A passing on.

Today has been a very sad day for us. Little Nataly, the newest baby at Casa de Fe, has gone on to be with the Lord. She came to us when she was only several week sold, and we had her with us for about 3 weeks. She had some heart condition, and needed to be on oxygen 24/7.

It was the first childs funeral that I have officiated her in Ecuador, and also very different from most funerals. Her parents live a number of hours into the jungle, and since at the orphanage they don't wait several days and mourn over the body, as is the custom here, but rather have the funeral that same day, the graveside service consisted of myself, Patti Sue, 2 volunteers and several Tias that where closest to Nataly.

The service was short, a prayer, a few words from a few present, I read a few passages of scripture, and then we sang a hymn and then placed her tiny casket in the vault. I also got to see for the first time the other 9 little children vaults at the small cemetery, all of them children that have passed on while at Casa.

The worst part for me, I would say, was not her passing or the funeral. As we were reminded, she is in a better place! There, she has no heart problems, she can breathe freely, and is running around in the presence of our Lord! She skipped entirely the hard process of learning how to walk, with all of its falls and bruises!

For me, the hardest was to see the Tias, one in particular, who is not a believer, and to see how hard it was for her. She does not have the Hope and confidence we do. I pray that God would give me the strength to continue to be a witness, and the time to share his Word on a regular basis with everyone at Casa. Lord, free up my time there, to be used for your Honor and Glory!