This is a letter and picture we received from Erin Woods, a 2009 trip participant and member of NewSpring Church in Anderson, SC. We thought this story went great with Kurt’s blog post on Monday and wanted to share it with you…
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Hi there!
I wanted to send you a picture that another girl took of me on my recent trip to Kenya with NewSpring Church & 410 Bridge in August of 2009. This is one of my favorite shots from the trip for me personally. I wanted to share it with you along with why it touches my heart.
This was taken in Black Tank towards the end of the day when our medical team was seeing people there at the village. I went with the service team and we visited some homes and spent some time with the people and children waiting for their number to be called at the clinic. This girl and I connected in a special way. She sat next to me on this bench for a long time and we played hand-clapping games for awhile. The wind REALLY picked up and the dust and dirt in the air was unbelievable…you could not face the wind without breathing it all in! Eventually it got so bad that she laid her head down in my lap. It started to get chilly as well with how windy it had gotten. We kind of snuggled up together and I then just started to rub her back lightly and “trace her face” as my 3 year old son knows it (very lightly running your finger around someone’s face and outlining it – my son loves this). She closed her eyes and was so content. It was time to go because everyone was gone from the clinic and the buses were being loaded. She didn’t want me to leave – it broke my heart but I was glad I spent a good amount of time loving on her.
She wanted the same thing my own children cherish back home – someone to love on them. As busy as we get in America, the people in Kenya get busy with the necessity of surviving. The fact that people are wanting to take time out of their every day lives over here and invest into the people over there is extraordinary. It makes me think of Jesus, where throughout the Bible He made time for people. He was always helping, healing, praying and teaching – but He always made time to love the ones that reached out to him and to reach out to the ones that need love.
I want to put this picture up in my house where I can have a visual impact of my experiences in Kenya. Also, as a reminder to me that I need to be as willing as I was over there to make time and love the people I’m surrounded by every day here because it leaves a lasting impression…and it’s what Jesus did.
Thank-you for letting me share this with you and whoever else may see this.
All for the love of Jesus!
Erin Woods
NewSpring Church member / August ’09 410 Bridge service team member
