We returned home today at 3:30ish pm. We are so thankful that all of our flights went well and God showed our team much grace as we spent two weeks at the Village of Hope.
I truly do not know what to write tonight, but wanted to let you know that we continue to be so grateful for the opportunity God gave our family. We are continuing to process (and probably will take a lot of time these next few weeks) to see what God is teaching us through this trip. I am so tired tonight. We spent 36 hours traveling and I did not get much sleep. This is true for most of our team.
I thought I would take a couple of minutes to post a prayer request from this past Thursday. I thought I might be able to have access to the internet, but it wasn't meant to be. The post still rings true for me though. I know that our team left a piece of each of our hearts at the VOH. I do not know how the kids feel about us leaving, but it was very difficult for us to leave...
Written on 8/22/2013
We have had limited access to the internet. Right now I am typing a note that I hope to post later today. Thankfully God is timeless and whenever you see this prayer request God is faithful to answer. I would like to ask for prayer as our team prepares to say good bye. We have been asked to not be emotional as we say our good byes. The kids here have experienced so much pain in their lives they don't need to experience it once again because of us leaving. So, our goal is to say good bye in a positive fashion, like how we might say good bye to a friend that we plan to see again soon. This is a difficult idea for me because of course there is no guarantee we will be able to come back soon... maybe not ever. But we do want to honor the request and I do understand the request.
We have all developed relationships here that have touched our hearts, with the children, Mama's, Aunties and workers. It is going to be hard to leave, so if you could pray for the Holy Spirit to work in our hearts and faces so we can smile and love on the children as we say good bye on Friday we would greatly appreciate it.
Today: Saying good bye was very difficult for me. I made many connections with the kids, but especially with the children in House 6. We had the opportunity to visit with the kids each night after dinner in their homes. We each picked a house and then continued to visit with the same kids the whole 2 weeks. So when it came time to say "See you later"... I know I had a couple of tears in my eyes. I hope the kids know that it wasn't necessarily a sadness, but more of a thankfulness that God allowed us to be together... If you would continue to pray for the children as they adjust to a more structured schedule this week while they finish up their "holiday" from school, I know they would appreciate it.
Blessings ~ Erin
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