More adventures of a God girl!

Joy Farrington is in her early 20's and is an example of a deeply committed young person who puts God first in her life and in simple faith and obedience is serving him with all she has. May there be many, many more Joys rising from the current youth generation willing to shine their light; and may Joy's story below inspire you to be one of them!

We are midway through week three of the Dream Project and so far so good! It's not been without it's hard moments but we have five women who are all committed to the six month programme. One lady is 30 years old and is exiting over 10 years of prostitution. Three of the women have all come out of serving terms at the adolescent girls prison and the youngest is 17. One lady has been in a lifestyle of drug and alcohol addiction and is now trying to rehabilitate her life and get her two year old son back. With all five ladies there are challenges and some very heart-breaking family circumstances that all add up and can be hard to overcome. We have faith in them though and we're already seeing healing take place!

Those moments of honesty and vulnerability have all come in the unexpected times, the off-moments. During a lunch break last week one of the women started to open up about her family situation which has been causing her to feel pressurised and upset as she can't seem to do anything to resolve it. In art class today, one of the girls started asking questions about how to hear God's voice and what the prophetic is. She has struggled a lot with depression and feeling overwhelmed by sadness but is beginning to be able to express this, giving those emotions to God and asking for his help and strength.

I love getting to see these women every day and slowly build their trust. Although our communication is a little limited, due to my poor Spanish skills, we're still able to spend a lot of time laughing, crying and getting to know one another.

Our sessions at the girls prison are still continuing every Tuesday and I've now led a couple of sessions with the women there. They are so precious and it's amazing to see the restoration that is taking place in their hearts and lives!

Thursdays and Fridays we do outreach into the red light district of Plaza Foche where we'll stand on the street corners with the men and women, drinking milk and eating biscuits. We're meeting more ladyboys working in the area at the moment than women, which can be a little bit more challenging as, more or less, all of them are on drugs, whereas the women are not and the ladyboys tend to wear many more masks of self-protection. We have however had some beautiful moments with them where we've been able to pray for them and communicate how much they are loved and not forgotten. Ladyboys are often seen and treated as less than, but behind all the make-up and big attitudes are men who just want to be loved.

Last Sunday I went with a small group to visit the Little People who live in a village about two and a half hours outside of Quito. They are known as the Little People because none of them are taller than 4ft high. There are six of them and they live in some of the worst conditions I have seen people in. They all have learning disabilities and a lot of health problems. I think only two of them can speak in a way that is at all clear or understandable. They were abandoned as children and have lived together as family ever since, at times receiving horrendous abuse from their neighbours, but still somehow managing to exude such love and joy.

They don't know how to take care of themselves and so the only time they have a bath is when we come to visit. Unfortunately we are only able to make monthly visits due to the distance and needing more men to help us carry them. They might be small but they weigh a lot! None of them can walk very well so they need carrying to get them bathed.

I sat with one of the Little People called Pedrito and fed him chicken and fries while he looked at me and his whole face smiled. He said a lot of things that I didn't understand; that no-one did, but I would reply and together we sat talking and eating in the dirt as one of my friends sat in the dirt too playing his guitar. We sang and they all laughed with glee in response! We then washed their hands and feet and shaved the men's beards. I massaged Pedrito's hands that are all knarled with arthritis and he responded by holding one of my own and tenderly caressing it, gently stroking every finger, in the most loving and moving way I have ever experienced.

Before I came to Ecuador I thought this was going to go a certain way. I would volunteer for a project, have a great time and then come home. In reality it's actually been far more challenging. I miss my friends and family like crazy, but I'm also learning lessons that I wasn't expecting to learn; really good and valuable lessons. I'm facing fears that I have never spoken out to anyone before now and am walking out the healing of that. I'm learning to trust God in ways that I have not really had to before and I am watching him come through and provide every day. I am also getting to love people that are teaching me so much that it's unbelievably humbling!

Sometimes we get coaxed out of the door and down our garden path by the scent of adventure or the proximity of dreams, but often the reality of the journey is a lot different. It would have been much easier for me if I'd have stayed in England. I wouldn't have to learn to rely on God for my daily finances; I would be able to provide for myself. I wouldn't have to miss my friends or the comfort of community because I would be constantly surrounded by it. I would be able to keep my fears buried because my environment wouldn't challenge me to face them. Love doesn't promise us an easy journey but it does promise one of truth, of beauty and one of carving us into who we were created to be.

Love isn't scared of humanity, it embraces it and perfects it.