shawnw.orgfaith – technology – culture

Today was our last day with the kids from the Buckner baby’s home. We took them to the Children’s Museum and Chuck E. Cheese (all paid for from a special offering taken in eXchange) and both were a huge success.

We then returned back to the baby’s home where we spent a little more time connecting with the kids before leaving. You can see some great write-ups over at the blogs of my traveling companions Scot, Jody and Nate and Rachael.

Perhaps you’re expecting a video or photo from our departure but I’d decided early on to make these final moments something of a more personal experience. We sat the kids down, told them we loved them, that God loved them, and that we were leaving tomorrow but would be back.

Estuardo began to cry at the realization that we were, in fact, leaving and then Danny, who’s only a little younger than Estuardo but much smaller in stature due to having fetal alcohol syndrome, speaks up and says, “don’t worry, they said they’d be back.”

It wasn’t so much Danny comforting Estuardo but the trust Danny has in us that got me. We told him we’d be back, we’ve never broken that promise before, why would we start now?

I can only hope that the faithfulness we’ve shown in coming back accurately portrays how faithful God is to them, and how much he loves them. We tell them Jesus loves them, and we’ll continue to do so.

The remainder of the eXchange crew that’s here (those people being Nate and Rachael and Jody) depart tomorrow morning for home. Scot and I then connect with Compassion International to embark on their four day Vision Tour. It’ll be a good time to decompress from all I’ve taken in over the last three days.

Deep down inside me a new fire has been lit. God calls us to be world changers. Soon, I’m going to ask you to join me in doing just that for some orphans in Guatemala.

Are you with me?