Meeting the families

Sunday mornings are always anticipated because it’s the first chance we get to meet the families that will be receiving homes. Admittedly, the excitement in meeting them has, in previous years, been dampened by the fact that a few barriers exist. You may think it’s the language barrier, but that’s not it. The language barrier has always been closed by the excellent work of our interpreters. It’s the awkward barrier. The awkwardness of us Canadians being seated in the front row. The awkwardness of having families paraded in front of us and them having to answer questions in front of a group of strangers. There was plenty of awkwardness to go around.

But, something new has been done in recognition of that awkwardness while trying to forge a bond between two groups of strangers. The solution: fun, plain silly fun!!  Circle game laughter-relay game running-balloon passing-water being dumped on your head kind of fun! It’s a small change that acknowledges the awkwardness everyone feels and using that to show how similar we are in our initial apprehension and our ability to laugh at ourselves.

Today we played those games with 14 families. We will be working alongside them, as a first time recipient community.

Tomorrow we start to build...relationships and homes.

Year 11 - Ready to roll!

Hey everyone, just a quick update to let you know that we have arrived safely to our home away from home in San Vicente, El Salvador. It was a beautiful and smooth drive into the airport and a smooth flight down here.  We were greeted warmly by our Shelter staff and checked into our rooms. Months of preparation and prayer have brought us to this place. As always, The Lord will have some things for each of us to discover. Even more, He will undoubtedly reveal Himself to us in new ways. It’s one of the joys of joining Him on mission whether we’re local or global - God is working in and through people!  Thanks for your encouragement, support and prayer.

Thanks

Saying "Thanks!" at times seems like it doesn't convey enough..but in the limitations of my small grasp of the English language, it's all of I've got. So, I'll give you my all: Thanks!! A whole bunch!! Over the last several years, the Governing Board of our home church, the Sarnia EMC, has given me the freedom to spend two weeks away on Global Mission. It's a gift that continues to provide tremendous encouragement, refreshment and energy. Serving on the Shelter Canada Board of Directors is a tremendous privilege.   It has allowed me to see the Lord making a transformative difference in the lives of thousands of Salvadorans, and hundreds of Canadians, every year.

One highlight from our meetings has been the recognition that in this past season, 2018/2019, Shelter Canada has built 464 homes for 464 families in El Salvador. This past season 313 team members, in response to God's commissioning call, made their way from Canada to El Salvador. As a result 1,527 people were moved into new homes that provide safety, security and shelter!! 1,527!!  That means that every team member had a Kingdom influence on five Salvadorans. Each one of those people the 313 + 1527, were enfolded within the work of confronting injustice and demonstrating mercy. The result, we pray, is that many are being transformed to make their life decisions in ways that honour God. Our theme verse for Shelter comes from Micah 6:8.

As we get the chance to connect with other leaders from across our country, we are humbled by the stories they tell of their personal transformation as well as how the lives of their team members are being transformed by the grace and truth of Jesus!

There is more to tell...always there is...but for now, I'll leave at this: Thanks! For your support, your prayer, your encouragement and your interest.

If you'd like to join one of our teams, let's talk about it!


Deve