Saludos de Colombia! (Greetings from Colombia)

This is Denise.

Some of the most impacting moments for me have been when I hear stories about where some of the kids come from that we have had the opportunity  to minister to.  This happened at "Hogar de Paz" a ministry for "at risk children".  Kids have the opportunity to come to this place every morning to be fed and taken care of until they go to school in the afternoon.    I heard stories about 3 little boys:  one who was sexually abused by a neighbor while his mother was at work. Because of this ministry he is able to come to the foundation every morning, go to school in the afternoon, and then be safe at home with his mother at night.  Another boy was taken away from his mother at a very early age and since then has lived in 5 different places.  He is only 6 years old.  Another boy was left at home while his mother went to work.  This resulted in him living on the street during the day until this foundation opened up.  I heard later that the kids at this place talked about the Canadians all day after we left.  My prayer is that they were able to see and experience the love of Jesus through us.

On another note, one of my favorite places to go is a school called  Golden Rule.  Over the years we have developed some very solid friendships there and we are always made to feel very welcome.  Not very long after we arrived, Martica, one of the workers appeared at my side with a cup of black coffee.  "For you," she said, "without sugar". She had remembered from last year that I don't take sugar in my coffee!!  I was very touched and convicted as I'm not sure that I would have remembered if someone didn't take sugar in their coffee if they would have visited our school for two days a year ago. Spending time with Andrea, the Principal, is always a highlight for me.  Over the years she has become a good friend and we always pick up where we left off as if it hasn't been a year. I enjoy spending time in her office sharing some of the joys and struggles that have occurred over the past year.   Being an administrator myself, I get it!  All of us left the school encouraged by the love that was showered on us by all the staff and students. We miss everyone there already.


Yesterday we also visited an old folks home.  Seeing many of their faces light up as we held their hands and told them, "Dios te bendiga"(God bless you.) was very rewarding.  At the same time, it was probably one of the most difficult places for me to visit having lost both of my parents during the last ten months. Several of the people there reminded me of them.    While we were singing, " Great is thy Faithfulness", I had to stop singing.  That was a song sung at my Dad's funeral.  One of the ladies was holding my hand and she asked me why I was crying.  When I told her why she just held on tighter.  She was so sweet.
 
Please continue to pray that God would accomplish His purposes in us and that God would break our hearts with the things that break His heart.



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