Hola a todos, y buenas tardes!
So I can't believe a week from today I'll be almost back to North Carolina! This last week has been much less active, a winding down week if you will, but I have had a lot of fun.
Last Monday was our last official day of rest here in Mexico, and I spent the day doing just that. I slept in a little, spent some much-needed time in prayer and reading the Bible, and then I left for the internet cafe, where I updated you all on what I was doing. Then I went to the big handicraft market again, but this time with the distinct purpose of getting a few gifts for people back home. Then Kelly (who is the only other North Carolinian here) and I went out for a meal and dessert!
Tuesday, we had meetings with our team, and then with our small groups, and then Tuesday night we had the Bible Study. A few girls came and we got to say some things that I think are really good advice, but they are not much for discussing. I think that culturally, it is more common for the people with authority to just say what is "right" and then they just have to go along with it, or at least pretend to agree. Which is pretty much the opposite of how I have been trained to think for the last 4 years at Carolina. Plus, my last four years of leading Bible Studies have been with college-aged girls from the States, attending one of the best universities in the nation (or I might as well say it, the best), who were mostly all raised as Protestant Christians. To go from that to Mexican, Catholic girls around 12 yrs. old who have never even held a Bible is quite a jump!
But I think that was part of God's preparation for me for the orphanage. To begin thinking differently in terms of learning, progress, discussion and "success." For example, the study wasn't exactly what I had in mind; we were having to take several minutes each time for everyone to find the particular passage we wanted to talk about. We had to teach them where the book was, what we meant by chapter (the big number) and what we meant by verse (the little number). And once we did read it and ask some discussion questions, the girls were very hesitant to share what they thought it meant, or how they interpreted a particular verse. But we did end up asking one girl, Tanya, near the end, if she had her own Bible, and or if she had ever read it before. She answered "no" to both, and I was able to give her the Spanish Bible that they gave us Spearheaders last time we were here. (I never use it anyway, because I use my own bilingual Bible.) So at first I was really disappointed that we didn't see tons of lightbulbs going off with all the girls, but then God showed me (partly through my roommate, Karen,) that it was a success, and even if it wasn't, God doesn't necessarily want us to be successful in the eyes of the world, He just calls us to be faithful. Also, we asked Norma, a lady from our church, and Rachel, our mama, to come with us, and we are hoping that we set a spark in their hearts about what an opportunity they could have to positively impact these girls' lives. And I got some good advice from Rachel for future studies (possibly with the girls at the Casa): stick with one very basic truth and commicate it clearly and repetitively for the entire time. That way you are sure they leave with some knowledge they didn't have when they came. All that to say, I am happy with how Tuesday night went, although it was definitely a process getting to that point.
Wednesday, we went to a recreation center outside of the city for the whole day with all the jovenes from our church, and a lot of adults, too. It took about 2 hours to get there, but when we did it was so worth it! It was hot, which is rare here, so I was very grateful for that. We swam, played soccer, took in some sun and had a picnic lunch. We all came back exhausted and sun burnt, but I got a chance to talk with the jovenes and some ladies from our church and we all really bonded! When we got back, all the jovenes went to this coffee shop where you get paper and crayons and you write "love notes" and then they are all posted all over the walls.
Norma and her family invited us over on Thursday for comida and to watch La Bella y La Bestia (Beauty and the Beast), because that happens to be the favorite Disney princess of Norma, Karen and me. Norma's nine year old son, Jose, and I also went and bought pancakes on the street (that is a really common street vendor here), and they were muy rico!
Today we are having a more relaxed day, preparing to say goodbye to the church and family by writing notes to all of them and buying stuff to make some goodbye treats. We have been told by the Spearhead staff that goodbyes are crucially important here, so we are trying to do a good job of saying goodbye to everyone we met here.
I doubt I will be updating again for a while, so I will leave you with my schedule for the rest of the time I am here.
Saturday- Our church's anniversary celebration, and afterwards, a game night with the church! (I am going to make French toast, brownies, and maybe cookies, too!)
Sunday- Our last Sunday at church...we will have to say something, and we might sing a duet, too...so you can be praying for sufficient words to thank them and for pitch...jaja.
Monday- To the pyramids with our team
Tuesday- Closing Conference with Spearhead
Wednesday- Last day with our family...we will probably do something fun with them...maybe go back to Xochimilco and ride the boats...?
Thursday- Goodbye/Thank you Breakfast with our families and pastors, and then more closing/reentry talks...then we stay in a hotel Thursday night
Friday-I will leave around 3:30 AM for the airport for my 6:15 flight to Dallas. I will get home around 3pm, and to the river house by 6pm for a home-cooked meal with my family!!
Then I will return to Mexico on October 12th for the rest of the year (until July 2009).
Ok, I can't wait to see all of you, and as usual, thanks for reading!
Love!
Friday, July 25, 2008
Monday, July 21, 2008
Vacation Bible School and the Concierto Masivo
Buenos Dias!
I am finally having a chance to update you all after my busiest week so far. What a blessing it is to be in the internet cafe. It is the most quiet I have had in probably 12 days.
So I will begin with the rest of the VBS week. We had a blast! It was really a crazy week, but I think all the kids had fun (they kept coming back!) and they learned a lot, too. Everyday of VBS started at around 8am, when the leaders and helpers began to arrive to set up. Then the kids started arriving at 9am. At 9:30, we had an opening ceremony with songs, a skit and some kind of introduction to the day´s theme. The overall theme was "La Casa de mi Padre," or, "My Father´s House." So everyday, we discussed a different "house." For example, the first day was about creation, and we talked about "La Primera Casa," or the world. The others were The Floating House (Noah´s Ark), The Mobile House (Abram and Sarah´s tent as they walked forward in faith through the desert, not knowing where they would go next), My House is the Desert (The pueblo of God as they left slavery in Egypt and wandered in the desert), and finally, The House of Heaven.
It was a really cool experience to talk about these Bible accounts and spiritual truths with kids who had really never heard them before. They are almost all nominally Catholic, but the Catholic tradition here lacks home study of the Bible, prayer, and almost everything else we consider "Christian." One day as we began to eat our snack, I asked my group of kids if anyone wanted to pray over the food and they all looked at me like I was absolutely crazy. I explained that we could talk to God before we eat to thank Him for the food, and pray for those who don´t have any food, and pray that the food would strengthen us so that we could serve Him, etc. From their looks, I am pretty sure none of them had ever said a blessing in their life. As I mentioned in my other blog, I really believe Catholicism here is structured so differently that it lacks any real connection to God. The focus is entirely on saints and the Virgen, but they don´t know that they can speak directly to their Heavenly Father! So it made me smile to see these Catholic children saying a little blessing, really talking to God. Another little girl, Michelle, asked me one day if I was a Christian. I said that I was, and then asked her if she knew what that meant. Even though she is from a Catholic family, she responded "no." So I explained to her, in my broken Spanish, what I thought it meant to be a Christian. Things like this are really opening my eyes to the spiritual poverty here.
Back to the VBS schedule, after the opening, we would break up into our age groups (3-6, 6-8, 8-12, each group had about 20 kids) and have a Bible Story time for 30 minutes, which I finally led on the last day. These kids are a bit intimidating, and a few times they weren´t very nice about my Spanish abilities...haha. After that, we have 6 activity periods for crafts, cooking, snack, music, crafts related to the Bible story, and finally, my activity, English! I got to teach a lot of important vocabulary to the kids and at the same time have a lot of fun. I incorporated what we learned each day into a camp game of some sort. (What a resource it is to have been a camp counselor!!) They kids were eager to learn English and really seemed to enjoy the games we played. After all our activities, we have a closure time with more music and a skit, and then we would (try to) send the kids away to start cleaning up!
It has been really cool to connect with the kids; they love Karen and I simply because of the curiosity factor. They always want to talk, and we have had the opportunity to talk with several of the girls about boyfriends, etc. While we were chatting, that was the subject they kept coming back to..."Do you have a boyfriend?" and "Have you kissed a boy?" etc., like most 12 and 13 yr old girls begin to ask. So we asked them if they wanted to meet one day and learn about what the Bible says about boyfriends and relationships, and they all seemed excited about the possibility, so we are having a Bible Study of sorts on Tuesday at 7pm. You can definitely be praying for us, our Spanish and generally, for wisdom on how to advise girls this young who are already pretty experienced in this area. I think this could be really good preparation for the Casa Hogar in the Fall, so I am grateful, but a little nervous, too.
So after the VBS finished up on Friday, we had a cookout with all the leaders at the church that went pretty late. Saturday morning, I was exhausted and hadn´t slept well all week for different reasons. I had a little melt down, and called my summer "coach," Michelle, to see if we could get together before our church´s "concierto masivo" to talk, and really just to get away from the house for a little while. She said to come on, so I went into the house to tell my family that I was going out and I would meet them at the concert. However, mid-sentence, I lost it and they asked me what was wrong, so I was able to cry with them and be comforted. As I sat down on the couch, my mama´s mama told her daughter to get the baby oil and she started massaging my shoulders, head, arms, and hands with oil. She talked with me for long while and told me that what I was feeling was completely normal, and that I should try to get more time by myself to relax. She also said I could come to her house to sleep if I ever needed to get out of the church and the constant visiting. In that moment, I really felt like they were my family, like I wasn´t a guest, I was a daughter! It was such a blessing to have that experience, and the massage wasn´t too bad either. I told her that I was going to start crying more often!
Saturday night, we had the "concierto masivo," which did end up being pretty big. There were between 200 and 300 people there, including our church of 30 people and a lot of the parents of children in the VBS. Our team came and we did the same skit about Masks, and then sang a song and then I shared a testimony about fear versus faith and choosing to have faith in God´s goodness rather than worrying and being afraid.....in Spanish! I was pretty nervous, because I had written out what I wanted to say, but I wasn´t supposed to read it and I didn´t have it memorized. But the whole team prayed for Karen and I, and God really helped me! I looked down a few times, but said a lot of it without reading. God is so faithful. Karen also shared her testimony, but in English with a translator. It was very powerful! She has had a lot of hurt and suffering in her life. She was born with Clef lip and palate and Cerebal Palsy, and has had 16 surgeries to correct all of this that have left her with many physical scars and emotional wounds as well. There have been many who have made fun of her and treated her as if she just didn´t measure up. To hear her proclaim without hesitation that God has been faithful and good to her is such a testimony to the fact that external things are not how God sees us. He loves us without condition, because He is Love. After our part, the band played several songs and we had a very sweet time of renewal and refreshment in the Lord.
Sunday, we had another VBS closure incorporated into the regular Sunday service for the kids who couldn´t come to the Saturday closure, and several families came with their children, which was really awesome to see! We went with one of the ladies in our church and her family to Krsipy Kreme Donuts, too! (Who knew they had that here in MX?!?!) Sunday was long and difficult with so much Spanish and constant noise all day, but we made it through and now we only have one Sunday left!
Thank you for reading and continuing to support me by caring about what I am doing here!! Keep praying for the children in our neighborhood and for us as we finish up our work here in Mexico. I am getting excited about seeing my family and all of you very soon!
Love!
I am finally having a chance to update you all after my busiest week so far. What a blessing it is to be in the internet cafe. It is the most quiet I have had in probably 12 days.
So I will begin with the rest of the VBS week. We had a blast! It was really a crazy week, but I think all the kids had fun (they kept coming back!) and they learned a lot, too. Everyday of VBS started at around 8am, when the leaders and helpers began to arrive to set up. Then the kids started arriving at 9am. At 9:30, we had an opening ceremony with songs, a skit and some kind of introduction to the day´s theme. The overall theme was "La Casa de mi Padre," or, "My Father´s House." So everyday, we discussed a different "house." For example, the first day was about creation, and we talked about "La Primera Casa," or the world. The others were The Floating House (Noah´s Ark), The Mobile House (Abram and Sarah´s tent as they walked forward in faith through the desert, not knowing where they would go next), My House is the Desert (The pueblo of God as they left slavery in Egypt and wandered in the desert), and finally, The House of Heaven.
It was a really cool experience to talk about these Bible accounts and spiritual truths with kids who had really never heard them before. They are almost all nominally Catholic, but the Catholic tradition here lacks home study of the Bible, prayer, and almost everything else we consider "Christian." One day as we began to eat our snack, I asked my group of kids if anyone wanted to pray over the food and they all looked at me like I was absolutely crazy. I explained that we could talk to God before we eat to thank Him for the food, and pray for those who don´t have any food, and pray that the food would strengthen us so that we could serve Him, etc. From their looks, I am pretty sure none of them had ever said a blessing in their life. As I mentioned in my other blog, I really believe Catholicism here is structured so differently that it lacks any real connection to God. The focus is entirely on saints and the Virgen, but they don´t know that they can speak directly to their Heavenly Father! So it made me smile to see these Catholic children saying a little blessing, really talking to God. Another little girl, Michelle, asked me one day if I was a Christian. I said that I was, and then asked her if she knew what that meant. Even though she is from a Catholic family, she responded "no." So I explained to her, in my broken Spanish, what I thought it meant to be a Christian. Things like this are really opening my eyes to the spiritual poverty here.
Back to the VBS schedule, after the opening, we would break up into our age groups (3-6, 6-8, 8-12, each group had about 20 kids) and have a Bible Story time for 30 minutes, which I finally led on the last day. These kids are a bit intimidating, and a few times they weren´t very nice about my Spanish abilities...haha. After that, we have 6 activity periods for crafts, cooking, snack, music, crafts related to the Bible story, and finally, my activity, English! I got to teach a lot of important vocabulary to the kids and at the same time have a lot of fun. I incorporated what we learned each day into a camp game of some sort. (What a resource it is to have been a camp counselor!!) They kids were eager to learn English and really seemed to enjoy the games we played. After all our activities, we have a closure time with more music and a skit, and then we would (try to) send the kids away to start cleaning up!
It has been really cool to connect with the kids; they love Karen and I simply because of the curiosity factor. They always want to talk, and we have had the opportunity to talk with several of the girls about boyfriends, etc. While we were chatting, that was the subject they kept coming back to..."Do you have a boyfriend?" and "Have you kissed a boy?" etc., like most 12 and 13 yr old girls begin to ask. So we asked them if they wanted to meet one day and learn about what the Bible says about boyfriends and relationships, and they all seemed excited about the possibility, so we are having a Bible Study of sorts on Tuesday at 7pm. You can definitely be praying for us, our Spanish and generally, for wisdom on how to advise girls this young who are already pretty experienced in this area. I think this could be really good preparation for the Casa Hogar in the Fall, so I am grateful, but a little nervous, too.
So after the VBS finished up on Friday, we had a cookout with all the leaders at the church that went pretty late. Saturday morning, I was exhausted and hadn´t slept well all week for different reasons. I had a little melt down, and called my summer "coach," Michelle, to see if we could get together before our church´s "concierto masivo" to talk, and really just to get away from the house for a little while. She said to come on, so I went into the house to tell my family that I was going out and I would meet them at the concert. However, mid-sentence, I lost it and they asked me what was wrong, so I was able to cry with them and be comforted. As I sat down on the couch, my mama´s mama told her daughter to get the baby oil and she started massaging my shoulders, head, arms, and hands with oil. She talked with me for long while and told me that what I was feeling was completely normal, and that I should try to get more time by myself to relax. She also said I could come to her house to sleep if I ever needed to get out of the church and the constant visiting. In that moment, I really felt like they were my family, like I wasn´t a guest, I was a daughter! It was such a blessing to have that experience, and the massage wasn´t too bad either. I told her that I was going to start crying more often!
Saturday night, we had the "concierto masivo," which did end up being pretty big. There were between 200 and 300 people there, including our church of 30 people and a lot of the parents of children in the VBS. Our team came and we did the same skit about Masks, and then sang a song and then I shared a testimony about fear versus faith and choosing to have faith in God´s goodness rather than worrying and being afraid.....in Spanish! I was pretty nervous, because I had written out what I wanted to say, but I wasn´t supposed to read it and I didn´t have it memorized. But the whole team prayed for Karen and I, and God really helped me! I looked down a few times, but said a lot of it without reading. God is so faithful. Karen also shared her testimony, but in English with a translator. It was very powerful! She has had a lot of hurt and suffering in her life. She was born with Clef lip and palate and Cerebal Palsy, and has had 16 surgeries to correct all of this that have left her with many physical scars and emotional wounds as well. There have been many who have made fun of her and treated her as if she just didn´t measure up. To hear her proclaim without hesitation that God has been faithful and good to her is such a testimony to the fact that external things are not how God sees us. He loves us without condition, because He is Love. After our part, the band played several songs and we had a very sweet time of renewal and refreshment in the Lord.
Sunday, we had another VBS closure incorporated into the regular Sunday service for the kids who couldn´t come to the Saturday closure, and several families came with their children, which was really awesome to see! We went with one of the ladies in our church and her family to Krsipy Kreme Donuts, too! (Who knew they had that here in MX?!?!) Sunday was long and difficult with so much Spanish and constant noise all day, but we made it through and now we only have one Sunday left!
Thank you for reading and continuing to support me by caring about what I am doing here!! Keep praying for the children in our neighborhood and for us as we finish up our work here in Mexico. I am getting excited about seeing my family and all of you very soon!
Love!
Monday, July 14, 2008
Morelia and Compassion Internat'l
Greetings!
I don't have much time, but I wanted to quickly update you all on how my trip to Morelia was. We left Thursday around 10am, and the drive was absolutely breathtaking! Mountains and lakes and little quesadilla shops the whole way! Along with about 7 tolls--very expensive tolls at that! Be thankful for our roads in the States!
We arrived around 2pm and Paul drove us around the city. It is also beautiful! There are tons of very old colonial buildings. It looks a lot like Spain apparently. There were lots of fountains too. In general, the city seems artsy and friendly. And there are tons of beautiful hotels- so come visit me!
After seeing the town, we went to the orphanage. Here in Mexico they are called Casa Hogares, and mine in particular is "Casa Hogar El Buen Pastor." Because it is summer vacation for the kids, many of the children's parents come and pick them up for a few weeks. So usually there are 30 kids living there, but there were only 15 while we were there. There is a directora, Hermana Sara, and a subdirector, Fernando, who is married with one on the way. Sara and Fer were raised in the Casa. There is also a gringo missionary couple living on the premises, but in a separate house a ways away from the Casa itself. They are Jacob and Charity, and they have two girls who are 1 and 3. Right now, there are also two young gringa girls living at the Casa. They just arrived in June and will stay until the end of November. They were very helpful and explained a lot of how the Casa works. It will be good to have them there as I get started. There is also a teacher who comes during the day to help with homework, whose name is Sandra. She is mexican, but speaks good english.
The children were absolutely precious, and so in need of love, warmth and attention. They were all calling me "mom" within minutes of arriving. Most of them are under 10, with the exception of about 3 girls and 2 guys. The youngest is a 4 yr. old girl named Lupita. I am so excited to get there and start working with them. One of my tasks will be helping the kids get ready for school-- hair, teeth, clothes, etc. and then also getting ready for bed. Right now, this area is pretty much ignored, so it will be nice to really be needed. Also, I want to have one on one time with each of the girls. This is really their greatest need: attention, someone to listen, and wise counsel. I am so excited to serve them in that way. There are some concerns about how the directors discipline the children, so you can be praying that I will already begin to contemplate this situation with wisdom, grace and humility.
We met the kids, took a walk with some of the girls, ran errands with the Hermana Sara, and I led a devotional with them Friday morning. We also sang and had a Bible Study. Then some doctors came and hosted a party for them on Friday as well. We left around 3 and got back around 9, stopping on the way for some quesadillas: yum!!
Saturday morning, we got up around 6 and headed outside of the city to La Paz to a Compassion International Project. We did a clown show and led some songs with the kids from the project, and then we each taught our own class...there were about 130 children there!! That went really well; it was great to meet the children and see how they live. Houses made of fabric and tin and whatever other material they could find. It was definitely an experience I won't forget.
So then we had our first day of VBS today! It was absolutely crazy! We had tons of kids and we were working out the kinks in the schedule, but I really think it went super overall. I taught English; today we learned colors and days of the week. The kids all really love learning English and are eager and well-behaved for the most part. God really supernaturally equipped me in remembering their names and gaining instant favor with them. So praise God, and thank you all for your prayers.
Pray that the rest of the week would go well and that these kids would really be affected by the news that God loves them and wants to have a relationship with them. We are also praying that their parents could come to experience the Lord through their children. Finally pray for energy for my roommate and me. There is so much to do in the next week and a half, and we are pretty tired!!
Love, Lauren
I don't have much time, but I wanted to quickly update you all on how my trip to Morelia was. We left Thursday around 10am, and the drive was absolutely breathtaking! Mountains and lakes and little quesadilla shops the whole way! Along with about 7 tolls--very expensive tolls at that! Be thankful for our roads in the States!
We arrived around 2pm and Paul drove us around the city. It is also beautiful! There are tons of very old colonial buildings. It looks a lot like Spain apparently. There were lots of fountains too. In general, the city seems artsy and friendly. And there are tons of beautiful hotels- so come visit me!
After seeing the town, we went to the orphanage. Here in Mexico they are called Casa Hogares, and mine in particular is "Casa Hogar El Buen Pastor." Because it is summer vacation for the kids, many of the children's parents come and pick them up for a few weeks. So usually there are 30 kids living there, but there were only 15 while we were there. There is a directora, Hermana Sara, and a subdirector, Fernando, who is married with one on the way. Sara and Fer were raised in the Casa. There is also a gringo missionary couple living on the premises, but in a separate house a ways away from the Casa itself. They are Jacob and Charity, and they have two girls who are 1 and 3. Right now, there are also two young gringa girls living at the Casa. They just arrived in June and will stay until the end of November. They were very helpful and explained a lot of how the Casa works. It will be good to have them there as I get started. There is also a teacher who comes during the day to help with homework, whose name is Sandra. She is mexican, but speaks good english.
The children were absolutely precious, and so in need of love, warmth and attention. They were all calling me "mom" within minutes of arriving. Most of them are under 10, with the exception of about 3 girls and 2 guys. The youngest is a 4 yr. old girl named Lupita. I am so excited to get there and start working with them. One of my tasks will be helping the kids get ready for school-- hair, teeth, clothes, etc. and then also getting ready for bed. Right now, this area is pretty much ignored, so it will be nice to really be needed. Also, I want to have one on one time with each of the girls. This is really their greatest need: attention, someone to listen, and wise counsel. I am so excited to serve them in that way. There are some concerns about how the directors discipline the children, so you can be praying that I will already begin to contemplate this situation with wisdom, grace and humility.
We met the kids, took a walk with some of the girls, ran errands with the Hermana Sara, and I led a devotional with them Friday morning. We also sang and had a Bible Study. Then some doctors came and hosted a party for them on Friday as well. We left around 3 and got back around 9, stopping on the way for some quesadillas: yum!!
Saturday morning, we got up around 6 and headed outside of the city to La Paz to a Compassion International Project. We did a clown show and led some songs with the kids from the project, and then we each taught our own class...there were about 130 children there!! That went really well; it was great to meet the children and see how they live. Houses made of fabric and tin and whatever other material they could find. It was definitely an experience I won't forget.
So then we had our first day of VBS today! It was absolutely crazy! We had tons of kids and we were working out the kinks in the schedule, but I really think it went super overall. I taught English; today we learned colors and days of the week. The kids all really love learning English and are eager and well-behaved for the most part. God really supernaturally equipped me in remembering their names and gaining instant favor with them. So praise God, and thank you all for your prayers.
Pray that the rest of the week would go well and that these kids would really be affected by the news that God loves them and wants to have a relationship with them. We are also praying that their parents could come to experience the Lord through their children. Finally pray for energy for my roommate and me. There is so much to do in the next week and a half, and we are pretty tired!!
Love, Lauren
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
It has been a while...
Hello all!
Sorry it has been a while since I´ve updated you all on what I´ve been doing! Things here in Mexico are crazy, and I am so thankful for that. I love staying busy!
So I left off at last Saturday. So last Sunday was good. We had our team leaders, Michelle and Jim, come to our church to visit, and we had a great meal together with the whole church between services, which is always fun. Our church loves Coca Cola, so we had plenty of that to go around as well. I honestly can´t remember too much from last Sunday, so I´ll leave it at that.
Then that next Monday, we began our last week of Spanish classes. My class was mainly working on our skit for graduation, which actually was on Thursday (instead of Saturday). So everyday while the other classes were learning conjugation, conjuntions or pronunciation, our class was out in the public (and very crowded, might I add...) park practicing our skit in full costume. We "street girls" were dressed as a goth, a gang member, a druggie/hippie (lucky me), and a theif. Our one male class member was a preacher who we had to pretend to rob and beat up (using fake blood and black makeup to make the beating look real...). After this fake beating, he asks us to come back, and he begins to share with us that we are loved by God, etc., etc., and thus begin our Spanish solos...at first we are resistant, then slowly we grow curious, and finally, we accept Christ and we all sing together, again, in Spanish. So if you can just imagine what a scene 5 gringos made performing such a skit in the middle of the day in Mexico City, I am sure you are probably enjoying a pretty big laugh right now.
Wednesday night, we had visitation again. We visited one of our viejitas (old ladies) in our church. She was very much an inspiration to us all, and she invited a friend to the our in-house service who seemed to be in a lot of distress over her children´s situations. We were able to pray for them both and I think God really helped us again to have the words we needed, so thanks for your prayers in that area!
Thursday was our graduation, and I think our skit was a hit! Of course, almost 10 people from my family/church came to see me embarrass myself, and they are still talking about the skit a week later... After each class´s presentation, we ate tamales and I got to talk with Heidi´s old Mexican family, which was great.
Friday, for the Fourth, and for the birthday party of our leader, Jim, we all went to Xochimilco, a little colony in Mexico City, for a cookout! It was amazing! There was REAL GRASS, overlooking a river with the old timey boats the Aztec Indians used to use always floating by. We saw several people fishing, and harvesting some kind of plant from the river. There was so much food, I can´t even report on all of it, but let´s just say I was so full that I almost passed up the birthday cake and ice cream...almost. When we got home from the party, my family asked when I was going to make them chocolate chip cookies, and of course, I never turn down an opportunity for cookies, so I told them that that was the night! We made very yummy cookies and all the jovenes enjoyed them it seemed.
Saturday, we got up and had "hotcakes," which are pancakes, with our family. They were yummy, but untraditional. Apparently in Mexico, they eat their pancakes with condensed milk and jelly. Who knew? After a lazy Saturday morning breakfast, a bunch of people from the church came over and we had VBS training time that began at 12. The meeting was supposed to be from 12-4pm, but, as I´ve learned so many times before, time is so relative here. We finally finished up the meeting at 7:15pm! So that was a pretty long day of Spanish. I found out during the meeting that I will be a group coordinator for the 6 to 8 year olds, and I will also be teaching English as an activity during VBS. So pray for me as I try to find a spare moment to begin doing some lesson plans-- a lesson for each age group (there are 3 age groups), for each day of a 5 day VBS!
This was Sunday was like most: long, with lots of Spanish, but God really sustained us through it all. Karen and I both shared our testimonies, and I think they went well and were clear. I pray that God used something I said anyway.
Yesterday, we transitioned to having Mondays as our day of rest because we are now officially in our "full-time ministry" time. So Monday I met a bunch of the people from our team out at La Presa, which is outside of the city, up in the beautiful mountains. We all met our two girls´house and had fresh banana and strawberry liquadas (smoothies) and pan dulce before departing on what would be the crazy hike I´ve ever been on! We climbed up through streets steeper than I´ve ever seen before. (It was almost easier to walk on all fours than standing straight up.) Finally we crossed the "great wall of Mexico," a wall the government established to prevent anymore upward development of the mountains. We climbed and climbed and climbed, passing by shepherds with real live sheep, burros (donkeys) and horses, little huts of tin, and the like. It was absolutely beautiful.
So, now it´s Tuesday and we are about to head to our meeting for worship with the team, and then some small group time to talk about how we are doing, etc. I´ve got to run, but I will update more later! It may be a while, because I am getting so busy lately!
You can pray for me on Thursday and Friday, we are headed to Morelia, where I´ll be living for the year, to see what the Casa Hogar is like and meet the director and some of the kids. Pray hard!
Love, Lauren
Sorry it has been a while since I´ve updated you all on what I´ve been doing! Things here in Mexico are crazy, and I am so thankful for that. I love staying busy!
So I left off at last Saturday. So last Sunday was good. We had our team leaders, Michelle and Jim, come to our church to visit, and we had a great meal together with the whole church between services, which is always fun. Our church loves Coca Cola, so we had plenty of that to go around as well. I honestly can´t remember too much from last Sunday, so I´ll leave it at that.
Then that next Monday, we began our last week of Spanish classes. My class was mainly working on our skit for graduation, which actually was on Thursday (instead of Saturday). So everyday while the other classes were learning conjugation, conjuntions or pronunciation, our class was out in the public (and very crowded, might I add...) park practicing our skit in full costume. We "street girls" were dressed as a goth, a gang member, a druggie/hippie (lucky me), and a theif. Our one male class member was a preacher who we had to pretend to rob and beat up (using fake blood and black makeup to make the beating look real...). After this fake beating, he asks us to come back, and he begins to share with us that we are loved by God, etc., etc., and thus begin our Spanish solos...at first we are resistant, then slowly we grow curious, and finally, we accept Christ and we all sing together, again, in Spanish. So if you can just imagine what a scene 5 gringos made performing such a skit in the middle of the day in Mexico City, I am sure you are probably enjoying a pretty big laugh right now.
Wednesday night, we had visitation again. We visited one of our viejitas (old ladies) in our church. She was very much an inspiration to us all, and she invited a friend to the our in-house service who seemed to be in a lot of distress over her children´s situations. We were able to pray for them both and I think God really helped us again to have the words we needed, so thanks for your prayers in that area!
Thursday was our graduation, and I think our skit was a hit! Of course, almost 10 people from my family/church came to see me embarrass myself, and they are still talking about the skit a week later... After each class´s presentation, we ate tamales and I got to talk with Heidi´s old Mexican family, which was great.
Friday, for the Fourth, and for the birthday party of our leader, Jim, we all went to Xochimilco, a little colony in Mexico City, for a cookout! It was amazing! There was REAL GRASS, overlooking a river with the old timey boats the Aztec Indians used to use always floating by. We saw several people fishing, and harvesting some kind of plant from the river. There was so much food, I can´t even report on all of it, but let´s just say I was so full that I almost passed up the birthday cake and ice cream...almost. When we got home from the party, my family asked when I was going to make them chocolate chip cookies, and of course, I never turn down an opportunity for cookies, so I told them that that was the night! We made very yummy cookies and all the jovenes enjoyed them it seemed.
Saturday, we got up and had "hotcakes," which are pancakes, with our family. They were yummy, but untraditional. Apparently in Mexico, they eat their pancakes with condensed milk and jelly. Who knew? After a lazy Saturday morning breakfast, a bunch of people from the church came over and we had VBS training time that began at 12. The meeting was supposed to be from 12-4pm, but, as I´ve learned so many times before, time is so relative here. We finally finished up the meeting at 7:15pm! So that was a pretty long day of Spanish. I found out during the meeting that I will be a group coordinator for the 6 to 8 year olds, and I will also be teaching English as an activity during VBS. So pray for me as I try to find a spare moment to begin doing some lesson plans-- a lesson for each age group (there are 3 age groups), for each day of a 5 day VBS!
This was Sunday was like most: long, with lots of Spanish, but God really sustained us through it all. Karen and I both shared our testimonies, and I think they went well and were clear. I pray that God used something I said anyway.
Yesterday, we transitioned to having Mondays as our day of rest because we are now officially in our "full-time ministry" time. So Monday I met a bunch of the people from our team out at La Presa, which is outside of the city, up in the beautiful mountains. We all met our two girls´house and had fresh banana and strawberry liquadas (smoothies) and pan dulce before departing on what would be the crazy hike I´ve ever been on! We climbed up through streets steeper than I´ve ever seen before. (It was almost easier to walk on all fours than standing straight up.) Finally we crossed the "great wall of Mexico," a wall the government established to prevent anymore upward development of the mountains. We climbed and climbed and climbed, passing by shepherds with real live sheep, burros (donkeys) and horses, little huts of tin, and the like. It was absolutely beautiful.
So, now it´s Tuesday and we are about to head to our meeting for worship with the team, and then some small group time to talk about how we are doing, etc. I´ve got to run, but I will update more later! It may be a while, because I am getting so busy lately!
You can pray for me on Thursday and Friday, we are headed to Morelia, where I´ll be living for the year, to see what the Casa Hogar is like and meet the director and some of the kids. Pray hard!
Love, Lauren
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