June 2023
Hola familia,
I pray you are doing well! Here's a snapshot of everything that's been going on here in La Libertad.
CDI
CDI classes continue to grow and change weekly. Although we haven't been joined by any new faces we are preparing to again. The past few months have brought new challenges, like a water leak found right outside the CDI that made our water bill soar to over $500, which meant we had to get creative with cooking and brushing teeth while we figured out the source.
My brother gifted me with a Bananagrams game for Christmas and I've found that the kids love it! It's a fun alternative to practice spelling and letter identification so we've been playing with it a lot. We're working hard to make sure all the kids know their alphabet thoroughly and improve their reading skills.
Please continue to pray for discernment and wisdom for me and the staff in our daily encounters with the children. This past month has seemed to bring a lot of injuries (lots of over-excited kids around a piñata spilling candy led to a kid getting a good-size bash on his forehead) and some straight-up weird experiences, like some 6-year-olds practicing witchcraft during class (Yes, you read that right.) It reminds me that we don't know everything the kids are exposed to in their lives and how incredibly important is the ministry of the CDI as an outreach to the community.
Thank you for your continued prayer for our staff! Esther's surgery has been postponed indefinitely while she finishes up different exams that need to be done beforehand so she will continue full time at the CDI until further notice. Her daughter Lea had her baby! We praise God for a complication-free delivery and a healthy baby boy.
Missions
In May we welcomed a mission group from Florida. They were a group of 6 and we packed the week with lots of CDI time, a party, beds, time with life groups, and cooking for the community. I have loved spending lots of time with mission groups in the CDI classes, what a great change of pace it is for the kids! They threw a party for the CDI that involved a piñata (that turned out to be a little too exciting 😅), a dance party, games and pizza. We spent time walking through a local community handing out food and inviting the locals to join us at church. To top the week off they made and delivered 5 beds to new CDI kids.
This next week we will be welcoming a group from Rock City in Ohio. Please pray for the team and for the church staff!
Conexión Youth Group
We've seen our youth group growing quite a bit, with lots of new faces! With the restructuring of life groups, Ado is now in charge of the youth group. We have lots more young members, the majority being between 15-22. I had the opportunity to share one week based on a bible study of Hebrews that I've been doing and I really enjoyed it. It's a challenge to get teenagers to open up but I know that being in youth ministry is definitely a long-haul game. God is faithful and each week we meet with the youth is a seed planted or watered. The Lord will reap the harvest in His timing.
We have an upcoming combined youth night with San Salvador's youth group called Connectados (Connected) on July 15. Our La Libertad band will also be playing a set with their band! Our pray for this event is that the Lord would touch the hearts of kids who used to come to youth group and have stopped, that they would feel the desire to return. Please join me in prayer for this event!
Family time!
My parents came to visit at the end of May, and we had a blast! Unfortunately for them, La Libertad experienced some of the hottest weather we've had since I've lived here, and even locals who've grown up here were describing the heat as oppressive 🥵. So we stayed at home quite a bit and made trips up to San Salvador whenever we could, which made a huge difference (San Salvador sits up in the mountains so it's much cooler). In spite of the heat we had a great time! I got to show them my wedding venue and we did a tasting, we went to a local botanical garden and got to relax and talk.
Pray with Me
- PRAISE for a complication-free birth for Lea!
- For the CDI as we plan for the future- that the Lord would provide all necessary funding and personnel to continue with the work
- PRAISE! Ado got a job!! God provided him a bank teller job that is less than a minute walking distance from his house. Please pray that God would open doors for him to share the gospel with his co-workers.
- For our youth group and the Conectados event we have on July 15
- Please continuing praying for Ado's visa interview is on August 8th at 9am
- Upcoming mission team this next week- please pray that the Lord would soften the hearts of the community and that we would take advantage of every opportunity he puts in front of us to share his Word.
- Living situation- please join me in prayer asking the Lord to guide Ado and I to where we will be living next. The house I am currently in has been fine for these few years but it's not a feasible option for this next season of life. We are in the process of contacting different people and looking for different options but unfortunately in the area we want to live the options are slim. Ado and I trust that the Lord will provide just the right place for us, please pray that we would be patient and trust in his timing.
I thank God for you and your partnership each day. I pray that He bless you abundantly as we persevere in the work He has called us to. The Lord's peace be with you!
With love,
Alyssa
Hebrews 10:23-24
"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds..."
