The moment we boarded the plane to leave Guatemala last year, I had a feeling that I would be back. The relationships formed in such a short time were so deep and the ministry so effective at being the hands and feet of Jesus. The impact Casa Bernabé has on children, families, community, and visitors is expansive. My heart was forever changed.
In the Spring, we thought our entire family would be returning this year and brainstormed some ideas on how to raise funds because the cost of travel and projects is quite significant. We decided to have a garage sale and accepted hundreds of donations from friends and family. Not only did we fill our garage, we filled about half of our out building! Caleb always knew I was crazy, but this was a whole new level.
We were able to raise $3000 between the garage sale and Facebook Marketplace sales. Truly a blessing from God. He kept multiplying the donations and providing for the financial needs for our family to return.
I think that it was right around when school started that both of the kids approached us and said that they were not interested in returning to Casa Bernabé. I was in shock and it broke my heart. I was all in and thought my family was, too. Then, Caleb admitted he was on the fence. After much prayer and discernment, Caleb did decide that he wanted to go. Since Caleb was going, we decided that the kids would be coming as well. To be completely honest, they continue to struggle a bit. School is overwhelming to Hannah this year and the idea of spending Christmas break traveling and "working" is hard because she truly needs a mental and physical break. Timmy is nervous because he is the youngest one going on the trip and his soccer skills are pretty poor compared to his friends at Casa Bernabé - soccer is pretty much how the kids spend all day, every day :) since it's "summer break" for them. Caleb also struggles with the language barrier and feels discouraged sometimes because it's hard to get to know the house parents and children without understanding Spanish.
Hannah and Timmy also had a really hard time seeing the poverty and wrestling with questions when we returned like, "Why was I born into a family with a mom and dad and they weren't?" "Why do we have a big house and food and clothes and they don't?" "Why won't their parents just make better choices so they can get their kids back?" These are hard feelings and realities for us adults as well. However, we can choose to ignore the impoverished communities or choose to share as much of God's love and encouragement as possible and help with projects that the orphanage doesn't have funds or time for.
Both of the kids have genuine concerns and we understand that it will be a challenge for them. We also feel that it is important to leave our bubble and see how most of the world lives. We all have skills that God has blessed us with and we can use them in ways we can't even imagine once we get there to glorify him and help his precious children. It is our hope and prayer that once the kids get acclimated again that they will be happy they came. In the meantime, if you think about praying for them, please do. We know that God can and will soften their hearts.
By October, we were "all in" and starting to worry about the large price tag of going on a family mission trip. I struggled with trusting the Lord and He has shown his faithfulness in providing for our needs. With the proceeds from the garage sale, additional Facebook sales of just about anything we haven't touched in the last year or so, and GENEROUS donations from family and friends, we are FULLY FUNDED for the trip!!!! We give all of the glory to God for providing even though we doubted (especially me).
Comments
Post a Comment