FINAL POST

This is Martha, Jose, and some of their family. I'm still processing everything. What I do know is what a big heart Martha and Jose have for this community and live and breathe it every day. They shared that sometimes they just feel like they are spinning their wheels and wonder if they are making a difference. They are. It's amazing what one couple's dream has done. They continue to dream and make their dreams a reality. They are hoping to build a medical clinic within the school walls soon. I will never forget how much love Martha, Jose, and their staff gave to us and to the people. I can't count how many hugs Martha gave on a daily basis to the children and the parents. They are God's hands and feet. Please pray for their ministry.

Lori

SOME MORE PICS

When coming through town our first afternoon I took some snapshots. Every motorcyclist has to wear a number on a vest. I also talked about the hotel and the park across from the hotel so have a few pics of that. There is a picture of Ida making dinner. There is a pic of the children getting their snack. There is also a picture of the sewing room where women are learning a skill they can market. And I took some pics of the school. To help you envision, the buildings are at the end of the road. The daycare is on the right. On the left is an outside wall with a guard tower and a door that has to be unlocked. They do have someone staying the night guarding the school since it's been broken into lately. When you walk through the door the kitchen is on the left and the basketball court is on the right. Straight ahead is the 3 - story building which is the school. To the right of the school is the church. The high school classrooms were on the top of the church and I took a picture of the devastation b/c of the winds. They were working on that when we were there and were getting alot accomplished in a short amount of time. I will upload some more pics in a couple of days. I will get some pictures of Martha and Jose (husband and wife who founded the school) so you can see what they look like. Thank you for all who followed the blog. The trip was amazing.

Lori

SUNDAY

We have had a hard time getting on the internet and when we do it´s for a short time or we can´t get pics to upload. We are paying for internet time right now at a store.

Church today was very emotional for me. We had people in church who were Colombian, Korean, English, and American. They put words up on the overhead in English and they were songs we ALL knew so just imagine songs being sung in three different languages. It was amazing and very moving. Then our Korean friends did some dance and singing (Beautiful) and they also did the service. In order for everyone to understand scripture and the message first the young man would say a sentence or two in Korean, a Korean young lady translated into English, and the Spanish translater translated it into Spanish. It was a good message. Very good. It took a while to get through it, but it was amazing just to witness cultures getting together to praise God. We had communion, an infant was dedicated, and when there was a lot of prayer. I cried at points throughout the service because I was so overwhelmed with the energy in the room. I truly felt God´s presence.

Then we walked for I´m guessing a half a mile to Martha´s and Jose´s and enjoyed the afternoon with them. She cooked a wonderful meal. They brought out plates and vases the Choco tribe have made and the three Choco girls who live with them brought out necklaces and bracelets they have made. Beautiful artwork. They sell them and give them money back to the tribes. Again, it was wonderful spending time with their family. It was hard saying goodbye today.

There is so much I want to share and will continue to do so when I get home and I have the luxury of the internet.

PICTURES FOR YOU

THURSDAY

I cannot put into words our experience today in the place where the families have squatted. The ¨community¨are huts mostly made of cement and brick. Dirt roads wind between the huts. The roads are uneven and rocky. Trash and horse manure are in the middle of the uneven, rocky streets. We ¨traveled¨the streets in a buggy like a pedicab but only a motorcycle connected instead of a bike. Two sons of Fannie who runs the sewing vocational ed program pulled us. Fannie has a good heart. Her daughter abandoned her children. So Fannie now is responsible for these children and she can barely take care of herself. If I remember correctly, there were four children. Thank God she has the job at the school helping women learn how to sew. It´s hard to describe where they live. See picture.

The huts are no bigger than a bedroom. Families live in these huts. One was a family of 8. I can´t explain the filth and the smell of most of the huts. You just have to experience it.

There are cats and dogs EVERYWHERE in this community. They are sickly. One dog was all ribs. There were so many stories that afternoon. I held a baby about a year and half. He just kept looking at me with his big brown eyes. His daddy was murdered 15 days ago. The mother is very young, has a very sickly mother and four children. See picture.

Dave is going to put together some of the stories that we can share with you. I just know my eyes filled up with tears more than I can count when a little one took my hand or asked to be picked up. One little girl about 8 years old kept taking my hand and looking at my fingers. She was very intrigued for some reason.

There are markets interspersed in these communities. I´m not sure they are very sanitary. Well, I know they aren´t.

I kept thinking of my daughter and desperately I wanted to hold her close. This disease called poverty breaks your heart. I imagine it breaks the soul when God is not in their heart. How do you handle life when you have little children and you are a child yourself and your husband just got murdered.

I just know that Martha and Jose are angels from heaven. The things they are doing to help stop the cycle one child at a time. I do know they are MUCH loved in the community. This trust has taken years to build. Adults and children alike ran up to Martha or hugged her when she got out of the carriage.

Hug your child tonight and thank God for your blessings.

Lori

Hungry? Itchy?

Ok, so someone’s slipping stuff into Lori’s food or something! Or else she’s got fantastic eyesight…eh, no, can’t be that since she said she mistakenly used body lotion in her hair instead of conditioner at the hotel in Chicago (both containers are the same just labeled differently). But she keeps getting bugs and bones and strange looking things in her food. I guess the bug shields hanging in the window of the little restaurant we had lunch on Monday didn’t work so well. I asked why there were plastic bags of water hanging from the security bars (see pic) and was told it was to keep the bugs out…huh? I guess the idea is that as the mosquitoes or flies approach the window they see their distorted and large reflection in the water bags and are scared away. No fooling. We had been talking about security at the school prior to this and Lori wondered if hanging really big bags in the window would scare off thieves…

Everyone except Lori ordered the fish (Lori was the wise one, except hers had bugs). Pastor Aieda went on and on about how good the Mojara fish was and said her favorite part was the head and she especially liked the eyes…ok, too much information. I thought I wouldn’t translate all of that! Sometimes it’s just better not to know. Fish was pretty good although I generally don’t like eating something that’s looking back.

I was here about a year ago and it’s been amazing for me to see the progress in many areas at the I.N. Network Colombia ministry. For example, the pre-school has expanded and now gives care to about 70 kids so single moms and working families trying to scrape a living in this difficult area have a fantastic place for their kids. The staff seem so dedicated and really love the kids. Today they asked us to come over and help with “the campaign.” I wasn’t sure what that meant and then they proceeded to get out a couple of kiddy pools. Ok, it was really hot, makes sense, and they got the hoses out and started squirting all the kids. What fun. Oh, and then they showed us these little packets of medicated shampoo. Ooooohhhhh, now I get it. This is a lice prevention campaign. Jackie and Lori started scrubbing and I took pictures (ok, somebody had to) and translated. Not a tear was shed and the kids loved it. Would be interesting to do this in a pre-school in the States…the whole staff would be probably be in jail! The kids were all in their underwear and I bet there wasn’t a hint of a legal form signed by parents anywhere. Amazing how much the kids loved it all. Very smart these folks.

It’s been kinda an itchy day. What between a few mosquitoes at breakfast, the lice campaign, and several dogs that live at the school that continually scratch, we’re having to keep our hands in our pockets a bit today. I wish we could post a little video I took while we were waiting for the taxi at the end of the day but our internet connection would explode. The three school dogs were in a line and performing a synchronized scratch – was quite entertaining.

It’s been wonderful to see the passion of the staff here to do more and more with such limited resources. God is indeed blessing this ministry.

Dave

WEDNESDAY

It´s terribly hot today. The ocean breeze saves us but I am so sticky and tired. We painted today. We also helped wash little ones hair with stuff to get rid of lice. Yep, Jackie and I helped. The kids think it´s fun! They were put in a little play pool and got hosed down. They laughed and laughed. Then we washed their hair with a certain lice lotion and then rinsed their hair. They were so darn cute. We ran out of water, though. Just ran out. I don´t know why so they all couldn´t get the preventative lice shampoo today. Water is very scarce here.

Lunch was provided for the children, staff, and volunteers. I struggle with eating down here but am really trying my best. It´s just different and the bugs and flies are everywhere. I pull bones out of the soup. I´m thinking after a while it just becomes what it is and is the the norm. I´m just not there yet.

Construction is going on. All the staff is very busy getting prepared for when school starts again the end of July. They are very hard working but always have time to give you a hug as you pass by.

All for now.

Lori

TUESDAY

Woke up to ¨refreshing¨shower water today. The pressure is fine in the shower. The sink has little pressure. Woke up about 5:00 a.m. along with early morning traffic. It´s funny. Taxis try to get your attention by having their taxi whistle at you. One of the whistles sound like a construction worker whistling and some lady passing by.

Last night we had heat lightning. Ida says there are rarely any storms, though. Hurricanes maybe but no storms.

We did devotions at bfast today.

We got to meet Martha and Jose. They had just returned from Choco. What a loving couple. We were greeted so warmly. They must have been terribly tired. Just getting to and from the jungle is a journey. I learned alot about Choco. It is a jungle. The two girls living with them are from a primitive tribe. The girls wanted to see their parents but felt a bit weird having to change back into tribal wear and go barefoot. They are now assimilated into the Colombian-Barranquilla culture. They had not seen their parents in 18 months.

Martha said it was a tough trip but was very glad they could do this for the children. Choco is very dark because of no electricity and rampant witchcraft. Military is everywhere to ¨protect¨people from the drug lords but they are just as crooked as the druglords. Another sad story she told us is that if a girl is raped and gets pregnant, after six months the baby is taken from the mother and given to the father (man who raped her). Typically the man doesn´t want the baby or the family doesn´t want the baby so they let it starve until it dies. There is a 14 year old girl right now that is going to be forced to give her child away to the man who raped her. Martha wiped tears from her eyes as she told the story. It´s not easy. What do you do. She and Jose are discussing how they can help but don´t know how. This is tribal custom.

We painted Tuesday. I call it globbing. The paint is not like our paint and it´s so hot that it just gets sticky and eventually becomes like marshmallow. So I globbed.

The college WYWAM students came today. Their leader is from Switzerland but the college kids are from Korea. Most speak English and so were able to share what they have been doing. They did discipleship training for 3 months in Switzerland and have been in South American for 7 weeks. They do drama, dance, and singing along with stuff like we are doing.

Lori

WORK BEGINS

We started our day with a breakfast meeting and devotions. We were picked up by our friend, Walter. He drove us to the school where we began our work around 9:30.
Riding in a taxi is a real test of faith. One does not know where to look; cars, buses. motorcycles are everywhere!!!!!! Lots of horn honking The speed bumps are huge, often times almost taking out the bottom of the car.

Today we were actually able to do some work. We scraped some windows bars and then were given the task of painting them first with special paint to prevent corrosion and then tomorrow we will paint with white paint. Dave was able to get some photos of the roof for the work of the next team coming in Jan. to install some water hook=ups.

The team from YWAM arrived today. We thought we would be working with some kids from Switzerland, but discovered that that was the location of where their training took place. These young people are mainly from Korea. One of their leaders is from England. We ate a delicious lunch with them and then we returned to our work. I think within these next couple of days we´ll be having more contact with them.

Martha and Jose arrived back from their adventure to the Choco region. There is definitely a story to tell about that, but there is not time to go into it now. That will have to be for another time. What marvelous people we have met!!!! The love they have for our Lord is incredible!! Martha is the executive director of the Colombian IN Network ministries, Jose is her husband!!

Jackie

MONDAY

Monday we got a tour of the school and were able to learn so much more about the school, staff, and processes. It was very helpful to Dave and me to bring back to I.N. Network. There are three buildings. One is where there is a program for little children younger than school age. Across from this building is the main building that houses some offices and has classrooms. This building is three stories. The other building is right next door. That is the building that was damaged by the hurricane. The church is on the first floor and the top floor used to be classrooms for the high school kids. They are just now starting to work on this building. A lot of supplies were delivered today (Tuesday). The classrooms are small and chairs are old. They do have a computer room that we are in right now blogging. There are five computers. The classrooms have been painted by the children to brighten them up. The school is not how you think of a school. Cement and bricks...everything locked up with gates b-c of theft. But I was so touched with the love from the staff.

We got to spend some time with the little ones. How sweet and well behaved they were. You can tell they are very well loved. I started taking pics and showing them their picture and then of course EVERYONE wanted THEIR pic taken. So Dave, Jackie, and I did that for a while. What fun they had.

We began to serve them their lunch but the health department came unexpectedly. It´s an audit like non profits have but they were supposed to come last week and never showed and they showed up today which totally changed our plans.

Both William and Ida were busy with them all afternoon. We spent time sitting in the shade and taking measurements for Aquascape. Aquascape is bringing a team in January to put in a water catchment system for the school. I can tell you by first hand experience, this school needs water.

We watched the little ones get picked up. We played with them while they waited. These children live up to 2 miles away. Grandma picked one up by foot. Brother picked one up on bike and she knew just what to do jumping up and riding side saddle. Dad or uncle picked one up in the motorbike-carriage. All kinds of transportation.

We went to lunch and I had bugs in mine so didn´t really have an appetite. For dinner when we left, we grabbed sandwiches and fries (I was hungry!) and we ate at the courtyard where we have bfast. I saw a rat run across the shelf overhead. From there he can jump down or up into our hotel lobby. Ok. Not hungry anymore.

LOL

I am finding you never know what the day will bring. Jackie is blogging about Tuesday. We painted the church all day today.

Lori

IT’S SUNDAY IN BARRANQUILLA

I woke up at 5:00 a.m. to honking and shouting. I dozed off and finally got up at 6:30 a.m. Shower was cold and no hair dryer. With the humidity and my curls I knew I would look like a fried poodle. I threw my hair back with a headband and called it good.

Jackie and I went to the park again and saw it in daylight. We took pics and then went to find Dave. We ate downstairs in the courtyard. The bfast menu was eggs and bread. A little boy was playing with his macaw (sp?) or parrot. I had eaten a protein bar before we came down and so just had a piece of bread. Jackie and Dave had the eggs and toast.

Walter, Williams neighbor, picked us up and took us to church. We traveled down narrow bumpy roads passed rundown homes and came to the end of the street. The school is on the right and the church is on the left.

When we walked in, the small congregation was singing joyfully. We were all greeted warmly with a hug from Pastor Ida. Martha and Jose are gone until Tuesday. They are taking care of two children from the Choco area. The parents asked Martha and Jose to take in their children because the Choco area is so dangerous with drug lords that they are afraid for their children. So the children have been staying here. Martha and Jose took them back to Choco this week so they could visit their family. We pray for their safety.

William and Pastor Ida led the service. The music was wonderful. I didn’t understand the words but I clapped and swayed to the music. I didn’t understand Pastor Ida but I could feel the energy in the room.

Afterward we got into a car driven by one of William’s brothers and we went to Pastor Ida’s home which is a community where small houses are connected to one another. This community is very close to the community we will serve but you can see the difference immediately in the homes. Even though the homes are very small, they were very well maintained. The fruit trees and flowers are beautiful. There are many flowers I had never seen before. Exotic. Beautiful.

Pastor Ida cannot speak English. She wanted to fix us lunch and we were to stay until 4:30. At first we didn’t know what to say to each other and conversation was stilted. What do you say to someone you never met before? Dave could translate and before you knew it, we were talking and the conversation flowed and there was laughter. We got to meet her family and other kids who were not family but may as well have been. The afternoon was so heartwarming. I was able to make a new friend. Pastor Ida is a strong woman. I can tell she is very loved and respected. She was funny and sincere and loves God with everything she has. I will get to see more of her this week which I am so looking forward to. It was a wonderful afternoon.

Walter picked us up and took us to the “nicer” area of Barranquilla. Dave found a bank to exchange dollars into pesos. We went to a very nice upscale mall and ate dinner and then went to Exito which reminded me of a Meijer where we got water and Light Coca Cola. We came back and did some Bible study together. We plan on doing that every evening. Today was a good day. I’m glad I’m here. We don’t know what tomorrow will bring but as Dave said, even though we don’t know, God does.

We scramble to find internet so hopefully can continue to post. It´s Monday now but do not have time to share today with you. Again, eye opening and heartwarming. All for now.

Lori

FIRST NIGHT IN BARRANQUILLA

Jackie and I share a room. It consists of two single beds, a shelf, and a small bathroom. Our room is right above the street with continuous honking horns. There is a TV and after flipping through the channels, we found one station that wasn’t fuzzy. They are all Spanish speaking. I did try to play Who Wants to be a Millionaire in Spanish. I didn´t do sowell. I am extremely grateful for the air conditioning. All the people working at this hotel has been so gracious and helpful. We can buy bottled water at the registration desk. We brush our teeth with bottled water and only drink bottled water.

William had pizza delivered. We decided to eat it outside where it was cool. There is a park located across the street. It’s not a park like I had seen before. It was dark but the park was well lit. There were many families enjoying the park. I think when it cools off in the evening, people come outside and enjoy the temperature. I guess it’s been in the 90s for a while now. Little children were riding their trikes around and around a circle. Some were roller skating in a cemented area made just for that purpose. There was a bouncy gym you see at carnivals that little ones were jumping in. People were shooting baskets and older folks were playing a game like checkers. Children were swinging on swings and riding on this little motorized merry go round.

We walked the park. It was so run down. The bouncy gym looked like it had never been cleaned since it had been put up. There was a lot of garbage. I saw two stray thin dogs running around hoping to find dropped food. The swings were old. I worried if there was glass in the sand under the children’s feet. As we walked we noticed there was a building with a police officer in it to keep peace, although to me it looked like the families were truly enjoying their time at the park.

Jackie and I talked about the park afterward and agreed how people in the United States are so safety and cleanliness conscious. Over the top. I have a bottle of sanitizer in my purse, at work, and at home. I would not let my child if she were younger jump in that bouncy gym! Funny how these children seem to survive a little bit of filth and have fun at it, too.

Lori

Warmness

We´ve just finished lunch with one of the church pastors - Aieda. She´s been with the ministry from the beginning and is a wonderful lady with great stories. Even though this is Colombia and there´s great coffee, I haven´t had much today and that coupled with a lot of Spanish and translating makes my head ache! No so bad and the folks here at Aieda´s are so friendly.

Sure is warm! This computer is in a room about the size of a large closet but there´s a fan blowing the hot air around. Temp´s in the 90s today at least.

Like Lori mentioned, our internet time will be very limited so we´ve decided to just share Lori´s blog for efficiency.

Thanks for praying! All for now.

Dave

Fire trucks,ambulance, and police car Oh My!

Sunday, July 5, 2009


Our hotel does not have internet and this is the first time I have had a chance to blog. I have a short time and then need to share. We got to the Chicago hotel with no problem. Traffic was great going west. Bumper to bumper heading east. We ate and then decided to get to bed since we had to get up at 500 AM.100 am the fire alarm went off. I peeked out the door and so was everyone else. We all headed out of the hotel and then the emergency vehicles came. We still don´t know what triggered the alarm. About 20 minutes and we were back in our room. Morning came.

You know how you get three little bottles (shampoo, conditioner, and lotion). Well I didn´t have my glasses on and so washed my hair and decided to condition it with lotion....I guess my hair was extra soft that day. The flights were long but no problems. William met us at the airport. He is the son of Martha. What surprised me was there was no military when we got off. We had to take two taxis. We had so much luggage. Plus I found out that the cars run on natural gas and gasoline so a tank is in the trunk. The ride to the hotel was very interesting. The road was bumper to bumper filled with taxis and busses and carts and horses and motor bikes and pedestrians. Continuous honking takes place as everyone vies for position. I was expecting more of a tourist town with pockets of poverty. All I saw was poverty. Everywhere. Graffiti on walls, garbage everywhere. I´m guessing the laws for littering is not the same as the U.S

I am going to share this blog with Jackie and Dave and we´ll sign our names at the end so you know who is blogging. Time for me to share the computer.Miss all of you.

Love Lori

I.N. Network Colombia

Some History

A 40-year insurgent campaign to overthrow the Colombian Government escalated during the 1990s, undergirded in part by funds from the drug trade. Although the violence is deadly and large swaths of the countryside are under guerrilla influence, the movement lacks the military strength or popular support necessary to overthrow the government.

Families fled from the dangerous guerrilla-infested areas and came to a rural area outside of Barranquilla. These displaced families have squatted in the La Playa area. Unemployment is at 80% in this community. The families live in poverty and 75% are led by single mothers.


I.N. Network's Ministry

"La Rosa de Saron" (The Rose of Sharon) is a school where poor children from the Barranquilla "La Playa" community receive a Christian education.

I.N. Network USA (the organization I work for) provides a child sponsorship program. Through child sponsorship, these children receive a Christ-centered education, school uniform, shoes, one hot meal per day, and basic medical care.

I am so looking forward to meeting the I.N. Network Colombia Executive Director, Martha Villamizar. She started the La Rosa de Saron school. She and her husband, Jose, along with pastor Aida Avila, also lead a church, which is located on the school property. This church reaches out to the La Playa community and now has 80 regular worshipers.

Preparing My Heart

Today our team packed three suitcases full of dictionaries, reading books, markers, crayons, and color pencils. We are also bringing coloring books, stickers, hair bands--and my sister is sending me up beach balls which will be easy to pack. I think the beach balls will be a big hit! Great idea, Sue!

We have been reading a book called, “Prepare your Heart.” It’s a short-term mission preparation guide with Bible studies. I have found this to be a wonderful reminder on the joy of serving and serving with a true servant’s heart.

My dissertation when I was completing my Masters degree in education was about culture in the workplace and the importance of appreciating, respecting, and understanding other cultures. I have taught cultural and economic diversity; but, to be honest I haven’t experienced many other cultures.

God has His reasons why I am going on this trip. I’m not sure what they all are but I want to be as emotionally and spiritually prepared as I can be. This guide was a good reminder about being sensitive to others, going with the flow, being a good guest, and opening my heart.

It will be interesting to see how I handle stepping into another culture, facing customs I see as so different from my own, missing the conveniences I am used to, not being able to have a conversation with someone because of my lack of Spanish skills….

I think this experience will test my true self. God continues to grow me.

Getting to Know Jackie!

Jackie invited me over last night to have some dessert and give us a chance to get to know each other better. She is the other woman who will be going on the trip and we thought it might be nice to get to know each other a little before we go. It was great to connect and learn about the other missions she has been on. I’m such a newbie and I am thankful I have some veterans going on the trip. She’s never been to Colombia, though, and knows little Spanish so it will be an adventure for both of us. I’m taking my handy dandy Spanish/English translation book; Dave, our host, is fluent in Spanish, thank goodness. I can pick out some words (thanks to Spanish class from college back in the 80s and studying for Spanish tests with my daughter last semester). :-)

I'm planning on only taking a carry on. Me--who always packs way too much because I don't know what mood I'll be in. So I'm trying on shorts and shirts and mixing and matching and figuring out how to pack light, light, light!

Matthew 6:25-34

As I was deciding about going to Colombia and as I contemplate my trip to Colombia, I revisit Matthew 6:25-34. Trust in the Lord. Wow. The cost of my trip has almost been paid for because of YOU. The Lord provides.


25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life[a]?
28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

The Devil at Work

I truly believe the Devil is at work trying to put obstacles in our path. I have seen him at work with colleagues at I.N. Network here and around the world.

It's been difficult getting a team together and this week I threw my back out (doing nothing heroic mind you!) and while going on a college visit with my daughter, I almost blacked out. I never saw it coming. We were in the dance studio and my heart did a huge flip flop and I almost lost consciousness.

He won't stop me from going to Colombia. I'm going. So he better back off. Please continue to pray for our team and if you can pray for my health, that would be great!

Getting the Team Together

It's been difficult getting a team together for Colombia. We believe it's because people think it's unsafe what with the drug lords and the swine flu; plus, of course, the economy. We were unsure if this trip was going to happen and we've been doing a lot of praying. We will be a small team but we will work hard. We also plan on working side by side with a group from the community. Pray we can get alot accomplished down there. There is so much to do. Pray we can touch the community's heart with God's love. I have just about reached my goal of $2,000. Only $300 more to go. Thank you Central Wesleyan (my church) for donating to this trip, as well. Love to all of you.

Thank You!

I am humbled. I don’t know how else to say it. The response I have received from family and friends (and strangers—thank you all in Dale’s Men’s Group)! whether it’s just to pray for me or to donate to my trip has been very humbling. It’s amazing how my faith journey has surrounded me with people who love God and live to serve His purpose. I am very, very blessed. I knew that if I took this leap of faith to go on the Colombia trip, God would provide, and He has through you. Thank you! I'll continue to keep you posted.

Follow My Journey

During this blog, I have decided to put myself out there and be transparent. This is my first missions trip. I’m not sure what to expect and I thought I’d share my journey with you. I plan on journaling every day while I’m down there and take pictures. I understand the hotel we are staying at has wireless and I’ll borrow our host’s laptop.

It was an emotional weekend this weekend. I was with my family and my mom and dad tried to talk me out of going to Colombia. They are very worried about the unrest down there. In Colombia, there are high levels of human rights abuses and widespread displacement of people who have fled rural violence and poverty. The families we will be visiting have “squatted” living in make-shift homes, many living on dirt floors.

There were many tears and we talked for a long while. My sister and brother-in-law were also there. We had good conversation about the extreme poverty in this world. I shared about Kibera where we have a ministry and how it’s one of the worst slums in the world. There are over a million people living in approx. one square mile. The government in Kenya does NOTHING. There is no clean running water, no garbage removal, no sanitation, and no police. Sewage runs down the street and in front of houses—if you want to call them that. They are 8’ x 8’ huts, with no electricity. The children are playing in the sewage. HIV/AIDS is rampant. I could go on.

I think many of us are totally unaware of what is going on in our own country and other countries in the world. Our lives get too busy and the news doesn’t broadcast these issues. I am taking a leap of faith going to Colombia. I’m not just taking a leap of foolishness. I know there are risks but there are families who need our help and God depends on us to be His hands and feet.

During our conversation, my brother-in-law offered to share the Colombia missions trip with his men’s group to help support my trip costs. The next morning, I received a hug from my dad as he said, “I know you really feel you need to do this. I worry; I’m scared. But know I will support you.”

God Will Provide

I just found out the dates of the trip which will be July 4-July 13. I am very excited and a bit scared but know that I am in God's hands. The cost of the trip is $2,000. I am hoping to raise the funds this month. I'll be selling items, sending out appeal letters, going door-to-door for empty cans and bottles...whatever it takes. I am determined to raise as much as I can. Being a single mom does have its drawbacks sometimes where money is concerned but God will provide. :-)

Colombia Mission Trip!

I have an opportunity to go to Colombia the beginning of July on a short term team mission trip.

I.N. Network USA (where I work) has a growing child sponsorship there and we help support the I.N. Network Colombia ministry. Colombia has the second largest population of displaced people in the world because of armed conflict. The need is so great the government is not able to help all in need. The La Rosa de Saron school provides a Christian education for children from La Playa. The teaching staff are all Christian volunteers. The child sponsorship program provides a government approved education, uniforms, shoes, and one hot meal per day. They also receive basic medical care and Christian love from teachers who minister to them. The husband of our Executive Director of I.N. Network Colombia, is a pastor of a church that shares the same property as the school. The church reaches out to the La Playa community.

Hurricane winds damaged the school and church. Our team will be doing construction and miscellaneous work such as cleaning, painting, and plastering at both the church and school. We will be out in the community playing with the children and worshipping with the families. Through these activities I hope to share Jesus’ love with the people of Barranquilla.