The End

We are home.  After some goodbyes and hugs outside the Messiah locker rooms we've all gone our separate ways, back to our homes and our families.  And although we will all miss the scenic views, the Postobon and Colombiana, the plants that move when you touch them, digging ditches and weeding, the Spanish language, OB, the bus rides alongside hundreds of motorcycles, the CDUC brownies, morning worship and devos, and rice with ever meal (actually most guys probably won't miss the rice), I think what we'll miss most of all are the coaches and players we met and being a part of the CDUC's remarkable ministry. Marcos, Checho, Waymar, Alex, Todo, Christian, Brian, Samuel, Alvero, Hugo, Daniel, Torro, the list goes on... the friends and brothers in Christ we found in Medellin will not soon be forgotten. They're impact in Colombia will continue to grow and lives will continue to be transformed. We are extremely thankful for the opportunity to participate in God's work through the CDUC and they will continue to be in our thoughts and prayers as we strive to advance God's kingdom here on earth.

As it says on the backs of the CDUC jerseys, "Jesús es Señor" or Jesus is Lord
Dios te Bendiga,
Messiah Men's Soccer 2011

Hope you check in one more time to read a great story about an experience Jordan Sands had on the trip.

Well, we've landed in the USA. What an unbelievable trip. I think I speak for all the guys when I say this has been an amazing blessing and a wonderful experience. I encourage all of you, friends and family, to ask us about the trip and have us share stories. We'll be happy to share with you! Again, thanks for the support and the prayers.

Our Last Day

We started the day with one of CDUC's finest, Waymar. He took us into town to see the fat people statues and then to a place where there were some awesome waterfalls. 

We played in the tournament final against the team we lost to last week.  Unfortunately the result was somewhat similar to the previous game and we lost.  But it's alright because the goal of our trip was not to win,the tournament (although we did play well and we fought hard) but to love and to serve the people of Medellin and the CDUC.  Our team has been extremely blessed throughout this trip and I fully believe we made an impact.... but I also know that the people here have made a huge impact on our lives too, and for that we are all very thankful. 

Jesús es Señor,  

Sam

p.s. Marcos just showed us the newspaper from a couple of days ago.... and we made it in! Marcos, Coach, Jodi, Morgan (Coach and Jodi's daughter), Suessy, and Chuck have pictures in the paper along with a team shot of us with the team that beat us twice. It was cool to see the CDUC being recognized for the great things it's been doing this past week.

Thursday

Yesterday we got assigned a few new jobs around the CDUC. Some guys filled in around the water tank that we finished setting in the ground, others raked up grass clippings while Kyle Fulks used his John Deere skills to mow the field, and the rest of the guys swept the stadium seats. We played our semi-final game against the u21 CDUC team and won 2-1. We play in the final today at 3pm against the team we lost to last week. Today is our last day and i'm getting he feeling it's going to be tough for a lot of the guys to leave this awesome place when it feels like we just got here. thanks for checking in on the blog... Maybe one or two more posts before we are back in the states.

Tuesday the 24th

This morning we went to a maximum security prison.  It is pretty new and most of the men there were participants in organized crime.  We split into five groups and went to different parts of the compound... they have caged-in futsal courts inside and the guys watching just lined the sidelines... it was pretty awesome and slightly intimidating (like out of a movie or something). No flip-video cameras were allowed in there but here are some videos of the rest of the day.

 

On our way back from the prison, we were able to stop and check out the brownie factory that is used to help fund the CDUC ministry.

Later that day we were able to train with the CDUC teams. The first session was with the u15 guys and the second session was with the u21 guys. We showed them some of our drills and they showed us some of theirs. We were able to have devos with them before the training sessions and it was a good time interacting with one another using our common languages, God and soccer.

At the end of the day we had a wide variety of experiences and God showed us some more things to keep in our prayers for Medellin. Thanks to all of you who are checking in on us through the blog and praying for us. 

Love,
Dan and Sam

Monday the 23rd

This morning we joined the CDUC coaches for their Monday devos again. This time it was a lot more open and personal because of the time we spent with each other last week (we've made some great friends!). We had our last group game today and won 5-1... Against a talented opponent. Today was probably the hottest day of the trip. A bunch of guys got burnt and we've been working on rehydrating this evening. Earlier in the day some of the boys also helped with the work projects around the CDUC. Just glad that Marcos is utilizing the manpower while it's available.

Dios te Bendiga
Sam and Logan

Some Pictures

Thought you may like to see some pictures of us with the kids. It's been amazing how much joy we have experienced on the soccer fields here.