The week has flown by, and as I sit to think about this past day in the airport, I find myself thinking about the entire week, as well.
We began the day with leftovers for breakfast - egg casserole and sweet granola crumble, among others. Leftovers never tasted so good!
We then packed up all of our donated supplies - more than an entire suitcase full! - to leave with our family at Buen Pastor for their use in Sunday School and other programming and loaded up the bus for the last time.
Arriving at Buen Pastor, after reading Matthew 5:13-14 Maggie and Melissa shared about a time when they each felt the light of God during our morning devotion. It took courage to be vulnerable in front of our group and our Ecuadorian friends, and they did a wonderful job sharing their stories!
We then worked for about an hour on various projects - scrubbing drips of paint off of the tile floor, finishing two beautiful murals, and generally tidying up the grounds we had all worked to beautify throughout the week.
Before we knew it, it was time for lunch. It included zero rice! We couldn't believe it. We shared one last meal with our brothers and sisters, yelling translations across the room and laughing through the corn, potatoes, and meat.
Afterwards, we were herded like sheep into one area below the church, and we were not allowed to move from that spot. Minutes later, we were permitted to enter the sanctuary space - greeted with balloons, confetti, and of course, dancing! Our new friends made us feel so loved and celebrated.
Our "despedida," or goodbye party, also included a traditional dance in costume performed by some of the youth of the church, salsa, merengue, and macarena lessons, and some very meaningful prayer and words of gratitude.
Juan Carlos, or "Daddy" as the youth call him, led the youth in praying for us while one of them was touching each of our feet. He prayed fervently to God - it is an honor to be in the presence of this man as he prays and a Godly experience in itself - asking for a blessing. He prayed for every place these feet will touch, every place we will come to know, and everyone that fills those places. He asked that the blessings we have each experienced this week may multiply and continue to impact lives beyond those present. Finally, he prayed that these wary feet would lead us back to our Buen Pastor family and home again. To that we could only say, "Amen!"
After a quick trip to the market to find llama sweaters, blankets, hammocks, tablecloths, and many other trinkets, we quickly finished packing, showered, and headed into our final debrief (processing time) of the week. Dinner was a typical Ecuadorian meal - menestra, which is beans, rice, and meat. It filled our bellies after this week had filled our hearts to overflowing. And now, here we are, waiting to board our plane back to the US. Back home. But for some of us, home is not so simple a concept anymore.
I am thankful for moments when God reveals himself to us - in giving roses to a stranger, in the smiles amid the smell of true poverty, in the lights of an ambulance that saves an 88 year old life, in the eyes of a blind woman, in the joy of children as they plant seeds (literally and figuratively), in the wonder of our youth as they look out over God's beautiful creation, in the breaking of the bread, in the singing of one chorus in two languages, and in countless other moments.
I am thankful for a week that leads to deepened relationships, new friendships, thought-provoking conversations, and hopefully, to fruit.
Please pray for our team of 12 as we return on our two flights tonight, and as we begin to transition our of this literally mountain-top experience and re-examine what our lives look like .
Que Dios les bendiga,
Caroline Williams
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