It
is humbling to see God at work in His children’s lives, and to be part of the
ministries He has put in place. Today was our last day to work with the
children in Quito. Team members helped feed and take care of the children in
both the baby house and the toddler house, worked in the garden and on
scrapbooks for each child to be given to their adoptive families when they get
adopted. It has been wonderful to serve the children and get to know them,
which makes our last day with them bittersweet.
The
day was beautiful and sunny. The clouds finally lifted, and we were rewarded
with the sight of Cayambre, one of the three permanently snow capped volcanic mountains
visible from Quito. God’s handiwork is amazing!
In
the evening we traveled to the city dump to share sandwiches and hot chocolate
with the dump workers. These people scavenge through the trash collecting recyclables.
They receive a pittance based on the amount they can collect. The president of the
dump workers divvies out their money. It is not uncommon for him to keep the
money for himself and his family, and the workers may end up without pay for a
month. In the past, workers would pull food and clothing out of the trash for
their families. The children would get worms from eating the food. Dead bodies
including dead babies have been found in the dump. The dump workers believe
they are the lowest of the low, and suffer from very low self esteem. It is a
life most of us cannot imagine. It was a
blessing to be able to shake their hands, sing to them and serve them hot
chocolate and sandwiches. Many took
sandwiches in their pockets for later or in a bag so they could take them home
to their children.
Thank
God He is working in their lives! Under the umbrella of Extreme Response
International, the organization which sponsored our team, Pastor Jose and
Teresa Jimenez direct several ministries with the goal of impacting the lives
of the dump workers spiritually, emotionally, and physically. Those ministries
include a free day care, classes to teach the women skills to earn money, a medical
clinic, as well as others. What a privilege for us to work alongside these
dedicated Christians.
Tomorrow
new adventures await us! We will travel to Latacunga and spend the remainder of
our time at the orphanage there. Remember us in your prayers as we strive to be
Jesus’ hands and feet!
Join us in praying for the Extreme Response ministries. Also for health as 2 of our crew members are not feeling the greatest and many may be coming down with a cold (although we are hoping it is allergies). Also for an American family who lives here in Ecuador that is trying to adopt 3 siblings from For His Children Orphanage.
Jessica loving on the babies.
Ashley loving on the babies.
Karen sleep feeding a baby.
Kay weeding the gardens.
Ella standing on a wall taking in the view.
The Llama!
Vern soaking in some rays while reading about Ecuador
Ella loving on the babies.
Shawna & Ella
The snow capped mountain!
Ella sitting in awe of God's creation.
Ella & Ashley
Dump daycare
Meeting in the dump daycare
Vern & the massive spoon used to stir the hot chocolate.
Triple cribs in dump daycare.
Karen
Making sandwiches for the dump workers
Paul (Extreme response worker) & Vern talking.
Bulletin board picture from the dump
Pastor Jose telling us about the Extreme Response dump ministries.
Carrying out stools for the workers to sit on.
Ella & Susan (Paul's wife) carrying hot chocolate out.
Karen sang and played for the workers.
Karen
Debbie came from Canada with her husband and 6 kids to deliver Operation Christmas boxes to the children for children's day and soon they will travel to the rainforest to visit the children they sponsor through compassion.
Vern & 2 Tias from the baby house
Ruth & 2 Tias from the baby room
No comments:
Post a Comment