What’s Going On In Colombia
This first week has been so Amazing. We’re staying at an organization called Ciudad Refugio. God is truly doing wonders with this organization and they have been so welcoming to my team and me. The organization helps with multiple groups. It’s a five store building and each level is for something different.
The first floor is where they have church services but it also doubles into a homeless shelter at night. Homeless men all over come at 7 pm to start lining up to stay here at night. When they get here, they take a number and their information is written down. After coming so many times, they are required to come to one church service a week to be able to continue staying here. Not only does it give them a place to stay at night but the organization supplies them with aguapanela (sugar water) and bread as well.
The second floor is for men. They have a program that men are able to commit to: a year long program where they can come to help get off drug or alcohol addictions. There’s many different situations that the men come in for. The organization provides a place to stay and food. However, the men of the program are required to go to church and do bible studies/ devotionals. They also have jobs to do while in the program that will also help them get a job once they finish. This organization has had so many men go through the program and some even continue volunteering and working for them after they finish. Right now there are 26 men in the program.
The third floor is where the women stay. The women’s program is very similar to the men’s. It’s a program that brings women off the streets out of the drug and alcohol addictions and other situations. The women tend to work in the kitchen a lot for their jobs but also do other things as well. As of right now there is only one girl in the program. There is a woman and her daughter who also stay here because they were displaced. Multiple girls who have finished the program now volunteer at the organization. This is also the floor that my team and the other three female volunteers are staying.
The fourth floor is where they do homeschooling for some of the kids in the area. They have little kids up to fourteen years old right now. The kids learn about God as well as everything else in school. They are also learning English and German, so we’ve been able to help in the English classes a couple times. On Sunday’s, this is also where the kids come for their classes. On this floor you’ll also find the kitchen where the ladies cook food for everyone in the organization. My team has spent hours here cleaning, peeling many potatoes and onions, and so much more. This has given us an awesome opportunity to build relationships with the women here. Even though we don’t speak the same language we have so much fun working with them. After being here for only a week these women feel like family.
The fifth floor is home to a couple and another family. There is also the rooftop. They have plans to turn the rooftop into a place where the kids can go and play soccer. They are in the process of putting in beams where they can put up a net to close it all off. This is the best spot to go at night. You can see the mountains and the city lights. Its one of the prettiest views. We’ve also used this space at night to do praise and worship with a couple people from the organization. There’s just something about sitting on the rooftop at night with all the lights and just praising God in different languages. One of the most beautiful and fulfilling moments.
It doesn’t stop with these ministries though. On Wednesday’s we have service and after church we got out to the streets for aguapanela. The area we go to is extremely sad and the streets are just filled with so many lost and broken people of Colombia. Its an area with a large population of homeless people, most of whom have some kind of addiction. On Thursdays, a few of the ladies go out to do home visits. I have not had the chance to go along with them yet because they only take two of us at a time. A few of the girls on the team have and have loved it. Hopefully within the next couple weeks I’ll be able to go out with the women. Then on Saturday’s we have two different children’s ministries we go to.
Overall this is a something God put on a man’s heart who stepped out to follow God, even when it wasn’t easy. Because of his obedience, many people have been touched and brought out of the life they were living to serve God. I truly admire what they are doing here and it touches my heart tremendously. I pray and ask you all to take a minute to pray for the lost people of Colombia because it truly is such a heartbreaking thing.
