Hi Everyone! As of December 6th, we have been in El Salvador! We had a mini-debrief as a squad for two days and then went to our first ministry site in San Salvador. After that, my team and I spent two weeks in Colorada on Isla Tasajera. We were without wifi during our stay there so please forgive me for the sudden influx of blog posts over the next few days. I started the following blog right after we first got to El Salvador. I still want to post it in order to share a little bit about each of the amazing individuals we got to work with last month in Honduras.
Daniel:
Oh my gosh, Daniel is the sweetest. He doesn’t use words to speak but his facial expressions say so much. He likes to eat, a lot, like any and all food in sight. He enjoys stacking blocks and foam puzzle pieces, which he also likes to put together. He loves putting his head in the crook of your arm and wrapping it around his head. While Daniel and I mopped the floor one day, Jesus showed me how He doesn’t need us, but invites us to come alongside Him. He gets such joy seeing us work with Him.
Maria:
So much joy is contained in this woman. She’s one of the older residents in our house and she is always dancing with the biggest of smiles on her face. I’ve never seen her in a bad mood. She is very intuitive and her presence is felt even without words. When she isn’t dancing, she likes to sit with us and just be. I saw Jesus in her by how He invites us in to be present and watch what He is doing and how He has such joy when He sees us worship Him.
Christina:
Sweet, sweet Christina. She inspired so much love in all of us. She has the prettiest eyes and a quiet, hidden personality. I got to see Jesus in her by how much love He has for her. One day, we got to delouse her hair. Jesus showed me in that how sin is the same as having lice. It’s everywhere. Getting rid of the lice, sin, is painstaking and we don’t always like it but it is necessary to make us better. Delousing is like sanctification (the process of making one holy – sinless, set apart).
Estephany:
Loves to eat, everything. She loves to walk and move around and is quite the escape artist. On a couple occasions, she would have fits of giggles – it was great. She likes to march to the beat of her own drum. I saw Jesus in her by how much He loves her and cares about her.
Caesar:
The first part of the month, Caesar was very loud and didn’t seem very happy. As the month progressed, he opened up more and more and this amazing, funny young man emerged. Sometimes, he likes to sit expressionless while we make fools of ourselves until he finally cracks up laughing. He also likes Christmas ornaments, but only the round ones. I saw Jesus in him by how His love opens us up and gives us joy – just like how our love was able to affect Caesar.
Rosa:
Rosa loves to talk – and I mean non stop. Her favorite things are café (coffee) and chicken. I saw Jesus in her in this way, when we talk to God without sitting and listening, we miss out on an actual relationship with Him. It’s just a one-sided conversation. We never get to know Him.
Lupe and Nubia:
These two were always together. Their beautiful smiles lighting up their faces when we asked how they were doing each day. Nubia uses a wheelchair and Lupe often pushes her where she needs to go. I saw Jesus through this selfless love for a friend and also in how He created us to be dependent on the body of Christ. (this picture is of Lupe, I didn’t get one of Nubia)
Fatima:
Fatima has such a beautiful spirit. She is mostly paralyzed and has chronic pain- in part due to bed sores. However, she still laughs and even in her silence, she coveys the sweetest of personalities. Jesus showed me Himself in that just as we cared for Fatima and hurt for her, He cares for us and hurts for us in our pain even more than we can for others.
Lucia:
Lucia is Fatima’s older sister. She selflessly cares for her every day. She has some trouble walking but doesn’t let that limit her care or effort. I saw Jesus in her by how devoted she is to her sister – He cares for us and is devoted to us even though we don’t do anything for Him in return.
These are the amazing people who live in the house we worked in at the orphanage for adults with special needs. While it was an awesome month where my team and I were able to be challenged and grow through the unique circumstances we were placed in, I can’t wait to share some stories from this month in El Salvador! Thanks for reading!
