"Today we are going to go and bring supplies to a village of children that no one knew about...
...no one knew because from the outside all you see is three doors....
...with some guys outside passed out on drugs....
...but when you enter one of these doors, you see ten more...
...single rooms for rent by the day...
...and you find a whole village of children virtually raising themselves amongst adults addicted to drugs."
This is how my friend Christina very casually described where we were heading,
and it is what I want to write about today...
what we saw behind those three doors.
Yes, we saw poverty.
Staggering poverty, some of the worst I have ever seen.
I could stop there...
write a whole story just about that part of what we saw,
or about the men who circled the edges of our play like darkness ready to shut out the light,
yawning black doors the backdrop to it all.
Those things would all be true and compelling....
but they are not the thing that remains uppermost in my heart or mind when I think of our New Year's Day 2013.
What remains?
Beauty.
So staggering that I wish the whole world could see.
Heart stopping, beautiful, innocent children no different than yours or mine.
They came running....
you want to know the reason why?
I can guarantee it was not because of the group of gringos piling out of the van.
It was because of this woman,
and this man,
who come every week,
who hug, and love these children.
Who bring what they can to help fill their needs...
and bring them joy....
but most of all bring the love of God....
and the power of prayer....
...they bring friendship,
relationship.
Not a flash in the pan
But unrelentless love.
Hope.
A promise that they are worthy.
Not forgotten.
That they matter.
Every week they prepare a meal...
in their tiny kitchen....
over 200 burritos, completely made by hand.
That New Year's Day it was 240 tortillas rolled by hand.
when we met to plan the outing,
they had supplies to make tortillas but had been praying that the Lord would supply something to fill them with....
...it was a huge honor to be able to buy the beans and rice and some fruit!
and honestly so humbling,
because it only cost about what it would feed our family of 5 to eat at a fast food restaurant.
With those burritos they were able to go to the dump and feed the men, women and children who live there as well as to the jail (inmates only eat it someone brings them food), the recycle yard (people also live there) and then to where we were playing with the kids.
Every week they are living on prayer to bring something to help fill the bellies of these people, some who will only have that one meal for days and days.
There are a few things God has put on my heart to do since returning and one of the them is this:
To somehow help Christina and Paulino have what takes to meet more of the needs in Camalu.
Things like food, shoes, tarps (because otherwise people would not have a roof).
The thing they need most is prayer. Every Saturday they go out there to serve...
...why?
As Christina put it, "hey we don't have a movie theater in this town so why not?"
I am going to try to figure out how to put a chip in up so that if you feel led to donate you can.
If it is helpful to know:
* a 12 lb bag of beans costs $10
* A blanket or tarp is $15
* 100 cups of milk are $10
* 50 scoops of peanut butter are also $10
******** The Chip In IS working....thank you to those who have donated! For some reason the totals are not showing up on the widget *******
You can also donate directly to Foundation For His Ministry just make sure to write "Basura/dump Ministry" in the box so that they know where to direct it.
***If you feel led you also are welcome to share this to help get the word out*****
I'm telling you, they are the real deal giving of what little they have to change the lives of others because they love Jesus.
....All I know is that I HAVE to do something and to start somewhere because my life was radically changed watching these two serve behind those three doors.
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
1 Corinthians 13:13
5 comments:
So much suffering in those communities! It's so hard to know how to respond when you're there...the roots are so much deeper than some handouts can fix... but at the same time the practical needs are so great and those gifts can open the doors to lasting relationships that show them where their true hope and healing is found.
So powerful, Shannon...I cannot imagine what you experienced and how it impacted your lives. Thank you for sharing with us here so our eyes can be opened to the many needs of others. We live such sheltered lives!
Great post, honored to help; doesn't seem nearly enough...
Wow. I'm just speechless. Those doors ... so ominous and to think of what lies beyond them and that there are children who live here. Thank you for bothering my heart so I think about this and pray about it. Quite honestly I feel a bit numb. But the children are so beautiful and thank you for blessing them with your presence, your love and your hope for them! And I must say, that is a MASSIVE pan of rice! I'm waaaay impressed.
Thank you Shannon for putting this experience into words. Thank you also for doing something specific to help out Paulino and Christina. I pray this will help to bring in the support they need to their ministry that is truly saving lives. They are demonstrating what it is to live without to serve others.
Post a Comment