There is nothing quite like looking at a child in the midst of a garbage dump, covered in dirt and filth and seeing pure joy in their face. This did something to me. It seems so simple seeing a child smile, but it captured my heart so profoundly. Never will I forget holding the little children in my arms and feeling the pure affection of God as I stared into their eyes. As I held the children in my arms, I could literally see Christ. I can’t explain it, but without a doubt I know what I saw. I can see their faces now in the photographs of my memory but their worth to me is so much more than a memory could ever express.
The witnessed reality of poverty isn’t new to me, but never have I seen conditions like what I saw in the dumps. People actually live there. Toxic fumes from burning garbage fills the air. Hygiene is foreign. Broken glass and jagged rusted metal cover the ground as well as the mounds of Coca-Cola containers. Children are scurrying around, teens are sifting through garbage for anything of value, women are nursing their babies or collect cardboard boxes and place them in piles for recycle, old men work hard and long hours. This is real life. Right now, they are still there in the dumps. But they are not forgotten. The beauty of God is so present. If we were to judge according to externals, it could easily seem hopeless but despite the externals, they are not less-than people, hopeless and homeless… I can see the light. As I sat in the dumps on a pile of tires with a little girl no more that four years old on my lap, I began feeling the pure affection of God and His intense desire for her that literally overwhelmed me. What they don’t need is pity, what they need is the love of Christ. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:14-17 that the love of Christ, not his love for Christ but Christ’s love for him, compels him [leaves him no other choice] to see no man according to the external worldly perspective but as a new creation in Christ. He was persuaded that if One died for all, then all have died: Christ died for all. Paul was convinced by the perfect sacrifice of Christ and how one’s true life is truly found only in their union with Christ. It didn’t matter whether they were Jew or Gentile, Christ died for them and will forever love them. The Message Bible says, “Be friends with God, He is already a friend with you.” God reconciled the world to Himself in the person of Christ by His death. His love for us is not based upon our performance but is solely rooted in His persuasion toward us. Religion tells you to preform for love, favor, acceptance from God but in reality all that came in a package deal when you were brought into union with Christ by His death. The gift of Christ became an internal reality upon our confession of faith but His love for us isn’t dependent upon anything we do, whether good or bad. My reason for saying all this isn’t to preach but to lay a foundation for why we would pay thousands of dollars and go to the poorest of the poor, the forgotten of the world and love radically. I felt God allure me to Nicaragua… Christ’s love left me no other choice but to respond to the world in selfless love.
Our teams purpose for this trip was to do just that. Two nations, five cities, five dumps, ten days, thirty students, thousands in the dumps. From dumps in Tegucigalpa, Honduras to Managua/Matagalpa/Bluefields/Leon, Nicaragua. We took dumps for Jesus!
The stories that came out from our team are moving. Hearing about how two guys offering drugs to our team then after a powerful encounter with Christ’s unfailing love responded in giving their lives to know Jesus personally. There were multiple salvation’s and each of them were radical encounters. A little boy was healed of scoliosis after being hugged. Blind eyes were opened, deaf ears unstopped. All sorts of differing pains left peoples bodies in the name of Jesus. The love was flowing deep and wide. On two separate occasions the food we were giving out multiplied! In Bluefields, a few on our team actually felt in the spirit an anointing for food multiplication. From that point on, they began to dish out the food without proportion. They mounded the food on everyones plate and did not turn away anyone who wanted more. People came back for seconds, thirds, forth’s… every belly was stuffed and there was still food left over. Sounds familiar eh? And again in Managua just when we though we were totally out of chicken, we would reach in and find one more juicy chicken for the hungry man in line. This happened multiple times!
A lady in the dump told us that they have had many groups come in to feed them or help them, but she said that there was something different about us. Other groups come in with a superiority complex and distanced themselves (religion), but we came in right where they were at and loved them, hugged them, kissed them, fed them, dug through the garbage with them, prayed for them, danced and celebrated with them, all in love. It was beautiful to share life with these precious people even for but a moment.
Along with all the garbage dumps, we even visited a leper colony. We entered the clinic with open arms. We touched them, loved them, fed them, sang prophetically over them, ministered to them. It was powerful. The beautiful thing is in the Old Testament if you touch a leper you become unclean, but in the New Testament if you touch a leper they become clean! Way better. That’s redemption.
At one of the church services we spoke at, while my friend was preaching the pure love of Christ, demons began to manifest in the room. This was just like what Kris Vallotton told us about in school! This little boy began to writhe on the ground and create a distraction. The enemy loves to distract and confuse, so our team leaders carried the boy out of the room and just held him in their arms. They literally hugged the boy to freedom. Then a girl begins to scream while laying on the ground. My other friend goes over and puts her arms around this girl and holds her as a mother would her daughter. After moments of this embrace, the little girl was totally delivered. Both of these children were delivered through a hug. That is the power of love in its purest light!!!!
One frustration I had during the trip was not being able to speak with anyone because of the language barrier. I have such a value for listening to people’s stories or what’s going on in their lives, but I couldn’t do so because I could only speak in the most basic spanish. But God revealed something deep within me. As I was journaling on the trip, God spoke so clearly to me. He said, “Brett, love transcends language. Love goes so much farther than language could ever go.” This brought so much comfort and confidence to me to keep the love flowing. My Dad always knows the right thing to say at the perfect moment.
Our team’s presence in the country had some significant media coverage. A few members of our team met with some significant leaders in Honduras and had media coverage, our team leader was interview on the 10 o’clock news, a reporter took photos of us in the Managua dump and the story made the second page of the national newspaper, Georgian Banov was interviewed by two reporters at a gas station, and a news camera crew filmed us at the dump in Leon. Media is a prime tool to share the love of God on a greater scale. Our team leader even invited people to join us at the dumps while he was being interviewed!
We stayed at an orphanage in Managua called Casa Betesda. The children living there are adorable. A few captured my heart. This adorable nina named Kristin was so precious! She loved my iPod! We’d play soccer or baseball with the children, we’d chase them around, tickle them, just love on them! The last night we were there all the children gathered together and we celebrated latino style with a pinata and a festive dance. The most beautiful part was the children who shared with us their testimony. From living on the streets, sniffing glue, and getting into trouble to encountering a family, the love of God, and total acceptance. Everyone one of us was moved to tears as child after child shared their story. The thing that pierced my heart was how each child spoke of Father God. All the children don’t have parents yet they recognize the nearness of their Father in heaven. “He will never leave me…” This place shouldn’t be called an orphanage… They’re not orphans. These children are sons and daughters of God and they know it.
This trip did so much to me, even more than I can comprehend. As I’ve shared with various people about my experiences I have been moved by some deep emotions. The love of God is continually wrecking my heart.
There are no bounds to His love, no limits to His grace.
