DAY 7: CALL SIGNS AND CHRIST

BY: ACE (Grace), Chance (Ben) & Groupa (Eli K)

This morning we woke up to fresh fruit, plantains, eggs, sausage and cheese.

We also finalized our Top Gun call signs, after talking about all the nicknames we’ve ever had the night before, and we came up with:

Jason “J-Bird” Gomory
Grace “ACE” Connelly
Alaina “Double A” Adams
Eli “EZ” Schoonveld
Ben “Chance” Bush
Jenna “Magma” Core
Allison “Tigger” Schram
Coach “Mur” V
Eli “Groupa” Kane
Griffin “Doorman” Doran
Emma “Dut” Dutmers
Meg “Megatron” Morehouse
Kate “Kit Kat” Majerus
Taylor “T Vines” Vines
Leader “LB” Ben

The pup, Stacy, was extra active this morning and wanted to go with us to the schools. We jumped in the back of two trucks and took off. We drove off roading through the mountains, and while driving we saw a bunch of indigenous fruits, flowers, and animals…including a toucan.

The students at the first school were more reserved than any of our previous schools. This gave us the opportunity to witness the incredible power sports have when trying to connect with others. The participation was more cautious from the kids since fewer people visit their school due to its remote location. But we figured out which games worked. The best games we played included, “cabeza y manos” with the boys and bubbles for the girls. After playing we took a hike up the mountain to see the indigenous structure which was recently uncovered from excavation in the area.

We loaded up the trucks and headed deeper into the mountains to the next school. There we played red light/green light, sharks and minnows, soccer and we taught the kids how to hit a wiffle ball. After the kids left, our group played a quick game of softball. EZ and Groupa (the two Eli’s) wanted the smoke, so Double A and ACE (Alaina & Grace) brought their best softball pitches. The rest of the squad joined in on the fun as well. Once again, we provided water filters for both schools, explaining to them that the unfiltered water is like life before Christ and the filtered water represents new life through Christ. We hope that these water filters change their lives just as Jesus has changed ours.

The scenery up the mountain and during our game was incredible. The atmosphere has created a sense of peace with the sounds of the river and the rain and waking up to the mountains every morning. The afternoon was relaxing as we were able to have some downtime playing games and having conversations with arroz con leche, and fried cheese sticks as snacks.

Dinner, debrief and devotion were the highlights of the night. Dinner consisted of pork, rice, beans, vegetables, and yuca. During debrief we discussed how incredible our time has been here and how our last day of ministry went. Our devotion focused on 1 John 3:11-20 where we talked about how at times it can be difficult to love others as Jesus loves us.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support. This week has been incredible, and we are so thankful for the opportunity to grow in our relationship with each other and with Christ.

“You can be my wingman anytime”,
ACE, Groupa, & Chance (Grace, Eli K, & Ben)