Los Guido, Costa Rica is one of the most dangerous slums in the country. There is abuse in most of the homes and violence in the streets. The ministry we are partners with offers a hot lunch to the children 6 days a week. It’s amazing to see how the kids light up when they are on the property.
Today my team and I saw another light which left our hearts overflowing. We couldn’t do anything but cry tears of joy as we left. We went to our school this morning not sure if our teacher would be there or not because the schedule has been different the past couple days. We saw the assistant principal who had been arranging our schedule and asked about our teacher. He said the teacher didn’t have any students today. Another teacher who had been talking to the assistant principal said we could come to her class.
So we followed her to her 3rd grade class. The students greeted us with good morning and God Bless you in Spanish. We asked introduced ourselves and asked what the students had been learning so we could come up with a game plan. She said she had been teaching them Math, Spanish, a little bit of English, and about how God is always watching them and wants them to walk in the good way that makes Him happy. I was so amazed to hear this!
The students broke up into groups and we each talked with a group and had them practice their English. Then we played a game with Math and English they had learned. The students then had us sit down and they danced for us. I wish I could have been able to take a video but instead it will forever be a treasured memory, but what happened next made it all the better!
Next the teacher had the students and us form a circle and hold hands. They then prayed for us and thanked God for us. They students ended the prayer with bible verses they had memorized. We got hugs from all the students many of them were saying God bless you and may God go with you on your travels. What a blessing!
We then went to the teacher and told her she was God’s light in this dark city and what she was doing is amazing. We prayed for her and gave her a hug as we all left crying tears of joy because our hearts were overflowing. We prayed outside the school as we left as we do everyday. The prayer had a different tone though because there is no telling the impact this teacher has had. So we prayed for her and for her past, present, and future students that they would remember what she had taught the about God.
This teacher is doing what we all are called to do, sharing God’s love. We are all not called to Los Guido or to a school, but we are called to share God’s love right where we are. How have you shared God’s love today? Be God’s light right where you are!
