I want to share with you some stories of people that have inspired me here, not so that they can be glorified, but so you can be encouraged by their faith and determination.

 

Meet Jason.

 

Jason is one of the missionaries my teamworks with. He speaks for us in the barrios, inviting people to church, running the bible study for the older youth and occasionally acting as the speaker at church. When he speaks, he lights up with joy unlike anyone I have ever seen! He studies the word extensively and bodly proclaims his faith, with passion in his voice, to all young people he encounters. Oh, did I mention that he is fifteen and was born and raised in the barrios? He attends a local school each morning with his peers going home to a lower class neighbourhood, where scarcity is common.

 His boldness and joy refresh me.

 

 

     As a kid Alba Maria (roll the 'r') was a part of a family plagued by poverty and so she was picked, out of all of her sisters, to be sent to an orphanage. When she was twelve she had her first child while living at the orphanage, and at fifteen gave birth to another little girl. 

Then she met Jesus and she decieded to give everything to Him. She promised God that if she had an oppurtunity to go to school in order to study English she would work for missionaries. At sixteen she went to a local college that is known for it's high standards and high price, and propossed that he allow her to study for free. She left disheartened when the headmaster told her to leave, as she truely believed that God's plan for her involved studying English at that school. 

 

On the bus ride home a man sat beside her, whom she had never met, and offered to pay for all of her schooling. 

 

Now, at nineteen, she is the best translator we've encountered. She cares for her two children and her biological father who is severely dissabled. She does chores at dawn, works as a teacher in the morning and studies in the evenings at the University. Yesterday she approached us in the market and asked if we were missionaries and if she could help us. Today she spent a couple of hours with us in the barrios and she is coming back next Tuesday to teach a women's bible study. She prays with passion. She shares her testimony with excitement. She depends on God completely and she volunteers her time joyfully. Alba Maria's faith, determination and work ethic set an example.

 

 

Last but not least, meet Heltrudy. 

     We are walking through the barrios roughhousing with the kids when an elderly lady named Heltrudy comes out of her rickety home to greet us. I gently ask her name and reach for a handshake. She grabs my hand but doesn't let go. In fact, she cares so much about her community that despite her age, she doesn't let go of it either. A few years ago she developed a severe chronic pain in her neck. As a non-believer she asked her son, who was Christian, for prayer and was instantly healed. She then decided to give her everything to God. She even uses her small plot of land (which is covered with magnificant flowers) for church services. Her smile is so beautiful and her words are so sweet. We told her she was beautiful and she replied (in Spanish), "Yes, yes, of course." Heltrudy's kind smile and willingness humble me.