One thing that I have noticed among Colombians is hope. There is hope for a better tomorrow and hope for change. As the youth group expands so does the passion that is in the hearts of the youth to reach out to the community. We have had several events that have involved the whole community. One was a concert in another town called Analaima where youth from several churches as well as adults gathered in a public square for a Christian concert. This concert lasted until 11pm. Then last Saturday we had a worship event in the town theater in La Mesa and many people from the community came out. There was an altar call at the end of it and 3 people accepted Christ for the first time. One of those people was a police officer who looked to be in his 30´s. I found out later from my host dad that he was a commander in the police force in La Mesa. I was excited to see this because it showed God even reaches and softens the hearts of armed forces and government officials. I believe that this is one area that God wants to move in here. Only time will tell. As my host dad once told me little by little things are changing and change is pòssible.

Hello from Colombia

Well here I am in beautiful Colombia. I arrived here on Monday Oct 29 in the morning. After landing in Bogota airport we picked up our bags and went through customs without any problems. The we met Aaron Kauffman who is the missionary here with Mennonite Mission Network and we went home to rest. The next day and the week following we explored Bogota and learned about various things including culture, about the conflict, and what the Mennonite church is doing here. I got to know some people and really enjoyed talking to them. Then on Friday we made our way to La Mesa a town about 1-2 hours outside of Bogota. We arrived there in the late afternoon early evening and met our host families. I really enjoy the family I am living with. The dad is the pastor of the Mennonite Church here and the mother does alot of work in the church. I have 2 sisters and a brother. Our first week at school was crazy because it was a cultural week and there were no regular classes. Every did presentations of various sorts from academic to dances and songs. This upcoming week is the last week of classes till Janurary or February. I am not sure what my responsibilities will be after next week but we shall see. I really enjoyed the presentation that was put on by the 5th graders of the First Thanksgiving. The teacher is from the USA so she taught them about that story. Also last week we went to another town called Anapoima and it was really interesting to see the sharp contrast between the rich and the poor here. La Mesa is a middle class town and all of our host families are well to do money wise.