Sorry, that it has been awhile since I last blogged...

   Sorry I haven't blogged for like a week... Life has been super busy! Our trip to Mare Rouge was great! On the trip up there, I was overwhelmed with all that God has done since my first trip to Haiti almost two years ago... When we arrived, we immediately had a crowd of kids that were waiting to see what we were going to do. The group started their VBS by telling the story of Jonah and acting it out. After the story, we started painting the girls' nails, coloring pictures, playing soccer, making bracelets, and just spent time with the kids. Two hours later, Pastor Capre lead us on a short walk to see the property where the church will be. It was SO awesome for me to see it because my church has been partnering with the church in Mare Rouge to help them buy the land and a group will be coming to help begin the building process. It was also so cool to see that there will be enough land to also build a school at some point. After showing us the land, we all got on the truck and went to Pastor Capre's house so that I could do some scouting for when my church group comes. We were hoping to do some hut to hut evangelism after I was done, but it looked like it was about to rain, so we headed back to the Mole. It didn't end up raining, but it was probably good that we headed back because the group was tired.

   On Friday, we spent the morning in Kapafu. It was SO awesome how God again kept the ocean smooth so that we were able to make it. When we arrived it was much like last week, the kids were all at school, so we had fun making jewelry with the women and the men enjoyed playing dominoes. After a fun filled morning at Kapafu, we came back to the Mole and started preparing for our princess party with our Bible study girls. It was SO fun! The group started out by telling them that they're God's daughters and that because of that they're princesses and of unfathomable worth. Then I shared with them that just like it is important to guard your heart(which we talked about on Wednesday) that it was also import to guard their bodies. I was worried at first that it might be hard/slightly awkward, but it God gave me the words that I needed and it went really well! I shared with them many Scriptures about the value of their bodies and that their body should be a temple for the Lord. The hardest part was talking about if they had already been sexually abused. i told them that it not only broke my heart, but that it broke God's heart too. We also let them know that they could come talk to Jody, the interns, or Mama Gigi if they wanted. At the very end, we taught them something to say when someone tries to sexually abuse them. It's, stop! Don't touch me there! While making an outline around their bodies, this is personal space. Of course we taught it to them in Creole. :) It is really funny/awesome when we see our Bible study girls when we are walking through town and they will say it to us. After we prayed with each girl, we threw a party and each girl received a crown, had their nails painted, had eye shadow and sparkles put on, and as they left received a bag with some candy, a bracelet, and some other fun things! They also each received a mirror with Psalm 139:14 written on the back of it. It was so fun to just have fun and love on those beautiful/sometimes crazy girls. After the party, we got ready for our bonfire on the beach. It was another great bonfire! It was also sad because it meant that our wonderful electrician friends, Jim and Walter, as well as the group were leaving tomorrow. I can't remember if I have blogged about Jim and Walter yet, but the spent almost two weeks here to just work on Jose and Jody's house and Miss Beth's house/Castillo kid classroom/intern room. They did an awesome job! They were also super fun to have around because they were always making us laugh. When we got back home after the bonfire, we stayed up till 3 am for our group from Florida to arrive on the bus. We originally thought they would make it around 11pm, but they got stuck an hour away and our driver, Doumi, and some other staff had to go help them make it out of the river. But they made it and were actually in a super good mood, considering they had been traveling the entire day.

   Saturday was a busy day. The Texas group took all but six of the orphans to the beach and the Florida group pampered the Mamas and watched the kids that didn't go to the beach. The Mamas loved it. I think a break from watching 32 kids, might have been their favorite part. I am amazed by their constant love and patience with those kids. They are definitely helping raise up the next generation of Christian leaders in Haiti. After lunch, the Texas group, Jim, and Walter flew out and the Florida group and us took naps. Naps were definitely needed after staying up SO late. We finished our day with by showing a movie after supper. Movie nights are always lots of fun because it gives us a chance to just love on and hug kids who most likely don't receive hugs from their own parents.

   On Sunday, the Florida group did an awesome job leading children's Church. They had a puppet show, craft, and told the story of Joseph. At the end, we had the kids make Father's Day cards for their children. For the kids who live in our orphanage, we had them make theirs for the men on staff who take time to love on those kids: Pierre, Kenson, Pastor Agenor, Berna, Doumi, Nene, and Smith. It is always so precious to see them loving on those kids. The rest of our day was spent relaxing. The team headed to the beach and I prepared for the devotion I gave that night.

   Monday through Thursday, the team and us interns, kept busy by doing service projects in the morning and then we had VBS every afternoon. The service projects we worked on were painting Jose and Jody's house, organizing the depot, preparing medicine for next week's clinics, and one of the group members, JD, worked on the plumbing and electricity in Jose and Jody's house. The whole team did an awesome job! They worked hard during each task, even when they were dripping with sweat and encountering centipedes... Haha. VBS went really well too! We had the same group of about 80 kids come every afternoon. The group shared a part of Joseph's story, had a puppet show, did crafts, played games, and fed the kids lunch each day. The hardest part was when we had to turn kids away who didn't have a bracelet. My prayer is that for those we had to turn away, their friends who did come, will share what they have learned. At the end of today's VBS the group presented each child with a crown, a backpack filled with a toothbrush, outfit, candy, toy, and the T-shirt they tie-dyed this week(their own colorful "coat"). It was so precious to see the kids' faces when the received their gifts. The group even brought red table cloths to use as a red carpet for the kids to walk out on. They ended today with a movie night featuring the movie, Joseph King of Dreams.

   On Wednesday, us interns had our girls' Bible study after VBS. Haylee taught the girls the importance of guarding their minds. For the majority of the time they did a good job paying attention, but towards the end they were getting restless. We closed with a nail painting party. The girls all wanted a different color for each nail because that was how my toes were painted. It was really funny. It is so awesome how God has allowed us to grow close to these girls and I am SUPER excited to see what else He has in store for this Bible study as we continue to meet this summer.

  Our next group arrives tomorrow, hopefully before 3am... And the Florida group's last full day is tomorrow. Prayers for safety as the groups travel would be greatly appreciated! And I will hopeful get into a better blogging schedule. Haha.

Bondye beni ou!