Many adventures...

So these photos above are from today (Sept 15), mostly, and man... are they funny.

Rosi and Ricardo are a couple that pastor a church in a community called Durango. Their church is Roca Fuerte. They have a pretty sweet children's program going. The kids from the community have memorized a ton of scripture (they actually put me to shame and challenge me to memorize more scripture). The pictures above are of the festivities that took place today with those very same children.

Rosi is completely invested in this ministry and is always conjuring up new ways to minister to them and have events for them. She cares about them so much and it is completely evident in how she works with them. Her heart is a heart for children's ministry and it brings me joy to be able to work alongside her.

So... today, Rosi organized a parade for Mexican Independence Day (which is actually tomorrow, Sept 16). The kids all got dressed up and we drove around the little community beeping our horns and yelling "VIVA MEXICO" (LONG LIVE MEXICO). The kids were SO excited to get all dressed up. The boys dressed up like Emiliano Zapata and the girls mostly wore long skirts and loooooong braids, dressing like the original indigenous women. Rosi let them wear her jewelery and made little sombreros for all the boys. MaryCarmen and I got sombreros too (as you can see in the photos).

It was pretty simple, but Rosi put in so much effort and planning to make this work. The kids truly enjoyed themselves. And it spoke to me of her heart for these kids and how much she really does care for them. So many of the experiences these kids have, they have because of the way God is working in their lives through Rosi. Without her there, they would not otherwise have this wonderful store of experiences.

Then, after the parade, we went to a "lake" and she bought a pinata for the kids to break. We piled tons of kids in our cars to drive out there and played games, took silly photos, broke the pinata, and then had a contest to see who could quote the most scripture. It was great.

The funny little puppet you see with MaryCarmen in the beginning photo and that you see me kissing is Fernando. He's quite the ladies' man. Casey and I found him in the apartments where we were storing a lot of the supplies the groups left for us. While moving the supplies over to the Segundo Piso to organize them, Fernando somehow never left the car. Now, because Casey and I often have occasion to have many people in our car, Fernando has met a good portion of our acquaintences. And above all, he is a GREAT ice-breaker. People jump in the car and he is the FIRST thing they notice. They grab him, ask questions about him, and inevitably someone puts their arm up his back and he comes to life. And the funniest thing is that he has the SAME personality each time. I don't know what it is about this little puppet, but he loves the ladies! Inevitably, he hits on whatever girl is in the car. It is hillarious. Casey and I have resolved to never let him leave the car because when he is around, our lives are never lacking in laughter.

Praise God for funny-looking puppets. Praise God for people with hearts for ministry. Praise God for children who scream "VIVA MEXICO" in little parades. Praise God for pinatas and silly children. Praise God that no one got hurt today. Praise God for pastors with hearts that are truly invested in their ministry. Praise God for pastors, period. Praise God.