Yesterday when we went to Cadereyta I knew somewhat what to expect because of previous mission trips. But it is still heart breaking in some ways and yet very hopeful. The things I found hope in is that these families have fought hard for what little material possessions they have. They have tried hard to keep their families together. And of course I find hope in the new little church that is being built there. B2B reaches out to these communities and partners with the churches in them to help prevent mothers from having to make the heartbreaking decision to put their children in an orphanage. It makes sense to give the people some resources. When the church is finished there will be rooms upstairs to teach the women how to sew with hopes that having a trade will help them make ends meet.
I noticed a mama trying to hold a baby and an umbrella over her baby and a Styrofoam plate of food and attempting to eat. So, I persuaded her in my terrible Spanish to let me hold her baby so she could eat. Kendall held the umbrella. She told me she had 3 children. I thought about my 3 children and how one of my children's bedrooms was bigger than her entire cinderblock house. And then I thought about what Gabo said... "You may look at a kid today and see they have no shoes and think it is sad. But that kid has hope and hope is better than shoes."
Earlier in the day Lee and I were asked to give a testimony to the church "congregation" (the people we had walked through the dirt roads to round up to come to the service) and I was so afraid. What could we say to encourage them? Why would they care? But as my anxious mind raced I told Lee that I thought I knew what we should say. Gabo stood next to us and translated...
"Thank you for letting us come and visit your community today. We can see that you love your children very much. We love our children very much, too. This is our daughter, Kendall. We want you to know that God loves our children even more than we can and He loves you just as much. We will pray for your children and ours. It says in Joshua, Have I not commanded you...."
And then Gabo and the pastor finished the verse completely for us in Spanish..."be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified. Do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you where ever you go." Joshua 1:9
Then the pastor started preaching passionately. "Gabo, what is he saying?"
"He said that God commands you to be strong and to courageously take hold of His hope and of Salvation. He says God doesn't want you to be afraid or discouraged but to hold on to Him."
Then all the ladies said, "Amen."
That night as we debriefed Nancy told about how they had walked through the community and took Polaroid pictures of the families. She said they were so gracious and appreciative. I told how much the kids enjoyed the bubble machine and how they tried to eat the bubbles. Brenda told about how one mother ran into her house and got a blanket and a chair for her infant's Polaroid picture. Kendall told about the cute little boy, Jose, who followed us around as we invited people to come to church and how we gave the kids candy. It was so encouraging to hear each team members perspective on the day. All of the hope that those people had shared with us...
