Happy belated Mother’s Day! Mom I am sorry I missed Mother’s Day. I am sorry this blog missed Mother’s Day. I promise me missing this special day was for a worthy cause. Plus I had no wifi, but whose making excuses anyway?!
First, I have to show off the beautiful scenery I witnessed with my squad during our 50 hour bus ride from Valparaiso, Chile to La Paz, Bolivia (the highest altitude capital city in the world at 10,000 ft).
Thankfully, through a bus breaking down, altitude sickness effecting many squad members, the Bolivian border having less than half the visas we required, plus losing a passport we finally made it across the border. (Yes we did find the missing passport. HINT for future racers: double, triple check where your passport is at all times!)
After several travel days and the scariest drive of my life (blog coming soon about Death Road) my team arrived into the rolling mountainous jungles of Caranavi, Bolivia. Here we are serving the House of Hope Orphanage. This home holds 65 children from newborns to university or army bound eighteen year olds. The stories of how many of our precious kids arrived in this orphanage will bring you to your knees.
Many children of Bolivia are undervalued, cast out and forgotten. Many children were found abandoned in remote fields or in garbage. Some taken away from families due to neglect or maltreatment. One of our preschool angels was rescued from her grandfather after growing up in a cage. One rescued from her father after being sexually assaulted by his friends. Many will suffer their whole lives physically and mentally due to the trauma they survived.
Thankfully through God’s amazing Grace and Love for these children they live full and happy lives in the orphanage. They live apart from their previous lives. They live new lives. The joy pouring from this mountain top flowing from these children makes you question if they weren’t born here in their home. This is their home and the people who serve here are their family.
The joy and love these kids spread upon me and my team proclaims God’s great love. It also reminds me of where I used to be. How once upon a time I was forgotten, neglected and treated unfairly. But none of that mattered to God. He still wanted me and He still loved me. There was and IS NOTHING I could ever do that would make Him love me any less. Nothing I could do for Him to abandon me. Nothing I could do for Him to forget me or give up on me.
“Neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:39
I came to this orphanage ready to love these kids with all the strength God’s given me. He ended up showing me how much He loves me through these kids. I look at what they have and see how blessed they truly are. How blessed I am! He reaffirms that the material world is not what fills my desires. The material world will never fill our desires. Life is about what you can offer the world. How you can serve and love others. What gift He’s given you to offer to the body. That is what truly fill us.
Mom, I missed Mother’s Day and that really sucks. It super sucks! But I was able to be a sister to these angels. Without you showing me love as my amazing and wonderful Mama, I wouldn’t have ever been able to love these kids the way I get to. Thanks Mama for being a rockstar and I love you!
