Here on Ometepe Island, one of our ministries for the week is called prayer walking. It looks different all of the time. Sometimes we go out into the villages and pray for people in passing, children at parks, families we see, disabled men and women we may come across, the hungry or homeless, and just anything or anyone that God lays on our hearts. Sometimes we hop a bus and go into town and talk to tourists and locals about life and if they may need any prayer for anything. Sometimes we spend time making goodie packages for people we have met and formed relationships with. Sometimes we even just spend time together “arting” as we like to call it, where we just listen to music and journal our prayers and requests to God. This week however, we spent our prayer walking time praying over Cicrin, the land that we live on with the kids of the children’s home.
To give you a run down on Cicrin, it is like a summer camp. It is a big and beautiful plot of land right on the lake. There is a house for the little boys, a house for the little girls, and two sets of dorms for teams that come through to serve. There is a cafeteria style kitchen for meal times that is staffed by the most amazing kitchen staff of Nicaraguan women who truly devote their life’s to serving these kids and this facility. There is a basketball court right outside of boys house where the kids love to run around, scream, play, kick soccer balls, skate board, dance, star gaze, and do pretty much every fun activity that you would do at a typical summer camp. Then, down by the water is a beautiful gazebo called, “The Rancho”, that is surrounded by hammocks where you can lay and watch the sunset over the lake(which is top three best sun sets I have ever seen around the world) followed by group worship and devotion put on by different teams most nights of the week. Cicrin is a special place. I have to admit that I have taken this place for granted at many times. The staff that has put this all together to serve Gods children is amazing. It is simply a miracle in itself that a place like this is still functioning in a developing country, with hardly any funding, let alone on an island in the middle of a lake.
Here, God is fathering the fatherless, providing financial support, feeding kids that may have been hungry otherwise, providing education, giving a home to the homeless, protecting His children, and hearing our prayers for this place.
With all that in mind, I had an abundant list of things I wanted to pray over Cicrin, the kids, the staff, the land, the supporters, and so many more. I spent the morning walking around the campus and the lake sending request after request to God. Then I sat down in front of the little girl’s home and I pictured their sweet little faces and how much I love them and how much God loves them. I thought about how awful some of their pasts may have been and how God has rescued them from that life by putting them here at a safe place that is only making it because of God Himself and our prayers.
God hears our prayers and God saves lives. God hears our prayers and God restores. God hears our prayers and God provides. God listens. God knows what we need. He is doing it all over the world.
That’s when God started to tug at my heart stings. My head was flooded with the faces of men, women, and children from all over that world that I have had the opportunity to love on and pray for, for the past eight months. Face after face after face… My brain was filled with pictures of people that I have loved and do love. Filled with people that I have shared life with. People that I have laughed and cried with. Faces of people that have showered me with prayers, culture, wisdom, and knowledge. White people, black people, colored people, Asian people, African people, Nicaraguan people… All of their faces became my prayers…
Yoel, Rachelle, Youhaun, Torrah, Zackhi, Matthew, Daniel, Putt, Xola, Kayce, Isaiah, Reagan, Craven, Kop, Tyron, Luca, David, P’nion, Kayla, SK, Moses, Bethany, Urchwin, Ursula, Torre, Tammy, Edwina, Theo, Rainey, Hannah, Naomi, Tiffany, Lucian, Kenneth, Tessa, Sharne, Pedro, Alvin, Sipho, Leon, Phon, Nuan, Tal, Shafon, Josiah, Morne, McKenna, Montina, Gia, Racha and so so so many more that I now hold so close to my heart.
I think this is the beginning of God preparing my heart for the transition home. He is showing me the fruits of my sacrifice to get up and leave everything behind for nine months. 28 more days left after 220+ days of nothing but new… new relationships, experiences, adventures, and being out of the norm comfort zone. I am realizing how many people I have loved this trip and that amount is insane. I am realizing that a human heart and soul is capable of loving deeper, harder, and more than you could ever possibly explain or imagine. I am seeing how many people’s lives God has used me to change but more so, how many people have changed mine. I am starting to reminisce on all of the hugs and already miss them. I am starting to realize that these faces have in fact, become a piece of my heart forever. This is the sweet, sweet goodness of surrender that God has promised me.
The memories I have made. The generosity I have been shown. The grace. The passion. The relationships. Their love I have received. Their perfect faces on my mind. They are my prizes. These are the faces that have become my heart cry.
“ Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” Hebrews 13:8 From Thailand, to Cambodia, to South Africa, to Nicaragua, to America…
