Today was a day of learning. I learned that painting the alphabet on the school wall isn't really that annoying. I learned that oil paint is difficult to get off your skin and that paint thinner will make your skin sting. I learned that the Dominican children are much more creative at getting oil paint off their hands, they used mud and grass and that proved much more effective.
The first part of my day was spent painting and then there was lunch and seista (rest time, woohoo!). This afternoon I was part of a team that went to 2 bateys and interviewed 2 children. The first girl, Fatima (11), was a just simply a cool kid. She carried herself with confidence and had pride in her Haitian heritage. The second was a boy whose name slips my mind. He was 17 and likes the Boston Red Sox (boo!) I tried really hard to convert him into a Yankee fan but to no avail. I will pray for him about this. haha. These interviews were fun! It was great to be able to go into their homes and see how they live and meet there family. This is an experience that I can not put into words but hope to post some footage when its available to me.
I also learned today that in Barahona $4500 will support a family of 5 comfortably for an entire year that includes education. Most families make $1300 a year... This is an insane statistic. It really puts things into perpesctive. I do not feel guilty but thankful that I am so blessed. My little tithe can help support an entire family. As I go through this time of sending out letters and raising support for this next year I think I will look at every montly donation a little differently and I will continue to feel incredibly blessed.
I want to share with you something quite serious that God has put on my heart the last couple of days. When I spoke to Juanchi yesterday about the I Love Baseball program I asked him if there was something similar for the girls. I learned that there isn't and that it is a norm here for girls to start getting pregnant at the age of 12, at which point they drop out of school. Given my heart for young girls in general, this really had an affect on me. He told me that he would love to see a program that helps girls who do get pregnant to finish their education and learn basic parenting and life skills. My gears started working immediately and I started envisioning what this program would look like and how I can make it happen. Tomorrow I will meet with Malou and simply ask questions. I want to gain the knowledge from her about how this looks in this culture. Find out what is needed and what is started. This could easily be a project that I work on for the next few years, I do not know. I want to see these girls here (and in America for that matter) know their value, their identity in Christ, their self-worth. I want to see them date Jesus and allow him to romance them and woo them. I want to see them respect themselves and know that they do not need to be with a guy to be important and wanted and loved. I pray that God uses me in this type of ministry and that doors will be opened.
I ask that you join me in prayer on these things: that our interviews and footage will have an affect on people that read and see it; that God opens doors and direction for this girls program; and that God releases finances in my life- that I can become fully funded and be able to dedicate my time to developing programs such as this one for girls.
I know this is a bit repetitive, but I genuinely thank you for being part of this process with me. I pray that God blesses you as we continue this week!!
""Test me in this," says the Lord Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your feilds will not drop their fruit before it is ripe," says the Lord Almighty. Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land," says the Lord Almighty." Malachi 3:10-12
No comments:
Post a Comment