The first day of VBS in Patchakon was so much fun and so much more than we imagined. We were told in advance that we would have about 35 to 50 kids. We had 91 the first day, 105 the second day and over 125 the third day! The family that takes care of the church said that it was a record VBS for the village. The children were so obedient, so sweet and so eager to participate and learn in all the activities. We had a Noah's Ark theme for the week and the children colored, painted, made arks and a mosaic rainbow, had games and snacks, and grew in our hearts. They loved the songs and crafts and games. But mostly, they loved to be loved.

Every night of a H.E.A.L. Ministries mission team the team members share their favorite "God moments" of the day and we take turns sharing personal testimonies each night. For me, going with so many different team members, God gives me the blessing of hearing what God is doing in the lives of each team member. It is so humbling to hear the stories and I get overwhelmed with joy hearing what God does for each person. We were all supposed to be together and we were all supposed to be with these kids during this season of our lives. Daniel Butler gave a devotional to us one day and talked about how important it is to meet each person where they are and he talked about a single mom that just wanted him to teach his son to hit a ball. God is so awesome in His perfect planning and He knew that Trey (my son) would be present for that story. The next day at VBS Trey's job was to teach over 100 kids to hit a ball and standing back watching I was reminded how purposeful our God is and how He provided this story to come full circle.

As the kids left the church that final VBS day, the team formed a tunnel and the smiles on the faces were priceless as they left to receive their prizes and candy. A little piece of each of them remains with us. The children would come up to each of us and say "thank you" and "I love you". We started the week with a lesson on seeing Jesus through the eyes of the child and as they said the sweet words "I love you" we not only saw Jesus but heard Him as well in a little village called Patchakon.