Rich Hearts

El Senor con ustedes!  The Lord be with you!  He has certainly been with us as we've reached one of our goals - accomplishing three full days of trabajo - work - on the iglesia Luterana - church building for the Las Americas congregation.

The trabajo included: pick-axing, shoveling, wheelbarrowing fill into the chancel area; running buckets of wet cemento and agua to the maestros as they laid cinder blocks; more mudding over PVC conduit and boxes for electrical fixtures; and cutting, fashioning PVC as conduit for wiring through the cinder blocks.  I've become a bit handy with fuego - fire (matches and paper cement mix bags) - when the PVC has needed some adjusting.  What I'd give for a simple propane torch...  I asked Maudry who owns the corner hardware store and a member of the iglesia about having propane torches, and he said matches are much less expensive.  Made me think of Garrison Keillor's Lake Woebegon and Ralph's Pretty Good Grocery, "If We Don't Have It, You Don't Need It."

Duane was masterful with the children today and the Evang-e-cubes which he let them keep after he had each one read through the directions in Espanol.  As they did, he would talk through the salvation story mostly in English.  Watching Duane served as a reminder that our goal is to be known for more than just being "nice" people who serve without pay.  The goal always is to make sure others know the reason we do what we do - for the love of Christ and His love for us, and especially for those who have yet to learn of His love.

Ultimately it is always about relationships.  A boy about 10 or 11, with the help of a Spanish-English Dictionary, began asking questions: how many autos do you have?   How many bicycles?  How many computers?  For him, nada.  We asked why.  He said his father is poor.  His mother, too, he added.  He wasn't with us to ask for pesos.  He did stick around for lunch - rice, beans, pollo (chicken).  When it was time to give thanks and a volunteer was asked to pray, he led us.  He prayed in his native tongue.  (And a child shall lead them.) We ate together.  He had seconds.  Refused thirds, then went his way.

We have been blessed by Ivay's presence.  She is a widow with three children.  Always smiling, always conversing in Espanol as if we understand every word, and with a countenance which only edifies.  Everyday she asks, "El groupo trabajo mucho?"  (The group works much?)  Word has it that a previous group befriended one or two of her children which impressed her so that she inquired more about the church and is now active.  Ultimately it is always about relationships.

Please continue to pray not so much for us, but for the people of Iglesia Luterana here in Las Americas, for their pastor, Willy Gaspar and his family (wife, Santa, and daughters, Yandra and Estefanie), and more so for those like the boy who wonders about the rico - riches - of others that he and more and more would come to a rico corazon - a heart rich - en Cristo - in Christ.  Dios le bendiga!