As always, your thoughts, prayers and words of encouragement are continual blessings to me. Although I have twelve days left, it seems as though my time at Orphanage Emmanuel is quickly coming to close. I pray that my time here thus far has been a blessing to those around me, and that I can continue to shine the light of Christ for the remainder of my stay.
God has allowed me to spend time investing in one girl particularly. Her name is Lesbia and she is 13 years old. I got to sit with her and talk about things of the Lord for nearly an hour Saturday night. Although my Spanish is not fluent, I praise God that he allowed me to fluently communicate with her for that time. I pray I was and am a spiritual encouragement to her.
Upon arriving at Emmanuel, my prayer – as I have shared with you – was to be a blessing to the children here. I prayed I would not just enjoy the fun times with the kids, but that they could see Christ’s love through my life and come to a better understanding of who He is. That is my continual prayer even now. Another prayer I have had was that I would not be afraid to use the Spanish I do have and that the Lord would bless those efforts and increase that ability. I praise Him that He continues to provide opportunities for that.
There is a currently a team of 46 people here. They are doing some work on the farm, some painting, some art classes, some medical work and dental work. Thus, I have had the privilege of working with some of them in the dental clinic. My job is to be with the children in order to keep them calm (since I know them) and also to translate for the dentists. What a responsibility, eh? There are definitely certain things you don’t want to mix up, like “spit’ and “swallow.” Ha-ha. But I thank God that things have gone smoothly.
I actually put myself in the chair yesterday to have my mouth numbed. A few of the girls were extremely nervous about having a needle put in their mouths for the first time. They said if I would do and let them watch, then they would do it. After thirty minutes of begging them to stop crying and open their mouths – a person would do almost anything. So I did. It was an interesting experience to say the least. I mean, I’ve never had my mouth numbed just for fun before. But the girls followed as promised and the dentists were grateful for the sacrifice. Now that’s what I call love.
I continue to enjoy every moment I get to spend with the children – even when they are out of hand at times. It is an enjoyment to be with them, play with them and get dirty with them. There are specific ones that I will certainly miss the most and would bring home in a matter of seconds; unfortunately, we all know that isn’t the wisest decision. So for now, I will have to continue to visit them at Emmanuel.
In case you are interested, I wanted to let you know that Emmanuel does have a Web site. It is http://www.orphanageemmanuel.com You can visit there to view a few pictures of the children as well as learn more about our history and such. There are also opportunities to sponsor children. It is only $35 per month and you have the option to write the child, send birthday and Christmas gifts, as well as visit – which I certainly recommend! I would love to answer more questions for you if you have them.
Thank you again for you continued prayers for me and the children during my stay here. Know that they have not gone in vain. I will continue to send a few more updates as time allows. May you be blessed in all things as you strive to be a blessing to others.
In Christ,
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