Tuesday!

Today was a different day for many of us. We started our day with a delicious breakfast, prepared by our amazing cooks. We headed upstairs after breakfast for a time of praise and worship, lead by Dellen, as he talked about God's will and God's purpose and plan for our lives. As we looked out the window at the volcano as we sang, we all truly saw how great our God is!

After devotions, we loaded up the vans and headed to the El Tejar Dump. Many people think of a dump as a place that we get rid of trash and don't have to deal with it anymore. In Guatemala, this is not the case. People work and live in the dump. As a truck unloads, people rush to dig through the trash, looking for anything of value that they can sell and make money off of. We prayed, sang, and handed out lunches: a sandwich, an orange, a bag of chips, and a juice box to the people who live and work there. They were very appreciative and by the smiles on their faces, you could tell that this was a blessing.

After going to the Dump, we split up. One van went to the village and worked on finishing concrete and the fronts of the houses that we built this week. The other two vans went to the orphanage for the remainder of the day. I went to the orphanage and it was really cool to see how the kids interacted with us. They didn't know us before we walked in, but yet they were really excited and willing to play with us and let us hold them. Many of us by the end of the day wanted to smuggle a couple kids in our suitcases! :)

Westhouses and I both had the opportunity to host the families of the kids that we sponsor at the Feeding Center. For those that don't know what the Feeding Center is, it is a place where certain kids, handpicked by Lazaro, come three times a week and receive a hot meal, homework help, and do crafts and sing songs. Joselyn, the girl that my family sponsors, came along with her mom Dency, her brothers Obel and Johnathan, and her new 20 day old sister Kenya. Joselyn is pretty much my little sister from another country, and it was really fun to get to know her better and learn new things....like the fact that her whole family would like to see snow someday! We spent time looking at pictures and coloring. It was a blessing to be able to see her again!

Tomorrow we look forward to house dedications and our last day in the village! Overall, we all really enjoyed our day! Please keep our team in your prayers as many people have been sick with different things, and please pray for safe travels on Thursday as we travel back to Michigan!

Rachael Bosse