Farm Day Outing

Today we went on another field trip.  This time we went to a dairy farm in the Bakaa Valley.  The Bakaa Valley is to the East of Beirut.  The farm had some animals and vineyards and a beautiful walk around a lake.  The boys had plenty of space and run (and run, and run!) and get their energy out.  We had a picnic lunch when we arrived and then walked through the farm.  We saw cows, horses, deer, goats, sheep, peacocks, and birds.

The boys enjoyed the activity and love anything outdoors (though they did get hot toward the end!).  As we drove east from Beirut and topped the hill toward the valley I heard them all begin shouting about seeing Syria.  You can see the mountain range from the Bakaa Valley and Syria is just on the other side of the mountains.  Sadly, many of them know about the horrible struggles in Syria first hand.  I just know it from the news but many of these boys have fled Syria and even still have family there.  It was eye opening to hear them talk about Syria and continue to point to the mountains.  All I could do was pray for God’s intervention and peace.  One thing I always take away from here when I come are faces and stories with current world struggles.  I hear about Syrian refugees from the comfort of my home in America but here I am thrust out of my comfort zone physically and emotionally when I see their sweet faces and learn of their stories and struggles first hand.  I need to hear and know these things and be reminded of them often!

Otherwise, the bus ride was as you can imagine it would be with a bunch of energetic boys!  They all loved it and so did I!

 

Here is my back of the bus buddy!

 

When you top the hill from Beirut this is the view down into the Bakaa Valley.  The far mountains are what the boys were referencing when they were talking about Syria.

 The kids got to pet this horse and the rider even had the horse run around for the kids to see.

 

 Beautiful vineyards provided picturesque views.

 A gorgeous tree lined walk.

 When it began to get hot some of the boys came up with creative ways to cool off.  I like this idea in particular.

 As we were driving back the bus broke down.  So, no need to worry, as the bus situation was being worked out all the boys were treated to ice cream!  They loved it!  The bus ended up making it back a bit later than the rest of us and we were thankful for that.

A note from Hannah on today:

Today was a good day.  I was so close to Syria for the first time.  It made me feel nervous but then I felt better.  The bus ride was loud and chaotic but sweet also.  I like playing with the boys a lot.  I was scared to know that some of the boys were staying behind when the bus broke down.  I was worried and scared for them.  Then I felt great when I knew they got back safely.  We had an awesome dinner tonight with the Bouchers who are a great family.  Today I was asked if I would like to come back to Lebanon and I said “YES!”

-Hannah

SHOES!!!

We gave the boys their shoes on Wednesday and like in previous years the experience did not disappoint.  To say they were delighted was an understatement!  They receive the shoes and gifts with such joy and gratitude.  It truly is like Christmas morning.  They were so thankful to Calvary and the individual families who bought the shoes for them.

 Each boy had his own bag with his name on it.  They loved coming up when their name was called to receive their bags.

 The ladies each received a bag with makeup products.  I think they enjoyed them as well!

 This particular boy is still learning English so Hannah got to read his note to him.  It was a special moment for me as a mom to see Hannah let the boys enjoy these gifts and help them read their sweet notes.

This has become a tradition for us to bring shoes to the boys.  It is certainly a practical gift that we can give but it has become so much more.  The families at Calvary have embraced the boys and even though most of them have never been to Lebanon with us they gladly join us in this way.  This was such a sweet day for all involved.

- Jennifer

Rockin River Outing

First, I (Jason) want to thank God for the chance to be with the boys and all who live and work here at Dar el Awlad today.  I had apparently torn a muscle yesterday trying to be a 41- year- old man playing soccer with a bunch of young athletic boys. When I woke up I was unable to get out of bed. Tim and Dr. John (an adopted team member who is here spending time with his sponsored boys) provided excellent medical care and got me to a point where I could travel with the boys to the river and be there with them.

Today we started out with a devotional by Kelly, who explained the meaning of the colors of the balls we brought from Baylor. She hit on key aspects of the gospel with the boys.

   

Then we loaded up the vans for a day at the River.  Many of the kids waded into the icy-cold water. They screamed both with sounds of joy and shock as they would submerge themselves and splash one another. The group also found their way to the upper river areas for a day of testing their courage as the stood looking down a 20 foot drop into the waters. Abboud probably jumped off the rock 19 times. Even Hannah got into it asking some fretting boys to move out of her way while she ran and launched herself off the cliff at least 6 times.

 

 

 

 

This was a day filled with fun, fellowship, and joy. The boys delighted in the simple pleasure of playing with one another and of enjoying themselves in a beautiful part of God’s creation. Today, I witness to God’s new creation life at Dar el Awlad. I see it most in the deep and abiding love of those who live here and devote their lives to care for these boys year around. These boys who all have had difficult lives are surrounded with the love of God by all who work here. Most of all the boys are told about the hope God has for us through Jesus Christ.  Both of these have been themes our group has been able to echo with our time of devotions and Bible study with the boys.

-Jason

Bittersweet Moments

Sitting under a tree. The sounds of the kids teaching the team the finer points of how soccer is played fill the air. Needless to say the kids are running circles around the team.


This morning we had a devotional ( Luke 2:52), then we tried to get the boys to do their school worksheets. I say tried, do you know any boys that want to study during the summer? Typical complaints were, it's too hard. Give me the answer.


After a break we used one of the Vacation Bible School programs that our church used.


In the discussion afterwards, we were talking about hope and prayer. One of Syrian refuge children spoke up and said he had prayed during a hard time in his life but did not want to talk about it. One has to wonder what he has gone thru in his young 10 years.
Most of the boys here have some family. During holidays and one weekend a month during the school year the staff try to have the kids return to their families to maintain contact.

Not all the boys are so lucky though. One of the Syrian refugee boys has no family.

A teacher took him home to stay with her family for the week between school being out and our team arriving.
He was referred to Dar el Awlad after being found living on a bus. He does not know how old he is (the dentist thinks he is 6.) He and his family escaped from Syria and then his parents disappeared. He was being "cared for" by a "grandfather" who forced him to beg, beating him if he did not bring "home" enough money.
He tired of the beatings and ran away to live on a bus.

The more you find out about other boys you discover each has their own story.  Your heart breaks. You want to do something to fix the situation, to lift the heartache. But what can we do who only fly in for a week and then go back to our lives of comfort and ease?  We feel helpless. All we can do is love them while we are here and pray for them and their caregivers.  It's sound so inadequate.  But then again, is it so little to love them for a week and have them know that we will be back to love them again next year?  To have them realize people they don't know, in a church in Waco,Texas, love them and are lifting them up to the Lord in prayer.
Lifting them up, and keeping on lifting up.

Tim

Worship Through Fellowship

Today was our first full day here in Lebanon.  It was filled with a lot of wonderful activities all of which were characterized by fellowship.  I found this fellowship to be meaningful, fun, deep, joyful, but most of all it constituted worship for me today.  

4 of us attended church with the Bouchers while Tim attended with another Dar El Awlad staff member.  We enjoyed Resurrection Church and loved worshiping with believers from all over the world.  It is in fact a small world though.  We met a man at the service who was visiting Lebanon from Portland, Oregon.  He was serving in Lebanon at a dental camp.  He asked where we were from and we told him Waco, TX.  We quickly found out that both of his kids attended Baylor recently and graduated from there.  Love the connections that are made around the world.

 The scripture passage for the morning sermon.

 After lunch there was a cut throat game of foosball in the dining hall.  In Lebanon they call foosball "baby foot" because it is a baby version of football (remember football here means soccer).  Many more games of "baby foot" have already taken place and are likely to still come.

 Our team was taken to Pigeon Rock in downtown Beirut.  No trip to Lebanon would be complete without a visit to this beautiful place.

 Taking in the sights of downtown Beirut such as a flag of Lebanon.

 A large, downtown mosque.

 Roman ruins in the middle of town.

 Our day of sightseeing was topped off with a stop at a local ice cream shop where we all had delicious ice cream!

 As the boys started trickling in to Dar El Awlad we greeted them and then games quickly commenced.

 The boys already got into the large stash of Baylor balls that we brought.  There is much fun to be had with these boys and the sports equipment this week!

Tonight we go to sleep after a full day of wonderful fellowship.  We will wake up tomorrow and begin our week of activities with the boys (devotionals, bible studies, tutoring, field trips, and outdoor activities).  I always look forward to our time with them all.  There is much excitement in the air and I am confident that God is at work.  Please be praying for our time this week to be meaningful and spirit filled.
Thanks for joining us on this journey.
-Jennifer

We made it!!!

After a LONG day of travels we made it safely to Dar El Awlad. We had uneventful travel and besides being tired all is well.  As always, being welcomed back here each year feels like a family reunion.  Thanks be to God!
More pictures and fun posts to come.  Until then, SLEEP!