Day 4
Today was long and eventful. I helped Allison with the special education assessments. It is so great that she is here to run these IQ tests to be able to better understand what areas these children need more help with.
I sat in on three of the assessments and then had to leave half way through because this little boy was looking at me the whole time instead of paying attention.
We are doing two more assessments tomorrow for John and Allen.
I hung out with the littlest kids for a while today. Mark, Brian, and Lucy are a handful but we had so much fun going down the slide (again and again and again...). They would just cackle and laugh when I pushed them on the swings.
Allen was upset earlier in the day for an unknown reason so I ran up and sat by him. He crawled in my lap and when he realized it was me, he stopped crying and got the biggest grin on his face. He was so happy!
Some of the other kids started playing and tickling him and Allen was laughing so hard. I was so content in that moment.
A 12-year-old boy named Moses came and sat with us and was SO good with Allen! He translated for me and just made Allen laugh and smile so much. It made me happy to see that even though most kids don't understand why John and Allen act and talk different, a lot of the kids still love these boys unconditionally.
What a beautiful picture of The Gospel! Despite all of our flaws and imperfections, God still loves us and cares for us. So much love that he CHOSE to send His son to die a death that we all deserve. I will never get over that.
One of our team leaders shared his testimony at evening worship. He had a major stroke a couple weeks after he got back from being here last year.
Doctors and nurses didn't think he would make it very long. So, his wife called Pastor Benson and told him what was going on. Pastor had the whole orphanage pray for him around 4 am our time.
At that exact time, Bret woke up and could speak clearly. Now he is completely healthy and was able to come back to Africa, which no one thought would ever be possible. Prayer is so powerful! I see the Lord's faithfulness again and again while I am here and it is so wonderful.
Thursday, July 16, 2015
Day 5
I sat in on some more special ed assessments today. These kids just need someone that knows how to teach them in a way that they can learn.
Thankfully, we are making up a plan for how to help them succeed in school this year and we're praying for more special education training with the teachers.
IDD's just aren't identified here so most people think my sweet boys are weird or crazy. They don't understand that there is actually a reason why they talk and act different from the other kids.
After lunch, I helped one of the nurses do head treatments for the 40+ kids with ringworm. We washed our hands and put on new gloves between kids, and basically shampooed their bald heads with ointment.
The kids thought it was so funny because all of their heads looked white. After I treated them, just about everyone asked for a band-aid for a year old scar they had just because they treat band-aids like stickers and everyone wants one.
At first, I was hesitant to give them away so fast, but the kids are just so darn cute that I couldn't say no to giving them a bandage.
Our team had paid for, bought, and prepared supper for the orphanage that night. They only eat twice a day because of limited funds and because it is extremely hard to feed 230 people.
They eat almost the same thing every day, so we treated them to something they don't usually have: vegetable stew (they had never had broccoli or cauliflower before), penne pasta (also never had), a big chunk of watermelon, and my personal favorite, chapati.
It was such a blessing to be able to serve them all in this way. The kids loved it and they will also get mangoes (another delicacy to them) for breakfast.
I got to speak at evening worship tonight. I talked about The Kingdom of God and got to preach the good news of Christ to 230 orphans!
The kids there go to church every week and worship twice a day, but it was good to be able to share the gospel and remind them of this hope we have. No matter what hard past they have been through, they are loved... maybe not by their birth parents, but definitely by the creator of the universe. So much that He sent His son to die the death that we all deserve. How beautiful!!
"I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings." -1 Corinthians 9:23
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