Friday's report.... a little late.

Here's the blog post from last night... the internet wasn't cooperating so I couldn't post it until now (my apologies to Angela Michel... who has declared herself the official mom blog stalker of 2015. Hope you didn't stay up too late waiting for the post!)

FRIDAY:

Well… it’s official. We have made 100 new best friends, and we are in love. Day two was fantastic. We headed back to the kids home for another work day today. All four walls are up on the house, and we got to mix and pour some cement for a foundation. It was awesome. The team was so eager to work. The jobs that we're working on don't require all of us to be working all the time, and it was hard for the team to not be giving 100% to the work project all day long. But we are accomplishing a lot, and learning lots about team work. KCH is very thankful for the help. 

The work was really fun, but the highlight of the day for most of us was probably when we got to shut down work for the day and head into the home to play with our friends. It was only our second day together, but there was MUCH excitement as we walked into the yard…from our team and from all of our little buddies. I’ve had some conversations tonight with some of the team about how the thought of leaving Belize and these kids seems impossible. And it’s only been two days. The guys on our team have surprised me a little….in a good way. I had no doubt before we came down here that they were awesome young men. But to watch them with the kids has been really fantastic. They really come alive in an amazing way. Just so much joy on their faces as they run around with kids on their back. Last night one of the guys shared that coming into the trip he knew that kids weren’t really his thing, but yesterday God really opened up his heart to the kids in a new way, and he fell in love with them. It’s cool to see God stretch us, change us, take us out of our comfort zones to learn new things and love in new ways. 

The girls are also doing amazing. They are having so much fun. As we loaded onto the bus yesterday I was asking everyone how their day was. One response I got was, "today was the very best day of my whole life". I guess you can't beat that! 

Tonight we had a great debrief. We asked the team to share a highlight from the day, something they're learning, something that God has placed on their hearts. It was an honest and encouraging sharing time. One guy had a moment today when he remembered that even though the kids at KCH are incredibly happy and full of love, each one of them is living at the home without their parents. We don't know the reasons why each kid has been placed in the Kids Home, but we were reminded yesterday through a conversation with one of the older boys that each of them has dealt with hurt in ways that none of us can really imagine. We talked last night at debrief about how blessed we are to have parents who love us. That is something that we often take for granted. But it is a gift, and something that we should be thankful for every day. 

Tomorrow we are going to get ready for my favourite day of the year... .Sunday Funday! We have invited all of the kids and staff from KCH over on Sunday. We will serve a feast of friend chicken, nachos and cheese, and banana splits. We will have another afternoon of epic slip n' sliding. And all of us are EXCITED! As we left yesterday the kids just kept asking "when do we get to come to YWAM?". They are counting the sleeps! Once we're all set for Sunday Funday, we're heading to the Myan Ruins for the afternoon to experience a bit more of this beautiful country. 

Each day here seems to go by quickly, but is also  rich and full and long. We are living a simple life where we play kickball instead of video games, and never even think about texting. It's so refreshing to live this jungle life. 

A special shout out goes to Kash Angell on his 16th birthday from his big bro. 

Some prayer requests:

-continued health and safety. No issues so far, and we would love to keep it that way!

-continued strength and energy. Our days are long and busy. Pray that we can rest well at night, and wake up in the morning with enough energy to make it through the day. Especially tomorrow for Sunday Funday. It will be a busy day!!

-pray that God can continue to change our hearts and teach us the lessons He has for us here in Belize. 

Blessings and love!

The team