep and you are refreshed and ready to go on this wonderful trip!! Only God knows what adventure and special moments He has waiting for you!
God goes before, behind and He surrounds you with His love, his provision and His protection!!
Trust Him and obey Him,
Barb P (PP)
Olivia,
WOW!! Once again you get to go and be His hands and feet! I have to admit I am very jealous but I know you are going to be such a blessing to the team and to the Guatemalans. Thank you for your willing servant heart and for looking out for my little girl. Praying for many God sightings!
big hugs,
Kristy
Hello all! I can’t believe this will be my third time to Guatemala! I feel so blessed and thankful that I get to return to a place that I am so in love with. I am excited for what’s in store for this week. I am also excited to go with a group where most of the people are strangers to me. I can’t wait to dig deeper in these people’s lives and get to know some of God’s children better. Please pray for my health, I haven’t been feeling 100% since I returned from Europe 3 weeks ago. Please also pray for good weather as the forecast calls for lots of rain. Thank you for being apart of this journey with me and praying for and with me as well! Will be in touch soon! Xoxo
Praying for you and the team as you travel today. I know how much you love the people of Guatemala and the chance to once again love on them and share Gods love with them and yet I know this trip is bittersweet for you. Riley would be proud of you. Give God your all this week! I know he will bless your efforts. I love you! Mom.
Praying for you and the team as you begin construction on your homes today. I know that you will all be working on little sleep so I’m praying the God will energize all of you and give you strength. I can’t really imagine how excited the families are that will be blessed by these homes. The things we take for granted here! Praying for a great day for all of you! Love, mom.
Praying for energy and health as you begin the physical work of building homes and for the Spirit’s work in the lives of those you encounter and in your own life. Blessings, BP
Hello all! I can’t really explain the feeling I have felt today. It feels SO good to be back at Paradise Bound and love on the people of Guatemala. Yesterday was an extremely long travel day and a very painful day for me. My head felt like it was going to explode and one of my lyphnodes was extremely swollen causing a lot of pain in my neck. I was super frustrated with this but more frustrated and worried about the fact that I would miss out on this week. Thank the Lord for medicine and also an answer to prayer. Even though we got little sleep I felt better today and was able to work with my team!
We arrived late last night in the dark so we could not see anything. I was eager for the ride to the villages today because everything is super green and beautiful! So many memories were flooding back on this drive and I loved every second of it! We arrived at the village where we would be working for the next three days and the people were waiting for us ready to work. This village was different than the past two years I have been in the sense that there was not that many kids running around. I was a little bummed by this but later on in the day the kids came around and it was yet another fun experience passing out candy and toys to these kids.
Everyone did great today and we all worked extremely hard to reach our goal on little sleep. I am so blessed already by my small/building group. Julian is a member of our team and is from Mexico, speaking fluent Spanish (SUPER HELPFUL). Nancy is a kind-hearted women who watches over all of us like a mother would. Tony is super strong and a dedicated worker. I don’t think he sat down once. Katie and Martha are two peas in a pod and bring a lot of humor to our group. They are also hard workers and showed such a positive attitude when handling experiences that were uncomfortable to them. Once again I am so blessed by these people and so thankful for each member of the group.
Food was amazing as always and I swear I eat more here then I do at home. They keep us very well fed!! It is so cool to see the changes over the years since I have been here, this place is so amazing to me. People with such passion who work year round to better the lives of others, it’s truly incredible.
Thanks to everyone who is reading and posting on the blog. Me as well as my team are so blessed by you! Hopefully I will get a chance to update tomorrow.
Continued prayers for good health and strength Olivia. Also freedom from headaches. Glad the first day overall was good. Praying each day and the wonders each day brings gets better and better as the week goes on. Blessings…
Olivia, I am so glad that Katie is on your team! You are such a blessing and will be a wonderful leader for her. It is awesome to hear your enthusiasm and pure joy at being back in Guatemala. Praying for another amazing day tomorrow! Enjoy the singing tonight! the prayers are unceasing!
Sound like you had a great day! Hope you are feeling ok. Praying for you to stay healthy.. Sam, Tyler, and Jake came for dinner tonight. It was good to see them and catch up. They all asked about “liver”. Sleep well. Love you.
I miss you and will be praying for you throughout the day. I hope you’re feeling better and find energy and strength as you approach the halfway mark of your trip. Nick misses his Auntie! Love you.
Just read your team update. 💓 Tomorrow will be such an awesome day as you dedicate your home with the family. I pray Gods blessing over all of you as you witness to this beautiful family. Hope you are staying healthy. I miss you! Love you! Mom
Hey Olivia! So you went back?! Hope you guys have an awesome trip. Remember ours? Remember that super nasty fart I had when we were playing euchre? Pray you guys have a great week building homes and building relationships! Adios Amiga!
Olivia, I love seeing your smiling face in the pics! You are exactly where you are supposed to be. Thank you for your leadership. Have a great night singing! I wish I could be there for that!
Praying for continued strength and health. In His grip, Kristy
ps.tell Katie she needs to write something on her blog 😉
Hey Liv,
Looks like you guys are having an amazing time. We will be praying for you and the team tomorrow as you dedicate these new home. May the words that are said be received with open hearts. Enjoy.
love, Sheri
“but I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my Fortress, my Refuge…” Psalm 59:16. God will give you His strength Olivia and His protection as you do battle with the enemy praying over the homes built with your loving hands!! Blessings and continued prayers, bp
WHAT A DAY! As many of you know today was dedication day. This means we dedicate each house to the Lord and ask each member of the house to commit their life to Christ. Every single member of every household today asked Jesus into their life. It was so incredible to be apart of and to witness. These people of the village are the most beautiful people I have ever met and without a doubt the most happy people I will prolly ever encounter in my lifetime. They have so little and are SO thankful and happy. I wish everyone in the US lived like this, including myself. It is so hard to get caught up in material possessions of this world and forget what really matters. Today was a good reminder of God’s grace and his Love for his children who constantly mess up. Thank you Jesus for everything you have blessed me with.
Going into this trip I only knew 4 people. This group/team I am with is so incredible. I feel as though I have known these people for so long, they have become apart of my extended family. We have shared laughs together and today we have shared many tears together. Praise God for people who are so accepting and share the love of the Lord.
Is is nice to not be “connected” for a while to people. I love not even carrying my phone with me when I leave the base. I love this opportunity to connect with God without any distractions. This place (yes i’ll say it again) is incredible. God is so good and I am so blessed.
Thanks again for everything and for walking along this journey with me. I love you all so much!
XOXO – Olivia
P.s. Mom…how is grandpa doing? It’s nice not to be connected, but I still miss my family 🙂
Liv, been praying for you and the teams often today. So awesome to hear that all families accepted Chrisf! Isn’t it awesome to know you will spend eternity with them? Everyone here is doing good. (Grandpa is the same, poor grandma has had the flu since Monday. There iIs a nasty bug going around here!)
Keep up the good work! I’m proud of you and I love you mucho! (That’s the extend to my Spanish). Mom
Prayers again Olivia, for another Spirit-filled and powerful day as you be the feet and hands of our Beautiful Savior. “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring Good News”!!
Blessings…bp
Today was a special morning. We had about an hour of free time and we had the option to go down to the orphanage and play with the little kids. When we walked in there was 13 gorgeous babies and toddlers all staring at us. My heart instantly melted and I jumped right in and starting playing with them. They were so precious and they made me really miss my nephew, Nicholas. Thanking the Lord for a little piece of home this morning. Thanking Him also for the opportunity to love on kids who have no family, who have nothing. Just about to head out to the med clinic. Excited for something different today, a new opportunity to love on more of God’s people. Thanks again for all your support and love!
How fun! I would love to play with those little kids! Sounds like the team will have long travel times today to get to the village. Praying for safety and for the Spirit to move in the hearts of the people God is leading you to today. Excited to hear all about it.
Love, Mom
Yesterday was a really fun day! The past two years I have gone I have never been inside the medical clinic. I thought I would give the opportunity to other people to play with kids all day and build that relationship. I was really happy I did this. The medical clinic was really cool and I am really happy I did this. It was so cool to me that we are able to help these people with basic things like ibuprofen, things we take for granted every day back home. This was a really cool experience! I’m not sure an exact number but I think around 70 people accepted Jesus into their heart last night. This is always so incredible to watch and witness. People weeping and going forward to make a choice that will change their life for eternity. God is SO good. Thanks again for all the prayers, you guys are amazing!
Hi ol!!
Thinking of you today!! Just catching up on the adventures and impressions you’re making! I’m so proud of what you are doing, but can’t wait to have you back! Hope you and court are having a great time in your fellowship! Love you!!
Love Hannah
Hey Beautiful!! Miss your face as well, thinking of you extra today. Your daddy would be so proud of you! Hopefully Andy did his job and passed along my gift 🙂 You are so special to me and I am so thankful for you! Can’t wait to see you when we get back baby doll!
What an incredible experience He has given to you and to the team!
Prayers for you as you leave these people and their country behind; for safe travel and then as you transition back to west Michigan reality. Prayers for how God will use this experience for you in the future! It’s been a pleasure praying for you Olivia!
Abundant Blessings…
bp
Team Hillcrest 2016 
Olivia
Praying that you get a good night’s sleep and you are refreshed and ready to go on this wonderful trip!! Only God knows what adventure and special moments He has waiting for you!
God goes before, behind and He surrounds you with His love, his provision and His protection!!
Trust Him and obey Him,
Barb P (PP)
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Thank you so much!! I am so blessed by this post and by your card I received in the mail! Thanks again for being my prayer pal!
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Hola OliBia. Comoestas? EL Poder Tu De Amore #33/ Rocks.
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Olivia,
WOW!! Once again you get to go and be His hands and feet! I have to admit I am very jealous but I know you are going to be such a blessing to the team and to the Guatemalans. Thank you for your willing servant heart and for looking out for my little girl. Praying for many God sightings!
big hugs,
Kristy
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Hello all! I can’t believe this will be my third time to Guatemala! I feel so blessed and thankful that I get to return to a place that I am so in love with. I am excited for what’s in store for this week. I am also excited to go with a group where most of the people are strangers to me. I can’t wait to dig deeper in these people’s lives and get to know some of God’s children better. Please pray for my health, I haven’t been feeling 100% since I returned from Europe 3 weeks ago. Please also pray for good weather as the forecast calls for lots of rain. Thank you for being apart of this journey with me and praying for and with me as well! Will be in touch soon! Xoxo
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Praying for you and the team as you travel today. I know how much you love the people of Guatemala and the chance to once again love on them and share Gods love with them and yet I know this trip is bittersweet for you. Riley would be proud of you. Give God your all this week! I know he will bless your efforts. I love you! Mom.
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Praying for you and the team as you begin construction on your homes today. I know that you will all be working on little sleep so I’m praying the God will energize all of you and give you strength. I can’t really imagine how excited the families are that will be blessed by these homes. The things we take for granted here! Praying for a great day for all of you! Love, mom.
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Praying for energy and health as you begin the physical work of building homes and for the Spirit’s work in the lives of those you encounter and in your own life. Blessings, BP
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Hello all! I can’t really explain the feeling I have felt today. It feels SO good to be back at Paradise Bound and love on the people of Guatemala. Yesterday was an extremely long travel day and a very painful day for me. My head felt like it was going to explode and one of my lyphnodes was extremely swollen causing a lot of pain in my neck. I was super frustrated with this but more frustrated and worried about the fact that I would miss out on this week. Thank the Lord for medicine and also an answer to prayer. Even though we got little sleep I felt better today and was able to work with my team!
We arrived late last night in the dark so we could not see anything. I was eager for the ride to the villages today because everything is super green and beautiful! So many memories were flooding back on this drive and I loved every second of it! We arrived at the village where we would be working for the next three days and the people were waiting for us ready to work. This village was different than the past two years I have been in the sense that there was not that many kids running around. I was a little bummed by this but later on in the day the kids came around and it was yet another fun experience passing out candy and toys to these kids.
Everyone did great today and we all worked extremely hard to reach our goal on little sleep. I am so blessed already by my small/building group. Julian is a member of our team and is from Mexico, speaking fluent Spanish (SUPER HELPFUL). Nancy is a kind-hearted women who watches over all of us like a mother would. Tony is super strong and a dedicated worker. I don’t think he sat down once. Katie and Martha are two peas in a pod and bring a lot of humor to our group. They are also hard workers and showed such a positive attitude when handling experiences that were uncomfortable to them. Once again I am so blessed by these people and so thankful for each member of the group.
Food was amazing as always and I swear I eat more here then I do at home. They keep us very well fed!! It is so cool to see the changes over the years since I have been here, this place is so amazing to me. People with such passion who work year round to better the lives of others, it’s truly incredible.
Thanks to everyone who is reading and posting on the blog. Me as well as my team are so blessed by you! Hopefully I will get a chance to update tomorrow.
XOXO
– Olivia S.
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Continued prayers for good health and strength Olivia. Also freedom from headaches. Glad the first day overall was good. Praying each day and the wonders each day brings gets better and better as the week goes on. Blessings…
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Olivia, I am so glad that Katie is on your team! You are such a blessing and will be a wonderful leader for her. It is awesome to hear your enthusiasm and pure joy at being back in Guatemala. Praying for another amazing day tomorrow! Enjoy the singing tonight! the prayers are unceasing!
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Sound like you had a great day! Hope you are feeling ok. Praying for you to stay healthy.. Sam, Tyler, and Jake came for dinner tonight. It was good to see them and catch up. They all asked about “liver”. Sleep well. Love you.
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Hope you have a great day . Thanks for being a great daughter , role model . I would love to see you pound a nail . Love dad
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I miss you and will be praying for you throughout the day. I hope you’re feeling better and find energy and strength as you approach the halfway mark of your trip. Nick misses his Auntie! Love you.
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Just read your team update. 💓 Tomorrow will be such an awesome day as you dedicate your home with the family. I pray Gods blessing over all of you as you witness to this beautiful family. Hope you are staying healthy. I miss you! Love you! Mom
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Hey Olivia! So you went back?! Hope you guys have an awesome trip. Remember ours? Remember that super nasty fart I had when we were playing euchre? Pray you guys have a great week building homes and building relationships! Adios Amiga!
Kyle
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Yes I went back!! It is a great trip so far! Thanks for following our blog!
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Olivia, I love seeing your smiling face in the pics! You are exactly where you are supposed to be. Thank you for your leadership. Have a great night singing! I wish I could be there for that!
Praying for continued strength and health. In His grip, Kristy
ps.tell Katie she needs to write something on her blog 😉
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Hey Liv,
Looks like you guys are having an amazing time. We will be praying for you and the team tomorrow as you dedicate these new home. May the words that are said be received with open hearts. Enjoy.
love, Sheri
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“but I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my Fortress, my Refuge…” Psalm 59:16. God will give you His strength Olivia and His protection as you do battle with the enemy praying over the homes built with your loving hands!! Blessings and continued prayers, bp
LikeLike
WHAT A DAY! As many of you know today was dedication day. This means we dedicate each house to the Lord and ask each member of the house to commit their life to Christ. Every single member of every household today asked Jesus into their life. It was so incredible to be apart of and to witness. These people of the village are the most beautiful people I have ever met and without a doubt the most happy people I will prolly ever encounter in my lifetime. They have so little and are SO thankful and happy. I wish everyone in the US lived like this, including myself. It is so hard to get caught up in material possessions of this world and forget what really matters. Today was a good reminder of God’s grace and his Love for his children who constantly mess up. Thank you Jesus for everything you have blessed me with.
Going into this trip I only knew 4 people. This group/team I am with is so incredible. I feel as though I have known these people for so long, they have become apart of my extended family. We have shared laughs together and today we have shared many tears together. Praise God for people who are so accepting and share the love of the Lord.
Is is nice to not be “connected” for a while to people. I love not even carrying my phone with me when I leave the base. I love this opportunity to connect with God without any distractions. This place (yes i’ll say it again) is incredible. God is so good and I am so blessed.
Thanks again for everything and for walking along this journey with me. I love you all so much!
XOXO – Olivia
P.s. Mom…how is grandpa doing? It’s nice not to be connected, but I still miss my family 🙂
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Liv, been praying for you and the teams often today. So awesome to hear that all families accepted Chrisf! Isn’t it awesome to know you will spend eternity with them? Everyone here is doing good. (Grandpa is the same, poor grandma has had the flu since Monday. There iIs a nasty bug going around here!)
Keep up the good work! I’m proud of you and I love you mucho! (That’s the extend to my Spanish). Mom
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Prayers again Olivia, for another Spirit-filled and powerful day as you be the feet and hands of our Beautiful Savior. “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring Good News”!!
Blessings…bp
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Today was a special morning. We had about an hour of free time and we had the option to go down to the orphanage and play with the little kids. When we walked in there was 13 gorgeous babies and toddlers all staring at us. My heart instantly melted and I jumped right in and starting playing with them. They were so precious and they made me really miss my nephew, Nicholas. Thanking the Lord for a little piece of home this morning. Thanking Him also for the opportunity to love on kids who have no family, who have nothing. Just about to head out to the med clinic. Excited for something different today, a new opportunity to love on more of God’s people. Thanks again for all your support and love!
XOXO
– Olivia
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Praying for you and the team this week. Have a great time .Cannot wait to talk with you when you get back.
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How fun! I would love to play with those little kids! Sounds like the team will have long travel times today to get to the village. Praying for safety and for the Spirit to move in the hearts of the people God is leading you to today. Excited to hear all about it.
Love, Mom
LikeLike
Yesterday was a really fun day! The past two years I have gone I have never been inside the medical clinic. I thought I would give the opportunity to other people to play with kids all day and build that relationship. I was really happy I did this. The medical clinic was really cool and I am really happy I did this. It was so cool to me that we are able to help these people with basic things like ibuprofen, things we take for granted every day back home. This was a really cool experience! I’m not sure an exact number but I think around 70 people accepted Jesus into their heart last night. This is always so incredible to watch and witness. People weeping and going forward to make a choice that will change their life for eternity. God is SO good. Thanks again for all the prayers, you guys are amazing!
XOXO
– Olivia
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Hi ol!!
Thinking of you today!! Just catching up on the adventures and impressions you’re making! I’m so proud of what you are doing, but can’t wait to have you back! Hope you and court are having a great time in your fellowship! Love you!!
Love Hannah
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Hey Beautiful!! Miss your face as well, thinking of you extra today. Your daddy would be so proud of you! Hopefully Andy did his job and passed along my gift 🙂 You are so special to me and I am so thankful for you! Can’t wait to see you when we get back baby doll!
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What an incredible experience He has given to you and to the team!
Prayers for you as you leave these people and their country behind; for safe travel and then as you transition back to west Michigan reality. Prayers for how God will use this experience for you in the future! It’s been a pleasure praying for you Olivia!
Abundant Blessings…
bp
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