We are all one of God's miracles

Sunday, 9/14 9:30 EST Day two opened with Sunday services where we were blessed by beautiful music lifting up the name of Christ in celebration. Most songs were sung in English, as a treat for the missionaries, but when the music switched to Spanish lyrics, the children’s voices swelled with such passion that a few of us were brought to tears. Five-hundred children with just a handful of adults in their midst makes for quite a blessing in and of itself. Tom (Senor Tomas) delivered his sermon expanding on the concept that each child in our presence was a miracle of God. What really surprised us is his understatement of his Spanish proficiency. While he is too humble to say the word “proficiency,” the rest of us will claim it on his behalf. He not only captured the children’s attention, but made them giggle as he cracked jokes from the pulpit to remind them all that even in our imperfections and imperfect view of ourselves, God created us in the perfect image he needed us to be for him. For the most part, Sunday worship is the first time we are really in the midst of the children, and that first onslaught of tiny hands finding yours and pulling you into seats beside them is a sure “Welcome Home” for those who have been to Emmanuel before. For the first timers, this is the first overflow of love that they are washed in. Either way, it’s a pretty difficult experience to shake. After church, Cheryl took some of the group off for a tour of Emmanuel. The entire campus is more than 1,200 acres split between girls and boys campuses: dormitories, staff and volunteer housing, a medical clinic, a dental clinic, the school, the church, greenhouses, a tilapia farm, henhouses and dairy cows are just some of the sights. Although, we were most impressed by the iguana sunning himself on the bridge and his sibling who jumped in the lake and swam across it to get away from us (did you know iguanas can swim??) While some of us were getting familiar with the layout of the land, Hope, Salem, Morgan, and Mary Elizabeth jumped right in with face painting with the older and middle girls. Erin impressed the group with her balloon making skills. Rick Copley happened to be up at the water tower, which is at one of the highest points on Emmanuel, and expressed what a blessing it was to see groups of children and mission team members spread all across the campus just having fun and being loved on from one end of campus to the other.