Hey y’all it’s Kathryn,
Today was a mixture of both good and bad. My heart is broken for these people. This is my third trip here and each time my heart is broken but also filled with immense joy.
Today started with VBS in Savane Mole. We got to walk around the town and gather the children. We blew bubbles, told the story of David and Goliath, and then made pipe cleaner bracelets while the kids colored. It was cool to see all of the beautiful smiles on these kids faces. My favorite part of the VBS was when we were blowing bubbles and the kids were just chasing after them, trying to catch them. Every time a bubble was touched it popped. I think this reminded me of how I sometimes view my relationship with Christ. I chase after something tangible that I think is God, but when I touch it, it pops and disappears into thin air.
Hebrews 11:1 says “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see”. I think this is key because if we try to chase after something that we think fulfills us to find out it will fade and disappear. Christ is the only one who can truly fulfill us. We may not always see what God is doing or in what time He is doing it in but His plan is greater than ours. Chasing after things of this world is showing that we do not have faith in what God has for us. I look at these kids and see how much joy they have and how much love they have for others and it makes my heart happy.
Between the VBS and youth conference we got to go to the beach. Let me tell you…THIS IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BEACH IN THE WORLD! The water is so blue and clean, the sand is soft, and it was so much fun to hang out with our team and the interpreters. It was so fun to just play soccer on the beach with some of the interpreters. I got to talk to them and get to know them. It was a great time to relax and have some great group bonding time.
Today the real brokenness came at the teen conference. This comes in two different parts so bear with me. Once Eric and Mandy were done speaking we had to tell the children under 11 to leave and play in the streets. They thought the youth conference was a VBS and it was so hard to tell them they couldn’t eat like the older kids. We didn’t have enough food for all the small children so they had to watch us serve the older kids while they sat there probably hungry. I understand that there will sometimes not be enough for everyone. I know I cannot help each child but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt when I feel helpless.
The second part of this is also hard to write about. I heard multiple stories today that tore my heart out of my chest. Some of these girls are helpless in their situation. They do not know how to stand up for themselves. They don’t know how loved they are by Christ. They don’t see how beautiful they truly are. We sat there praying for these girls and I hope with everything within me that they are empowered and heard what we were trying to tell them.
I am so blessed to be here and I am so excited to see what else God has in store for this town. Christ is present here and it is such a blessing to be apart of something more. I don’t know if I will ever get to talk to the girls who are struggling, or see the children from VBS again but one thing I do know is that God has them in His hands. God is watching over them and has a plan for each of their lives. I am blessed to be here and blessed to serve the one true living God.
God Bless 🙂
******
P.S.
Jody has to approve the comments before they’ll show up, so be patient my people! (Matt ;)) -Mere
Sorry it has taken us almost 14 hours to upload pictures. These were all we could get to upload since last night.
hey hey hey now! i wasn’t impatiiiiiiient……….i just got scared that my comment didn’t go through because i did it from my work computer. they moniter everything here so they probably thought i was doing some shady business! 🙂
I’m praying that God would rejuvinate all of you before each conference so that you can go into each one feeling filled completely with energy and feeling rested as well. it breaks my heart just to imagine what some of those kids has been through and i can only imagine what y’all are having to deal with. i pray that God would strengthen you and comfort your soul during those times. you guys are doing wonderful things!
love you guys!
Ok, so now that I can see again (from the tears that just seemed to flow) I want to say how very proud of Gerik I am. The picture of you holding such a sweet child is amazing, it is as if I can actually feel your anguish, love and hope. You truly are an amazing person. I am so very glad that you have been given this opportunity and know this will help you on your journey to “Find your Soul”. All my love, Mom
I have to say I’m absolutely amazed at all the wonderful acts of service y’all have performed so far. We read these posts every morning and pray that your spirits are uplifted even through the heart breaking experiences. I’m so incredibly proud of each and every one of you and the selfless decisions y’all have made over the last week. Keep up the amazing work and make it home safely!
P.S. Gerik, I couldn’t resist the public humiliation! I miss you behhhhb!
Always blessed to hear whats on your heart Kathryn. Thank you for being the hands of our dear Lord and Savior. The Tech team is a constant source of inspiration, Keep sowing those seeds and loving those babies
Sweet Abbey sounds like God has taken you on an amazing journey! Cant wait to hear everything! We love you Momma, Dad, Cole meme and Terry