The Lord had a lot more in store for us today, even though it was our last day at Casa before our debriefing session. It was a day that focused on last night's porch-time message; compassion. We had such a joy-filled day and our team truly finished the missions portion of the trip on a high note.
In the morning our team split into returners to Nicaragua and Nicaragua first-timers. The returners went on a prayer tour, visiting all the places that the Lord has impacted through our trip here. We prayed at Casa Bernabe, our gracious hosts for the last 8 days. We also prayed in VeraCruz, the neighboring town that we have really grown such a strong connection to. The team finished the tour by traveling to La Chureca, the city dump, and Nueva Vida, which is the hurricane refugee camp. It was such a strong time of reflection and prayer and there is no doubt that you could feel the presence of Jesus in everything that we did today.
The Nicaragua first-times had the unique experience of participating in the "dia de compasion" or "day of compassion." This is a day in which you take on the life of a Nicaraguan family and put yourself firsthand into their daily activities. As part of the day, we traveled to the marketplace and completed tasks that were set in front of us. These tasks included being given a certain amount of money and buying what was needed for your family. It is such an eye-opening experience to be a part of, and one that I know our kids enjoyed.
After enjoying lunch, we traveled to a local sports park and spent a few hours playing with the children of the El Canyon and Casa Bernabe orphanages before saying our goodbyes. It was a day filled with joy as we had several stations set up around the park including jump rope, soccer, and hula-hoops. The children enjoyed the day and our team loved the opportunity to continue building the relationships they have developed with these kids. To finish the time off, a mariachi band showed up and entertained us for well over 30 minutes. It was such a fun time, and aside from saying our final goodbyes to the children, was a day that everyone enjoyed.
After leaving the park we returned to Casa and packed up to head off to our debrief site; the beautiful El Narome resort. We arrived shortly after 630 and are all checked in and ready for a great day and a half of reflection of this wonderful opportunity that God has placed in front of us. We will be leaving here Thursday morning to head back to the States. There will not be a blog update tomorrow, so expect the next communication to be a text sent once we have arrived and gotten through security at Managua airport on Thursday. Please pray for us these next two days as our kids reflect on the wonderful things God has had them do. It has been my pleasure keeping you updated throughout the duration of this trip. I thank you for following us and praying for us along the way. Your children have done amazing things and everyone should be so proud of what they have accomplished these last 8 days. Again, your continued prayers are encouraged. God bless!
-Daniel Pulley, Student Ministries Summer Intern
