Lost But Not Forgotten

Today was an emotionally draining day for us. We drove up to a town called El Crucero which is about 20 minutes away from our house. It is located on a mountain right next to a volcano and is shockingly cool compared to the rest of the sweltering heat here in Nica.

We went to a ministry called New Hope Children's Foundation. This amazing organization is run by a couple, Charity and Leo. They opened up a K-12 school for the neighborhood kids, have a dorm building for missions teams to stay in, and house 10 orphan children. They are truely an amazing team and God is doing huge things through them.

8 days ago, Charity and a team went to a place called West Palm. This area of Nicaragua is home to people who live in extreme poverity. Many of the children who live here are very ill, abandoned, and abused. Charity found four babies when she went and couldn't resist the feeling that she needed to take them home with her. These four babies/toddlers are named Ofelia, Leoito, Emily, and Jelka. Their stories are full of sorrow and hurt. Ofelia is 4 years old and weighs 12 pounds. Leoito has an enlarged stomach due to parasites. One of these precious children would be left in the woods when she cried too much. Jelka doesn't know how to walk and she is 1 1/2 years old. They have backgrounds consisting of sexual abuse, physical abuse, neglect, abandonment, and malnourishment. I am not writing their stories on this blog in any kind of disrespectful exposure, I write them to raise awareness of the ugliness that happens in our world. I also write about them so that we remember to pray for Charity, Leo, and all of the people who work with them, as well as the children themselves. They are a miraculous group of people that need a lot of prayer and support.

Delanie and I got to spend the whole day loving, playing, and taking care of these four little angels. Ofelia had a fever of 104 degrees and had to be taken to the hospital for the second time in 24 hours. She was taken to the local hospital last night at 2 a.m. where nobody would do anything to help get her fever down; not the nurses, not the doctors, not anyone. They basically ignored Charity and Ofelia and they were forced to come home to try and bring the fever down themselves. She seemed to get a little better as the day went on but an hour into our visit there proved that she was not doing well at all. They took her back to the hospital and Delanie and I were in charge of the other three littles. We had a great time and fell in love instantly. We are going to be coming back to New Hope Children's Foundation as often as we can. They need our help taking care of these four toddlers and we are totally up to the task!!! Please pray for this mission as it is probably the most intense one we have come across.

God is good, and he takes care of all his littles.

I am today what yesterday has made me; tomorrow I shall be changed by today's experiences.

xoxo

Priscilla and Delanie