Day Four

Well needless to say I was "struggle bus-ing" and very restless this morning. Lucky for me I'm surrounded by 30+ encouraging friends that will give me the push to get through it. Also, I'm glad that the Lord is giving me strength when I am weak. We started the morning off singing for Susana (Anjani's friend). Though Susana's faith isn't stable, I know that Anjani's wonderful influence and our singing makes a difference in Susana's life and pushes her closer to God, and hopefully that is a seed that will be sowed with due time. After that we performed a flashmob type concert in the middle of a very crowded market. It was an incredible experience and one that many people were blessed by. They were in awe as they pulled out their phones to video with their huge smiles and jaws dropped. The rest of the day was very relaxing. Scott, Kaitlin, Rebecca, Ben S., and myself went with Maite and Jimmy to a small village house past the highway to deliver food to a suffering family. Maite warned us of the poor living conditions this family endured but it was worse than I could have ever imagined. This Moroccan woman and her husband were given a place to live for free. However, this house only had one working light, holes and cracks all in the walls, exposed wires, missing glass in the window panes, and a small washing machine that often leaks. Those were just a few problems aside from the fact that the house is so close to the street, so if one of the four kids were to get out, they were at risk of being hit by speeding cars. After seeing both spiritual poverty and now physical poverty in Soria, I can say that I am truly blessed for my health, financial stability, faith, family, and opportunities. This was such a humbling experience. Once we got back to the monastery, we worked in our worship teams for "Battle of the Bands," as Jimmy calls it. My group is incredible and I'm so glad to worship alongside Kaitlin, Nikki, Tiffany, Brett, and Carlos. We practiced with Roberto, his daughter Bea, and the talented Jimmy on guitar. This was a great time to learn the Spanish version of songs that I've been singing for years at church. Speaking of songs, BRH learned and sang Celebra La Vida for Jose Luis (Dr. Martin) to prepare for the pro-life celebration walk. Jose Luis delivered an emotional, heart warming devotional for us afterwards. Dr. Martin is truly an example of a humble man that walks with the Lord. Rather than marriage, Jose Luis has used the time aside from his medical practice to minister to people and to help others. This led us into a much needed emotional debrief. We were broken, pouring out the toils that Satan cursed upon us, so that we may be filled again by God's love and mercy. Debrief was a great reminder for us to love on each other through our individual struggles. Once again, I'm so blessed to be a part of BRH and to have so many brothers and sisters to pray with, worship with, minister with, joke with, etc. God is strengthening BRH and reminding us that He fulfills His promises, just as we sing in "He Never Failed Me Yet."

Visiting the Moroccan family

My wonderful and talented B.O.T.B. group