A Very Dark Place
I can't believe we have already been here for two weeks! Time has gone by very quickly. Each day I grow to love this city more and more. The first week we volunteered at the Boys Center, I helped with the different classes they hold in the mornings for the boys (computer classes, English classes, discipleship, and playroom therapy). Then in the afternoons I helped out at kids club at the Boys Center which consists of dancing to songs, playing games, skits, worship and a lesson. I really enjoyed my time doing that, the boys are all so awesome and even though we don't speak the same language, we are still able to connect and have fun.
But this week some girls from the streets and surrounding neighborhoods have started to hang out on the main floor at the Boys Center in the mornings. They usually wouldn't allow them to come in because it is for boys, but they will hopefully be opening a center for girls this summer and they want to start building relationships with the girls. As I saw the girls come in, I started to hang out with them. They are all so precious. There are three girls in particular (I would show you pictures, but it is against the child protection policy) that I have just fallen in love with. They are so sweet and every time I see them, they run up and give me a huge hug. They constantly want to hold my hand or play a game with me. I know they will be the reason it will be hard for me to leave (I already miss them because I won't be able to see them for the weekend!).
This week we have also done home visits to get some permission slips from the kid's parents for various things. On Monday, I went with some staff to visit some of the boy's families. There was one place in particular that absolutely broke my heart. It was the worst living conditions I've ever seen. It was a small slum in an old theater. There were bats flying everywhere. I could barely breathe because the stench was so bad. Ten by ten houses made of cardboard, metal, tin and other scraps were filled with 8 people. Piles of trash filled the place with rats crawling through. And it was so so dark, not simply because I could barely see, but there was a heavy spiritual darkness that filled the giant room. After we got back to the boys center, I broke down and cried. I cried because this was where the boys I have grown to know and love at the boys center, live. It was all so sad. I took comfort in knowing that the Lord weeps for these boy's unhealthy living. And that he has provided a safe place for them to go at the Boys Center and people there that love and care for them.
Then on Thursday, I got a chance to go with the group that was going to visit the girl's homes and with the three that just light up my heart. On the way to their homes, I prayed and prayed that they did not live in the old theater. But as we walked further and turned down into that alley way, I just knew that it was their home. The girls cheerfully showed us the way down the alley and up the stairs and then led us to the theater. The theater was where some of them lived. I felt so crushed, how could these beautiful little girls live in such a horrible place as this. All I could think about was taking them home with me into a clean and comfortable house where I know they will be safe and loved. But I know that this is not what the Lord is calling me to do. He has called me to trust in Him with their precious little lives. So that is what I'm currently trying to do. Trust that He will protect them, even though they live in a very high risk area for being sold for sex. I pray that the Lord would bless their lives and that they would ultimately come to know and love Jesus through the girls center. This is very difficult for me to do, but I trust that God can take much better care of their lives than I ever could. But as for the next 10 weeks, I am going to show them God's love as best as I can.
But this week some girls from the streets and surrounding neighborhoods have started to hang out on the main floor at the Boys Center in the mornings. They usually wouldn't allow them to come in because it is for boys, but they will hopefully be opening a center for girls this summer and they want to start building relationships with the girls. As I saw the girls come in, I started to hang out with them. They are all so precious. There are three girls in particular (I would show you pictures, but it is against the child protection policy) that I have just fallen in love with. They are so sweet and every time I see them, they run up and give me a huge hug. They constantly want to hold my hand or play a game with me. I know they will be the reason it will be hard for me to leave (I already miss them because I won't be able to see them for the weekend!).
This week we have also done home visits to get some permission slips from the kid's parents for various things. On Monday, I went with some staff to visit some of the boy's families. There was one place in particular that absolutely broke my heart. It was the worst living conditions I've ever seen. It was a small slum in an old theater. There were bats flying everywhere. I could barely breathe because the stench was so bad. Ten by ten houses made of cardboard, metal, tin and other scraps were filled with 8 people. Piles of trash filled the place with rats crawling through. And it was so so dark, not simply because I could barely see, but there was a heavy spiritual darkness that filled the giant room. After we got back to the boys center, I broke down and cried. I cried because this was where the boys I have grown to know and love at the boys center, live. It was all so sad. I took comfort in knowing that the Lord weeps for these boy's unhealthy living. And that he has provided a safe place for them to go at the Boys Center and people there that love and care for them.
Then on Thursday, I got a chance to go with the group that was going to visit the girl's homes and with the three that just light up my heart. On the way to their homes, I prayed and prayed that they did not live in the old theater. But as we walked further and turned down into that alley way, I just knew that it was their home. The girls cheerfully showed us the way down the alley and up the stairs and then led us to the theater. The theater was where some of them lived. I felt so crushed, how could these beautiful little girls live in such a horrible place as this. All I could think about was taking them home with me into a clean and comfortable house where I know they will be safe and loved. But I know that this is not what the Lord is calling me to do. He has called me to trust in Him with their precious little lives. So that is what I'm currently trying to do. Trust that He will protect them, even though they live in a very high risk area for being sold for sex. I pray that the Lord would bless their lives and that they would ultimately come to know and love Jesus through the girls center. This is very difficult for me to do, but I trust that God can take much better care of their lives than I ever could. But as for the next 10 weeks, I am going to show them God's love as best as I can.
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