Wednesday, May 29, 2024
I woke up Wednesday morning to the sound of the rain on the tin roof. It would have been easy to stay in bed but I had a couple thoughts that helped me rise this morning: (1) the coffee sure is good (2) this is our last day to see the kids at VBS. So with that, I rose to my feet, brushed my teeth, and headed to breakfast.
It rained heavier today than yesterday so we were making alternate plans for recreation and crafts, but by the time we arrived at the school, the rain had stopped. Again, a blessing from God. By now the children are familiar with the routine. More high-impact disc throwing and soccer ball kicking and hugs, lots of hugs.
I was again in the Bible story room. Marilyn and Liz told of how Daniel and his friends refused to eat the food of King Nebuchadnezzar. Instead they wanted to obey and honor the God of Israel. When they did this, God honored them. We used stick puppets to help tell the story. At the conclusion of the story with the oldest group, Chris shared the gospel and told them we had a gift for them. We gave each of the older kids a copy of the Gospel of John in Spanish. There were enough left over to give to every teacher and administrator. A couple of the teachers were especially engaged in the Bible stories over the last few days. Liz got to share with one of the teachers and she is really interested to hear about the “real Jesus.” (My words, not hers.) So much of what is taught here is salvation-by-works Catholicism. It was tough to leave the kids but hopefully, we will be able to return one day.
After lunch we went back to the school to finish the painting and tile work. We were running short on paint but somehow we had just enough to get one coat in all 8 classrooms and to hit some spots with a second coat. In one room, we lifted the lockers back up and were able to anchor them to the wall. The tile work was almost finished but it is a room that isn’t used every day so the local mason should be able to complete the work.
I had asked Chris yesterday if we could bring a weed eater and clean up the playground a little. He agreed and so we did. And we also brought a few extra grounds keepers, a set of scaffolding, and a 2-cycle set of hedge trimmers. We got all the trees and bushes trimmed. The playground and classrooms look so much better.
As we finished, the principal wanted to speak to our group. She was especially grateful for the work our group had done. She told us we would always be welcome at her school. We also discovered the school had planned to not pay their teachers for one month’s salary in order to repair the walls. Now they wouldn’t have to do that. God is good! We prayed as a group before leaving. I ask that you pray for this principal and her teachers. I don’t have their names right now, but God knows.
When we got back to camp Chacauco, I showered and went to dinner…mmm…tacos. After dinner, the group gathered around a bonfire (with s’mores!) where we heard the testimonies of Chris and Madeline and how they ended up in Patate, Ecuador. Then Bob and I took turns playing guitar and leading various worship songs before we all concluded with Amazing Grace, a cappella.
Ragamuffin Warrior 