Two months never sounded so long as when I sat in my new bed at La Quinta late Tuesday night. The air was hot and muggy, our filtered water was almost unbearable and our walls were home to a rather unassuming pair of geckos. Our host, Juanita, had sweetly watched the fifteen of us pile into our three-bedroom, two-bath home, and though we were pleased to find that we had running water and enough mattresses for everyone I think we were all realizing how difficult our next eight weeks might be. I was both terrified and thrilled that I would probably have to rely on God more than I ever had in my life.
This certainly hasn’t been a bad thing. After an amazing breakfast a few of us sat out on our little porch reading and journaling and then decided to explore the compound. The kids at the preschool began peering out at us and as soon as their teacher invited us in, a little girl named Estefani ran over and hugged my legs, staring up at me with a shy smile.
We’ve since been falling in love with the people here, especially the kids. Estefani sat in my lap and colored while other students played with the bubbles one of our teammates had brought. Later Maria, who is ten and lives at the compound, picked mangos for us to eat. Some of the boys came out to play. Most of the kids live here because their parents are gone or are unable to take care of them, but you’d never know it by their joy.
The simplicity of La Quinta has been refreshing for my mind and heart. When our pastor introduced us to the young men and women who live and work at the compound, he told us in Spanish that we are family now and that it doesn’t matter what language we speak as long as we all walk together in love. We were then told what our next month’s ministry will be: Mission 70. We’ll be partnering with our new “familia” three days a week and heading into poor neighborhoods around Jinotepe to perform dances and skits in Spanish. We’re trying to draw children and adults into the streets so we can share God’s love with them; our “mission” is to bring 70 people to Christ each week for a month.
Learning the 13 dances and seven skits has been difficult and uncomfortable, especially in some serious heat and humidity. But God is reminding us that the work we do for him will not be fruitless. Sitting outside on one of our short breaks from practice, I was overjoyed when someone behind me began massaging my tired shoulders. I expected it to be one of the girls on my team, but I turned around to see Maria, who had walked over just to be with us. It was a wonderful reminder that we really are family and that we’ve already made our way into the kids’ hearts (they’ve certainly made their way into ours). Two months is a long time, but after three days at La Quinta, I doubt it will ever be enough.
