Wow, What a Week

Well, this has been quite an eventful week, and I have some prayer requests to go along with all of my news. First, the good (but a little sad) news: we have a new girl living with us! Her name is Magaly, is 8 years old, and is precious. We got her on Sunday, and that was a little bit of an emotional experience for me. She has a mother and siblings, but her widowed mother has more children than she is able to provide for and can't afford to put any of them in school. When Jerry and Hugo went to pick her up on Sunday, they brought her whole family with them so that they could see where she is going to live and meet the girls that she is going to live with. It was hard meeting her mother and siblings, knowing that they were going to have to leave her here and part from her. I can't imagine having to do that. So far Magaly has been doing really well, and I hope it continues that way. I can't imagine how overwhelmed she must feel with being in a new place and being put into school for the first time. Please keep her and her family in your prayers.

The other big news is (as I'm sure many of you have already heard) that there has been a police riot against the President in Quito, the capital of Ecuador today. Everything in Quito is shut down, and there are even roads in Ecuador that are blocked off. I have a group coming to visit that lands this Sunday in Quito, and so they are now watching to see if it will be possible/safe for them to come. Please be in prayer about this whole situation. As of tonight, I've heard that things have calmed down, but I have no details at all. Please be in prayer about all this.

To add to the chaos at school today with the news of the police riots, we also had to say goodbye to three of our fantastic teachers at the school who have gotten good government teaching jobs. It was very sad, and we had many sobbing young girls (didn't really see any boys crying :P) who are going to miss their teachers terribly. This also puts the school in a tight spot as we are now five teachers short, and certified teachers are very difficult to come by right now with all the jobs that the government is offering. This makes functioning on a day to day basis very stressful for everyone. Please be in prayer that God provides the teachers and support that we need. We need individuals who will not only be good teachers, but who can be good Christian role models to these children and be involved in their lives. Not only do we need more teachers and support, we especially need certified teachers so that we can finish the process of legalizing the high school so that the oldest students can graduate in a couple of years. The Lord will provide somehow. Be in prayer for this school with its mission, aim, and heart.

To leave with a good thought: tonight at our women's Bible study, we sang one of my favorite songs, "Ancient Words." I absolutely love the words to this song...

Ancients words, ever true
Changing me, changing you
We have come with open hearts
So let the ancient words impart