Wow. Today was just awesome. This morning we started out the day with devotions (after breakfast of course) which I will mention later. After devos, five of us went to a Christian bookstore to buy some Bibles for the church in Las Tablas. The church only has two Bibles to go around for 45 people. Last night, we raised over $300 for Bibles. We were able to purchase 50 Spanish Bibles, plus 4 children's Bibles and 12 children's Bible storybooks with matching cassettes. We weren't able to visibly carry the Bibles into Los Tablos, so we had to "smuggle" them in water jugs. Bella (Bay-ya) (the woman we worked with, also the pastor of the church) said that she wondered why we had to bring in so much water today, because we usually bring only one. When we took off the tops of the jugs, she just stood there and smiled like it wasn't anything special. Then, later we found out that she had been praying for two years that God would send her Bibles and He kept telling her to wait and be patient. She said she "wanted them NOW", but now they finally came to her so she wouldn't have to wait any longer. We told her that in America everyone had a Bible in church and we wanted everyone in her church to have one too. We also said that one needed a Bible to grow in Christ as an individual. After we presented her with the Bibles, we went down a couple houses to the house we had been working on. We had 20 people there, but there was only enough work for about 10 people, so a bunch of us went down to the center of Las Tablas to play soccer with the kids...for three and a half hours. Let me tell you, my legs are dead! Of course the kids were still going strong, even when we were exhausted. It was fun, even though I got schooled by an eight year old. And a ten year old. More than once. Still it was fun as we played with only the words "Si" and "Aqui" (Here) to communicate. The goalposts were just big bamboo sticks and the field was just dirt and mud. Plus it was right on the river, so the ball went in a lot and we had to "retrieve" it. Plus, the field was covered with glass and stones so it was kind of dangerous for the little kids. This brings me to something that God spoke to me about it this morning's devos. In Luke 6:25, it says, "What sorrows await you who laugh carelessly, for your laughing will turn to mourning and sorrow." I just felt that God was telling me to be careful with my laughter, to make sure that it wasn't hurtful or laughing about the wrong things. I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt that every time I laughed it was worth every moment, and it was "wise laughter." It tore me apart when we had to leave. This time there was no "Hasta manana" (See you tomorrow) it was good-bye for good. The kids were sad that we were leaving and we were on the verge of tears, but all we could say was "Adios amigos" (Good-bye friends). I hope that you will join me in praying that these kids will be impacted by Bella's ministry and get out of that poverty stricken village and get out of the lifestyle of their parents. I thank God for all that He has done today, and on this trip as a whole.
~Jacob Hendrick
or... Bones
Omg this is one of the most mind blowing experiences I have ever had.......... Ok, I don't even know where to begin...I am so thankful my parents gave me the opportunity to come here . You always see on the television what third world countries are supposed to look like but it is nothing until you experience it hands on. I met this little girl named Jenifer, she was so amazing even though there was a huge language barrier we still had an amazing time. She taught me sooo much. She taught me that it doesn't matter where you are from or what your background is' we are people and deserve to be treated with love and respect. I am still overwhelmed. Its like you want to help every one but you do not even know where to start ...It is like' where does God want me at. But I´m so excited to see what else God has in store for this trip..
~ Shanel Holmes
