Hay Esperanza (There is Hope)

It’s Thursday morning and the weather is beautiful! I am finally becoming more acclimatized to the cold weather, and to be honest, I have yet to miss summertime. J

The past few days have been quite eventful. On Tuesday, we learned that two of the little girls who are a part of our children’s club were in an accident over the weekend. The family of 4 was riding in a horse – drawn wooden cart when a truck hit them from behind. The cart was completely demolished and one of the girls was trapped under the wood and another was thrown from the cart. Both adults were also injured, but the worst injuries were with the girl who was thrown. She was brought to the hospital in Montevideo and treated for a broken arm and injury to the thorax. The other young girl made it out with just a couple of scars. It is truly a miracle that they survived, and one of the girls even came to kid’s club on Tuesday night! This is a precious family who needs to know Jesus, so we have done our best to lavish them with love and support this week. Please pray that Jesus would reveal Himself through the accident and for miraculous healing for the family!

Tuesday night children’s club is the hardest of them all. Most of the children come from very rough families, and one in particular absolutely breaks my heart. She is 3 or 4 years old and her mother is a prostitute. I do not think this child has had a bath in quite a while. She was very afraid of me at first until she saw that I would treat her with gentleness – she acts like an abused puppy and can easily get defensive. We gave each of the children a new toy on Tuesday night and as I was sitting on the floor playing with her, she burst into a smile and laughter. It was the most beautiful sight I’ve seen in Uruguay thus far. Claren said, “I have never seen this child laugh about something good – this is a milestone.” I pray this child finds true joy. She didn’t want to go home after children’s club – I can only imagine the things she has been exposed to.

We spent yesterday morning visiting friends, including a young woman who had a suicide attempt a couple of years ago and her family. Their stories are quite traumatic and only reiterate how much Uruguay needs Jesus. Hay esperanza en El …

Joni and I enjoyed a trip to the park with two of our Uruguayan friends last night as well. Tonight, we are going to a coffeehouse for relational evangelism and we will be visiting another city tomorrow. WorldChangers begins Saturday in Montevideo where we will be doing children’s clubs all week. Please pray for my health, as I have come down with quite a cold the past couple of days and would really like to feel better before “missions boot camp” at WC next week. J Take heart, your prayers are working, and these are exciting days in Uruguay!

-Amy