Nicaragua 2010 Day 3

Happy 4th of July from Nicaragua! Although our day was not filled with BBQ's and fireworks, we were able to celebrate, laugh and sing none the less. Church in the morning was a delight as we sang songs of worship in Spanish and raised our arms in praise. After church we headed to El Canyon to meet the children and staff at another orphanage supported by ORPHANetwork. As our bus drove down the steep hill that is the road to El Canyon, you are immediately taken in by the lush tropical beauty. We enjoyed lunch and playtime with the kids, whose ages range from 2 to 18. The highlight of this visit was meeting Maria Jose, the woman who operates the orphanage. This woman's story is one of strength, wisdom, love, and frustration. We often ask during our trips here, "Where did you see the face of God?", "Where did you see Jesus today?" All of our eyes were fixed on Him yesterday through the life of Maria Jose. We often see the love of our Creator in the eyes of the children, who so innocently steal our hearts.....how much more should we see Him in those who care for and love the children who have no one else? After being filled with her story, we loaded up two buses and headed to the movies! Toy Story 3 was a huge hit with the kids, the challenge was for the Americans who watched Woody & Buzz in Spanish! While it is true that no world problems were solved as we watched our movie and ate our popcorn, the smiles and laughter that resulted must have been heard in heaven (: The ride home from the mall happened to be the most eventful and lighthearted part of our day. About halfway home the driver realized we were driving with no headlights. After a few attempts at fixing them a call was placed to send another bus. Thankfully, a bus arrived shortly after. But a much smaller bus, maybe equipped to carry 20 people max....just so happens we crammed over 30 people on! All the while singing songs from Grease and other various hits from the 90's. Our team continues to bond and learn about each other through experiences like these, even seeing God make our plans for us rather than the other way around. We are surely where we are supposed to be in each moment here. Trying our best to walk with our eyes and hearts open to all He wants us to see. Yesterday showed us again how blessed we are to be a witness.