Chains are Broken

"I once felt shame talking about my mother. I was ashamed that she used to be a prostitute. Then I came to understand that she only did it for us-- for her children," Marta explained. We were all huddled in her bedroom, listening to her story. Minutes ago, her mother, Cecilia, had shared her story with us-- an Opportunity International team from the USA.

I had a hard time assimilating everything.

The tall building with several different rooms-- each occupied by an entire family. The moisture that permeated everything. The dank smell. The crowded rooms. The poverty.

Then there was the pain that they carried in their hearts. And then, then the healing they had experienced after an encounter with the living God.

Cecilia and Elenita are both former prostitutes. Opportunity International, through their micro-credit program, has helped them leave that life behind and find a new source of income. Cecilia realized that by working in prostitution she was taking money away from her client's family to give to her own. She wanted a new way of earning money.

Elenita shared her story with us:

She came to Bogota when she was 14 years old because her mother had died and she had no one. She had an infant with her and was hoping to find support from the deceased father's child. Little did she know, her mother-in-law and all the women in that family were involved in prostitution. Her mother-in-law hated her and finally kicked her out of their home. Her sister-in-law went with her, not wanting to leave Elenita on her own. Every day, her sister-in-law would go work and bring back enough money to support them. Elenita felt ashamed that she wasn't working so she begged to go work with her, but her sister-in-law refused.

One day, Elenita followed her sister-in-law to work and saw her stand outside a door way, scantily clad. Elenita followed suit and stood next to her. Her sister-in-law begged her to go back before it was too late. She explained that they stood out there to sell their bodies... Elenita refused to go back. She had nothing else... she had a body, so she figured she could sell it to provide for her own child.

After a couple of months her mother-in-law became jealous because Elenita was making much more money. Her jealousy drove her to take Elenita's son away from her and she also began stealing her income. Several weeks later, Elenita was able to take her son back and get away from her mother-in-law.

She was involved in prostitution for over 30 years. She had six children, and three of them have died-- two of them were murdered.

I couldn't imagine the pain she'd been through... and yet, she spoke of Christ's comfort and hope. She talked about the transformation she had experienced, thanks to the work Opportunity was doing. She knew that Jesus was the only way she could have left her former life behind.

She knew chains had been broken by the power of the cross.

An Aching Heart

Down feathers were everywhere. Kids were running around shrieking. We were looking for two missing jackets. A wrestling match broke out to my left. I shook my head and sighed.

What in the world is going ON? Why does this feel so chaotic?

About five of us from my graduating class got together yesterday and went to visit our beloved Recyclers' Ministry (their parents pick through garbage and find recyclable material to sell to factories and that's what they live off of). I was super excited. I had seen them last in May, but was really excited to go back with people from my class. We quickly put together a Bible story and a short application. We decided who was leading songs and then we headed over to the neighborhood.

When we reached their corner, three of the kids started sprinting toward us. I stopped my conversation in mid-sentence and ran out to meet them. Soon, I was overwhelmed with hugs and kisses. Ah, I love them so much.

We started playing some tag and then sang some silly songs with them. Then we began acting out the Jonah story. After one time, Natis and I figured we should do it again, in Opera style (thanks, Medeba!). After that we did it super slowly... and then super quickly. The kids LOVED it! And, having seen it four times, they remembered the story well =)

After story time we gave them a cup of milk and some bread for snack. They loved the milk and kept asking for more.

During snack time one six year old came up to us and asked if we had seen her jacket. We shook our heads, but Natis started looking for them. They were no where to be found. Since we weren't doing organized games anymore, the kids began running around. Two of them pulled out toy guns and started shooting everyone. I cringed at every gun shot. One little girl kept crying because she kept getting hit by the boys. I went to talk to one of the seven year old boys and had to take a step away when I saw him pull out a switchblade.

I felt my mouth go dry and I wasn't sure what to do.

Meanwhile, the other kids kept playing with a down pillow, by shaking it in a dog's face. The dog soon tore it apart and feathers were flying everywhere. The little boy with the blade kept coming toward us as if he were ready to hurt us.

My mind kept spinning and I felt nauseous.

Why were they so aggressive?

When I got home, I shut the door to my room, turned up the music and started crying. My heart ached... it still aches for these children. We started working with these kids four years ago... I know God has used our ministry to bring forth fruit in that neighborhood, but I felt extremely discouraged. I was sick knowing the kind of lives these kids were living... the adulthood they were walking into.

August?

August.

Really? Are we really in August already? I can hardly believe it... I've been in Colombia for two and a half months already... and now I'm leaving next Friday.

It's been a good summer... and a different summer. I haven't really had anything specific to do, so I've just been doing a little bit here and a little bit there. I'll try and give a brief summary:

- Like I've mentioned before, I've been tutoring quite a lot. I'm starting to wind down this week so I can have my last week with no tutoring.

- I've been leading a Bible study for high school girls at ECA and that has been so much fun. We've been going through the book of Philippians... ah, I love it so much! I've enjoyed spending time with them and learning from them as well :)

- I've been playing basketball once a week with some friends and it has been marvelous. I want to try and keep playing during the school year back at U of I.

- I translated documents and videos with World Vision for three weeks. Thought it was a good experience, I didn't enjoy dressing up and sitting in an office for five hours. I don't think I'm cut out to be in an office all day :)

- A couple of trips here and there... I love seeing Colombia and serving in various areas

And then, I've simply been hanging out :) Good summer...

But believe it or not, I'm really excited to go back to school this fall. I'm excited for what this year holds. I'm excited to see how God moves. I miss my two amazing roommates terribly, and I'm excited to live with them again this year. I'm ready to go back for a whole new year in America... :)