The instant we met Andrea and Fabian, they won our hearts. I could have stayed with our ministry hosts at Evangelio Eterno for six more months. On day one, they took us out for coffee and pastries. In our first week, we got to go to their house for a night of popcorn, coffee, and dancing to Michael Jackson on the Wii. Who knew I was an expert at dancing like Michael Jackson!?! (At least on the Wii when it is telling me what moves to make!) We were all shocked at that one. Before that night, I couldn’t have told you that Thriller was by Michael Jackson…and I digress. We had a blast that night…and every other day we spent with them. I looked forward to every lunch we had with them and every random adventure that came up. Each day, a seed was planted in our hearts and in theirs. One weekend, we went to the mountains in Rio Bamba, where we stayed with Andrea and Fabian and their daughter Sarah in a hotel for a night before attending a conference with them the next day. At the conference, we sang Quichua songs with the people from the village, ate the traditional food of the farming community, and bonded with the women and children God brought to us. We planted seeds in Banos, Quito, and Rio Bamba, Ecuador. We wanted to do something special for Andrea and Fabian, so at our second ministry site, Danielle had the brilliant idea of planting a garden for them. So, we began.
Monday, Week 1 – Dig out the rocks. Dig out the stumps. Sift the soil and loosen it up. You want to know what tools we use? Shovels, rakes, mesh sheets, gloves, and our hands! We’ve got this. As we do this, God is weeding out the selfish desires in our hearts with His Word and those around us. We even out the soil as much as possible and loosen it up so that next week we can add the top soil for planting. It is coming along.
Monday, Week 2 – It’s time for soil! We pour over 30 bags of soil onto the land that will become our garden and we can already see the shape forming. At the same time, God is pouring His Word, encouragement, and instruction over us. It is overwhelming, but beautiful.
Monday, Week 3 – Danielle, Megan, and I wander around the nursery examining each of the plants deciding which ones will be best for our garden. “Marigolds naturally deter insects so let’s get several of those,” Danielle says with her previous experience from school and working in a nursery coming out. This is her forte. Trusting Danielle’s gift from the Lord and His provision for the supplies, this project is in good hands. We are the hands and feet. As she chooses different flowers, she sets up a mini garden by the entrance to balance out the colors and the sizes of each plant. It’s looking good. Now, we are ready to plant our garden!
We arrive at Caspigasi and divide up into groups. Some painting, some planting, and some building a bench. I am on the team building the bench…by hand!
“They are like a well-watered plant in the sunshine, spreading its shoots over the garden;” Job 8:16
Five rulers, three pieces of lumber, a pencil, and a hand-saw sitting in front of us, we get to work. We design our bench and then measure out with the many rulers all of the pieces that need to be cut. A huge piece of wood and a hand saw sit in front of me. Somehow, I am supposed to do this. For Andrea and Fabian! Here goes! So…saw! Ok that doesn’t work. Try scoring the edge a few times before actually cutting through it. Ok. Now, start your sawing! I can do this! One. Two. Three. Are we there yet? Not even close. It’s working, but it’s wearing me out. After a few times, I realize that if you push and pull the saw as far as possible, it takes less energy and cuts deeper into the wood. Cutting it straight doesn’t work as well as cutting it at an angle. Ok, John and I have the technique down! Now, it’s just following that pesky line.
Finally, all of the pieces are cut, and we are ready for assembly! Where can we assemble it? We want it to be a surprise. Behind the church! We take turns hammering the nails…these are legit nails…as long as my longest finger! This bench is not going anywhere. Three and a half hours after we started, assembly is complete and it is time for the presentation! Drum roll please! The three of us carry the bench out between all of the people. The crowd goes wild! (Maybe not exactly like that, but we did get cheers!) We carry it to the garden, dig out the holes for the legs and… done! There it is in all of its glory! Thank you Lord for giving us the strength to make this bench for the garden to bless the community in Caspigasi. The three of us made a bench out of three pieces of lumber in a little over three hours!
We pulled out each rock and each stump. God pulled out each sinful thought and action that was not of Him.
We planted each plant, painted each rock, and built the bench that makes the garden beautiful. God planted seeds of encouragement, seeds of godly relationships, and seeds of the gospel. His Word will not return void. The impact of His work is not only beautiful, but will last for eternity.
“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” Matthew 13:23
