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Learning Patience Through Children
May 3 2010 / ShareHim in Mexico B, Feb. 26 - Mar. 13 '10 #422by Alyssa Pelto
Personal Testimony of Alyssa Pelto.
I never knew that this mission trip would be such a blessing. I thought it would be just like any other community service project where you go out, help people in need, and maybe even spend time with kids. When I decided to join this cause, I was expecting to be out in the hot sun all day cleaning up people’s yards and painting houses. As a children’s ministries leader, I knew I would be spending my evenings trying to spend time with kids who don’t even know my language! The Lord put me in my place!
When we were traveling to Chetumal, I was a nervous wreck. I knew working with the children would be a tough job. They wouldn’t know our language and they would probably be an energetic bunch. I didn’t think I would be able to lead a group of noisy kids, because of the language barrier.
That first night I broke down. We hadn’t had any time to plan anything at all because of all the traveling we had to do. We got into our driver’s van and went to the church. At first it wasn’t all that bad. There were only a few children there and it was mostly just us trying to come up with games to play and songs to sing. Then a ton of children came. The next thing I knew we were being bombarded with questions. Somehow we were able to communicate with them. A few of the kids even knew a little English.
Ever since that first night, I let God help me overcome the barriers that Satan was putting into my mind. I had an amazing time coloring, singing, doing crafts, and playing games with all of the kids at my assigned churches. Every night they would teach us Spanish and we were even begged to teach them some English. At the end of each program, the children would run up to us, showering us with hugs and kisses and asking us when we would be back. The last nights in each of the churches were the most difficult, especially when we had to tell them we wouldn’t be coming back.
I think the biggest blessing I gained from this experience was the excitement and patience the kids had. They understood we were struggling and they always laughed it off and tried again. They were also excited to see us every single night. When they saw our vehicle pull up they would run up to us before we even had time to get out of the car. For me, feeling God’s presence in their happy smiling faces was the greatest blessing of all!
When we were traveling to Chetumal, I was a nervous wreck. I knew working with the children would be a tough job. They wouldn’t know our language and they would probably be an energetic bunch. I didn’t think I would be able to lead a group of noisy kids, because of the language barrier.
That first night I broke down. We hadn’t had any time to plan anything at all because of all the traveling we had to do. We got into our driver’s van and went to the church. At first it wasn’t all that bad. There were only a few children there and it was mostly just us trying to come up with games to play and songs to sing. Then a ton of children came. The next thing I knew we were being bombarded with questions. Somehow we were able to communicate with them. A few of the kids even knew a little English.
Ever since that first night, I let God help me overcome the barriers that Satan was putting into my mind. I had an amazing time coloring, singing, doing crafts, and playing games with all of the kids at my assigned churches. Every night they would teach us Spanish and we were even begged to teach them some English. At the end of each program, the children would run up to us, showering us with hugs and kisses and asking us when we would be back. The last nights in each of the churches were the most difficult, especially when we had to tell them we wouldn’t be coming back.
I think the biggest blessing I gained from this experience was the excitement and patience the kids had. They understood we were struggling and they always laughed it off and tried again. They were also excited to see us every single night. When they saw our vehicle pull up they would run up to us before we even had time to get out of the car. For me, feeling God’s presence in their happy smiling faces was the greatest blessing of all!