Day 3 part 2

Today was a riot of a day.  We had a great time painting floors, pouring concrete this morning...venturing to the waterfall nearby, and playing hard with the kids today.

Mike shared his testimony this morning and did an amazing job.  He literally left everyone wanting more.  When he had basically run out of time all the tia's said, keep going.  And so he continued and shared his story of God's faithfulness and grace throughout his life.  I (Josh) know his testimony was a powerful encouragement to everyone there.  

I know for Brian, one of his highlights today was swimming with Julio in the pool.  Julio is the only special needs child here and regularly needs help keeping his core muscles stimulated.  From birth Julio was abused, thrown against the wall by his parents, and neglected...but at Hogar De Vida Julio is one of the children who brings the most joy to teams, tias, and the children.  He laughs all the time and jokes constantly.  He alone could change your perspective on life.
Then we ended our day hearing the testimony from Noami, one of the tia's here.  Her story too would rock your socks off, from being the youngest of 14 children...neglected and abused, and never sharing her feelings with anyone.  In spite of it all, God got her, and began a long but amazing healing process in her.  Her story was filled with incredible trials, tests of faith, and obstacles from every side, but God is faithful and gave her the special gift of adopting a little girl here named Anna (which means grace) and has been using her to touch the lives of the children here at Hogar for over 16 years.  We ended with a powerful prayer time over her and we know God's got an amazing 16 more ahead of her.

I think my favorite part of these trips is watching all the team members heading off to bed at the end of an amazing day, almost scratching their heads after experiencing and hearing of the amazing works of God and His faithfulness when we walk in complete obedience and fully trusting Him.