Today was another great day in Bogotá, though Colombia is currently behind 2-0 at the half of the Copa América semifinal game. It has been so much fun for me to be back "home" at least for a week. One of the things that I have missed the most about Colombia is service. At El Camino Academy (ECA), the school that I used to go to here, there is a huge emphasis on service. Each grade at the school has their own ministry for the school year that they work with throughout the year, building relationships with the people at that ministry. That is why today was so special to me. Today, instead of spending an hour or two with the children at the ministries and then leaving probably never to see them again, we were able to build real relationships with the children from Hogar de Paz in Lijaca. Spending the whole day riding the bus for hours and touring downtown Bogotá with the kids allowed us to spend a lot of time with them and really get to know them on a much deeper level.
I actually got to get to know two different kids today. The first kid's name was Heiden, a feisty and energetic boy who wanted to run everywhere and have me spin him around. While it was exhausting chasing a 7-year-old at 10,500 feet above sea level for an hour and a half, he was actually a very sweet kid who loved playing with slinkies in the shops at the top of the mountain. It was also very cool because as we were walking up from the tram on the mountain, we passed the stations of the cross that are along the path to the top. I asked if he knew the story of Jesus' crucifixion and he said no, so as we passed each of the stations I was able to share the gospel with him. Later on in the day, Cal and I switched partners to give both of us a break, so I spent the rest of the day with a girl named Jessica. We had a blast eating lunch, doing piggyback rides, and running through the garden at Simón Bolivar's house. It was so much fun getting to spend time with her, but it made it extremely hard to say goodbye, especially because she came back 10 different times saying that this was the last hug and that we could leave now.
Getting to build relationships with these kids really reminded me of the importance of investing in service and ministry. While short-term mission trips are good, I was really challenged to invest in a ministry long-term when I get home, just like we used to at ECA because investing in relationships is one of the most powerful ways to share God's love with someone.
- Kaitlyn McCollum
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
I'm writing this on my phone while on the bus, in traffic, on the way back from doing some shopping. There's a decent amount of traffic here everyday which seems like a bad thing at first, but, we've had some seriously fun games of Mafia, Contact and Ghost (you'll probably get an explanation of those at the end of the week). At the market we were just shopping at, I got some weird stretchy pants, this super awesome belt, and some magnets for my brothers. Things like that aren't super expensive here which has been really fun so far.
Today we did some touristy things with the kids of Hogar de Paz- one of the ministries we worked with yesterday- like visiting Monserrat, the house of Simon Bolivar, and a gold museum. At the beginning of the day, we each picked a random kid from the ministry and it was our job to look out for them throughout the day. The little boy I was with was named Juan Camilo. On the bus ride he barely spoke and ended up falling asleep in my lap before we even got to the first site. I thought, "wow this is gonna be really easy", and "he's so peaceful and calm". I was so wrong. I think I ran like 7 miles today trying to keep up with this kid, whether he was running to get somewhere or just running to run from me. My patience was really tested. There were points when I got frustrated and wanted to either yell at him or just give him to Michael- because just about every kid here is in love with him. But every time I caught up to him, he would walk up to me, grab my hand and start walking again and it was impossible to be mad at him at all.
At the end of the day when the kids were leaving, there weren't tears, but it was definitely a little sad. Taylor- who really bonded with the little girl he was with- said, "Wow this is what it must feel like to send a kid off to college." Even though that's probably not accurate at all, we can all agree that we had seriously grown to love these kids in the short time we were with them.
I was not too optimistic when today started and by the end of it, it felt like I was sending a kid I met less than 24 hours ago off to college (sort of). God never ceases to amaze me in the ways he works through people, whether it's a high schooler on a missions trip or an 8 year old running around a mountain. I've grown closer to everyone from AACS on this trip so far and everyone we've met here and I can't wait to see what the next three days have in store :)
The past few days I have been overjoyed watching the interactions between the AACS community and the people here in Colombia. The guys on the trip have been a complete blessing to me the way they interact with and show love to the children. It brings a smile to my face every time the McCollum sisters see an old friend here in Colombia and light up. The way that the Kuehnes do not speak fluent Spanish but still portray the hands and feet of Jesus by their actions towards others. I felt overjoyed watching all this happen around me, but I did not yet feel like a part of it. I knew it would happen, and last night I was encouraged by Brooke and Mrs. Woody telling me that "God works in mysterious ways" and "He gives you a great moment when you least expect it." I knew this was true so I was not disheartened even though I had not yet had my "moment".
Today started out with breakfast and celebrating Melissa's quincenera (her 15th birthday). We sang happy birthday, we had a card, two "Happy Birthday" banners, confetti poppers, and a pink button with ribbon that said "Birthday Girl" on it. It was a fun morning for all and it was awesome to share this experience with the others on the trip.
Soon after, we loaded onto the bus and headed to Hogar de Paz, a ministry that works with young children (mostly elementary school kids). Once there, we had rotations that had to do with the parable of the lost sheep. We told them the lesson, made a craft, a snack, had games. I was having a pretty good time. Afterwards, we had lots of time to kill so we took the kids across the street to the playground and hung out with them there. This is when I had the "moment" I had been looking for.
Earlier, while we were doing the rotations, I had a girl in my group named Laura. She was 11 years old and super sweet. I liked her immediately because she obeyed the rules and did what she was told. What's not to love about that, right? But once we went to the playground her and I bonded. We all stayed at the playground for over an hour and during that time Laura and I jumped rope, had sack races, played on the jungle gym, talked about life, took selfies, and I even taught her some English. It meant so much to me to be with her and talk with her. Even though I was the one teaching her English, I feel like she helped me to improve my Spanish. Obviously I did not understand every single word she said, but I understood a lot. And even when I didn't, the smile on her face would say it all. She was having a great time - and so was I! It was truly fantastic to have the Spirit moving that quick. Less than 24 hours before, I was slightly disheartened because I had not had my "moment," and just like that He gave it to me.
As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. So the AACS kids went back into Hogar de Paz and had lunch. Laura had not yet been picked up, but a few minutes into eating she was getting ready to leave so I stood up and gave her a hug. I thought that she had left, but once I sat down, she ran and gave me a kiss on the cheek before heading out the door. That definitely made my day.
After lunch we went to a different Hogar de Paz. From what I understand, "Hogar de Paz" is a common name for ministries here. We did a very similar thing here, which consisted of games, crafts, and a story. However, we only stayed for an hour and a half or so at this ministry.
Once we left the second Hogar de Paz, we travelled to "Catedral de Sal," which translates to "the Salt Cathedral." This place is exactly what it sounds like; it is an underground salt mine that has been carved to be a Cathedral. It has over a dozen crosses cut out of the rocks, each one representing a station of the cross from Catholic tradition. It was somewhat like Lurray Caverns, except salt. Plus, we were allowed to lick the walls if we wanted!
Aside from Catedral de Sal, the final thing to end this lovely Tuesday was to go out to dinner for Melissa's birthday. We went to Crepes and Waffles to celebrate. Here we had great food and team bonding, just getting a chance to relax and talk about the day. Today was truly a great day and tomorrow we get to see the children from the first Hogar de Paz again. I hope to see Laura tomorrow and I can't wait to see what the Lord continues to do with this group of AACS students throughout the week.
~ Shannon Baden
Today started out with breakfast and celebrating Melissa's quincenera (her 15th birthday). We sang happy birthday, we had a card, two "Happy Birthday" banners, confetti poppers, and a pink button with ribbon that said "Birthday Girl" on it. It was a fun morning for all and it was awesome to share this experience with the others on the trip.
Soon after, we loaded onto the bus and headed to Hogar de Paz, a ministry that works with young children (mostly elementary school kids). Once there, we had rotations that had to do with the parable of the lost sheep. We told them the lesson, made a craft, a snack, had games. I was having a pretty good time. Afterwards, we had lots of time to kill so we took the kids across the street to the playground and hung out with them there. This is when I had the "moment" I had been looking for.
Earlier, while we were doing the rotations, I had a girl in my group named Laura. She was 11 years old and super sweet. I liked her immediately because she obeyed the rules and did what she was told. What's not to love about that, right? But once we went to the playground her and I bonded. We all stayed at the playground for over an hour and during that time Laura and I jumped rope, had sack races, played on the jungle gym, talked about life, took selfies, and I even taught her some English. It meant so much to me to be with her and talk with her. Even though I was the one teaching her English, I feel like she helped me to improve my Spanish. Obviously I did not understand every single word she said, but I understood a lot. And even when I didn't, the smile on her face would say it all. She was having a great time - and so was I! It was truly fantastic to have the Spirit moving that quick. Less than 24 hours before, I was slightly disheartened because I had not had my "moment," and just like that He gave it to me.
As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. So the AACS kids went back into Hogar de Paz and had lunch. Laura had not yet been picked up, but a few minutes into eating she was getting ready to leave so I stood up and gave her a hug. I thought that she had left, but once I sat down, she ran and gave me a kiss on the cheek before heading out the door. That definitely made my day.
After lunch we went to a different Hogar de Paz. From what I understand, "Hogar de Paz" is a common name for ministries here. We did a very similar thing here, which consisted of games, crafts, and a story. However, we only stayed for an hour and a half or so at this ministry.
Once we left the second Hogar de Paz, we travelled to "Catedral de Sal," which translates to "the Salt Cathedral." This place is exactly what it sounds like; it is an underground salt mine that has been carved to be a Cathedral. It has over a dozen crosses cut out of the rocks, each one representing a station of the cross from Catholic tradition. It was somewhat like Lurray Caverns, except salt. Plus, we were allowed to lick the walls if we wanted!
Aside from Catedral de Sal, the final thing to end this lovely Tuesday was to go out to dinner for Melissa's birthday. We went to Crepes and Waffles to celebrate. Here we had great food and team bonding, just getting a chance to relax and talk about the day. Today was truly a great day and tomorrow we get to see the children from the first Hogar de Paz again. I hope to see Laura tomorrow and I can't wait to see what the Lord continues to do with this group of AACS students throughout the week.
~ Shannon Baden
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