LA Mission Trip 2009

Exhaustion is creeping in. Some of us are tense, tired, and impatient. The lack of sleep and rest is becoming more evident by the hour. Yet despite all of this, smiles are everywhere, no one is frowning, or showing any signs of struggle, whether it be mental or physical. Welcome to day three.

My group, group 2, started our day off at 8 45 in the morning (we lucked out two days in a row)! The morning started for us very slowly, even though we were blessed to have been able to get a more adequate amount of sleep, we were all still grumbling and dragging ourselves into the common room for breakfast. A little coffee, and some sugary cereal and we were good to go!

We started our day off at S.A.S.L.A (Salvation Army) once again. Walking into the the building we saw all the kids faces light up, which was a great motivation to get pumped up and ready to go. It was amazing to see how every single person in the group didn’t hesitate to get involved. Whether it was hanging out with a certain group of kids, or just hanging out in a class and helping out, no one stood around. There was lots to do and lots of love to pour out over all the kids. The way they just latched onto us, and confided in us was incredible to see as we have only known them for two short days. Even though none of us are councilors who can analyze some of their difficult situations and give them advice on what to do, with God’s guidance we were able to love them like Jesus, give them comfort, and ultimately just show them that we care. It wasn’t all easy, working with kids usually isn’t. At times patience wore thin, and tension was high. For example, as I was walking with one little girl a whole group of boys came over to her and started to say very rude things to her, what do you do in that situation? I for one felt terrible for the girl, and was tempted to start yelling at the boys who clearly were hurting her feelings. As I was about to open my mouth, the girl grabbed my arm and told me to just let them say what they want because she knows what’s true and what they were saying wasn’t. It was one of those precious moments, and for such a young girl it was crazy to see that she had already grasped a concept that many fail to ever fully understand in their lifetime. Even though some of us got smacked a few times, hit with basketballs, tackled over, and yelled at… you couldn’t help but to just love these kids. One thing that was prevalent was the fact that despite some of these kids heart breaking situations they were all desperately trying to live out a normal childhood, just playing and having fun, doing what all kids should be doing (and might I say they did an excellent job)! It was sad to leave after we had an exciting and adventurous three hours, but we made it known that we would be back (whether for their reassurance or ours I’m not sure J).

Then we were off for lunch. Definitely a much anticipated time of day, all that running around makes you hungry! We ate quickly and were off to the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank. We began by watching a video on hunger in LA, and then were given a quick tour of the entire place. After that it was off to work. It was great to see how everyone took the tasks assigned and didn’t complain at all. We all worked to be the best of our abilities, for some it was sorting food, and for others it was packing up boxes. It was encouraging to see that we weren’t the only ones there, as there were at least another 40 people in the room working just as hard. Time passed by quickly, and we were done before it even seemed like we had really began working. It was definitely inspiring to see how much care is put into packing the food, it was as though the food was being packed for ourselves instead of others.

Dinner tonight was Honduran food. It was delicious to say the least!!! After that we went to a park and just hung out (not as originally planned) we made pyramids and got a lot of stares. But it was a great time had by all, no fighting, no tension, just fun.

During debriefing as a large group today you could tell that everyone is starting to get really comfortable with everyone. So it was nice to be able to join in fellowship with each other and praise God, and share moments where we felt he was really working through us or other people.

As this week goes on I have a feeling that God has only begun to work, and much is to still come. Hearts are breaking and stirring, mindsets are changing, and people are experiencing God in ways they never thought possible. God is the light in the darkness, the hope to the hopeless, and the peace to the restless. He is truly revealing these truths to us this week

 

“Greater things have yet to come, and greater things are still to be done in this city.”

-          Chris Tomlin “God of This City”