At the Villages...

Now that we are back, I still have some amazing stuff that didn't get shared due to lack of internet. It was in the 2nd part of the Island that we went to where poverty was extreme, and everyone lived in tiny shacks with dirt floors. We had just got there, and was sitting in the tiny plank church, and all the little children of the village kept coming in to see us. At one point we were eating lunch (rice and beans and soda) and I saw a little girl who kept walking in and sitting in a corner. I was full from lunch and called her over. She must have been only 3 or 4, and she came and sat in my lap. So many children there have enormous bellies from starvation, and are sick from the dirty water. So I held her on my lap and gave her the last half of my food. With her bare hands she scooped every last grain of rice out and shoved it in her mouth. She even chugged the soda to where she wouldn't breath and would down half of a bottle without stopping. She was very hungry. After we fed her and held her, Kelly who is the nurse on our team, examined the sores on her whole body. Apparently the kids have parasites that can eat away the flesh. This little girl was so open to have us look at her sores, it was clear that she just wanted to be well, and didn't care if the process hurted.
It was hard not being able to take her back home with us, or any of the kids for that matter. But we trust that God will provide in mysterious ways.
Later that day we had a crusade for the village, asking if they wanted to recieve Jesus, and needed healing. There was always healings and spirits cast out. It became common to me. God really opens the hearts of the people who don't have much. Everyone wanted to receive the Living God.
But After we had prayed and danced and sang for them, the time came to tell them about their ways of witchcraft. That village had a lot of it and it was very obvious. The children were covered in beads around their waste neck or wrists, which was a demonic curse of life. A curse that they won't die. It's funny how the devil tempts us with that lie. You will never die, however to be separated from Jesus Christ means death. How can the Enforcer of death promise life? It's nothing but a lie.
I was holding another little girl there who continually called me momma, and when I told her I wasn't her momma, She went to Israel the 20 year ole male interpreter and called him momma. She was adorable, but she was restless, and violent. As I held her she continually tried slapping me and others around me. She would toss her head to and fro and laugh and push other kids over. She was probably only 1 year old, and I knew that there was something greater behind her actions. I felt an angry spirit around her and I started to pray for her as I held her. But it wouldn't leave. So, as the pastors are asking if any one has witchcraft, they need to get rid of it if they want to follow Jesus. Just then I feel something under her dress around her waste. This little girl had the witchcraft beads around her waste, and immediately I knew, That was causing it. I grabbed the string that was wrapped around 3 or 4 times and broke it off.
The beads fell the the ground and as fast as a light, the girl became calm. She wasn't hitting or wiggling, or angry. Instead, she became peaceful and just smiled. Then I let her down and she joined in with some other little kids that we broke the beads off of and handed us all the beads from the ground, and I threw them in the fire.

Not only did that little girl find freedom, but the little girl I fed earlier that day captured my heart. She was the cutest thing I have ever seen. So I gave her a necklace I was wearing. I prayed over it and put it on her neck, a prayer for healing and protection and love, and I broke the witchcraft off of her neck as well. That night was amazing. God did a lot. That was just a small part of the night, but it really amazed me to see that something so small like a string of beads can hold a person in bondage. Letting things in your life, even if they are small can take over. I loved seeing Jesus take action and free so many people, not just kids but everyone there. If only you could have been there. All I have to say is know the power our Jesus has. Know that he who is in us is stronger than he who is in the world.
Love,
Andrea