8 days until I leave for Mexico.
What have I been doing lately?
Coaching soccer for children at our church and at an inner city program/missions in downtown Minneapolis.
From early in the morning to about noon, I help coach soccer for our church’s program.
The children there are sweet, innocent, and happy.
Then from the afternoon until about 8pm, I head down to the city and help coach soccer there.
The children are sweet, tough, and just wanna play.
There is such a contrast between the small city/country children at my church and the inner city children in Minneapolis.
Of course there would be….different demographics, lives…everything.
I love teaching both groups…but there is just something extra awesome and humbling to help out with the inner city children…..
Yesterday, as I was sitting on the wet grass, surrounded by Somali, African-American, Asian, and Mexican children (yay), I almost started bawling…man, guys, I was trying really hard not to let the tears come gushing out…..I just felt this overwhelming love for the children….it was like my heart was almost bursting (along with my tears about to come out of my eyes) for the little girls and guys. and I can’t even tell you why exactly, but man, oh man….it was like the Lord just put this HUGE load of love on my heart and the rest is beyond explanation.
I would just look into the big brown eyes of the Somali boy sitting by me…his eyes fixed on one of the head coaches as she told the children about Jesus…..and couldn’t get over the fact of how God gave us the opportunity to come down there and be able to tell them about Jesus, but in a way that wasn’t forceful……but gave them the chance to come on their own and see for themselves….kinda like some other guy I know…
I love the fact that we would get there and Nathan would throw on the hot dogs and shortly there after we’d have a line of children coming in to get some:
I love the fact that we got to play dutch with the girls and they would laugh at us when we would try to “jump” in and get whacked in the head:
I love the fact that we got to sit with them and tell them bible stories:
I love the fact that i got to be their soccer “coach liz”:
I love that fact that I got to work with the cutest little children:
I love the fact that we were all there together as a community, just playing, eating, singing, and learning…together:
Like Nathan said, as we were all standing in a circle about to pray: “I had a vision, one that you’ve all had too, that we would all be together, different cultures, holding hands praising God…and we’re doing it…we’re doing it”
love, love, love,
-liz
