Sunday, June 19-----Nuevo Nacimiento

After church and lunch on top of a mountain, we had originally planned to go to a ministry called JUCUM la calera.  However, this organization had to cancel last minute and we could not go to help them.  Instead, we felt as if God was guiding us to go to Nuevo Nacimiento, a ministry that helps young, single mothers in Bogotá.

The young women who the ministry helps are from ages 11-18 with children 3 and under.  In the poorer communities in the city, many young women even resort to prostitution in order to survive.  As a result, Nuevo Nacimiento hosts women who are preparing to have a child or already have young children who also do not have the financial means or emotional and mental strength to care for their children on their own.  Nuevo Nacimiento currently hosts about 40 women, and is planning to take on 20 more soon.  The organization gives the young girls support and community when they need help to be mothers.

Although we had not originally planned to actually visit Nuevo Nacimiento, we had brought items to donate to the organization such as baby clothing and diapers.  We had not discussed the organization much, so all I really knew was that the women were roughly our age, and they were not used to respectful treatment from men.  In fact, the leaders even recommended that the boys play with the babies instead of talking to the young mothers.  As a 16-year-old boy, I was particularly apprehensive about visiting Nuevo Nacimiento because of this fact.  When we arrived, I was extremely uncomfortable and I felt very unwelcome to be there.  I felt as if the mothers would not want to talk to a boy or have a boy hold their child.  We had barely been there ten minutes, and I already wanted to leave.

As I awkwardly stood in a corner, unsure how to approach the situation, Mrs. Woody walked up and handed me a two-month-old baby named Lisa.  As a brother of 3 younger sisters, holding young babies was familiar territory for me.  Immediately, all of my nervousness and apprehensive feelings subconsciously vanished.  I did not try to suppress these feelings; they passively left me.  I completely forgot that I was even uncomfortable in the first place.  All I could think about was caring for this child and giving her mother a break to relax.  I held Lisa the entirety of our time at Nuevo Nacimiento.  Also, because I was so focused on the baby, I did not even know who her mother was until she retrieved her child from me when we were preparing to leave.

This experience at Nuevo Nacimiento showed me that when we step out of our comfort zone and put others first, God able to truly work through us.  It was his plan for us to visit these mothers, even if it was not our plan or if it was uncomfortable for us.  When we put our own desires aside, we can then see His plans for us.  When I put Lisa and her mother's needs before my own, I was truly serving.  I hope that shining our lights witnessed to these mothers, showing that they do not have to truly raise their children alone, as God is always with them.

---Taylor Thiessen