8/1/2012

Hello again! My time here is starting to wind down. Everything here, the clouds, the people, the food, everything seems so much more beautiful as I look at through eyes that are expecting to leave soon. Things that had been normal over the last couple months have become extraordinary again. However, my time here has not slowed as it has ended. We had another team here this last week. This team had about twenty members and stayed in a different house, but they did eat at the same house that I live at. We also have a team of five study abroad students who are working in the clinic and with the soccer school. They are all living with host families but they also eat lunch at mission house that I live at. I also have been involved in a skit with the youth at my church. There is a really common skit that was made to the song Everything by Lifehouse. The skit is without words and is kind of like a dance done to the song. About Top: Guillermo, seven of the youth, a couple missionaries, and Anahi, and the rewarded students me practiced this skit about an hour every Bottom: The end of evening last week. The church had a vigil, a the skit; God saving day in which we have a church service and his child. I'm on the pray from 6PM- midnight, on Friday. About far left. half way through the vigil we preformed our skit and sang a song on the same theme. Guillermo, one of the leaders of the youth, shared some words about the meaning of the skit. The skit is about a young woman who is created and taught how to move by God. God then shows her all of the beautiful things on earth and she is happy with him. Then romance enters and becomes more important than God. The girl leaves God and chases after various other distractions. Romance, money, parties, popularity, and beauty all let her down. Finally she is left with depression and death. Just as she is about to end her life she remembers God and runs back to him, but she tries to do this on her own strength. She fights and then gives up, seeing that her own strength can't save her. At this moment God comes running and saves her, he welcomes her back as his child. Last week we also had the chance to reward some of the students from my classes and from Guillermo's classes at Siloe for good behavior. We had a little party for all of the students with prefect attendance within the last two months and all of the students who had a 90% or higher average in the class. About thirty students in total were invited to the party. We watched cars, ate popcorn, and had soda or pop whatever you chose to call it. For Guillermo's students from Siloe we went to watch a movie at the theater. We bought the students popcorn, pop, and candy. Only five students with the best behavior were chosen from Guillermo's classes. In my previous letter I mentioned that I had to get an extension on my tourist visa and thanks to God I was able to just that. There was really only one slight complication. The day that we went the guard decided that he wouldn't allow Guillermo in with me to translate as I'm not really all that used to the more advanced language that is used. The lady I ended up seeing spoke a little english so between the two of us we were able to get everything figured out. I was able to get my passport with ease after a

second meeting. The first week of August is vacation for everyone in El Salvador, because of this Monday was my last day of teaching English. After class I shared why I had come and why I had to leave. We took a picture together and a couple students had made little cards for me. Then I said goodbye. I really will miss seeing my students. Two other short term missionaries, Carlie and Bridget, will be taking over the teaching position when I leave. Neither of them is very good at Spanish and they are both more shy. I have been writing out lesson plans for each day but it is God who will give them the confidence to teach and to learn. Just because this week is a week of vacations doesn't mean that my days shall be completely unoccupied. I was invited by a couple of my co-workers to go to Honduras from Friday to Monday with another mission organization named Operacin Movilizacin. I will be going with about thirty other people from El Salvador and we will be meeting two other groups of people in Honduras. The main work will be to build a church for a small community in the mountains. There The students from my morning class on my last day with them. In the will also be door to door evangelism and background you can see the new white board that we bought. children's activities. On Saturday we are going to minister through food and games by having a large party for the community. I'm part of the cooking crew, so I get to work with a group of women to prepare all of the food for the other workers and to prepare the food for the party. The ladies who cook at our mission house have been teaching me to cook so I won't be completely out of my element this weekend. Guillermo and I will be the gringo's or white people so I am a little nervous about my ability to speak Spanish and behave culturally correctly for all of the different groups that are going. North Americans are respected by many of the people but there are some who resent North Americans because of their wealth and other stereotypes. This summer has been an adventure and I have learned a lot. I looked back at some pictures of before I came and I feel so much older than the girl in the photos. In the past I have gone away on retreats and learned a lot about God and about myself, but when I return to the stresses and monotony of everyday life drowns out the truths that I learned about God. I hope that what I have learned this summer does not stay in El Salvador but that it comes back with me to Michigan. Prayer Requests: Pray that the youth from the church continue to grow in God and want to live godly lives. Pray for my English students that will seek God and become godly people. Pray for the new teachers that they will trust God for the knowledge and confidence to teach. Pray that the trip in Honduras is successful and that everyone is able to work together in God. Thank you for all of your support and prayers over this summer. Marissa Hintz