Today I ate dinner with a Bolivian family headed by two grown Compassion sponsor kids. They both work successful jobs (the father, Fermin, is the head of FH’s work in Cochabamba), they have 2 beautiful children, and a wonderful urban home in Quillacollo. We spent the evening eating pique macho, worshipping God while Israel played the guitar, and listening to Fermin and Naomi recount stories of the impact of child sponsorship and how it had helped them grow out of poverty. At the end of the evening, Fermin shared a verse with us: 1 Corinthians 15:58, “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” (ESV) There wasn’t a dry eye in the room.
It’s hard to describe my time in Bolivia without comparing it to last year—new team, new project, new context. It’s different being here as part of a C2C—it feels more permanent. It’s different seeing familiar faces, taking in familiar sites, and tasting familiar food. It’s different not doing manual labor. It’s different being with a smaller team that I didn’t know as well as the team I travelled with last year. But, the biggest difference is that this year’s trip is clearly about child sponsorship and the child development coalition.
We are doing less work on “the project” and more work playing with kids and visiting with families in the community. I got to meet my sponsor child, Marianne, along with her mother and brother. I have been invited into half a dozen homes and have been allowed to video residents of Uspa Uspa talk about the water in their community and the difference that the water filters will make in their lives. I’ve seen how the child sponsorship program transforms a community, even in just a year. It’s been amazing.
Yesterday we met with some community leaders (including the president of Uspa Uspa, Don Miguel). We then received training on how to assemble the water filters that we brought with us in Bolivia. The afternoon was spent visiting the families of sponsored kids.
Today we visited more families, and also participated in some community training events. Together with the project coordinator Jose, we taught two groups of about 40 moms each how to put together and use the water filters. They were extremely grateful for Believers Fellowship’s generosity in bringing the filters to Bolivia. We finished the day with a soccer match against the local kids and then dinner at Fermin’s house.
It’s hard to describe my time in Bolivia without comparing it to last year—new team, new project, new context. It’s different being here as part of a C2C—it feels more permanent. It’s different seeing familiar faces, taking in familiar sites, and tasting familiar food. It’s different not doing manual labor. It’s different being with a smaller team that I didn’t know as well as the team I travelled with last year. But, the biggest difference is that this year’s trip is clearly about child sponsorship and the child development coalition.
We are doing less work on “the project” and more work playing with kids and visiting with families in the community. I got to meet my sponsor child, Marianne, along with her mother and brother. I have been invited into half a dozen homes and have been allowed to video residents of Uspa Uspa talk about the water in their community and the difference that the water filters will make in their lives. I’ve seen how the child sponsorship program transforms a community, even in just a year. It’s been amazing.Yesterday we met with some community leaders (including the president of Uspa Uspa, Don Miguel). We then received training on how to assemble the water filters that we brought with us in Bolivia. The afternoon was spent visiting the families of sponsored kids.
Today we visited more families, and also participated in some community training events. Together with the project coordinator Jose, we taught two groups of about 40 moms each how to put together and use the water filters. They were extremely grateful for Believers Fellowship’s generosity in bringing the filters to Bolivia. We finished the day with a soccer match against the local kids and then dinner at Fermin’s house.
So far I’ve taken about 30 GB of media—mostly HD video. The rest of the team has taken some great photos, and I can’t wait to share them with the team.
It’s been awesome to see God work in the team. Our debriefs at the end of the night have been amazing, and I think a number of the team members are finding what they were looking for by coming here. More on that later.
Tomorrow will be more home visits and more soccer. (By the way, soccer is an excellent way to bond with the locals since the language barrier isn’t an issue.) On Sunday, we are running the church program, and then the community will say farewell. I will be preaching at a church in Uspa Uspa and then the team will be running a vacation Bible school. Pray for us!
Thanks for being a part of this awesome work. It took a lot to make this happen. I know a lot of you donated money or time or prayers to help one or more team member make it to Bolivia. Believe me, in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
Good night!
It’s been awesome to see God work in the team. Our debriefs at the end of the night have been amazing, and I think a number of the team members are finding what they were looking for by coming here. More on that later.
Tomorrow will be more home visits and more soccer. (By the way, soccer is an excellent way to bond with the locals since the language barrier isn’t an issue.) On Sunday, we are running the church program, and then the community will say farewell. I will be preaching at a church in Uspa Uspa and then the team will be running a vacation Bible school. Pray for us!Thanks for being a part of this awesome work. It took a lot to make this happen. I know a lot of you donated money or time or prayers to help one or more team member make it to Bolivia. Believe me, in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
Good night!
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