Hey all!
Things in San Juan have gotten started and we’re all falling
into a sort of normalcy. We are getting our directions around town down, all
exchanging the good places to get yummy food from, and finding all the places
to get a Coke and sit outside of and get wireless internet..yay for hotels in
San Juan! Our ministry time has also started. We are working with a church in
an area outside of San Juan called Mijo about 15 minutes. It is a friendly
community where most people who live in the area near by attend church together. We helped
clean the church and cut grass (via machete and hoes), worked on a fence
tightening barbed wire and nailing new tin up to the posts, and cut down tress
to help prepare for the rainy season so branches don’t fall on houses and the
church. The kids in the area are great. They have helped and pitched in,
practically taking away our jobs sometimes, so we have ended up doing lots of
playing with kiddos too. I have made a new friend named Francis. He is about 5
and does not stop laughing. Ever. Gotta love it. The boys like to play soccer
with Caleb and I got to hang out with a few of the girls braiding
vines/whatever we found. Thursday we spent the morning praying, worshiping,
listening, and speaking. It has been decided our team is now a choir. The six
of us have mastered Lord I Lift Your Name on High and Open the Eyes of My Heart
Lord pretty well. The church pastor will sing a song and then look at us and
say..okay, your turn. Go! I had a moment while I was up front with my team and
playing the guitar singing Lord I Lift Your Name on High in English and they
were singing in Spanish with a mix of hand motions, and asked myself how in the
world did I get here! And then thought, ah yes, the Lord! It was such a great moment
and time. The people are beautiful. The mountains are beautiful. The Lord is
doing beautiful things.
Fun Story:
The Lord is faithful and provides and the people of Mijo
have huge hearts. Yesterday morning we were praying about budget, planning
meals, and focusing on trusting God to be provided for. That day, we were
blessed with cherry juice and extra bread from our contacts, popsicle treats of
sorts (frozen sweet potato thingys) from a woman who lived near by, and then
were chased down as we were driving away by a woman who went to church on
Tuesday and had boiled up a dozen ears of corn for us to eat.
Prayers:
The next couple days we will be out in Mijo meeting and
visiting people. Pray for good conversations and encounters. Monday we will
begin vacation Bible school for the kids. So we have lots of planning to do
with a very limited budget and a language barrier of sorts. None of our team
speaks Spanish, so we have been relying on a translator and will during VBS,
but pray things go smoothly and we are able to teach and lead games and
continue playing with the kids without being held back because of a difference
in language.
