Oh, what a day.

Day 4. Once again our day started off in the hands of our trusty Colombian driver, Wilson. What a day it was! First we traveled to downtown Bogota to "The Jungle." The Jungle is a place for street kids to come and play, laugh, jump, run and most importantly a day off the streets of Bogota where these kids get to experience God and act like kids. The work we did today at The Jungle was mostly cleaning and fixing things. 

Today was also the day in which we were taken by van through the streets where the street kids come from. Mark had cautioned us about the things we would see on these streets; but that still wasn't enough for the real devastation. Steve first drove us through what is known as the "Tolerant Zone." These couple blocks are where the government allows prostitution. Driving down streets ten feet away from brothels felt surreal, and as a team we were struck to our core. The tour continued through different districts of downtown and then we came to an area called the "Bronx." Steve had told us about a guy who stands at the entrance of the Bronx warning the drug dealers with whistle commands letting them know if the "Policia" or anyone else of interest was coming. And sure enough, upon entering we saw that guy take one look at our bus and blow some type of warning letting others know that a van of foreigners were coming through. The despair and hopelessness within downtown Bogota is unbearable. The stories shared with our team today were like nothing we've ever heard.

We then took a trip up the mountain out of downtown where we spent the rest of the afternoon with the street kids themselves. Making crafts and playing all sorts of games was just what we needed after a hard reality check. The smiles on those kids faces, the laughter and chatter filled the small room we were in. Oh, the joy of loving children, not caring about the language barrier! We did crafts and games with two groups of children. The first group was 4-7 years old and the second 8-11. Two of the best moments during this time was 1. the kids loving to touch Marks bald head! And 2. when we wall played a game and the kids started chanting "gringos! gringos! gringos!" 

The day ended with an evening walk and an amazing and impacting team devotional about waiting on God and how to be an active waiter. Looking back on the day and letting everything sink in, as a team we've remembered something very important. God loves those prostitutes, gang members, drug addicts and dealers; He loves those street children and all 13 million people of Bogota. God is moving, and working in Bogota through us and the permanent missionaries he's placed here and we have to trust in his unfailing love and greater plan.