Update on what my squad and I have been doing in Bolivia! Gosh it was such an awesome month because we have an awesome God! This month our whole squad of 41 was together. We were helping to work at a camp called Campamento El Puente (puente means bridge) in the middle of the jungle near a small city called Coroico. When we first arrived we walked over a rickety bridge that went over a river (hence the name of the camp) and we were greeted by the most incredibly loving man who would be our host for the month named Hermano Lucho. We set up camp with all of our tents on a big covered basketball/volleyball court area, and we were in charge of making all of our own meals as a squad in a little kitchen area that Hermano Lucho had connected to where he lives/stays. During our stay at the camp the bulk of what we did was help to build a rock pathway that went all throughout the camp. We set up assembly lines to pass rocks that we picked out of the river and then wheelbarrowed them over next to the pathways and dumped them into big piles. Then, with much help from Hermano Lucho and his assistant Teo we learned how to dig up the pathways and lay the rocks- it was like a big puzzle. Then we packed in dirt on top to firm it in and then cement will go on top. Other work that we did was cleaning (scrubbing and painting) the pool area, cleaning the bathrooms around camp (which got pretty nasty) and doing yard work to make the camp look nice for all of the campers who would come stay there.
It was really cool having our whole squad together this month because we were able to get to know each other better and to build each other up with the strength that comes with each of our unique personalities, giftings, and talents. It was a month of a lot of healing, growth, transformation and building us up as warriors so that we can be sent out to fight for God's kingdom in the upcoming months. Something that God revealed to me at the end of our month at the camp was symbolism/imagery of the work we were doing there and how it relates to Him:
Shoveling: digging up past sins, grievances and things/people unforgiven
Placing rocks: building up the church
Sweeping: sweeping away the past
Cooking: feeding us with knowledge, wisdom and truth
Cleaning/scrubbing: God refining us
Tents: inviting God in, making a home for Him
Waterfall and the river: continuous process of grace
Rain: being washed clean, healing
Hermano Lucho: father figure, God's love
Cement: cementing in God's truths
Wheelbarrowing: unloading our burdens onto Christ
Being in jungle: life and growth
Painting: newness
Butterflies: hope
Pathways: leading us closer to Christ
There are probably so much more but these are the ones God showed me. I thought it was a beautiful way to wrap up this month to see how even the little things that we do make a big difference and have so much more meaning than we might think.
