After a long day with our Tico friends, we headed out to the local orphanage for a soccer tournament that Cam arranged with one of his men, Leonardo (who works at the orphanage). Most of our Tico friends came to the tournament. Among those who played were Randall, Roy and Luis. We wheeled in some 30 soccer balls and a number of small toys for the orphans. We were told that these items would have to be given to the administration the following day as there are so many children, that giving these things out to just a few of them (that were at the tourney) would cause jealousy and strife. Giving these items was similar to the Christian's sharing of the good news of Jesus Christ often times. We have this gift of the gospel of Jesus Christ to share and usually we do not see the receipt of that gift. That was a helpful reminder to me: that God is rescuing people all over the world, and Christians are not promised that they will ever see the fruits of their work for God.
You may know that one of our team members, Dennis Brose, was a professional soccer player. Dennis was the "draw" for the tourney. He suited up in a shirt a little to tight for him, stretched his 40-something-year-ol
d legs, and wowed the audience for the 7 minutes he played before tearing a calf muscle, sidelining him for the remainder of the evening. Randall, being a physical therapist, quickly came and confirmed the injury.
What was so great was that Dennis' real contribution to the evening was sharing his testimony of how soccer inevitably was not the satisfaction and fulfillment that his soul longed for...but that Jesus Christ and His saving love was (Dennis is seated toward left of picture with back toward you). The audience was captivated. It was a powerful testimony to this crowd of mostly children and young adults who love the game of soccer. They heard a man that reached heights of success that they could only dream of, and then heard him say they were nothing compared to knowing Jesus.
The most difficult part for me was getting to know a few of the orphans and to hear of their stories. There was an 11 year
old boy, Jose-Daniel. He was a sweet boy that warmed right up to Dennis and I. I believe he was the boy that has 11 brothers and sisters, 4 of which are in the orphanage with him. The other two that broke my heart were Tatiana (left)and Carrie (right). They looked to be about 13 or 14. I was told that they were going to be leaving the orphanage presumably to live on the streets. The reason? To escape the sexual abuse at the orphanage. I was absolutely broken-hearted. Pray that the Lord will extend mercy to these young ones, protect them, and save them.
You may know that one of our team members, Dennis Brose, was a professional soccer player. Dennis was the "draw" for the tourney. He suited up in a shirt a little to tight for him, stretched his 40-something-year-ol
d legs, and wowed the audience for the 7 minutes he played before tearing a calf muscle, sidelining him for the remainder of the evening. Randall, being a physical therapist, quickly came and confirmed the injury.What was so great was that Dennis' real contribution to the evening was sharing his testimony of how soccer inevitably was not the satisfaction and fulfillment that his soul longed for...but that Jesus Christ and His saving love was (Dennis is seated toward left of picture with back toward you). The audience was captivated. It was a powerful testimony to this crowd of mostly children and young adults who love the game of soccer. They heard a man that reached heights of success that they could only dream of, and then heard him say they were nothing compared to knowing Jesus.
The most difficult part for me was getting to know a few of the orphans and to hear of their stories. There was an 11 year
old boy, Jose-Daniel. He was a sweet boy that warmed right up to Dennis and I. I believe he was the boy that has 11 brothers and sisters, 4 of which are in the orphanage with him. The other two that broke my heart were Tatiana (left)and Carrie (right). They looked to be about 13 or 14. I was told that they were going to be leaving the orphanage presumably to live on the streets. The reason? To escape the sexual abuse at the orphanage. I was absolutely broken-hearted. Pray that the Lord will extend mercy to these young ones, protect them, and save them.For the team,
Jeff
Jeff
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