Unfortunately, yes, there is Internet, but very slow and shuts down often. The camp is surrounded by mountain terrain and there’s no way in the world we’re going to get skype working. That’s a huge bummer!
Today we had our team meeting with Debbie Marshal who is the president of Heart of Hope Ministries. I was amazed and saddened to hear about the village kids that would be at camp the next day. A village kid can come from a village of 25 families to a village of about a 1000 people. Most of these kids come with hardly anything at all. We will provide a hygiene baggie for them which will include a toothbrush, toothpaste, a bar of soap and a wash clothe. Some families may not even send their kids because they might not have shoes for them.
The camp is pretty rustic and reflects what you would see in the village homes – plumbing that is being repaired, buildings in a process of being fixed, outside play areas consisting mostly of dirt or weeds but because people who love the Lord are working here you can see many signs of transformation. The kids from the village are in bible clubs that are run by Heart of Hope Ministries, and this camp, in the condition it is in, is literally the highlight of their year. you can’t help but feel like God is using us as a special gift to these kids that have so little. What they need most, of course, is the love of Christ and we show that in many ways as we provide safety, compassion and consistency to these kids. The culture of village kids or orphanage children is tough and sad. We almost liken it to prison culture. We have to be very careful not to show any special favor to any kids because we would literary make things worse for them. Other kids may shun them or fight with them later becasue of it.
The weather has been in the 90′s and a bit humid. We may have rain today tonight. Food is actually pretty good. We had chees, bread, salami and tomato for breakfast. For dinner we had meatball soup (meat tasted a bit different), cabbage salad, frend fries, chicken and crapes (yum). Late night snack – more crapes, fried eggs, chicken and friend meat.
Tonight, we’re cleaning cabins and putting together the kid’s hygiene bags. Please pray for our rest as we continue to get ready for camp tomorrow. It’s such a privelege to serve here alongside my son and the whole team. Thanks for believing in the mission and how God can do the extraordinary through ordinary people.
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SO glad you all arrived safely! I am Candace’s youngest sister
Please give her a hug for me and say ‘hello, I love you.’ Your (Pastor Carl’s)airplane conversation w/Jaeson Ma sounds as if it was ‘pre-arranged’ by God for sure! I hope you find encouragement and guidance from that experience and relationship. Glad to hear everyone traveled well and that the food is acceptable. I hope the time spent with the village children will be both satisfying and rewarding for everyone involved. No doubt the children will have fun ( a rare commodity in their lives) and learn much and feel loved. As for the team, I hope they see the sparkle in each child’s eye and can focus not on what the children don’t have (or on what they are missing) but rather on what the children do have (opportunity, God’s Love, and that unextinguishable spark of humanity). May God Bless and keep you all safe and healthy!
Comment by Julie Zahn July 19, 2010 @ 8:49 am