Journal Entry:
Next, we headed to a home for teenage moms and their babies. This place hit me hard because I am strongly drawn to children and desire passionately to have some of my own someday, as You well know. The youngest girl there was twelve years old and we met another young girl who was sixteen and had a newborn baby.
To think about having a baby at my age was heart-wrenching, but it also feels great to know that things will get better through this ministry. They place more experienced girl with newer ones and provide physical and psychological help for these girls who are from the streets.
This ministry is run by an amazing woman named I. who became a widow nine years ago and has a burning passion for these girls and You. I find it so amazing how she cares so much for each individual girl and how she calls each one of them "Precious", "Princess", etc.
Anything concerning young children and girls who need help really connects with me and I feel a strong desire to help out. I was so encouraged by how You've provided her with workers and government support all the way along. She's just started up a new ministry next door for girls who are drug seller and addicts, murderers, thieves, etc. and there have been multiple problems along the way. What's amazing to me is her steadfastness because of her belief in what You've called her to do.
We girls taught the moms how to make butterflies while the boys held babies. It was so sad to see how much fear these girls have towards men in general, but it was cool to see all of the guys loosen up and get sort-of comfortable. I snuck away from doing crafts near the end and went to hold some of the babies. It makes me sad to wonder where they will end up in the future. I held one baby named D and prayed over his future, knowing that You love him so much more than I do, or could. It's so comforting to know that You know what each one of these girls is going through. You work powerfully through prayer and I'm so glad, because it's the one way in which I can continue to help even when I'm not physically present.
This was probably the most touching ministries of all that we faced in Colombia during those 10 days. Every person was touched in different ways.
We pulled up to the side of the street and filed out, grabbing craft supplies from the back of the bus and then heading in. Right in front of us, there was a set of stairs going up, and then a hallway leading back. A lady, small, but with a spitfire spirit, met us. Almost as soon as she started talking, I could see the passion in her eyes. And it overwhelmed me. Overwhelmed and yet beckoned in an incredible way.
Looking up the stairs, we saw some little kids playing on the stairs and before doing anything else, the lady gave us a tour of the ministry. Heading up the stairs, we were met with a group of young moms who held their kids in their arms. These small wonders ranged from newborns to almost 2 years old. Some of them followed us as we made our way throughout the building.
There were multiple floors, on each a number of bedrooms. In each of the bedrooms, we were told, a mom who had been there a longer time was paired with a new one coming in. There were also showers and bathrooms on the floors and I was struck with how bright and open everything seemed, instead of being grubby or closed in.
In one of the rooms, she introduced us to the newest born of the babies, who had come home only a few days ago. The young girl came shyly into the room, and we were told that she was 16. She proudly presented her baby for all of us to see, and then disappeared like a shadow. That really hit me hard. I was 16 at the time. Me... with a baby? Relating to my age made everything more real in terms of what she was going through.
We also brought bags full of baby clothing, bottles, and other supplies that were donated/bought in Canada.
A few days later, one of the slots that was supposed to be filled with another ministry was opened up, so we arranged things so that the girls could go back to the teen girls' ministry.
{Second Day}
Then, our team split up, with the boys returning to the foundation from yesterday and the girls returning to the foundation for teen moms and their babies. When we showed up, we found out that they weren't expecting us (this had been a change in our original schedule). We didn't have as many craft supplies as there were women and so it seemed like we weren't really giving them anything - more like a handout instead of showing love. After a while, I started playing with a little boy named J, who was coming into the craft room and disturbing everyone. I took him out into the hallway and found out that he was two years old. It made me sad to think that he probably doesn't get much one-on-one time playing things like peek-a-boo and counting to ten and getting tickled. But I also know that You have a plan for his life and that's incredibly encouraging.
Then, after finishing up the crafts, all the girls were gathered and we had a prayer and sharing time. Two of the girls in our group spoke to the girls, telling them about how much we admire their strength and how the same God who made us made them, and that they are beautiful and perfect in His eyes. It was inspiring to see the lights come on inside of their eyes, and it struck me that these girls don't often encounter hope. So we shared with them how You hold hope for a better future and we listened to their prayer requests and prayed for them. Even though they didn't know that we were coming and although so many little kinks had to be worked out, You showed me once again how You take what we perceive to be the wrong timing or bad circumstances and turn it into something beautiful.
These girls love their babies so much and it breaks my heart to think that these kids could end up in the same place without further support.
As we spoke these words of encouragement, of admiring them for their strength, as we broke down crying because of all that we'd seen there, their faces lit up. Our brokenness, our very vulnerability made them able to receive those words because they were from the very deepest parts of us. To be able to see that we're all just girls, in different places, but made exactly the same. We have different circumstances, but why wasn't I put in that situation? Why was I blessed to grow up where I did and have the family that I do? I don't know, but He does. And we spoke about being sisters. Sisters with an amazing Father.
That prayer meeting turned into something pivotal. For us as a team, and for them as girls. It broke our hearts, and it made them see that we meant what we said. Many of these girls are longing to be returned to their families, and may not ever be able to because of the circumstances. The reality of what they have to face everyday in life is crazy. I can't comprehend it.
But I can comprehend a God who knows all about it, who has a plan for them, and who is working in their lives even right now.
As for prayer, I think that prayer for I. would be great. She is in charge of running this household of girls, and the new ministry that she's starting in the building next door has been going through some hard times. Besides that, the government funding upon which her work is based is capricious, depending on circumstances. Pray for a provision of finances, as well as workers. Pray for strength and the ability to see clearly. Pray for these girls, that they may be touched with the reality of what true love looks like, and that it's held in the heart of a true Father. One who will never forsake or betray, but One who knows everything they have ever done/been put through and still loves them as if they were great treasures. Pray hard for these girls.
