God is Great

Friends,

Things are going great in El Salvador. I arrived in San Salvador, the capitol, on Monday, and have been staying at the Faith House every night so far. Initially, I had a difficult time here because we didn't have a set schedule/program for me. But God's grace has really shone through the darkness of fear and doubt, and now not only do I have a solid schedule, but also some great programs to work. So, here is the schedule I will be following for the remainder of the trip...

Sunday - Church, other activities, sleep at Faith House
Monday - Leave early in the am for Ilobasco (a rural community) to work in the detention center - spend AM with girls, afternoon with guys, sleep in one of the Orphan Helpers' houses in Ilobasco
Tuesday - Work in Ilobasco, same as Monday
Wednesday - Same as Tuesday, but leave in the afternoon for San Salvador (back to the Faith House)
Thursday - Work in CISNA (the orphanage) and come back to Faith House afterward
Friday - Same as Thursday
Saturday - Day of rest!

Of course, on these kind of trips, I've learned that flexibility is key.

One quick story before I head out...
Usually, Orphan Helpers' In-Country Coordinator/Director does a devotional with the 8 guys that live in the Faith House. Unfortunately, he couldn't be there last night, so he asked me to make a devotional for that night. So, almost immediately I remembered the community-building notes I had taken from the book Life Together by Dietrich Bonhoeffer (is that how you spell it?). Originally, I took those notes and studied related scripture in order to prepare for work with the Christian girls in the detention center. Well, about the same time I found out I needed to make a devo for the Faith House guys, I also found out that there were only TWO of the same girls still in the detention center that I worked with last year - and that most of the girls in the center are new, and therefore many are not Christians. So, it seems that God was preparing to bring that message of Christian community to the guys here in the Faith House. And when I gave the devotional last night, it was truly amazing. The Lord was working in everyone's hearts, and speaking to each of us. After I finished, Julio (leader of the Faith House) talked more about community here, and some of the very things he said were words that God had put on my heart, but I just hadn't had enough time to translate them into Spanish to share that night. All the boys agreed last night that God had spoken to them. And you can already see the change. Praise the Lord!

Thank you for your prayers, they are being answered daily.

Love in Christ,
Scott