This month my team, along with another team, lived inside school classrooms and a church building located on our contacts compound. We spent a majority of our time within the compound due to a political election and a strike against public transportation (the communist party was attempting to strike the entire election by putting a ban on transportation).
Because of the elections, our plans for ministry were put on hold. Originally we were going to be traveling by bus to different villages to educate people on anti-human trafficking. Everyday we hoped the strike would end so we could get on a bus and do what we came to do. Everyday the strike continued, from when we arrived, in early in the month until November 20th. My team and I had to think outside the box and ask The Lord why he had us here at this time. Each day lead to something new.
Some days, my team went prayer walking through our village and the surrounding villages. We saw how the poorest of the poor were living. We saw runny nosed children with only shirts or shorts to wear. There were Men and women walking miles with wheat, sugarcane and other crops on their backs to make a living for their family. For the first time we saw a lack of understanding of the importance of education. We met parents who did not seek education for their children or encourage them to walk the 20 minutes to the closest school because they saw no purpose in education. They believed if they could make money through growing crops, why would they waste their children’s time studying? We also met families within our village who longed to send their children to school but lacked the $96 it costs to send them, $36 towards tuition and $60 towards uniforms for the year.
These prayer walks lead us to a project my teammate, Aubray, headed up. With the help of our contact we received information about the families who wanted their children to go to school. Aubray compiled a list of over 100 children who have never been to school and are in need of sponsors. She has set up an easy way for friends and family from home to donate money to help these children receive an education. If you are interested in donating or hearing more about this project, please click HERE and be redirected to my blog about sponsoring a child.
As our days continued with not much to do, a group of us were walking and noticed a large field with soccer goals. We decided later in the day we would return in hopes of playing with the local kids. The first evening we went out, we had no idea how many kids would show up or if they would be interested in playing games. As we walked down the dirt road we encouraged the kids we saw to join us. By the time we got to the field we had about fifty children following behind us. It wasn’t long before that number doubled and we played the largest game of duck duck goose that I’ve ever been a part of. The kids were so excited to play and didn’t care if it was just running back and forth from one person to the next. At one point we had run out of games and my silliness took over. I had the children mimic me as I clucked, moo’d, slithered, meow’d and made other funny animal noises. It was the most fun I have had in a long time.
Once again, due to the elections we were no longer able to go to the fields in the evenings. We were made aware it was no longer safe to play there. In fact due to the heated climate of the elections, we were asked to stay within the boundaries of the compound until the elections were over. So, here we were again with another ministry door closed asking God why he had us here at this specific time.
The following days were spent inside the compound, listening to pod casts, singing worship songs and bonding with my team and the other team. We intentionally spent our free time hearing each others stories and struggles. This was a different type of ministry but it was clear this is how we were to be spending this time. Pouring into each other and encouraging one another.
Coming into this month I thought I would be speaking to remote villages about the sex salve trade and anti-human trafficking. Instead of being disappointed or anxious that plans did not go as intended, I trusted in the sovereignty of God and was blessed with opportunities to serve the community and serve my team.
How do you react when plans change? It’s a known fact that ministry and plans will change on the World Race, but isn’t it the same for life? Sometimes expectations are not met and other times they are exceeded.
