Our team is working with a wonderful older woman pastor, Selanda, in an extremely poor area on the outskirts of San Juan. We play with the kids all morning, teach Bible stories, and generally just love them. This has been a small portion of my ministry though because God had something way different up his sleeve for me. Something tough.
The first day I was at ministry Pastor Selanda looked at the jellyfish stings on my arms and told me that I had to come with her and to bring anyone else on my team who had skin problems. So I grabbed Hope, who had heat rash at the time, and we followed the Pastor through the dirt roads to the poorest neighborhood in the area. As we followed her, I had no idea what was in store…
We walked into a house where a six year old girl was laying face down naked on the bed. And her entire back, butt, and legs were covered in severely infected, raw third degree burns. I still cannot think about it without my stomach being tied in knots.
…the back story to these burns: On Christmas day (almost a month ago), an oil candle fell on her, and as her dress caught fire, it stuck to her skin and burnt her in ways you could never begin to imagine…
That first day we prayed over her for hours, felt our hands get hot as we were being used, genuinely thought that I was going to see God heal this little girl before our eyes.
Over this past week of spending heart-wrenching mornings with Yakairi, I have learned that God is using our team as the answer to prayers; He is using as His miracle.
Now what does it look like to be sent by God to this little girl?
It means that the personal money our team has set aside for this month has gone into medical supplies. It means that we have learned how to clean out infected burns. It means we pray constantly, desperately, tearfully. It means we walk to her house in the morning and watch her burst out into tears at the disgusting pain we are about to inflict on her body as we wash her wounds. It means holding her legs and arms while broken tears of pain stream down her broken face and as her body convulses from the severity of the pain. It means knowing that if she were in the states, she would be on enormous amounts of pain medication and receiving skin grafts. . It means listening to the most painful screams for hours daily of the most beautiful little girl as each of her enormous burns are dressed. It means looking in her mom’s eyes and seeing her pain of not having the resources available to help her own daughter. 
But after the pain and hurt, being an answered prayer means that we have watched a girl go from having life threatening infections to completely healed. It means we are watching the skin heal daily with unimaginable speed. It means we have watched this little girl come to know God. It means we have watched this little girl tell her family to go to church. It means we have learned why God didn’t just bind up her wounds the first day. It means we have seen a miracle in her family. It means that we have seen Him use ALL pain and brokenness for HIS glory, for HIS plan. It means we have learned to see that He is sovereign, that He truly does know better than us.
It’s been an emotionally draining few days, but little Yakairi and I are forging an unlikely friendship. Each day I repaint her nails in a new color. Today, after we washed her burns, she and I drew pictures for hours together. Somedays we eat cookies. I brought her a little teddy bear that she has fondly named “Osito” after I told her that my favorite bear at home is named “Osito”. She has captivated my heart. She’s the greatest gift God could have given me this month.
Please keep her in your prayers. Please keep her family in your prayers–that they would continue to see God’s glory revealed through this horrible, tragic accident.
