New Years Eve Day - no baseball today.
Boat ride to a water fall, visited an indigenous tribe village, ate (tilapia, plantains, and pineapple), danced, GOT TATTOOS, bought souvenirs.  Currently resting before our first Latin America New Years Eve party.
Happy New Year's everyone! Yesterday was one of many highlights for the week as we started off our day by heading to a swimming hole underneath a waterfall. The waterfall was magnificent, but personally, I believe the ride there was even greater. We were on a boat for 30 minutes cruising past the jungle and different tribes. This boat ride reminded us of the beauty and great mysteries lying throughout God's creation. After swimming for roughly 45 minutes, we visited a tribe who greeted us with music and a warm welcome. They then proceeded to explain their story and pass out fish and plantains. Let me tell ya, they know how to cook. Some of us even got to participate in a little dancing with the native women and get tattoos (not permanent of course). Eric sure has some moves! Our New Year's Eve then went out with a bang (literally) as we went to our new friend Antonio's house for a Latin American dinner, which included ham, beef, tamales, bread, rice, potato salad, and a few other dishes. They also provided chocolate cookies, which I devoured. Finally, we went and watched fireworks at midnight. This was not a normal display as it felt like we were in the middle of a war zone. Nonetheless, we made it out alive with minimal hearing. Check back here is for more Panamanian adventures! God bless!

Trent 

Here are todays photos:

 

Day 4: Still no wifi. Confidence is fading. What will we do without being able to check our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram? We are barely able to survive without connection with our family and friends back home. (Lots of sarcasm included)

Despite no wifi, the Cairn baseball team started the day by hosting our third baseball clinic. The kids enjoyed hitting, pitching, and fielding (IF and OF). Matt Trotman then witnessed to the kids and some parents by sharing his testimony. After lunch our team went back to the same field to play a game against some of the Panamanian kids and a Panamanian coach that was a former MLB pitcher. Cairn won 6-3. I had my first home run as a Cairn player, but not off of the MLB pitcher. There were no injuries and everyone had fun. One guy asked us all to sign a baseball giving us a moment of fame. I then gave my testimony to the players before we returned home for dinner.

After dinner we all walked to the market down the road. We then finished off the day with our team devotions. We all thank you for your prayers and support and ask that you continue to pray that God works in the hearts of all the people we witness(ed) to.

Kyle Wolfe for Team Cairn

Hello everyone!
Today was the second full day of our already-wonderful trip in Panama. After the new and fun experiences of yesterday, we were all excited to get started with the baseball clinics. Though we are representing SCORE International, we were joined by another missions team called BLITS Worldwide with whom we collaborated to run the two clinics for the day. Our first stop was very nice baseball field settled in the middle of a hillside community, and our second stop was a field in the center of Panama City. Both clinics took the same form and were different in the ages of the kids present. The kids were lined up waiting for us and we soon began to run 4 separate stations which would help them practice all different skills. As the groups rotated and we all got to work with more and more people it was incredible to not only see the skills of the players, but also to see how baseball and fun both transcend language.
Once the drills were finished we had all of the kids sit down and listen to the testimonies of multiple members of each missions team. I was one of those, along with Jacob Allen, who got to share what the Lord has done in my life. Although I felt challenged to simplify all of what I had to say concerning the gospel due to the young age of the kids, our translator was able to help me to communicate in a way that was effective. Once the time of testimonies were over, a representative from the BLITS team (former pro baseball player, Danny Sheaffer) gave a challenge to the kids. Danny communicated the gospel to the kids in a way that stressed salvation by grace through faith. This was an especially important message for these kids who grow up in a region that is heavily Catholic. Danny wanted to make sure that the children understand that no matter how many good things we do, salvation is only given to us as a gift from God who sent His Son to die in our place. We were humbled and blessed to see how many kids responded positively to the call to salvation, and we praise God for the work that He has already done through us on this trip.
John 14:6 - Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
-Mitch Peiffer

Today was a fantastic day. After getting settled in yesterday, we were ready to get to work in Panama. We began by going to a local church. This church was unlike anything we have ever experienced. It was an outdoor open building with a tin roof, and about 20-30 native Panamanians. Coach Haas went up and spoke about our team and our mission, with a translator of course. Eric then went and gave his testimony. We then began to sing songs of worship in Spanish. This was a beautiful thing, to hear and see people of different nationalities worshipping the one true God. It filled my heart with joy and made me wonder how great heaven will be when people from all over the world are worshiping together. We spent the rest of the day with an indigenous tribe, sharing testimonies and playing soccer with the kids. It has been a long day but we are all thankful for this opportunity and are excited for all that God will continue to do.
Matt Trotman for the team.

The flora in Gamboa, Panama

Trent giving his testimony to the local tribe in Gamboa.