It’s mom again! I fly home tomorrow and just wanted to share a few thoughts with you.
I have spent a wonderful week with some amazing young adults. So why were they so amazing? The fire of the Holy Spirit and the passion for Jesus Christ flows out from them in their actions and their words, in a way I don’t often see. They don’t let fear hold them back from walking amongst the people and ministering to them; praying for them and with them; They smile as an army of happy screaming children poke them; grab them and want to play with them, and never once did I see an attitude of disdain or irritation. They hug and smile and hold children and love on them in a way that is about gone in the United States because of rules and regulations. They ARE the Body of Christ in Action!
They have shown care and compassion for me; their fellow racers; the ministries down here; and for the people they meet. We may have had to walk past the beggars on the street, but that didn’t stop them from praying for them. They would share what they had with others and in return were given tokens of appreciation from some of those they met. They were here to be a blessing but were truly blessed by those around them
Yes, we worked hard: painting or working at the church(not me-I helped with the painting); saw sites that would break your heart and turn your stomach(the visit to the dump); ministered to each other and to the people here(playing games with the youth at church; leading a woman’s Bible study; organizing and running two carnivals for the local children-the second of which must have had 250 children; sharing testimonies at Sunday worship services; holding their own worship services); we, also, did the wait patiently part of the culture down here. You quickly find out that “15 minutes” most probably will be an hour or more! This was, no question, the hardest for me to do. With only a week here, I wanted to all that I could, but the Lord ALWAYS has a way of laughing at what I want and having to wait was one way that He could get me to spend time with Him!
I was blessed to have been asked to share my salvation story with Team Beloved One and my testimony of my visit to the dump with the congregation at church. I am not very comfortable talking in front of people but God was standing with me giving me the courage and the words that need to be said. I give Him all the praise for that. I was blessed to have worked side by side with my daughter as we, and her teammates, painted a mural on a wall at the hotel we are staying in. Someday I may even find the blessing in the bug bites I received when Caitlin and I went off site!
The Lord has a purpose for everything and everything happens in His time. I truly feel like He wanted me here, this week, and with these people and He gave me “mom time” with some truly amazing people!
Thank you Team Beloved One and Team Ignite. Love you all. “Mom.”
