The medical mission had an amazing final day, serving about 120 people, that totals almost 300 people served in our medical mission this week!  Even as the team pulled up to the church, they were greeted with a line of about 20 people waiting for medical care. God’s love was apparent through the care given by the team physically, spiritually, and emotionally, and through the atmosphere of trust they built that allowed a level of trust and vulnerability shown by the patients as they were allowing their needs to be met. The kind of relationships that were formed today are rare today, and it was only by the grace and the love of God that the lives of all the people who participated in the clinic in any fashion were impacted so profoundly.

The dental team of Dr. Nancy and Sarah saw 20 patients today. The last patient they cared for was very reserved and a bit frightened.  During the treatment, Sarah felt the need to place her hand on the patient’s arm and quietly reassure her.  After the treatment was done, the woman began to cry and shared that she had felt such a complete peace during the procedure that she had not felt in months.  Dr. Nancy, Sarah, Ana, and the patient prayed together and reminded her of the wonderful plan that God has for her.

The education team had a wonderful final day at VBS, where they served 35 children at El Pescadero UMC. They felt blessed to experience the joy of the children and their gratitude for the simple things of life (their health, their family, their education, etc.), which was a much-needed reminder to refocus on the things that God provides us and to leave behind the importance of worldly treasures. The theme of the VBS was “God grows good things”, and the team was able to send each kid home with their own beans to begin growing good things of their own. The team would also like to thank Claudia, Kimberly, and Dilcia, who are all members of Danli Central, for their leadership in teaching the children the VBS lesson today and their collaboration in the process of distributing the beans to the children. We have been astounded at the gratitude and connection with the Pastor Roberto Efrain Sosa and the people of Central UMC’s daughter church, Pescadero UMC, where we were graciously received to share VBS.

This afternoon, the team completed the Sunday School mural with the help and guidance of Kimberly and Mabelin, two of the members of Danli Central. It was a surreal experience to watch an unfinished project come to life as each row of the rainbow was finished. As the team was wrapping up, Pastor Peña walked in and said, “The whole room feels different now that we have a Bible story depicted so colorfully on the wall!” The team would like to once again thank Michelle for her design and reference pictures, as well as the guidance of the multiple members of Danli Central as they collaborated throughout the process.

During the evening, the team went to the Wednesday night prayer service at Danli Central, where they were greeted with wonderful hospitality, just as they had been every time they crossed into the worship space. There were many lovely moments of singing and praying together, and towards the end of the service, the team was brought up to be thanked for all the work they had done within the community. After the service, there was a time of fellowship in which bittersweet goodbyes were shared amongst the growing family of the two congregations. While the farewells were indeed genuine last year, the growing connections between people made those farewells that much more powerful.