July 22, 2014
Yesterday was our first day working at the Kid's Club. After breakfast and devotions, we put together a skit to depict God's acceptance of His children. We spent the next hour giving piggyback rides, playing with toys and jump roping with several kids from the neighborhood. It was so cool to see each team member drop their bags and pick up the children climbing all over them.As a Fresno native, I understand heat. I get it. It's hot and you get sweaty. However, I have never sweat like I did yesterday. Our shirts were drenched, but that didn't stop us. We read some Scripture, performed our skits and sang "Father Abraham" a few times (and then really fast and really slow). They loved it!!After Kid's Club we went to have lunch at a place the Fleenors call "Frog Legs". I was thinking that it was a cute name for a restaurant, but no really- we ate frog legs. And they were surprisingly really good, but then I looked down to see the toes and that was a bit much for me so I promptly threw it out. It was incredible to eat family-style together in our little hut on mats, and even more incredible to share in breaking bread with our family- the Fleenors.That afternoon, Ryan, Stephanie and I were assigned to conduct interviews with a few of the girls who are in Dr. Paul's medical training program. We toured the clinic (which is pretty much a hospital-all they need is staff and some renovations to get it fully functional, but the framework and most of the equipment are there) and met the girls. We filmed interviews with 5 girls, each one strikingly different than the next. We asked about their goals and dreams and what their favorite part about working with Dr. Paul was, and it was great to hear the excitement in their voices about wanting to become doctors or open up clinics of their own or spread God's love with their villages. God is working within those girls in amazing ways! The final interview was the hardest though. The girl started crying before the interview even started, and couldn't get through one question before she completely broke down. When asked who supports her through her time in training she said that she doesn't have anyone encouraging or supporting her. We stopped the interview and gathered around her to pray. Hearing Dr. Paul's heart in praying for one of his trainees was truly inspiring because he loves these girls so much and wants them to lead better lives. One of the coolest parts of that experience was hearing our translator pray for her in Khmer (the Cambodian language). There's just something about praying in one accord by the Spirit that even language barriers can't threaten. And as we pray for this downhearted girl, it starts to rain. Thunder and wind blew all around us making it hard to even hear each other, but that storm reminded me of the power our God has in quenching our dry hearts-even the ones whose hearts are hardest.Please continue to keep us in prayer today as we continue our ministry.Blessings,Danica