Sunday at NLCH

I do have to start off by saying that I read that Waco reached 102 degrees today...our group was sitting under a nice shade tree hanging out in the breeze with temperatures reaching up into the upper 70's...we could get used to this.
Anyway on to our day: this morning we went to church with the children at the orphanage. We were pretty amazed when we arrived to the church where we were going to be worshipping...I think I mentioned that it seats 12,000. The entire service was in Spanish so they handed us headphones and receivers in order for us to be able to have the service translated. It gave us a new perspective for those who visit our services that may not speak English. Some of the responses from our students were realizations that though we were speaking different languages, we were praising the same Jesus; the first song that we sang was Hillsong's Take It All which many of our students recognized and got really excited about; it just so happened that the sermon was a video tape of a guy who came and visited last week who was from Gateway Church in Dallas, TX--so the sermon was in English with a translater interpreting the message into Spanish (we thought that was kind of cool); we were also very excited about how spirit-filled the worship was in the service.

After church, we returned to NLCH for lunch which was excellent again...we have not been disappointed with the food one bit. Then the rest of the afternoon was spent playing with the kids here. More soccer, volleyball, frisbee, and the girls painted fingernails with some of the girls here and one reluctant Youth Pastor. Thus far things have been going very smoothly. Our students are building relationships with these children and really showing them the love of Christ. Some of our expectations have been completely turned upside down in a great way and God is truly moving in the ministry here.

One quick story about where we are...NLCH is located in Villa Nueva, Guatemala. It is tucked away in a spot where you are able to see two different volcanos...one dormant and the other active. On a hill that looks down into the valley where we are staying, you can see a squater's camp that blankets the landscape. It is believed that 500,000 people live on this hill in tin shacks and other shelters that are not very sturdy, especially during the rainy season. The location of NLCH is in what they call a red zone which basically means that it is so bad that even McDonalds won't deliver here (yes apparently Mickey D's delivers in Guatemala). In the midst of darkness that is so encompassing of an entire society, NLCH has become a light. It is a place where orphans come and feel valued, loved, and above all else accepted. When Jesus speaks of placing a light on a hill, I truly believe that this place is living that image out. There is no way that you can hide the Light that explodes all around this place. We truly are in the presence of the King.