SATURDAY - FEB 17 Luz y Vida (Light & Life) and Monserrate

 Saturday we spent a lot of time in the bus which had some adventures in itself.  We arrived at Luz y Vida - an orphanage for disabled children and adults - to help wherever we were needed, but mostly just showing love and affection to these dear ones.  It was an emotional time for everyone, but such a blessing to be there.  

We spent the rest of the day exploring Bogota, going up the mountain to Monserrate.  We had the perfect weather to see the city and appreciate the enormous number of people living there.  

Here are some thoughts from some of our team members:

For me it's hard to go to Luz y Vida every year and see the same kids there every year.  It seems like nothing changes for them.  At the same time, it encourages me to see that they are well taken care of and we are able to be a part of bringing joy to their lives.  It's amazing the smiles that human touch brings to their lives.  My prayer is that they will know how much God loves them! <Denise Lockhart>

It was hard to see the kids in Luz y Vida knowing that they lost their family just because they are not the same as other people. I   wanted to let them feel the love that they deserve, and the beautiful smiles on their face. Although facing the reality of people with disabilities was heartbreaking, I was also glad to see that they have the place where they can be cared and loved in a safe place. We also had a great time connecting with Colombian people by games and visiting Monserrate, learning parts of their cultures. <Grace Jung>

My heart melted with the wonderful opportunity to hold hands with the beautiful children from Luz y Vida. Stunting around with the boys in there wheelchairs and getting to hold hands with "Mi Amor" Yudi, reminded me of Gods undying love for his children.-<Ezra

Luz y Vida was a roller coaster of emotions. On one hand it was wonderful getting to see the level of love and care that the workers showed to these orphans. On the other hand, however, was the sad reality that these children would likely never leave Luz y Vida, nor would they ever lead a "normal" life. There were a couple children I really connected with, and leaving them was very hard to say the least. After, we (us Canadians and a couple of our Colombian friends) went up to Monserrate, one of the

mountains surrounding Bogota. We rode a Gondola up, and the views were amazing. Our day ended with an ice cream party with the ECA kids following a wonderful chicken and rice meal prepared by our cooks. Despite the difficulties of the day, it was absolutely worth experiencing. -<Eric

I found Luz y Vida to be extremely overwhelming at first. I kept repeating to myself, "I don't know how to help these people" and felt paralyzed by my anxiety. After my first interaction with a little girl, I was reminded that it wasn't solely up to my personal strength to make an impact on these children, but instead up to the Lord. That thought gave me a great amount of comfort, and made it much easier to interact with the other kids in the orphanage. I was reminded of the privileged life I live in Canada, and I thought about my family members/people I love who have physical or mental disabilities. Specifically, how they might be treated if they were to live in Colombia. I began to see one particular cousin of mine in every single individual I met, and it really broke my heart. But I felt so blessed by an interaction with a girl named Tatiana. I had spent a few minutes with her, playing with her hair, rubbing her back and it wasn't until I told her "Jesus loves you Tatiana", that she smiled and started responding more to my touch. It was an extremely humbling, and heartbreaking experience to visit this facility but I am so grateful I had the opportunity to do so. > Claire Rector