Day One - WE HAVE ARRIVED!

After a LONG day and night of travel we arrived in Bogota to Denise..arms waving at us.  So great to see her!  We took a short nap, had a delicious hot breakfast and dove into our first ministry.  For the past 14 years we have held the tradition of sharing "highs and lows" of the day.  We decided to let you have a peek into ours for the day...

Maegan - There was a 13 year old girl, Mariana, at Hogar de Paz who I got to spend quite a bit of time talking to. It was so cool to see her joy and genuine interest in people's lives! It was definitely not easy having to communicate through translators all the time. But even though my Spanish is no bueno, Christ showed himself working through me with the language barrier. It was a humbling realization that Christ's power is truly made perfect in my weakness. 

Braxton - There where so many things that we got to do on the first day from meeting new people and playing with all the kids, but the thing that had me so positive on the first day was seeing how much joy all the children had when we first walked through the doors. It was so much fun playing with all the children but the hardest thing to do was trying to speak with them but that never stopped us playing with them. 

Garrison - Hanging out with the kids from Hogar de Paz was amazing! We were able to help teach some songs and have a great time with the kids. I'm also starting to realize that I can't focus on getting everything perfect, and I have to let things happen without getting too stressed about it, trusting that God will work all things for our benefit. We need to let go of the details and to let God work through us because his plan is better than anything that my worrying could ever accomplish.

Josiah - For having very minimal sleep, everything went very well! Spending time with the kids at Hogar de Paz was a great time and helped us a lot with practicing our Spanish. It was amazing to see the volunteers doing so much to help out the kids and show God's love to them. The food was also amazing. The food made by Berta and Luz and the restaurants we went to were honestly some of the best food I've eaten in my life. Something to pray for would be that we are given peace when we teach and spread God's word and show his love to the people here, and to not be too nervous.

Ethan - The language barrier was extremely evident today.  As we were working with kids at Hogar de Paz we were only able to have basic conversations such as "what is your favourite colour?".  Despite this difficulty, we were somehow able to connect.  Their joy and friendliness definitely helped this connection form.  Their happiness was contagious and watching them have fun, be silly, and feel comfortable with us helped me relate.  

Ally - I at least tried to be as observant as possible today, and, wow! Colombia has some things going for it in which Canada could never compare. Even the poorer and more dangerous areas of Bogota have little luxuries that I sought to seek out before we arrived; I love the culture we've witnessed (a culture of gratitude and service), the ambiance, and the architecture. Though, the area we spent today is was poor. The darkness of the real world was right amongst the tiny school. Today was just the first instance to in trying to "take what makes God heart hurt, your heart hurt."

Denise-it was so much fun, even if it was very early, to be able to go to the airport to meet the team.  It was different to be meeting them rather than coming along with them.  I always enjoy reconnecting with people whom we have developed relationships with over the years and seeing how they continue to be faithful in the ministries that God has called them to.  They are a great encouragement and inspiration to me. 

Darryl - it has been a very long couple of days and we were all VERY tired today, but God provided us the strength to get through.  It was definitely eye-opening to see how little this school has and how much they do with it.  It really puts it into perspective how much we have in Canada and yet we still so often want more.  I found it particularly encouraging to see the team stepping outside their comfort zones and jumping right in to work with these kids.  We are looking forward to a great time here.

Sheila - All is quiet as I type these last words on this very long first post.  This day has been good.  God is Good.  Good night!