Before I could make it up the concrete stairs outside of Casa Blanca, eight month old Tomas had fell asleep in my arms. After two hours of fighting sleep he finally gave in. I couldn’t bear to take him back inside of Casa Elizabeth because I knew the outside would be more peaceful. I went and sat on the swing and held him in my arms before transitioning to laying in the grass with my head propped on a tire while he slept on my chest. I looked up at the dark clouds rolling in and closed my eyes to feel the power of the wind. His black curly hair was blowing following the breeze. The words “wow” and “beautiful” seemed so lacking in the moment.
My spot in the grass left me with an amazing view of the city and mountains. Outside of the residential gates lies a broken city. Broken people, broken homes, and broken dreams. Most people here won’t look you in the eye or greet you. Vendors and peddlers blanket the streets. Stray dogs roam in search of food. Old parks are now blocked off with fencing topped with barbed wire. Raw sewage runs down the streets.
I laid there holding this sweet baby in my arms knowing what odds he has. All I could do was hold him and pray. God made this child. God knows everything about him. God breathed him to life. God has big plans for him.
I prayed that The Lord would make him strong. I prayed that he would become a leader. I prayed for his mother. I prayed that he would beat the odds. I prayed that The Lord would always protect him. I prayed that he would love like God loves.
His mother, Johanna, is in High School. His father, who knows. For now he has hope. For now he has a roof over his head, he has food to eat, and he has clothing. For now he has care takers while his mother goes to school in the afternoons.
If you looked at the statistics of the life of a teenage mom you would see the concern. We ask God why this happens to people, but he has more right to ask us what will we do about it. That is what we are here for. We all have two hands. One hand to help ourselves, the other to help some one else.
I know the statistics and the poverty rate for single mothers, but I also know my God. Over 16% of teenage girls in Ecuador are pregnant, and 80% are unwanted pregnancies. Four, single mothers, all teenagers, live in Casa Elizabeth. Casa Elizabeth is part of IncaLink, the organization we have been working with here in Ecuador.
Casa Elizabeth is one out of our four ministry sites we are working at this month. The goal is to provide a safe place for these mothers and mothers-to-be, and also to let them feel the love of Jesus while providing for all of their needs.
Please pray for these girls and their children. Pray for our team as we strive to serve them and seek to show them love.
*So far our ministry work has been an array of things. We have sanded and stained benches, and cabinets. Painted a kitchen. Painted ceilings. Painted bathrooms. Washed TONS of dishes. Spent time with adorable babies and their moms. Played bingo. Cleaned bathrooms. Made 100 beds. Pulled weeds in the blazing hot sun. Sat through a three hour long church service…yes, THREE hours. Started a garden. Sanded walls…who knows what is next:)
