Day 9 - Wednesday

Hey All,
After working hard since arriving in Colombia, we took the day to see the sights and get souvenir shopping done. Our first stop was to take the cable car to a high point in the city to get a great view of the city. It was sobering to see just how much need there is for Jesus in this city.

From there we explored downtown a little and went shopping. There was a LOT of coffee purchased.

At the moment the team is packing in preparation of our long ride home tomorrow. We will leave for the airport at 3:15am and arrive at PDX at 12:30am the following day. Pray for us.

Pastor Jonsey

Day 8 - Tuesday

So today is our last day of ministry here in Colombia, and none of us really wanna leave.

Today was the last day of Soccer Camp. We played some really fun games with about 40 kids. It was amazing. During lesson time, Micheal and Jonsey both gave there testimonies. Jonsey to the little kids and Micheal to the older kids. both went very well. After the snack time came the Soccer Tournament. There were 7 teams, 6 of which were children from the area and one "Gringo/Missionary Team". Apparently, it took one loss for the "Gringo/Missionary Team" to get settled in but then we were unstoppable for the next 5 games for a total on 6 wins with 2 losses. Jonsey was an incredible goalie saving many shots from going in and keeping our streak alive, and so many other contributed to the success of our team. It was so fun  to play with a team of people whose true goal was to make heroes out of each and every member of our team. I was blessed to be apart of the "Gringo/Missionary Team".

After the tournament we hung out with all the kids for awhile and eventually we had to say goodbye which is never easy. After several attempts and saying goodbye we finally drove away. We drove down the hill to the park where we held our 1st Soccer Camp last week and were able to find some of the kids that we had at the 1st camp and were able to spend a few minutes saying Goodbye to them. Then we headed to Heidi's house for and amazing dinner of authentic Colombian food. After dinner Jonsey and Micheal and myself with two of the Colombian children went and played Night Soccer at Heidi's apartment complex. It was so fun playing with the Colombian children under the lights on a concrete chain linked fenced off field. After about an hour of playing, we returned to Heidi's apartment to find the rest of our Group doing Disney Karaoke, after a few more songs we called it a night and returned to the Hostel for Debrief and bed 

There was a lot of fun and games, but our real heart was for the soles of the students. Today at breakfast we discussed our plans for the day and the people God put on our hearts. There were at least several children that we wanted to see if they were ready to accept Jesus into there hearts. The tough  thing I was reminded of is Gods gift of free will. With the help of one of the missionaries I was able to talk to one of the boys God put on my heart and asked him if he was to die today would he go to Heaven. His reply was "NO." He seems to know everything that is required to be saved but he just didn't feel that he needed to do that right now. I was heart broken to learn that people today can know what it takes to have eternal life and still choose not to take that free gift. It turned out that all of the kids we hoped to make a decision all chose not to ask Jesus into their hearts. We can't force anyone to accept Jesus into their hearts. We can only pray and faithfully present the Gospel.

We are all grateful for all the great opportunities God has given us this week.

Paul

Day 7 - Monday

Today we went to another section of the city, that was much higher than where we were before.  There was a park, a soccer field ("cancha") and a beautiful view of the city.  The missionaries meet with the kids in this neighborhood weekly, have bible studies, and play soccer with them. We've made house visits to invite the kids to join us on some of the other days, but today, Jamie, Marissa, and Heidi (missionaries), along with Kristin and Kara made the visits before we arrived.

While the kids were arriving, (more than 50 kids), I was in the park when a couple came up to me. Rodolfo and Erica were inquisitive about what we were doing, so I explained that we were going to tell kids about Jesus, play games with them, and then play soccer.  They asked how we let the kids know about the activities, and I told them that the missionaries are there weekly and talked to them, and also made house visits.  They asked that we visit houses higher up, because there are more children there, and offered to make introductions.  I was able to explain that Jesus came to earth, died on the cross for our sins, was buried, rose again, and will return for His people, because of the shirt I was wearing.  They were working in the house across the street, and offered the use of the bathroom if needed, or something to drink.  They brought their daughter to join us.  I introduced them to Peter, so I am hopeful of this new connection.

I am thankful for the many opportunities that we have had to share God's love, and the response that we've received.  Please continue to pray for each of the missionaries, Heidi, Jamie, Marissa, Peter, as well as Felix and Vicky, who feel called to join the team in Medellin, and have been a huge blessing to us this week as they drove 9 hours from Bogota to be with us, and have been our transport the entire time. They are an inspiring group of missionaries and God is blessing their work.  It has been a joy to serve with them!   
              -Rosanna

Day 6 - Sunday

Hello Everyone!

We started off this important day with a wonderful breakfast of eggs, toast, and coffee prepared by Pami and Rosanna. Today was the second Sunday service ever for our church here in Medellin. Our missionaries have put a lot of work into the community, and have made many connections with the families and children here. Last week, for their first Sunday service ever, they had 17 community members show up, not counting the missionaries themselves; however, this Sunday, we were able to bring in 32 people. Felix (an amazing Christian man who drove down from Bogota to be our driver for the week) gave a wonderful message, being our speaker during the service, and Paul shared his testimony, which was able to touch the hearts of many. We were able to serve Colombian-style hot dogs, that involved fried onion-straws, ketchup, and fry sauce, along with coffee and juice. Yes, the hot dogs were delicious. After the service, we kept the church doors open as we set up a mini-theater for the World Cup game of Colombia versus Poland. With a hefty 3-0 win, we enjoyed erupting in excitement alongside the Colombians after each goal. Throughout the day, we could hear people lighting fireworks and honking horns to further celebrate their win. We spent the rest of the day bonding as a team with our Colombian missionaries, us "Gringos" (This means white people, and is how the Colombian kids refer to our team), Santiago (a Colombian seminary student we have been working with), and for a while, Felix and his wonderful family. Dinner was a delicious assortment of different pizzas. They were all delicious, except for the Hawaiian-- pineapple simply does not belong on pizza. In all seriousness, we ate pizza, laughed, and went through some bible trivia questions. When we got back to "the Yellow House," our hostel, we had a team debrief, during which we were able to share stories and laugh about our amazing day today.

-Michael

(Paul sharing his testimony)

(The Team. Santiago, Peter, Jamie, Marissa, Heidi)

(The small meeting place was packed for church)

Day 5 - Saturday

Hola amigos , today was really fun. When we got to the church we did VBS like usual. Michael and I shared our testimonies today. Afterwards we went to a fun community peace event called no more invisible barriers. It was a soccer tournament. We played games with the kids who had already lost and would not continue in the tournament. I personally made some new friends, so did others on our team. Jonsey had the privilege to share the gospel with everyone at the final game. We gave the two teams in the final jerseys that we had brought over  from America. We also gave out fliers to people, my new friend helped me do that. Then we all packed up  and our team went to Heidi's houses and ate spaghetti and meatballs.

That was our day~ Elle 

 

Day 4 - Friday

Hello All,

Today we did a lot of activities.It started with an interesting breakfast of toasted ham and cheese with jam. We then went to VBS and that was great!! We played musical shoes and extreme chair soccer. It was then time for the story of the day. Santiago taught the youth and Felix and Vicky taught the younger kids. Felix and Vicky are great teachers with Felix doing the skits to explain the stories!! Addison and I shared our testimonies today. Addison shared with the younger kids and I shared with the youth. That was then followed by a lunch of fried chicken and potatoes. The kids from the VBS continued to hangout with us and we played soccer with them and played UNO!! There has got to be something said about Colombians and Americans all playing the same games even with the language barriers that we face and everyone having a fantastic time!! We then came back to the hostel and most went to the market and then to Heidi, Marissa and Jamie's apartment. Emily and I stayed behind for a long overdue nap. It was then off to Heidi's for a delicious Colombian dinner of beans, rice, and pork rinds and a debriefing. Now we just finished our team debriefing and are excited for tomorrow and all that God has in store for us and all our new Colombian friends.

Hope your all doing well! Hello to all my family and friends! Fawn :)

Day 3 - Thursday

Hola everyone! Our third day in Colombia was a success. We participated in the first day of VBS  this morning, and i had the privilege of sharing my testimony with the youth. Many of the youth were very pleased to hear someone their age share their life story. Some even said, "It was my favorite part." This evening we went to a Bible study, and i was blessed with working with the younger kids. Even though i couldn't understand them most of the time they still seemed very pleased that we came to Colombia for them. I can't wait to see what the rest of our trip has in store.

Having a great time Dad!!

-Emily