Heyoo!! It has been a super busy week!! On Sunday we took a short drive to the middle of the world….aka the Equator. The equator in Ecuador is the farthest point from the center of the earth….aka the middle of the world! It is true that trying to walk at the equator is more difficult, due to pull of both the north and south poles! Monday contained us working at Pan de Vida more! We did a lot of small yet important jobs for Pan de Vida. Tuesday was my last day working at Pan de Vida. My team had an absolute blast paining the outside wall, a paint war was the highlight of the day. A few very skilled artists on our team blessed Pan de Vida with a mural. We were able to literally leave our footprint at Pan de Vida. It’s crazy how I was blessed to work with this amazing organization for only two weeks; and how bittersweet it was to say goodbye. I ask that all keep Pan de Vida in your prayers as they continue to bless the overwhelming need here in Ecuador!
On Wednesday half of us started ministry at Camp Hope. Camp Hope is a ‘camp’, more like a school for the special needs community. Those of you who know me, you know I was pumped to get to work with them. We arrived and I shortly came to the realization that this was going to be the most unique thing I have ever done. I say that because no one on staff spoke a lick of English. Someone who speaks little Spanish came to realize, this going to be a challenge. We spit into groups, each group went into a different classroom. The classrooms are divided by the ‘fruits of the spirit’ or by physical ability and cognitive function. I was blindly put in the JOY room, aka the room where each individual had almost no physical and cognitive function. It is the lowest functioning room. I fearfully walked into the room. I was scared because of the language barrier, scared because I have never worked with those who are this physically incapable. Looking back, I know it was not of God for me to be scared. Wednesday consisted of tons of motioning for me to do things and understanding every ten words. It was a long hard day that pushed me both physically and mentally. On Thursday, I volunteered to clean all day. Each person on my team has to take a day and clean. I decided that after how taxing the previous day was, I wanted to breathe. A quick note, I am a total introvert so the idea of being alone and cleaning sounded amazing!! God truly has a sense of humor because I sure was wrong in my thinking. I had the amazing privilege of working with Lucia all day! She spoke very little English, however had a desire to learn English. She would ask me how to say something in English, like ‘wash the windows’. Then she would say it back to me in English, ordering me to do it. It truly made for the most taxing yet rewarding day. I was able to bless Camp Hope in a way that I never in a million years thought I would enjoy!! I had a new appreciation for this ministry and had a totally different perspective. I stated to see how they operated. On Friday, I was back in my JOY room. I put that in all caps because it truly is a joyous room. I may not be able to communicate with any of them, however they light up when I work with them. After two whole days, I have begun to fall in love with the precious souls that enter this room daily. Yesterday, I was outside reading to Anna, when this little boy from another class Anthony climbed up in my lap and made my day. It was in this moment when I heard his precious giggle, nothing else in this world mattered. My fear of the language barrier, my fear of not being able to love them well was forgotten. God has an amazing way of showing up in the littlest way, or the littlest soul. God is the anthem of my heart in those moments. If experiencing God means I am allowed to feed, change diapers, brush teeth and hair, I shall never take those moments for granted!! God sure knows what he’s doing, he put me in this joy room for a reason. Joy is such an important word in my life, to see the same Joy I experience at Camp is incredible! God, thank you.
To all of you reading this, thank you. I ask for prayer for my team. I ask for prayer that we may begin to understand Spanish, because right now it is definitely difficult. I ask for prayer for all of my new friends I have meet at Camp Hope. I also ask for continued prayer for Pan de Vida and the work they are doing there. Thank you and God Bless.
-Ben
