Today was our 5th and last full day of ministering here in Granada. We began our day headed to the Esposito's home and on the way stumbled upon The Procession (a tradition in Latin American cultures during the Holy Week where we got to experience the walk Jesus made on his way to the cross after he dropped the cross for the second time). Many of us had never seen this before so it was very interesting, especially as missionaries of Christ, to be able to see such a vivid depiction of what our savior endured for our sins.
Next we headed to the local jail for Bible studies with the inmates. When we got there the teams split up into separate groups (one for the men, one for the women) to lead worship and the studies. The men saw that regardless of conditions experienced by the inmates everyone was open and joyfully recieved the gospel and input everyone had to offer them. I (Angel) and David were able to share our testimonies in hopes of touching their hearts. The men were so engaged - everyone could feel the presence of the Holy Spirit among them in the cell. The women were able to meet outside and we covered a portion of the study titled "Beauty for ashes" which is meant to empower women. A common struggle among women in the area is the inability to stand in their power as sisters in Christ. We were asked to meditate on a question (who is God to me?) and ask God to give us a picture which we can then draw and explain to the group. This was awesome since a lot of women don't know how to read or write here so it takes that limitation away. I (Katie) and the rest of the gals on our team were able to make ourselves vulnerable and tell the women some of our stories and struggles in hopes of helping them become more vulnerable with current and future exercises like this. The women were so receptive to the stories we were able to tell them and it felt like we were able to make some real progress with the study even though we were only with them for an hour!
We finished our ministry work with an hour of prayer walking through Pantanal. We began at the community center which is currently being constructed and prayed for blessings over the site. We then split up into the same two groups and met with a variety of people all over the area praying for good health, family blessings, and miracles from God.
Hasta mañana!
Angel y Katie