Thursday, August 10, 2017

A Day Full of Grace

Dear Friends and Family,

I'm trying to get this train back on the track, so that means posting two blog-posts tonight! Thank you again for your support and prayer. It is such a blessing to know that you guys are behind this trip, and truly, you have helped make this possible.

A little update for you worried parents: Everyone, except Nate Curry and Mrs. Dreves, have recovered to 90% or more. Nate and Mrs. Dreves are slowly on the mend, but will take a little longer.

A picture of us with Cumbre Alta after we faced them in a friendly scrimmage on Wednesday. Cumbre Alta won with a final score of 4-3. 

This day was ridiculous. No matter how you slice it, it was the fullest day we have had here. Each of the segments of the day was daunting and (in different ways) challenging, but when combined together, it made for an extremely difficult day. I found myself praying consistently, just asking God for another smidgeon of strength to endure through the next activity or to get the next task done. In each of these prayers, God was incredibly gracious to provide sustenance, not only for me, but for the entire team. 

It began with another day at the work site, carrying more and more buckets of rocks and sand to make twice as much concrete as we had yesterday. I was really touched to watch members of the team take time to play with the family kids or to just sit and talk with them. In my task-oriented personality, I got annoyed with what I perceived to be a lack of effort on their part. However, I was humbled to realize what a difference that will make in these kids lives. Maybe they will remember the group who helped construct a wall behind their house... for sure they will remember the Americans who took time to play with them and make them laugh. Just another drop of grace today.



The project goes well. We mixed tons and tons of concrete, so they got to do some good work. We also prepped some scaffold/mold/form type metal sheets which we will use tomorrow to help shape the wall. 

Posing for GCC bananas, a Twitter account at Grove City dedicated to students and their bananas. 

The other half of the team continued to paint the finely-sanded wall at Pan de Vida. Some of the guys still weren't fully healthy, so it was a chance for them to rest a little bit while still getting to move around. 


The next step in this day was to put on another soccer camp, similar to the one yesterday. We will put them on again on Thursday and Friday. Again, I don't have any pictures of the camp itself (I'm so sorry) but this is what happens when Rob, your main-man photographer, is under the weather. Yesterday, we lost our soccer field half way through because someone had a reservation. Today, we got plenty of time for the kids to scrimmage and enjoy playing the beautiful game. Again, the chicos seemed to want nothing to do with looking like they cared about anything, while the chicas were super excited and grateful to play outside. Below are some pictures of the Bible school, the worship, and some fun games we played as ice-breakers with the kids. Trent shared a little about what God had been teaching him recently from Proverbs 3:5-6 while Coach shared from Proverbs 16:9. 





Christian, the ex-kickboxer was so excited to play soccer, than he volunteered himself to play on a team. It really made me smile to see him enjoy playing with kids half of his age. He is an incredible gift for us in our mission down here. Coach gave him a GCC soccer shirt, and Christian wore it so proudly through some dirty concrete mixing and the sweaty soccer camp. He told me after the camp that he was going to wash it so he could wear it tomorrow also. 

In 2014, there was a great story of Coach Edwards trying to say "two touches" but said "two tacos" (dos tocas vs. dos tacos). Coach Dreves is very fond of making fun of Coach Eddie by telling this story, but today, he literally said the exact same thing. He was tried to tell the kids to take two touches, and before he could help himself, he told them to take two tacos. The entire team was rolling on the ground laughing. There are a few other great Coach Dreves stories, but they will tastefully be tucked away for another time. 

After the soccer camp, there was another food distribution. By this point, my Spanish words were all used up, and I had no energy (again, I found myself asking the LORD for strength). I can't even imagine how the others were feeling, who were feeling sick earlier in the week. We were given the task of taking care of the kids, but I by the mercy of God got to work in the kitchen. I frankly don't know how it went outside, but the rumors are that Coach Dreves was bit by an overly-affectionate little kid. We ended up getting to eat dinner at 6:50, with an expected start time of our game at 7:30... Not a terrific amount of time for digestion. 



We got to the field, and only had about 15 minutes to warm up before kick-off. We went down 3 goals in the first half (1 goal was virtually unstoppable, 2 were momentary lapses on counter attacks). In the second half, we came back to tie it 3-3, ultimately losing 4-3 to a tremendous upper corner shot. It was a blessing to experience the camaraderie with the opposing team. It was fun to connect with them and to play good, hard soccer against a very skilled opponent. 

It was an amazing experience to play tonight. As we were in the huddle before the game, I started to tear up when I thought about this being my last season of playing soccer. I thought about the guys I was standing with, and thought I wouldn't rather play with anyone else. After the game, I was so immensely proud of our team for how we played. We went through one of the longest days imaginable, didn't have time to warm up, carried heavy buckets of rocks all morning, played at 9,000+ ft., ate dinner 40 minutes before the whistle, had only 2 subs for the first half and none for the second, had a majority of our team who was sick, and were frankly just plain tuckered out after a long day. But to come back from 3 goals down to tie it up 3-3 was such a testament of the guys' character, hard work, and grit to never say die. I am tremendously proud of these fine young men, and I look forward to the chance that we have to play together this fall. 

Grace upon grace upon grace. It is a grace to get to play soccer with a team like that. It is a grace to get to serve by carrying rocks on such a beautiful day. It is a grace that God provides strength for each moment. It is a grace that we get to be here in Ecuador, experiencing more and more of his grace in each and every day. 

Please continue to pray for our soccer team, but also pray that God will work miracles through our 3 fish and 5 loaves of bread. We don't have much to offer sometimes, but the LORD will accomplish much through our inadequacy. May hearts be changed, both in the team and in the Ecuadorians, for the glory of God!

#31 on the field, #31 in your heart,
Blake Baer

























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