orphans feed and lepers

The next place was an orphange, only 17 kids currently and the owner, a beautifullt gentle man whose wife had sadly died a year ago only 3 weeks after giving birth to their son, he was throwing him a 1st birthday party the day we were there. The kids were gorgeous and the food lovely they gave us cake and fruit and soda and more cake until we could eat no more, i wasnt sure whether it was rude to refuse they wouldnt take no for an answer they would stand there and keep offering (of course i gladly make a pig of myself on sweet stuff but this was ridiculous) I wouldnt mind but after that just was we were preparing to leave they brought out dinner, and im not talking a small snack or sandwhich a fuill plate of veg meat and heaped high with rice, not only that but meat and veg here was a rarity they would have spent all their money on it to leave it was so rude. we sat and looked at each other wondering how on earth we were gong to do this, hands ready and off you go. we rolled bak to the minibus an hour later.

The following day we borrowed a pastors house and treated them back we made them dinner (no we didnt treat them back like that - i wasnt in charge) we gave them gifts prayed for them and generally treated them.

Yesterday we went to a christian conference, we were to be doing a 'slot' I was not only getting increasingly frustrated by the lack of mercy missions and 'performing' but also very aware this morning i would be stood infront of 3-400 people making a complete ass of myself doing a choreographed dance, dramas and even some public speaking, i had started deciding would i bolt for home or madrid? everything that could go wrong did the music stopped and we actually sang while we danced until the music came back on, i caught sight of one of the team forgot my next step and nearly died, keep smiling and remember it cant last forever. I didnt although i think it came close, next the dramas, and introducing and explaining stuff, after making such a fool of myself it wa easy and i couldnt believe i felt relaxed with a microphone in my hand i near enough preached explaininy the drama (dont worry i spared them) we sat down and all that was eft was to sit around for the rest of the day and be intriged and somewhat bored at time by the amount that people spoke, man eveyone seemed to have alot to say, i think they could have talked people out of church.

Today wa the leper colony, we knew it would be rough but we didnt know how rough. I sat and watched a video of the work they do there and cried there and tehn in the office, people left for dead kicked out of society and chased away by their own families for having leperocy, aids cancer, and mental illness, many of them found uncouncious with and black flies in their wounds. This guy cared for them cleaned them up and helped them, there were currently 220 patients and 9 staff. we prayed with the guy and then went trhough expecting a large room or small hall the deal here seemed to be concrete and plastic chairs) but we walked into a make shift hospital for the dying with beds everywhere, the staench of urine and facease and general sickness, there was a dead person in the corner.

After yesterday i was nominated to speak, so i got past my nerves introduced everyone and put my mind on autopilot, we sang worship songs and with a translater did the dramas, we talked about chirst and we did an alter call we prayed with people several adults and children gave their lives to christ. However on the way home i became so frustrated that i was tuck on an evangleistic outreach and not an international aid programme i saw a worldvision 4x4 and thought of the practical stuff, the 'doing'. There is still so much of this morning i havent begun to process but the next three weeks would have more.