On Sunday we had church on the beach! Now, don't get excited. Although Guyana is on the Atlantic Ocean and you can feel the breeze most days, it's not exactly a tropical view. The Demerara River dumps into the ocean in Georgetown, which actually sits below sea level. The city is surrounded by a sea wall that people walk and run on. In most places, there is no beach on the other side of the wall. But Angie took us to a stretch of beach where we could walk and spend some time with the Lord. Our team devotions focused on the story of Elijah in 1 Kings 17. Elijah's presence in the widow's life changed both of them. In our time on the beach, God began to give us ideas for Prosperity City. I won't share them all here, but it's exciting to see how He is showing us HIS dreams for His people!
After our time on the beach we drove about an hour to a town called Parika that sits on the Essequibo River. Our destination was Youth With A Mission where the Director, Kim, shared about their vision and ministry to the people of this town. There is an area called Sea Dam with similar struggles as Prosperity City. If you've watched the Plastic City video that Deric Cook did, you'll see this area in the section where children are working with gravel. YWAM fed us a great lunch and then we drove to Sea Dam. Our intent was to visit with the people and deliver school notebooks and pencils. This area has been in a drought and the people have been praying for rain -spiritually and physically. Well, the rain came while we were walking through the community! We didn't get very far but were able to witness God birthing a vision in the YWAM staff. Although we were drenched from head to toe, we were excited to see that our presence there had drawn them to the community. It was obvious that God had given them a burden for the people and it will be exciting to see how we can partner in the future.
We worshipped with the people of the Vreed N Hoop Wesleyan Church on Sunday night. The men were in charge and declared the service a time of "intimate worship". What a treat to be led by these men who so obviously love the Lord! It was almost as if God knew we would need this time, to remind us of His presence in our lives and to fill us for the week ahead. Relationships had been built with several of the church members on Saturday as we worked together in Prosperity City. I love how God connects His people!
After our time on the beach we drove about an hour to a town called Parika that sits on the Essequibo River. Our destination was Youth With A Mission where the Director, Kim, shared about their vision and ministry to the people of this town. There is an area called Sea Dam with similar struggles as Prosperity City. If you've watched the Plastic City video that Deric Cook did, you'll see this area in the section where children are working with gravel. YWAM fed us a great lunch and then we drove to Sea Dam. Our intent was to visit with the people and deliver school notebooks and pencils. This area has been in a drought and the people have been praying for rain -spiritually and physically. Well, the rain came while we were walking through the community! We didn't get very far but were able to witness God birthing a vision in the YWAM staff. Although we were drenched from head to toe, we were excited to see that our presence there had drawn them to the community. It was obvious that God had given them a burden for the people and it will be exciting to see how we can partner in the future.
We worshipped with the people of the Vreed N Hoop Wesleyan Church on Sunday night. The men were in charge and declared the service a time of "intimate worship". What a treat to be led by these men who so obviously love the Lord! It was almost as if God knew we would need this time, to remind us of His presence in our lives and to fill us for the week ahead. Relationships had been built with several of the church members on Saturday as we worked together in Prosperity City. I love how God connects His people!