TCA Trip - Day 4

Day 4

Sol Nascente

Today we went to the largest village on Lake Carara with approximately 80 families. We were informed that this village has been resistant to people sharing God's word in the past. For example a church was built for the people, and the people who were strongly opposed to this idea destroyed the church and threw it into the river brick by brick, so after this, the Christians that did come had to base their relationships with the people on kindness. As the pastor's wife said, "You must set a foundation of pure kindness and not just throw the gospel at them." So, upon hearing this, we prayed that the Holy Spirit would reveal himself through playing with the kids and learning about the men's and women's daily lives, but if willing to hear the gospel, we would share how God personally had changed our lives.

Although it's difficult at first due to the language barrier, the parents become much more comfortable when they see us playing, singing, and loving on their kids. I (Shannon Thompson) had a very sweet moment with a 10-year-old girl I fell in love with last year, and when we saw each other today she ran up and gave me the biggest hug. She kept telling me I was beautiful and all I could think about was how much more beautiful the God is that I love. She kept kissing my cross knecklace that I had on and eventhough I am not sure if she is a believer it made me feel that all my actions had somehow made an impact. Kelsey Dyer was reminded of how much trust we need to have with the Spirit when she saw how the kids had complete trust with us even though we are complete strangers to them. Everyone has begun to notice how humble these villagers are in the way they treat their families and the way they share the little they do have.

Austin Chandler, Taylor Landry, Kyle Cox, Kelsey Dyer, Annie Wells, Gracie McCormack, and Alex Beebe performed a skit for the Brazilians that demonstrated Christ's persistent love for us. We worshiped with the Brazilians and Tanner Robertson and Katy Clements shared their testimonies. Tonight we met again as a group to discuss the day and what God is teaching us. As we read Forgotten God, I (Chloe Robinson) was convicted why mission trips like this leave you feeling completely satisfied. Francis Chan writes "We are most alive when we are loving and actively giving of ourselves because we were made to do these things. It is when we live like this that the Spirit of God moves and acts in and through us in ways that on our own we are not capable of. This is our purpose for living. This is our hope." The reason we feel emtpy or purposeless at home is because we get comfortable in our "easy" lives and forget to be the servants that God has called us to be as his disciples. We all discussed the possiblities of becoming more involved back in Dallas, and Preston commented on the need to have child-like faith just as the children in the villagers have faith in us. The discussions each night have truly brought us all closer together and have been eye-opening for everyone.

This week as we have been doing a women's Bible study led by Mrs. Delph and Mrs. Pownell, we have engaged in some really awesome conversations, but it really only pertained to the mothers. So, I (Karaline Coats) and Taylor Landry decided to start a teens Bible study for all girls without babies. We got a wide range of ages from 12-years-old all the way to 21-years-old among about 20 girls. No matter the nationality, all girls struggle with identity, appearance, are we "good enough"? (in the world's eyes), are we "beautiful"?, and our relationships with men. These are all topics we included in our discussion. We first began by getting to know the girls and asking about their life here in the village, and they asked the same about our lives back in Dallas (through translators of course). After about 30 minutes, we began to get more personal and ask about their own relationships with their boyfriends, "how far is too far", their struggles with comparing themselves to other girls, and things in which they put their identity. We told them how God should be the foundation of their relationships in order for them to work, so we made purity bracelets for each of the girls to remind them to be pure until marriage (just like our purity rings). After about an hour and a half we split up into two prayer groups and asked them if there was anything we could pray for. Overall, I think we did a really great job interacting with the girls and preaching our love for Christ over all other loves here on earth.

We end tonight giving "all the glory to God" as Mrs. Pownell said and in awe of His magnificent creation. A few kids had a discussion on predestination, and I think we concluded that we all have differing opinions but at the end of the day we are so thankful for a gracious God that is willing to save us. As we travel to the next villages, we ask for everyone to keep praying for safetly and health but most importantly that through our words and action the presence of God invades the hearts of all the people we touch.

Shannon, Chloe, Karaline, and Preston