Summer Missions 2026 Week 2: Chile

Hey, y’all! I hope everyone is doing well. God has really blessed these past two weeks in Santiago. Here is everything we did last week:

We've experienced one full week of what a normal week at El Oasis is like. The Monday after the retreat was a much needed rest day. We ended up staying at the hostel sleeping and reading for the most part.

On Tuesday, we went to El Oasis for their open house hours. It's a time where students can come hangout to play games or work on homework. Benjamin got to challenge a lot of students to a game of chess, and Earl was able to help a regular El Oasis student named Max with his English homework.

Wednesday also had open house hours, but we also had opportunities to do some outreach. Kaiden and I went with Mau and Mario to one of the nearby universities called Universidad de Artes, Ciencias, y Comunicacións (University of the Arts, Sciences, and Communication) or UNIACC for short. We set up a table and asked students to tell us how they see themselves and how others see them. We were there about an hour, and probably around a hundred people came to talk to us, many of them not Christian, and we got to invite all of them to El Oasis.

For outreach, a different group went to another part of town to feed soup to the hungry. Here is a testimony from Earl about that experience:

"Our team, led by an El Oasis intern by the name of Magda, left El Oasis to offer homemade soup, bottled water, and prayer to those less fortunate in the streets. The experience was almost jarring in that we saw public workers whose work did not support them in this economy left on the street. Sleeping where they could on benches or on top of grates where warm air is vented up from the underground metro, many of them wearing their work uniforms and having an obvious physical disability, our hearts went out to these people and we approached them fearlessly. No matter the warnings given to us by locals that some folks would find the offer of food and prayer abrasive, all of the people were grateful that anyone would be giving them attention. Sure, they accepted the soup and one of them the water, as well, but what truly made each person smile was being talked to like a person. Their situations, their social status, their overall misfortune had made them outcasts among their neighbors. When Magda spoke to them, smiled at them, and offered to help and pray for them, each person spoken to seemed less interested in the food and more excited that they were acknowledged. The position and status of the homeless on the streets is truly dehumanizing, a fact that was revealed to us as we walked around town seeking to bless and pray over these people. Afterwards, none of us were more tired in spirit despite how long we'd been walking around the city. To see the faces of the people we spoke to light up and their eyes fill with life, we were reminded of God's goodness and blessings, and we were honored to take part."

On Thursday, El Oasis had their worship night called La Ventana (which means "The Window"). We spent the day cleaning the building and cooking dinner to prepare for the event. Two of us stuck near the door to welcome in students, and two of us were cooking. Benjamin was recruited to run sound equipment for worship, I was recruited to play bass with the worship band, and Drake was recruited to take pictures of the event. The talk for the night was led by interns Palo and Kata, who interviewed students Max, Pao, and Cyan about their testimonies. After the talk, we split into groups to discuss. The talk was in Spanish, so we couldn't understand much, but it was mostly about trusting God to make things right in your life.

On Friday, we spent most of the time with the El Oasis staff debriefing the retreat: what went well, what didn't go as well, who really benefited from it, etc. Afterwards, we went downtown to explore a bit of the city and grab dinner. Allison and Palo took us to the top of an old Spanish castle where you can see the whole city. Then, they took us to a restaurant called Dominó, where they serve a Chilean staple called completos, which are similar to hot dogs, but with more elaborate toppings like mayonnaise, avocado, and tomatoes. During dinner, we talked about our time so far at El Oasis and thought about what ways we can serve El Oasis better. We took the metro for the first time back to the hostel.

On Saturday, we had our second rest day of the trip. We went back downtown to do some shopping, and we ate at a fried chicken place called D'Poyo. And on Sunday, we joined Palo and Magada at their church called Encounter with Christ at Ñuñoa. We got to meet two of their pastors. Afterwards, we went back to the hostel to rest.

Overall, this past week was slower than our first week, due to the fact that the retreat was last week. However, there was still plenty to praise God for and plenty of opportunities to be the light of Christ in the world, and there are many plans for us to have more opportunities like these next week. We expect to help El Oasis fix some stuff around the building, and we will get to lead an event called Café a la Gringo, where we help students learn and practice their English.

As the trip goes on, we continue to be reaffirmed that we are exactly where we need to be. God is also changing us in ways that we need to, as well, like learning to continue to be grateful to God even though we don't have the comforts we are used to at home. Thank you for your continued prayers and support. Please continue to pray for us to be humble and open for God to use us for anything He wants to use us for, and for us to have eyes to see the Kingdom of God at work. Love you all!

Austin and the 2026 Chile Mission Team