Thursday, September 4, 2008
We're home!
Well after a little excitement and some fast running in Miami, we made it to Portland safe and sound. Stay tuned for our final debriefing blog posts from each of the teammates. Thank you again to everyone for their prayer and support. God definitely made himself evident on our trip.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
One Step Closer To Home
Well after one of the sketchiest flights of our lives, we made it safe and sound to Santa Cruz. We are staying the night at a hotel here and then we leave early tomorrow morning for Miami. Please continue to keep our team in prayer and Que Dios Te Bendiga (God Bless You).
Monday, September 1, 2008
We can Breathe Again!
Hey everyone,
Sorry about the lack of blog action for the last few days. We have been busy busy busy. On Sunday morning we left Cochabamba at 5:00 am and took a 4 hr bus trip to Oruro. Cochabamba is roughly at 8,000 ft in elevation, so on this bus ride we increased our elevation by about 4,000ft. Oruro is one of the highest cities in Bolivia, even higher than La Paz. Our team definitely could feel the effects while doing our puppet shows. It was so much harder to hold your hand above your head and move the puppets mouth even if only for three minutes. Oxygen is so necessary!!!
The reason why we made this long journey was so that we could experience what the pastor of the first baptist church in Oruro experiences every Sunday. They have been unable to find a pastor who actually lives in Oruro, and the current pastor´s business is in Cochabamba, so he has to make this grueling commute every Sunday. This church was the first evangelical church in all of Bolivia. It has only been around for 106 yrs. Jhonny, the pastor that we have been working with was once the pastor of this church, and was able to give us a greater understanding of the persecution that the church suffered only 50yrs ago.
Jhonny took us to the cemetery where he showed us the memorial to those who were killed for spreading the gospel of Christ. The Catholic Church convinced its members that the evangelicals were not of God and that they needed to be dealt with. So as a result of this uprising men and women of the city beat ten men and women to death with stones and picks. These Martyrs were not allowed to be buried in the city cemetery because they were not catholic. However years later, as the evangelical movement continued to grow, and the catholic church no longer had a hold upon the city, Jhonny was the one commisioned to bringing these bodies back into the city. It was definitely a moving site to see that only fifty years ago these men gave their lives for the cause of Christ.
After the cemetery, Jhonny took us to the Catholic church of Oruro. He continued to share with us more of the history of the city and how the church took its folklure and turned it into a part of its religion. It was hard to fully understand where the distinction between the church and the cultural mythology stood. Dan said that he even after hearing the story so many times couldn´t fully comprehend it. The church is built on the opening of a silver and tin mine. Jhonny also used to work in the mine.
He gave us a tour of the mine and continued to explain to us how the god of the mine, which they called el tio, was taken by the catholic church and turned into el diablo. However the confusing part was that el tio or these el diablos were not necessarily good or bad. As the legend goes it was the mighty female angel, who saved the city from harm, that controlled these diablos. The diablos would bless or curse the workers of the mine. The Catholic church branded the angel as Mary. To them they are one in the same. So every year the city has a huge parade festival to celebrate the protection of this angel. The parade circles the entire city and ends in front of the catholic church in hopes of drawing people in.
This trip was filled with so much historical information and interesting beliefs that I think it left us all with a lot to ponder.
Dan made a couple of points that really stood out to me. He shared a quote with us in response to the martyrs, and I don´t remember it exactly, but the gist of it was this-- a hero doesn´t come from dying for Christ, but rather living for him. For to die is gain, to be with Christ forever, but to live here on earth under persecution is our true calling. For the Truth of Christ is the only thing that under persection and through the death of its leaders it continues to grow more and more. This was clearly evident in the city of Oruro and in all of Bolivia.
As we head home tomorrow please be praying for safe travels. We have been told that there is bad weather, possibly a hurricane in or near Florida. So please please please pray for the continued safety of our team as well as for our ability to process all that God has been teaching us through out this trip. Thanks again for all your support!
-Emily
Sorry about the lack of blog action for the last few days. We have been busy busy busy. On Sunday morning we left Cochabamba at 5:00 am and took a 4 hr bus trip to Oruro. Cochabamba is roughly at 8,000 ft in elevation, so on this bus ride we increased our elevation by about 4,000ft. Oruro is one of the highest cities in Bolivia, even higher than La Paz. Our team definitely could feel the effects while doing our puppet shows. It was so much harder to hold your hand above your head and move the puppets mouth even if only for three minutes. Oxygen is so necessary!!!
The reason why we made this long journey was so that we could experience what the pastor of the first baptist church in Oruro experiences every Sunday. They have been unable to find a pastor who actually lives in Oruro, and the current pastor´s business is in Cochabamba, so he has to make this grueling commute every Sunday. This church was the first evangelical church in all of Bolivia. It has only been around for 106 yrs. Jhonny, the pastor that we have been working with was once the pastor of this church, and was able to give us a greater understanding of the persecution that the church suffered only 50yrs ago.
Jhonny took us to the cemetery where he showed us the memorial to those who were killed for spreading the gospel of Christ. The Catholic Church convinced its members that the evangelicals were not of God and that they needed to be dealt with. So as a result of this uprising men and women of the city beat ten men and women to death with stones and picks. These Martyrs were not allowed to be buried in the city cemetery because they were not catholic. However years later, as the evangelical movement continued to grow, and the catholic church no longer had a hold upon the city, Jhonny was the one commisioned to bringing these bodies back into the city. It was definitely a moving site to see that only fifty years ago these men gave their lives for the cause of Christ.
After the cemetery, Jhonny took us to the Catholic church of Oruro. He continued to share with us more of the history of the city and how the church took its folklure and turned it into a part of its religion. It was hard to fully understand where the distinction between the church and the cultural mythology stood. Dan said that he even after hearing the story so many times couldn´t fully comprehend it. The church is built on the opening of a silver and tin mine. Jhonny also used to work in the mine.
He gave us a tour of the mine and continued to explain to us how the god of the mine, which they called el tio, was taken by the catholic church and turned into el diablo. However the confusing part was that el tio or these el diablos were not necessarily good or bad. As the legend goes it was the mighty female angel, who saved the city from harm, that controlled these diablos. The diablos would bless or curse the workers of the mine. The Catholic church branded the angel as Mary. To them they are one in the same. So every year the city has a huge parade festival to celebrate the protection of this angel. The parade circles the entire city and ends in front of the catholic church in hopes of drawing people in.
This trip was filled with so much historical information and interesting beliefs that I think it left us all with a lot to ponder.
Dan made a couple of points that really stood out to me. He shared a quote with us in response to the martyrs, and I don´t remember it exactly, but the gist of it was this-- a hero doesn´t come from dying for Christ, but rather living for him. For to die is gain, to be with Christ forever, but to live here on earth under persecution is our true calling. For the Truth of Christ is the only thing that under persection and through the death of its leaders it continues to grow more and more. This was clearly evident in the city of Oruro and in all of Bolivia.
As we head home tomorrow please be praying for safe travels. We have been told that there is bad weather, possibly a hurricane in or near Florida. So please please please pray for the continued safety of our team as well as for our ability to process all that God has been teaching us through out this trip. Thanks again for all your support!
-Emily
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Friday, August 29, 2008
Puppets, Painting and Preparation
Yesterday was our last work day with the churches. We successfully ran our VBS program at two different churches. We were with nearly 600 kids in total. VBS consisted of our puppets that explained the Gospel, songs, and games. To further remind the kids of the Gospel (Las buenas nuevas), we taught them the wordless book, using colored beads. It's an amazing sound to hear hundreds of kids answering my questions about what each color meant. They would chant: "La creacion, el pecado de todos, la sangre de Jesus Cristo, un corazon limpio, and el cielo" (Creation, Sin of man, Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, a new and clean heart, and Heaven).
The kids loved the VBS and we just love hanging out with the kids after. It's truly a blessing to see the team in action. Something within us just seems to light up when kids are around.
The second half of our time with the local churches are work days. We spent ours days painting. We painted most of the kids' classrooms and the last project was a church's sanctuary. The men of the team painted their place of worship, while the women spent the day with Daryl, Dan's wife. Their missionary care allowed them to minister to a very hard working wife and mother of three children. In the midst, they were also able to glimpse into the life of a missionary's wife, which was an exprience for all.
Our evenings have been spent primarily doing puppet workshops, something I'm most fond of. Dan explained to me the Crusade that they are working on here in Bolivia. Our workshops are an effort to promote and educate local churches of a city-wide youth outreach program that will take place throughout the country in October. The Crusade began 10 months ago, attempting to align churches under a single event. The City-wide outreach week will be the catalyst that will inspire inter-church cooperation for years to come. It is such an honor to be a part of something this huge in magnitude. Our puppets and stage have become the model for these churches to add-on and adapt, so that they can further contextualize the Gospel. They'll be able to make the stage for a fraction of cost. Also, they'll be able to adapt the script into Quechua and Armara, two native languages that we've also been working around.
All in all, the Puppets, Painting and Preparation have ran like clockworks, thanks to God's will and guidance. I would also like to thank you all for your love and support on our mission. Please pray for energy and health, as we have worked hard this last week. My prayer is for our team to continue to image Christ in everything we do...oh, and GO DUCKS!!!
Adam, representing the Team.
The kids loved the VBS and we just love hanging out with the kids after. It's truly a blessing to see the team in action. Something within us just seems to light up when kids are around.
The second half of our time with the local churches are work days. We spent ours days painting. We painted most of the kids' classrooms and the last project was a church's sanctuary. The men of the team painted their place of worship, while the women spent the day with Daryl, Dan's wife. Their missionary care allowed them to minister to a very hard working wife and mother of three children. In the midst, they were also able to glimpse into the life of a missionary's wife, which was an exprience for all.
Our evenings have been spent primarily doing puppet workshops, something I'm most fond of. Dan explained to me the Crusade that they are working on here in Bolivia. Our workshops are an effort to promote and educate local churches of a city-wide youth outreach program that will take place throughout the country in October. The Crusade began 10 months ago, attempting to align churches under a single event. The City-wide outreach week will be the catalyst that will inspire inter-church cooperation for years to come. It is such an honor to be a part of something this huge in magnitude. Our puppets and stage have become the model for these churches to add-on and adapt, so that they can further contextualize the Gospel. They'll be able to make the stage for a fraction of cost. Also, they'll be able to adapt the script into Quechua and Armara, two native languages that we've also been working around.
All in all, the Puppets, Painting and Preparation have ran like clockworks, thanks to God's will and guidance. I would also like to thank you all for your love and support on our mission. Please pray for energy and health, as we have worked hard this last week. My prayer is for our team to continue to image Christ in everything we do...oh, and GO DUCKS!!!
Adam, representing the Team.
My Compassion Child, Daniel
Hey, this is Bethany. I had the opportunity to travel to La Paz and meet my compassion child. IT WAS THE GREATEST DAY! I started sponsoring him when I found out I was going on this trip. Compassion and Daniel Collins were so great in organizing everything for my trip.
I flew to La Paz Wednesday night at 11:30 and met Daniel Collins' friend Maria at the airport. She took me to her house and we stayed the night there. Thursday morning we got a taxi, which was terrifying, and we went down to the Plaza where I met up with a woman from Daniel's project. We then took a van about 15 miles north of the city, and then took another van about 10 more miles north to a town called El Alto. I wasn't entirely sure what was going on at this point.
We then got out of the taxi and started walking toward his project, which is a church called Monte de Sion. I opened up the gate and there were over 400 children and all of the staff at the project waiting for me. They all said in English, "Welcome to Bolivia, Bethany." They made me a sign that said, "Wellcome to Bolivia, Dear Bethany." It was such a humbling moment. They welcomed me and sang me a song in Spanish. They then asked me to raise the Bolivian flag while they sang their national anthem. That was a huge honor.
The pastor of the church then read a scripture out of Luke 18, and prayed for me. Then, they presented Daniel to me. I got down on my knees and he literally ran into my arms and gave me a huge hug! Everyone in the project cheered. It was so incredible. He is so cute.
We then went into Daniel's classroom and I met his teacher, Noami, and all of his classmates. We had snack and colored a picture together. They gave me really nice gifts. His teacher told me that she loves Americans. She loves what they do for the people in Bolivia, and for children all over the world through Compassion. She was literally in tears saying thank you for what we do in America. I was in tears saying, "Thank you" for what she does in El Alto, Bolivia.
Daniel wanted me to go play soccer with him. So, me and about 20 5-7 year old boys were out on the cement, at 12,000ft in about 50 degree weather playing soccer for 20 minutes. That was so fun. They got really excited whenever I scored a goal!
After we left his project I was taken to Daniel's house to meet his mother and three sisters. Daniel had the letters I had sent him and the pictures of me in his photo album. I took so many pictures yesterday, but I don't have a way to upload them. When I get home, I will put them on the website.
From Daniel's house we went into La Paz and I bought him a kid's meal at Burger King, which he had never had before. It was great!
I just want to say thank you to everyone who helped me to come on this trip. Thank you to all the middle schoolers and their parents who allowed them to be a part of this trip. It was the most amazing experience, and you have all touched 100's of lives here in Bolivia. I will tell you all about in person and show you lots of pictures when I get home.
Please, please, please, please pray for the children in Monte de Sion. They are doing amazing things there and I am very honored to be a part of such a great project and such great people. Please pray for Daniel, his mother, his three sisters, and his father. They are amazing people. I miss you all very much! Thanks again for everything! May God Bless you in ways you never dreamed, much like He has done for me.
I flew to La Paz Wednesday night at 11:30 and met Daniel Collins' friend Maria at the airport. She took me to her house and we stayed the night there. Thursday morning we got a taxi, which was terrifying, and we went down to the Plaza where I met up with a woman from Daniel's project. We then took a van about 15 miles north of the city, and then took another van about 10 more miles north to a town called El Alto. I wasn't entirely sure what was going on at this point.
We then got out of the taxi and started walking toward his project, which is a church called Monte de Sion. I opened up the gate and there were over 400 children and all of the staff at the project waiting for me. They all said in English, "Welcome to Bolivia, Bethany." They made me a sign that said, "Wellcome to Bolivia, Dear Bethany." It was such a humbling moment. They welcomed me and sang me a song in Spanish. They then asked me to raise the Bolivian flag while they sang their national anthem. That was a huge honor.
The pastor of the church then read a scripture out of Luke 18, and prayed for me. Then, they presented Daniel to me. I got down on my knees and he literally ran into my arms and gave me a huge hug! Everyone in the project cheered. It was so incredible. He is so cute.
We then went into Daniel's classroom and I met his teacher, Noami, and all of his classmates. We had snack and colored a picture together. They gave me really nice gifts. His teacher told me that she loves Americans. She loves what they do for the people in Bolivia, and for children all over the world through Compassion. She was literally in tears saying thank you for what we do in America. I was in tears saying, "Thank you" for what she does in El Alto, Bolivia.
Daniel wanted me to go play soccer with him. So, me and about 20 5-7 year old boys were out on the cement, at 12,000ft in about 50 degree weather playing soccer for 20 minutes. That was so fun. They got really excited whenever I scored a goal!
After we left his project I was taken to Daniel's house to meet his mother and three sisters. Daniel had the letters I had sent him and the pictures of me in his photo album. I took so many pictures yesterday, but I don't have a way to upload them. When I get home, I will put them on the website.
From Daniel's house we went into La Paz and I bought him a kid's meal at Burger King, which he had never had before. It was great!
I just want to say thank you to everyone who helped me to come on this trip. Thank you to all the middle schoolers and their parents who allowed them to be a part of this trip. It was the most amazing experience, and you have all touched 100's of lives here in Bolivia. I will tell you all about in person and show you lots of pictures when I get home.
Please, please, please, please pray for the children in Monte de Sion. They are doing amazing things there and I am very honored to be a part of such a great project and such great people. Please pray for Daniel, his mother, his three sisters, and his father. They are amazing people. I miss you all very much! Thanks again for everything! May God Bless you in ways you never dreamed, much like He has done for me.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
A Humbling Experience
Greetings from Bolivia!
I wanted to share with you all an awesome experience I had yesterday. After I found out I would be going to Bolivia this summer I decided to sponsor a child from Bolivia through Compassion International (this is the child advocacy ministry we have been working with here). When a child is financially sponsored, the money is used for things like school supplies, medical care, and they have the opportunity to attend a Compassion project site where they get help with school and learn about the gospel. Also, sponsors and the children can converse through letter writing. Yesterday I had the priviledge of going to my sponsored child's Compassion project site to meet him!
When I arrived at the site Gualberto and his mother were waiting for me. I knew it was him when I walked in because I have his picture. He and his mother were extremely quiet. I gave Gualberto a soccer ball that I bought here in Bolivia and he just looked at me but didn't say a word. There was an English speaker there to translate for me which was helpful. Even though I speak some Spanish, I was glad to have him there. Gualberto's mother speaks Quechua which is a native language in Bolivia. They gave me a tour of his Compassion site which is also a church. I went in to every classroom to say hello to all of the kids. Each room I entered I was greeted with a "buenos dias hermana" in unison from the children.
After getting a tour of the site we walked to Gualberto's house. I tried to ask him some questions as we walked but he was so shy! I would catch him looking at me but once I looked at him he would quickly turn away. His mother didn't say much either. His home was extremely small. It was sort of an open concrete structure with only two very small rooms for 5 people. It was extremely humbling. When we entered the home Gualberto's mother stated, "we don't have much." Gualberto showed me the first letter I ever sent him. It included a picture of me. It was overwhelming for me to actually see him and his family and his home. When I signed up to sponsor him, I understood that he didn't have much and that I could help, but actually seeing it has really inpacted me. I spoke to a woman at the Compassion site who told me to write to Gualberto as much as I can. She also said to tell others who sponsor a child to write often. When letters come, the kids get very excited. Some children don't receive letters and it is very disapointing. After this experience I am motivated to write him more often and pray hard for him and his family. Maybe he will be more talkative in his letters than he was in person!
I have been to 3 different Compassion sites here in Bolivia. It has been wonderful to see the faces of these children and to meet the staff members who work at the sites. They have such big hearts. God is working in and through them and this ministry. And to think that there are sites like this all over the world! Praise God!
I wanted to share with you all an awesome experience I had yesterday. After I found out I would be going to Bolivia this summer I decided to sponsor a child from Bolivia through Compassion International (this is the child advocacy ministry we have been working with here). When a child is financially sponsored, the money is used for things like school supplies, medical care, and they have the opportunity to attend a Compassion project site where they get help with school and learn about the gospel. Also, sponsors and the children can converse through letter writing. Yesterday I had the priviledge of going to my sponsored child's Compassion project site to meet him!
When I arrived at the site Gualberto and his mother were waiting for me. I knew it was him when I walked in because I have his picture. He and his mother were extremely quiet. I gave Gualberto a soccer ball that I bought here in Bolivia and he just looked at me but didn't say a word. There was an English speaker there to translate for me which was helpful. Even though I speak some Spanish, I was glad to have him there. Gualberto's mother speaks Quechua which is a native language in Bolivia. They gave me a tour of his Compassion site which is also a church. I went in to every classroom to say hello to all of the kids. Each room I entered I was greeted with a "buenos dias hermana" in unison from the children.
After getting a tour of the site we walked to Gualberto's house. I tried to ask him some questions as we walked but he was so shy! I would catch him looking at me but once I looked at him he would quickly turn away. His mother didn't say much either. His home was extremely small. It was sort of an open concrete structure with only two very small rooms for 5 people. It was extremely humbling. When we entered the home Gualberto's mother stated, "we don't have much." Gualberto showed me the first letter I ever sent him. It included a picture of me. It was overwhelming for me to actually see him and his family and his home. When I signed up to sponsor him, I understood that he didn't have much and that I could help, but actually seeing it has really inpacted me. I spoke to a woman at the Compassion site who told me to write to Gualberto as much as I can. She also said to tell others who sponsor a child to write often. When letters come, the kids get very excited. Some children don't receive letters and it is very disapointing. After this experience I am motivated to write him more often and pray hard for him and his family. Maybe he will be more talkative in his letters than he was in person!
I have been to 3 different Compassion sites here in Bolivia. It has been wonderful to see the faces of these children and to meet the staff members who work at the sites. They have such big hearts. God is working in and through them and this ministry. And to think that there are sites like this all over the world! Praise God!
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