Evangelism/Construction

Waking up this morning was like taking a breath of fresh air – considering every breath we take is fresh air. The buildings are all open. With hardly any rain and no temperatures below 60, they can afford to not board up their houses like we do. When the bathroom was open, I decided it was my turn to get out of bed and start the day.

We ate breakfast at eight o’clock. It was gloriously not-early for a high school student. We ate fried plantains, which are a lot like bananas, scrambled eggs with peppers, onions, and a type of hot sauce, and refried beans. The El Salvadorians eat well, my friend.

Our job today was to begin construction, which actually turned out to be mostly demolition. I couldn’t believe the turnout of young adults that showed up to break up concrete, rock, and gravel. Not only did they work hard, but they smiled the entire time! I could never have done half of what they accomplished today.

In the morning, I started out with the evangelism team. I really didn’t know what to expect. Like at all. We walked from door to door, asking people if they were Christians. If they said that they had a church home, we prayed for them before moving on. We shared the gospel with two homes, both of which afterwards said they had already accepted Christ as Lord, but just didn’t have enough time for church. So that was interesting.

Although I’ve only seen a living room or two, the houses here are about the size of your average kitchen. Which means the kitchen is about the size of your average bathroom. Like I said, it’s mostly open. Some don’t have complete roofs. The roofs that they do have are tin with barbed wire around the top so thieves don’t dig through the ceiling. On the outside, it looks like one building. They’re all connected. When we would talk to people, the screen door would remain locked, with bars across to keep out intruders.

I’ll tell you about sharing with the EvangeCube. I said one sentence, the translator repeated. What I didn’t expect was how attentive the couple I shared with was. If I tried that in the U.S, I might get two or three words out before someone shouted it was a violation of their freedom and we were forcing religion on them.

Not only that, but they’re right when they say God is already where you’re going to serve. We didn’t bring God here. He’s been in El Salvador all along. We won’t take him with us when we leave. There’s a movement here. You can feel it, and that’s something you can’t say about the U.S.

We ate lunch at someone’s house. Everyone who was working construction was there with us. It was a great Fiesta! We were served beef with rice, green vegetables, tortillas, and fruit. So far, all the meals here have been amazing.

We finished eating and got back to construction. It wasn’t just about the building process. Sure, everyone was focused and working hard, but there was more to it. It was about two churches coming together. There’s that “unity” word again. This is the first experience I’ve had where I felt like every move we make is for a bigger purpose.  

 

Currently, I’m sitting in the courtyard of our hotel, watching the sun set and enjoying the spring breeze. We have another church service in about an hour. Right now I feel very unready for the rest of the trip. You’d think after the first day everything would be easier, but I’m more nervous than ever. I’m constantly praying for peace. I want to do this thing right, and I don’t want to regret a missed opportunity.

Pray for us?