Posted in Honduras by Emily Hix on 4/5/2012
I have so many things to tell everyone, but I will start with the most important!
I MADE MY $11,000 AMOUNT AND I'M STAYING ON THE RACE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I want to say THANK YOU to everyone who has been been supporting! The Prayers,Fundraisers,Encouraging Words,Actual Donations,
As well as all of the work that's been done behind the scenes (my family/church family/close friends) has meant SOO much to me,
more than ya'll can possibly imagine!!!I can't believe that God has blessed me with such incredible people in my life,
and I pray His blessings and love on all of you!!!
On a side note: In the past two days our Squad Leaders, Teams, and Team Leaders have all just been switched around, So I am now on an entirely new team.
I am super stoked about this new time in my life, but also slightly overwhelmed so if you would be in prayer that I would be filled with God's supernatural peace than that would be awesome!!
Also I went with a group of people yesterday to make sure we are still parasite free, and found out that I now have Two new Parasites, A Worm, And E- Coli (almost everyone on our squad has them) !! I am now on meds for them, but they are making me pretty sick to my stomach, so if you could also pray for my health (and my squads) then that would be awesome as well!!!
And last but not least! I am just now "officially realizing" that I'm going on to Europe, and kind of freaking out because I need some stuff before getting there, and I need to get packed up! So prayers for my nerves would also be appreciated!!
Thank You Everyone for everything that you've done to keep me on the race, ya'll are a HUGE BLESSING to me!!!
I love Ya'll!!!!!!! :) ♥
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Posted in Honduras by Emily Hix on 3/25/2012
Hey Everyone my internet fast is over! Yay!!
BUT it costs to have internet here and I don't have a lot of money to spend so I probably will not be on as much. OK time to let you all know where I am at fundraising wise! I currently as of right this minute have $7,246.00 in my account. I HAVE to have $3,754 in my account before NEXT SUNDAY or I will be COMING HOME from the race!! NOW I know that this is not that big of an amount to God! Psshh this is a just a drop in the bucket of the amount of money He can provide for me, but I want to do my part in asking you all to please, PLEASE pray and consider supporting me! If you donate that $3,754 you will keep me on the race for another 3 months!! I will spend two months in Europe and one in Africa. This is not a pleasure trip, this is a journey. A journey to draw closer to God, to figure who I am in Him...not just His daughter, but who I am and what the gifts he has for me are. This is a journey to be able to love on people who have never experienced love, to play and hug on children who have no parents, no home, no toys, no food, no joy in their lives. This is a journey for me to be able to share the greatest thing ever in my life, and that is the love of Jesus Christ. Please don't let me be sent home, please allow me to continue this journey, to continue loving on others, to continue to share God's love with those who are as good as dead without it. Please.
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Posted in El Salvador by Emily Hix on 3/15/2012
Hey Everyone!
So I am currently in Honduras staying at a beautiful little hostel, for my first ever
D Squad Debrief! I cannot wait to begin our new ministry starting Monday, and to fall in love with
the people of this country. Until then I would like to give ya'll a recap of what our month of ministy
in El Salvador looked like. So here we go!
This is my team.
Team: God Before Us.
And this is what we do!
Performing Dramas.
Giving our testimonies in schools.
Going into communites and reaching out to them.
Worship.
Sweet,
Sweet, Worship.
Prayer.
Prayer for Health.
Prayers for LIFE to be restored to the dead.
( read here for more on this story: http://juliekolins.theworldrace.org/?filename=going-deep-part-one )
Prayers for NEW SIGHT.
She now has NEW EYES! She also has something else that is new that is far greater than her
newfound sight. (read here for more: http://hughroberts.theworldrace.org/?filename=the-blind-will-be-given-new-sight )
We also fell in love with quite a few people.
Our Contacts Victor and Sarai. <3
And All of the Beautiful children that we met along the way. <3 <3
I LOVE the ministries we've been doing so far, and I LOVE the people we have met,
and I LOVE all the things God has been teaching me, and I LOVE this LIFE!!!
Will you please help me be able to continue on this journey? My next deadline of $11,000
is coming up super quickly on April 1st! I still need $3,921 raised before then or I will be
SENT HOME from the race. Will you help me?
Thank You to everyone who has already supported me and to those who are
continuing to support me, you will never know how much it means to me.
I miss and love you all and I hope that God has been blessing you and your families
so far in this year of 2012!
Love and Blessings
Emily Hix
P.S.
And to close it out here is a really good video of our month in El Salvy that my own teammate
Wesley Vickers made! :)
How Great Thou Art from Wesley Vickers on Vimeo.
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Posted in El Salvador by Emily Hix on 2/22/2012
It is Insanity to go to 11 Countries in 11 Months.
It is Insanity to carry a 40lb pack on your back, and a 20lb daypack on your front every travel day. (I am and will continue to downsize)
It is Insanity when you realized that you packed *more* of the stuff you don't need, then the stuff you do.
It is Insanity to be *COLD* in Guatemala ... (It was cold though)
It is Insanity to love 20 something special needs kids soo much!
It is Insanity to do prayer walks in Guatemala and to stop and talk and pray with prostitutes.
It is Insanity to do feedback every night.
It is Insanity to realize daily just how much God loves you personally.
It is Insanity to suddenly live (24/7) with 6 new strangers.
It is Insanity when you realize those 6 people that less than 2 months ago you didn't know from Adam, are now 6 people that you love and rely on more than anyone else.
It is Insanity to learn something new each time you re-read a verse that you've read before a million times.
It is Insanity to die to self.
It is Insanity to love total strangers.
It is Insanity to get two parasites (Thing 1 & Thing 2) and stay overnight in a Guatemalan hospital month ONE of the World Race.
It is Insanity to *COMPLETELY* let go of things from your past, to give them away to God....because you realize you don't want them in your life anymore.
It is Insanity to ride 4-5 different articles of transportation to your next country/ministry.
It is Insanity to live with 17 other people and have complete peace and quiet (JUST KIDDING about the quiet part)!! : P
It is Insanity for me and 5 other girls to do the *INSANITY WORKOUT* every afternoon in 80-90 degree weather.
It is Insanity to Jap or *borrow* internet from any restaurant or church that has it.
It is Insanity to practice dramas and dances in the morning, and do prayer walks in communities and go to church in the afternoons.
It is Insanity to go to church 4x a week. (A good Insanity) :)
It is Insanity to already love El Salvador this much!
It is Insanity to sweat so STINKIN (literally) much!
It is Insanity to realize your love for Popousa's (SO YUMMY)!
It is Insanity to be able to worship and pray to God with the natives of each country, despite the nationality and language difference.
It is Insanity what just a smile on the face of the people I meet does to my heart.
It is Insanity to not even really care how dirty (Un-showered, no makeup, sweaty) I get every day.
It is Insanity to go from showering every day, to showering every 4-5 days.
It is Insanity to be soo eaten alive by mosquitoes (they love me here in El Salvador)!!
It is Insanity to realize that I just have to be flexible and go with the flow every day because schedules change (constantly).
It is Insanity to wash your clothes in a bucket, and then hang them out to dry on a clothesline.
It is Insanity to listen to the testimonies and see what miracles God has done in the lives of the people you live with.
It is Insanity to watch first the fear, then nervousness of someone before they share their testimony, then to watch the excitement and happiness that lights up their faces during and after they give it.
It is Insanity to go to awesome places like Volcano craters and beautiful Waterfalls on our days off.
It is Insanity to go into a high school and to just feel such a love for the kids and teenagers that are there.
It is Insanity to fit 16 people (7 in the cab and 9 in the truck bed) into a small pickup, and then have El Salvadorians leaning out of their car windows and taking pictures of us as they pass us on the interstate.
It is Insanity to get so tan on my arms and face, but not so much on my legs. : -/
It is Insanity to learn something new about love every day.
It is Insanity to know that I have 9 more months of this life of Insanity!
Is the life I’m currently living, a life of Insanity?
YES.
YES IT IS.
But this is the life God has called me to live, to step out of my comfort zone and to live INSANELY for Him.
So I Am.
Will YOU live a life of INSANITY for Him, if He asks it of YOU?
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Posted in El Salvador by Emily Hix on 2/16/2012
Hola from Apastepeque, El Salvador!
I cannot believe that I am already in my 2nd month/country of the WORLD RACE!!!
This month on the race our ministry is to learn/perform Dramas and Dances in the nearby
communities, schools, and churches, as well as praying over the communities and inviting
them to the church that our contact started. I am SUPER STOKED about the ministry because I
love to be dramatic and the dances have been pretty fun too! We are still currently in practice
mode, and its been so much fun to see the DRAMATIC side of my team!
Our contact this month is Victor Reyes, an awesome 25 year old man of God who loves his country
and the people of it. His passion and desire is to see the people of El Salvador come
to Jesus Christ, and he is willing to make a sacrifice of his time and self to see that dream
come true. Along with Victor is his "right hand lady" Sara Ramiro. She is a sweet, 24 year old
woman of God, whose dream is also to see the people come to Christ, and to one day (Lord
willing) start a school of her own for the kids who live in the poorer communities. Please pray
for Victor and Sara that God will not only bless them and their servant hearts, but that He will
also bless their ministry and do greater things than they could ever imagine with it!
This month we are also working with team CHERISHED from our D-Squad (Whoop,Whoop),
which is a team of seven sweet, beautiful women of God. I seriously love all of these girls
(Kate, Jill, Julie, Jen, Katie, Katie, and Misty) and am soo excited to work with them!
God has literally been teaching me so much since I left on the race! Not only has my daily
quiet/worship time with Him been amazing, but He has blessed me with such a worship
oriented team!
Lately God has been showing me some things about myself that I need to change, things that
have been hampering my walk with Him. He's showed me how I have been letting all my
insecurities and fears consume me, and how instead of asking Him to remove them, I have
been storing them in my mind and going through them over and over again. He's showing me
that His love is greater than all things, not some, but ALL things. He's showed me that if I put
my faith in this world, and if I seek my love and acceptance from it, then I will never be
satisfied. But if I instead seek HIS Love and HIS Acceptance, and put my Faith in HIM, then I
will never be let down.
I cannot comprehend how different I will feel and see things in nine more months' time,
because I feel like my life has already been changed drastically in just these two.
I am currently still $8,848 (ish) short of being fully funded, and my next deadline of $11,000 is
coming up soon!
I am only $4,186 short of my $11,000 deadline due by April 1st, 2012. Please support me so
that I can stay out on the field and continue not only to share the love of Christ with others,
but to grow closer and stronger and more in love with my God everyday!!
I Love and Miss you all so much, and I pray God's Peace and Blessings on you all!
-
Buenos Noches! : )
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Posted in Guatemala by Emily Hix on 1/27/2012
Her faced peered out a window set low in the wall near my feet. I heard a noise during my prayer and
opened my eyes, to see a pair of dark ones staring back up at me. Then a sweet, slightly crooked smile
lit her face, and I knew she had my heart.
Setting:
Two of our team standing in front of and against the wall of a club where loud exotic music is
spilling out.
Mission:
A prayer walk through the streets of Chimaltenango, Guatemala.
Prayers:
That God would remove the spiritual darkness that is over the city, and for the woman and children
who are slaves to prostitution here.
I and two other girls sat down at the window she was at and tried to talk with her, we discovered that she
was deaf and mute and spoke in sign language or could read and write in spanish. She told me
(in that raw barely audible voice that mutes have) that she had two ninos (children) who lived far away
with her parents or grandparents. She said that she no longer had a husband because he died not
long ago in a car accident, and so now she worked and lived in the club to support her kids.
We asked her if we could pray for her and her kids, and she told us Yes! I reached through the bars
on the window that she was leaning up against and and took her hand in mine, and then closed my
eyes and started to pray. I prayed for Marie, I prayed that she would feel the love of God just cover her
completely, that she would realize that there is hope, and that hope is Jesus. I prayed that somone
would come into her life after we left, who would show her that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
Someone who would take her to church and show her who Jesus is. I prayed for her children who
no longer have a daddy, and now have to live seperated from their mother. I prayed that God would
provide another way of employment, so that she would never have to work in a brothel again.
As I was finishing up my prayer, I felt God tell me to reach out and touch her cheek and to tell her
"You Are Beautiful"!
In my head I told God " She already let me hold her hand Lord, I don't want to freak her out"!
But God told me, "Emily touch her cheek, and tell her she is beautiful".
So before I got up and left I reached out and cupped her cheek and looked into her sweet brown eyes
and said " Eres Hermosa ( You are beautiful). She looked at me and then suddenly had the biggest
smile on her face I've ever seen! She just lit up from the inside, and I knew I had done the right thing.
As I walked towards home something hit me suddenly! I asked one of the girls next to me to make sure,
and when it was confirmed I was Astounded! The prostitute I had just been talking with, never gave us
her name. I had been calling her Marie in my head the entire time we talked and prayed, I even told one of my
teammates that her name was Marie.
I have no idea why I thought her name was Marie at the time, but I believe now that maybe God gave it to me.
Maybe instead of her just being *another prostitute*, He wanted her to have a name, so that I would
always remember her.
Whatever the reason I know I will never as long as I live, forget about my Marie.
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Posted in Guatemala by Emily Hix on 1/17/2012
Hola from Chimaltenango, Guatemala!!!
I have been here for almost 5 days now and I already have sooo many things to tell you all, but before I do
I need you to do me a favor. Yepp YOU.
The song below describes a huge part of what I've been experiencing personally so far while on the race,
and so before I write anything more would you please listen to this song. There is no video, just some lyrics so please just take a minute and really *listen* to the words.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxBUsMRYG7g&feature=related
God has been completely BREAKING ME.
He is using so many things to help break me, but mainly one thing in particular...... LOVE.
God is using LOVE to break me.
The LOVE I Never fully felt that I had.The LOVE of my family and friends. The LOVE that I don't fully know how to give to others. The LOVE of myself. The LOVE of what others think. The LOVE of the world. The "LOVE" that the world tells us to have. The LOVE that these precious children give unconditionally. The LOVE that my FATHER has for me.
For me the word *LOVE* is an easy thing to say. Its easy to let it slip from my lips for someone I care about to hear.
It is not however easy for me to recieve. I don't know how to love myself, and therefore I truely don't know how to *Fully* love others. I can't even comprehend why God loves me despite everything I've ever done.
But all I know is that...............He Just Does. HE LOVES ME. And that is ENOUGH.
I am currently *learning to love*. To LOVE myself. To LOVE God completely. To LOVE who I am in Christ (just as He made me). So that I can fully LOVE others.
And God could not have picked a more Perfect time to teach me how to love, because LOOK at how much has given me TO LOVE!!!
In the Air. <3
So Beautiful!!
Beautiful Guatemala!
Heading to our home for the month.
This is it!
The view of one of the gorgeous mountains outisde our compound.
Some more of our Beautiful view.
The home where my kids (they are all already mine in my heart) and their nannies live.
The yard!
This is where we eat all of our meals, and we eat with the kids! Also that red door right there is the entrance into the school.
My home for the month!
This is from a day or two ago.....it looks a lot more clean and organized now!
This is Maureen Casey the founder of Joy Filled Homes. She is such an Amazing woman of God! You really need to just come here and meet her and listen to her testimony!!
My Kids!!!
This is Nancy. She is such a beautiful young woman, and I love her smile!!!
This is Lyla. She is a sweetheart! She loves to laugh, and just melt your heart with her beautiful big brown eyes!
This is Karlyn. She such a sweet sweet little girl, and already has me wrapped around her finger.
This is Candy (short for Candida). Candy is such a hoot! She loves to climb all over you, and her favorite passtime is to help you clap your hands!
This is Helen. Helen is soo much fun! She absolutely loves to make funny noises and faces, and will give me lots of kisses if I ask her to. :)
This is Andrea. Andrea is a very sweet and intelligent little girl!
This is Adres. He is such a sweetiepie and I has a very contagious laugh! :)
This is Dani. WOW what a kid! Dani is such a sweet boy, and a huge blast to be around. He loves sing, dance, and listen/play the ukele and guitar. I love this kid!
This is Rosemary. She is a very sweet and beautiful little girl, who loves to hum and wave her arms (as if she was conducting a choir) around while at the table. :)
This is Christopher. I haven't been able to spend much time with Christopher yet, but I'm hoping to very soon!
If you would like to know more about these kids and their situations then please go to this site below.
http://www.losgozosos.org/LosGozosos/Director.html
I am soo thankful for everything that God has given to me, and its only day 6!
I am really pumped about the next 11 months because I know God is goign to do great things in my life,
just like he is doing right now with LOVE.
Please continue to pray for me and my team, as well as Maureen Casey and the staff of nannies and teachers who work here as well.
I LOVE You Everyone!!!
: )
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Posted in Pre-Race by Emily Hix on 1/9/2012
So in less than 10 hours I will be heading to the GSO airport and flying to ATL, there I'll have a short layover
and then be on my way to Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Not long after that I will be GUATEMALA bound!!! : )
I cannot begin to explain the emotions I have been experciencing lately, but I can gladly say that I am so thankful for the peace of God that I have felt through it all.
I have cried and will probably cry some more before the night is over, but its ok!
Because Joy will come in the morning! <3
I want to say ThankYou to all of you for your never ending prayers, encouragement, and support both financially and prayerfully. I am so blessed to have all of you backing me in this, and I am asking that God Bless you and your families in this year of 2012.
If you would like to continue to support me you can still do so by clicking on my Support Me tab to the left.
I still need to raise $4,286 before my next deadline on April 1, 2012.
If you would like to stay in contact with me you can:
Subscribe your email to this blog (to get my monthly updates)
Send me an email and let me know how You are doing: emilyanhix@gmail.com
You can find me on Facebook: Emily Hix
Or you can video chat with me on Skype: emilyanhix (my Skype user ID)
So Goodbye to my family,friends,supporters for now.
And GoodBye America I will see you in 11 months!!
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Posted in Pre-Race by Emily Hix on 1/3/2012
In A Weeks Time:
I will be starting a NEW life,
With a NEW family,
In a NEW Culture.
I will be saying GoodBye to my FAMILY,
GoodBye to my CHURCH,
Goodbye to my FRIENDS.
I will be rushing around trying to make sure I packed everything: Clothes
Shoes
Toiletries
Socks/Undies
A little makeup
All my Gear
Those Odds/Ends
Camera
And maybe something from Home
I will be checking my flight status,
and making sure my pack and daypack are within the weight restriction.
I will be More NERVOUS,
More EXCITED,
More SICK TO MY STOMACH,
More PUMPED than ever before!
I will be Praying,
Be Seeking,
Be Believing,
Be Trusting,
In God to take care of Me, as well as my Family.
I will NOT Fear !
Because God hath not given us (ME) the spirit of fear;
but of POWER, and of LOVE, and of a SOUND MIND.
2 Timothy 1:7
In A Weeks Time TODAY:
I will wakeup around 1 am.
Take a shower.
Use my blowdryer one last time.
Apply some makeup.
And head to the airport where I will leave: My HOME,
My FAMILY,
My OLD LIFE,
BEHIND ME.
In A Weeks Time:
I will see my (D) SQUAD again!
I will see my (God Before Us) TEAM again!
I will laugh!
I will cry!
I will sing!
I will dance!
I will Thank GOD for this opportunity!
In A Weeks Time:
MY . JOUNRNEY . BEGINS .
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