This is what we did for the Fourth of July:
As a team we woke up very early and packed our things because we were moving hotels. We moved from Casa Lola to Hotel Paraiso before going to breakfast at a local restaurant. Even though it’s not paradise (the showers shock you and fireworks are constantly exploding nearby), this hotel is a lot better than we all expected we were going to be staying in. It even has a coconut tree where young men may entertain themselves by knocking coconuts off of it.
We arrived at Lucas’ church and immediately started our program for the kids. We sung many children’s songs, preformed a mini-drama about Shadrack, Meshach and Abednego, performed a couple of meaningful and entertaining skits, and our ‘Set Me Free’ drime. We also played a few games with the kids. That day we also were privileged to visit many of the children’s houses who came to the program. We prayed over their houses and their families. They were very eager to receive prayer and glad to have us there.
Later that afternoon, after eating at a local pandaria, we ministered with teenagers. We attempted to teach them our drime, which didn’t work out as well as we hoped due to the language barrier which brought some confusion. In spite of some communication difficulties, I believe that we made an impact on their lives, and know they made one on ours. Sometimes it’s just nice to talk with people who are close to our age. We left Lucas’ church and picked up some supplies for our fun-filled evening.
We came back to the hotel as the sun was setting, all of us with red, white, or blue glowsticks to celebrate the Fourth of July. Inevitably, I thought of home on that day, wondering how my family would be celebrating their independence. That night we shared about how God was working in our lives. God is doing so many amazing things here! All of us are growing in Him and advancing our relationships. Please pray that we would continue to work well together as a team and that sickness would be broken among us.
For the advancement of His kingdom,
Brennan Whitacre
(Assisted by Peter Lanning, the First)
