Oct 17 - Oct 21

Last Monday, the kids at the farm didn't have school. We took a few of them to the river which was within walking distance of the farm. It was a nice day and the kids seemed to enjoy it. Tuesday, Chuy and I went to Cazuca again to work with the kids there. Wednesday and Thursday were work days around the farm and today Chuy and I went to Cazuca again. Tomorrow we have the Jungla.

You can find some pictures, including pictures of the time we had at the river, at this link:

https://1drv.ms/f/s!ArvNj6ImbMIfhE8-tgfQG1OtGzdN

Oct. 8th and 9th

Last Saturday, I got to experience a kids' outreach that this ministry does every other Saturday. It's called La Jungla (The Jungle). In a neighborhood called Santa Fe, the ministry has a building which they open up to the kids to come and eat breakfast, play games, do crafts, and then hear a Bible message.

When we got there, Steve was explaining to me how this particular neighborhood was known for its witchcraft and drug dealers. As bad as it currently is, he was telling me it was even worse in the past. We then entered the building and started setting it up and getting ready for the kids to arrive. The walls were painted with animals from the jungle. Their was a little eating place in the back on one side and a playhouse on the other side. In the front was a stage. On the stage, you could pull off some boards which uncovered a little pool area which was filled with little balls (the type you'd find in a ball playpen). In the pool area was also a slide which we pulled out and set up so that the kids could slide down and land in the pool of balls. Upstairs was a place where they could do crafts, a shaky bridge they could run across, and a pole they could slide down to get back on the first floor.

When the kids finally started coming, I was put in charge of the slide and ball pen to make sure that the kids only went one at a time, feet first, etc. After the kids ate and played, we all cleaned up and sang some songs and Chuy gave a Bible message on Jonah. Then it was time for them to leave and a second group of kids came. While the first group was mainly younger kids, this second group was mainly older ones. We did the same routine with them – they came and ate, played and did crafts, sang a worship song, and then had a Bible message. It was a great experience and the kids definitely had fun.

On Sunday, I got to go with some of the kids and house parents from the farm to the kids' parents' visitation. The second Sunday of every month, the kids are taken to the “Luz de Vida” school. (This building belongs to the ministry and is used on Tuesdays and Thursdays where a handful of kids come for extra help after school.) This Sunday, though, it was the meeting place where the kids eagerly awaited the arrival of their parents so they could spend an hour or so with them. It was nice to see how excited the kids were when their parents and/or grandparents arrived. They would sit down and talk with their parents, some of them getting little gifts or goodies from their parents. The last half hour, the parents attended a workshop and then the kids said bye to their parents before leaving. Their were lots of pictures taken before we left. While some of the kids only see their parents this second Sunday of each month, some of the kids visit their parents or grandparents weekly or every other week. Unfortunately, though, on the flip side, there are one or two kids who didn't come with us this Sunday because their parents are completely out of their lives.

Please keep these kids in your prayers. I know how special kids are to Jesus and these kids are no exception.

I have also posted some more pictures, including pictures from last Saturday in La Jungla. I've had some feedback that the link I have for the pictures isn't working. So if you can't get to the pictures from the link at the top right of this blog, try using this link:

 https://1drv.ms/f/s!ArvNj6ImbMIfhCFZOR4qbTewZeAI

Update: September 24 - Oct 3

I've been in Colombia a little over a week now. Here's a little bit of what I've been doing here in Colombia so far:

So I arrived in Bogota, Colombia late Saturday night and was picked up by Alex, a young man that serves in the ministry here at Bogota. Sunday morning, I went to church with Steve (He and his wife Evie head up the Formando Vidas ministry). After church, I was invited over to Alex's place and got to meet some of the older teenagers / young men that live with him. He has about five or so youths that live with him – sort of like a mentoring program from my impressions. We talked, ate lunch, and had a good time.

Although I spent the first couple of nights in Bogota in the ministry house which they used to house guests, on Monday I went with Steve and Evie to the outskirts of Bogota where they have three homes and a cabin. I'm going to be staying in the cabin with a young man named Chuy who's 21. (His name's pronounced like the English word chewy.) He's from Venezuela and knows some English. Altogether, out of the three homes that they have here on their property they take care of about nine kids at the moment. I got to meet some of the other volunteers and staff here on the “farm” (which is how they often refer to the land here that has the three houses and the cabin). That afternoon, I helped Peter with some work around the farm. Peter is the same age as me and is bilingual. He grew up in Formando Vidas since he was very young.

On Tuesday, Chuy and I went to Cazuca which is an hour or so from Bogota. In Cazuca is a woman named Mary who moved to Colombia from Australia and has been with the ministry for eleven years. Since 2007, she has been working with the kids and families in the neighborhood of Cazuca. In the morning on Tuesdays, Chuy runs a soccer program for some of the older boys. In the afternoons, there's a kids' club that Mary runs in her house. From 2:00 – 3:00 the younger children can come and play with games and toys in a playroom which is the first floor of her house. (She lives up on the second.) Then, from 3:00 – 4:00 it's the older kids' turn. The clubs meet every Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday. Fridays are similar to Tuesday with the exception that the kids in the soccer program come to Mary's house to play instead of having the soccer program. On Saturdays, it's a time for Bible study and teaching the kids about Jesus. Mary was telling me how her vision was to have a time to build relationships with the kids (which we do as we play and interact with them on Tuesdays and Fridays) and then go further by giving them God's Word and helping them learn more about Jesus. Altogether, it was a long day, but a good day.

Wednesday and Thursday Chuy, Leidy, and I (Leidy is one of the older girls that lives here), did some work around the farm. Friday and Saturday, I went with Chuy again to Cazuca to work with the kids. On Saturday morning, the soccer group came to Mary's house to have a Bible lesson and then we all went outside to the soccer court so the kids could practice some soccer drills and then play a game of soccer. After the soccer group, we helped with a group of little kids that came to Mary's house. We sang songs and talked about how the Holy Spirit is the one who gives us joy in our hearts. The kids then colored a heart as a craft to go along with the lesson.

On Sunday, I went with a couple of the families on the farm to a church in town that they attend called La Calera. Today (Monday) we went into town for a meeting. Every Monday, everyone in the different ministries of Formando Vidas get together and have a meeting. We sang worship songs (in both English and Spanish since many staff are bilingual and a few only speak either Spanish or English). We had a sermon from a pastor who was visiting from Venezuela and then we had a time of prayer.

Thank you to all of you who are praying for me and for the work God's doing here. Please keep it up. I have also uploaded a few pictures. To see them click on the link at the top right of this blog.