Hi! This is an update from our team written by Virina and Roosmarie.
Over the last three evenings, we spent two of them having dinner at two different restaurants that support the community. I love how these companies are committed to treating the staff fairly and friendly, they are eco-responsible, and have quality food. I love their ethical values of operating the restaurant and how they hire disadvantaged people for their staff. The foods are very delicious and very creative as they integrate different cuisine styles while remain their traditional dishes. I felt honored to support these restaurants and hope to see more of these enterprises create a better community in the nation. We were also able to support people here by using an all-women tuk tuk company for our transportation this week. The lady drivers told us that we are strong ladies! They also thanked us for supporting them as an all-women’s group ourselves.
One thing we did at the school we volunteered at was having a devotional time with the staff. We took turns leading worship songs and sharing devotionals with the staff with the help of staff translating. We all enjoyed praising the Lord regardless of our language. I (Virina) was amazed by how God used me in this section. During the first day at the facility, I was not asked to share a devotional until an hour before. I was lost and did not know what to share. Perhaps the devotional we did that morning? Or the devotional I did before? I didn’t have my Bible with me which made me more frustrated. However, God always provides. As I asked God about what to share, a verse from Psalm 46 appeared in my mind. I had peace in choosing this chapter as I read through it. After the devotional, the translator told me how the staff here like Psalms a lot and how it gives them hope, and they felt thankful for me sharing the message.
When we went out into the communities each day, we taught songs, bible stories, and shared snacks with the local people. It was so fun to see how the kids and parents were excited and having fun with the things that we and the staff brought to them. I saw how God’s word and power moved in a community. The village that we served for all three days got more involved day by day. Seeing how the activity started with mostly kids and a few mothers to having more kids and parents (including dads!) join this program showed how God attracts His people to come and know Him. We are honored to be the bridge and help the community in learning about God. People here are very nice and they show a lot of respect to their neighbors and people who they just met. We learned a lot from them! Even though working with kids is not my strong suit, I (Roosmarie) was happy to see that the children enjoyed my company. I was honored to serve and bless them even if I struggled to work with them. It was a blessing to see their childlike joy no matter my strengths. Either way, God used me to help serve the children and their community.
At our last day of helping the school, we were excited that we were asked to teach the preschoolers there a song and craft just like we did in the community. Seeing how joyous the children were despite the situations they may have been in was encouraging. They had so much laughter and creativity as we shared our song and craft. I do not think that any of us wanted the day to end as we went into the community for the last time. Regardless, it was a blessing to serve the children, staff, and community. We had become better bonded with the staff over the last three days. We and the staff gave each other blessing words and thoughts of encouragement, expressing all of our gratitude, before being given a farewell gift and saying goodbye.
I think all of us on the team can agree that these last few days (and the whole trip) have been a blessing to us. We are so humbled that we were able to serve such an incredible ministry. We can see that there is so much more to come for this place and are honored that we were able to be a part of it.
