“Tati-ana, are you ok?”
The 5 year old girl on my knee with her thumb in mouth was trying to hold back the tears. “The kids in Guachupita are so tough, how much can I help change that Lord?” My thoughts echoed a cry for love and tenderness that is heard in our weekly prayer times for these people in this neighborhood.
When we walk through the streets of this neighborhood on Thursday night on our way to the house church, we almost always collect a few kids (if not a mob of them). Our hearts have been changed from dredding the kids dirt coverd bodies coming at us in full sprint and flying out at us to hug our bodies. Germ aphobics won’t do well here. These kids are not taught many hypenical practices; I saw one kid drop his food in a pile of garbage and dive after it. But like I said, our hearts have been changed and I now see all those dirty, barely dressed, cursing little boxers, as a blessing.
Tatiana (Ta-tee-ah-na) was one of the biggest terrors for us when we first got to know the people here. She would kick, hit, and otherwise just terrorize us as we would walk around and talk with people. But something happened in her, she has changed. And other people in the community can see it…they can see Who changed her little 5 year old heart.
Tatiana was jumping up at one of our team members and as she did they moved back not knowing that she was jumping at them. Her feet half missed the ledge she was jumping up from, half a second later her head hit the ledge and she was laying on the concrete floor. We picked her up and checked for any blood. There was non, just a head ache and a few tears.
She remained in my arms as we circled the other kids up and started a kids time while the house church started. “Are you ok? Does your head hurt? What about your tickels? You still tickelish?” She twitched and pinched my hand inbetween her side and arm. She was smiling again.
“Hasn’t she changed since we have been here?” Sarah said, “Yeah she has! I remember when we walk the other way so that we could avoid being seen by her” agreed Ali. I also agreed “Thank you lord for this change in her life, build her into a strong daughter of your kingdom” Looking into Tatiana’s eyes made the prayer seem more aliv than the skin on my hand.
Sadly most of these kids will never break out of the lifestyle set before them. Pray alongside us that God would send His sirit and his workers to these people whom the Lord is jealous for so that they may know the one true God in a real way.
