First Official Week!

HEY GUYS!!

Just finished my first complete week of ministry! It was so so beautiful and amazing!

Every week day begins the same, we get on two chicken buses and they take us to a little town called San Lorenzo! Once we arrive we meet up with our host and we start to walk around the town and visit the houses of the kids involved in either One Ways outreach program or players of the soccer team! We go and visit with their moms and see how they are doing at home and we ask about how they are doing at school! We also ask how we can pray for them and it is such a beautiful thing! These kids homes look nothing like what we have in the States so it is so cool to be able to come and encourage these families and pray for them. We hear stories about how these people are sick, we hear about fathers who have left their families or are cheating on their wives, and we also hear about how these moms are struggling to pay their bills and put food on the tables. There is so many heartbreaking stories to hear, but it is cool to hear about how much faith they have in God and that he will get them through these hard times!

I am so encouraged by the faith of these women and seeing how they have their complete faith in the Lord because they truly depend on him for everything. Another thing that encourages me is just the appreciation they have for the things they have. I often overlook all the things that to Lord has blessed me with, but now I am able to appreciate the little things in life that the Lord blessed me with.

One particular mom was crying to us because she was not excited for the holiday season coming up because she knows her kids are gonna want gifts like their friends are getting but her kids won’t be able to get.

This broke my heart for this family and it really made me appreciate all of the celebrations that my family has done. I am also glad that this mom has partnered with One Way because they will be able to give the kids gifts for Christmas and give them hope.

After the house visits we go have lunch then head to the campo (field) and play soccer with the kids. It’s so beautiful to see children of all ages with so much joy after we have seen how little they have in their homes. We play drills and help the kids get ready for their championship match in just a few weeks!

Most days look like this, except for Thursdays! On Thursdays we have activation and we have worship and teachings in the morning and then we go and evangelize in the streets of Parramos. This week I was with Marshall and we went and prayed for some people. One particular pastor called Marshall and I over and we talked to him for like 30 minutes. It was such a beautiful time! We bonded over our love for Paul and he told me about how he loved Romans and I told him I loved Philippians and so we both read scriptures to each other in English and Spanish. And then we had the opportunity to pray over his wife’s eyes and his son. During that prayer I could feel the spirit moving and it was one of the most spirit filled prayers I had ever been apart of! I could feel the Holy Spirit speaking through me!! Moments like these make me appreciate why I am here.

This week we were able to love and encourage widows, pray for the sick, and love the brokenhearted.

Thank you Lord for this week.

None of this would be possible without the Lord, he is using each and everyone one of my members and it is so amazing to be a part of.

Thanks for reading!!

Jackson Schlesinger

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PHOTO TIME!!