El Salvador Reflections by Olivia Harp

The last few days have been packed and full of blessing! The team arrived late on Saturday and hit the ground running on Sunday. We started Sunday off worshipping with a local church and then fed the congregation lunch. From there we headed to Cipi, a government intake center. Kids taken from their families or off of the streets are brought to Cipi and from there they are sent to a more permanent orphanage to live. Leading up to this trip I have strived to be intentional about praying for Gospel eyes. I want to be careful that I don’t walk in, meet a need, and leave without even getting to the core of the need- salvation.  I rejoice with Heaven over 7 teen girls that gave their life to Christ on Sunday at Cipi! But in the same breath, my heart is broken because I know that their stay at there will be very short, and discipleship for them once they leave is very uncertain. Some will be found back on the streets, back in abusive homes and relationships, or tossed around to different orphanages. But I know God holds their salvation and lives in His hands and just like any good father would do, He won’t let go. Please be praying for these girls and that the decision they made will continue to daily transform their lives into one that looks more like Christ.

Another section of Cipi is for special needs children. Unlike the rest of the orphanage, these special needs kids are there for much longer periods of time. One particular little girl named Maybeline captured my heart last year. One thing I looked forward to most about coming back was getting to spend some time with her. She is special needs but not as severe as the others. As a baby, her mom beat her and as a result damaged her brain, her back, and her arm was broken and never healed properly. Her caregivers will quickly tell you that she will never walk again due to brain damage, but I beg to differ! When I was here in October I worked with her quite a bit and really believed that she was capable of walking and even talking one day. The problem is that she doesn’t get adequate physical therapy and care at Cipi. I don’t know why, but I have just had this strangely strong desire to see her walk. Something in me wants those caregivers to see that God can heal and restore, and I whole heartedly believe that He will show His glory in that way through Maybeline. On Sunday I was able to spend some time playing with her and loving on her and I finally just decided that I was going to start teaching her to walk in the little time I had left. I held her and placed one foot in front of the other over and over again. Finally, she started to do it on her own! She isn’t strong enough to hold herself up yet, but she took some steps on her own. I wish I could relay to you how excited I am over the steps this little girl is taking! It is truly the beginning of a miracle and answered prayer. 

Our second day was spent building a house for an elderly couple. Their previous home was nothing more than a small roof made of scrap tin and sticks. The middle of the house was 5 feet at the tallest point and sloped down from there. Needless to say, the living space was next to nothing. The fire used for cooking was inside the house and had burnt most everything in it. In addition, the constant smoke caused this woman’s already poor health to become even worse. It was amazing what little time it took to clear out the house and tear it apart in order to rebuild a better one. Because we wanted this couple to have a roof over their heads that night, we all worked extremely hard to get this house done in one day.  And somehow we made it happen. When we went back the following morning, the first words out of the homeowner’s mouth were “It was great, I didn’t have water dripping on me all night!”. And let me tell you, the house we built was nothing fantastic or super fancy, but it was a hundred times better than the few feet of burnt tin they were living under. Typically, Starfish and Sus Hijos focus on building houses for families with children in order to keep them together and off the street. This elderly couple was an exception. There was a desperate need and we couldn’t turn a blind eye. As we were building, I was watching the way our team worked together, but also watching the way the village and this couple responded. Building this house was such a beautiful picture of salvation to me. It’s a free, undeserved gift. He takes our brokenness and makes it far more beautiful and functional than we ever could. It is my hope and prayer that in our time with this village that the light of Christ was shone so brightly and made an impact far beyond what we could’ve ever hoped or dreamed.

New Home constructed by Starfish Volunteers

I could tell you story after story of the things I’ve seen, experienced, and worked with this week that have broken my heart. A friend of mine once told me that “The Gospel is hard for a lost world to swallow, thats why love is the capsule we have to give it to them in”. Wrapping the Gospel in love looks different in every situation, and every day that means something new. This week, we have learned to identify with Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:22 “To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the Gospel, that I may share in its blessings.”

~Olivia Harp