The Castillo Family

When we plan activities in Haiti – people are typically late. If you want to have a VBS at 3pm – you need to tell everyone it’s 2pm. The only problem is – there are always some children who will indeed come on time. So what do you do when you have 30-60 minutes to kill? Well – we play games…. AND…. we line dance!

Since we started killing time with dancing… more and more children started to come earlier. They loved learning something new.

Typically Malaya & Mikela are the ones teaching.  They began to think – –  how cool it would be to create a community dance group? One that could perform at conferences, revivals, festivals, and other community functions!?! 

***

So in March – we put fliers all over town inviting children 10+ to compete in a Dancing Contest. Emma Fowler is a dancer who has performed around the world. (Well at least 3 countries anyways!). She’s been coined as the World Champion Choreographer.

She interned with us two summers ago and she’s coming back again this summer. She came for a visit with her family in March. The timing was perfect! We seized this opportunity to host our dance competition and we had Emma choreograph the routine.

The children practiced for a few hours – and on March 23rd – we held the official competition. There were roughly 150 participants….which we narrowed down to 45.

Then those 45 children registered – were assigned a number – and performed in groups of 3.

This competition was two-fold…. the top 3 dancers were awarded prizes…

***

The top 12 dancers were chosen to be apart of the very elite dance group called

OUR GENERATION!

***

PRACTICE AND AUDITIONS!

***

EXAMPLE OF AUDITIONS:

The children were divided into groups of 3.  Each group performed twice. The first time they got to watch Emma or Malaya while we judged – – – the 2nd time they were all on their own.

***

FRIDAY NIGHT FUN:

The kids have been practicing every Saturday from 1-3pm. As we try to promote group unity – we also have fun activities planned twice a month.

Tonight the kids came over for spaghetti & hotdogs. We also played a card game & bingo – they won candy for prizes! I love the diversity of this group. We have one staff kid, two of the pastor’s kids, and the rest are scattered from around town.

Many of these children are from the poorest areas of our village. They rarely participate in the activities that teams provide because they don’t have nice clothes… and they get teased. One little girl ate 3 plates of spaghetti. She told me she had not eaten in two days.

We’ve given this little girl – and many others around the table – a new identity. Tonight she was not ashamed of where she came from…. or afraid to show that she was so hungry.  Tonight she laughed & engaged with those around her.

***

It’s our hope that through this Dance Group….  

-we will build up their confidence with a new skill
-we will create a new network of friends – where everyone is accepted.
-we will remind them that they are the sons & daughters of the King.
-we will show them what it means to be a follower of Christ
-we will pour out our love on them & show them they are worthy
-we will create a space where a few hours a week – they can just be regular kids

I’m constantly reminded of how the little things here….quickly become the big things.

I wanted to share pictures from our Easter morning… the internet has been very slow so it’s taken a week to upload.

We invited the community to come for peanut butter sandwiches and homemade hot chocolate. Our kids and our Dames group were the hosts – serving everyone before the start of our Easter Service.

I am thankful for this opportunity – for this platform –  – where we are able to provide some nourishment – as well as remind everyone who Jesus is… where He is… what He did for us. God is good all the time –  and today they were reminded why! 😊

Oh the Joys of a Castillo Photo Shoot!

FRESH OFF THE PRESS: 

Why yes – that is Malaya on the cover of God Girl Magazine! 

You know how God works all things together for His good? Well… this is another one of those examples.

In October –  while sharing about the difficulties of the Hurricane & Flooding – we were contacted by the editors of this magazine. They asked if we would consider being the Featured Article for their Spring Edition! We happily accepted. 🙂

Malaya has a 6-page spread –  sharing about her life growing up as a missionary in Haiti. We are so thankful for the opportunity to share her story with other girls her age. We hope & pray that those who read are encouraged & challenged by her journey.

God Girl is a Christian magazine founded by a 12 year old girl named Alea. The magazine is now published by two sisters: Abigail (13) and Grace (12). 

To purchase your copy –  click here: http://www.godgirlmagazine.com

This weekend for Children’s Church we taught about David – how he loved & cared for his sheep. I told the children how David wrote many of the Psalms. I asked if anyone knew Psalm 23? All of our orphans raised their hands… more than half knew the entire passage & the rest knew the first several verses! This brought me SO much joy. I love that our Mommas are teaching them scripture!

Asher & Rosie took turns leading our Jesus Aerobics.

Rosie & Malaya helped lead our games. For the first game we made two groups. One group was the green sheep and the other group was the orange sheep.

They lined up in their teams 2×2. One person was the shepherd and the other person was the sheep. We blindfolded the shepherd and they had to hold onto their sheep. We placed green/orange sheep all over the cafeteria. The sheep led their blind-folded shepherd to the right color.

For the next game we scattered 140 sheep all over the courtyard – 70 orange & 70 green! They had 2 minutes to go and collect as many sheep as they could!

For both games – Malaya’s team – The Green Sheep – won! But everyone had a great time! We had a coloring contest & then ended our time together doing line-dances while we waited for church to let out.

As we walked back home…

Asher said: I really like it when we do children’s church as a family. It’s so much fun. 

Levi said: Yeah I think God likes it too because everyone knows the same Bible stories… and God really likes the Bible. 

***

Catching-Up…

I realize it’s been several weeks since I’ve posted anything on the blog. It’s been an eventful month!

I know not everyone is on Facebook  – so if you aren’t – below are some of my posts so you can be “Caught-up with the Castillos”

***

***

***

***

***

Jody Owen Castillo added 3 photos and a video — with Beth Lockwood and Diane Youmans.  February 5 at 2:00am ·

Tonight we had a PJ Party with the orphans! Diane brought every child a new set of pajamas! They’re SOOOOO cute!!

We held a little fashion show before they came over….or I should say we “TRIED” to have a fashion show! LOL! You’ll see some of the kids didn’t quite “get” how to strike a pose! They’re still adorable!

Tonight we watched The Secret Life of Pets and enjoyed popcorn, chips, & juice!

https://web.facebook.com/jody7399/videos/10154933232435758/

***

Jody Owen Castillo  February 7 at 8:15pm ·

Tonight we treated our core staff to a little Mexican Fiesta! Thanks Diane Youmans for pouring into our staff & providing a great meal!

***

Jody Owen Castillo shared her photo.  February 10 at 2:43am ·

While visiting a church in the states several years ago – the kids went to Children’s Church with grades 1st-6th.

The children’s minister asked: What are some things that keep you from going to church?

A few kids raised their hands and said things like: sometimes we sleep in, sometimes we go to sports games, sometimes the weather is bad, sometimes I’m sick, etc.

Mikela’s hand raises: Well one time we were going to church but there was a cow’s head on our porch and dead animals on the street. They had their body parts hanging from trees. There was blood everywhere. So mom said we can’t go to church today. (There was a 3-day voodoo service in front of our home).

Jaws dropping…

Then Malaya: yeah and I don’t like to go to church when the Mardi Gras come out because they work for Satan and they chase you around town and sometimes they have machetes. (Picture of one below)

Oddly enough… we were never invited back. Lol!!

Truth be told – that’s reality. Those are a few of the reasons that children don’t make it to church in Haiti.

Kind of makes you think twice about the excuses we give…

***

Jody Owen Castillo added 3 new photos — with Jose Alexander Castillo. February 14 at 1:02pm ·

The greatest work you will ever do will be within the walls of your home.
– Harold B. Lee

This quote and the pic collage below came up on my timeline as a memory from last year.

It’s been an incredible year with Fabi. I still remember when her mom came through our clinic completely overwhelmed. Fabi was 9 months old … too weak to hold her head or track my finger with her eyes.

I knew with God’s help I could make her life better – give her therapy, meds, food, and lots of love. I knew with time I could train the momma on how to care for her too.

I was prepared to make her life better – but I wasn’t prepared for how much better she made my life…. how much healing she brought Jose and me.

Having suffered through 6 miscarriages in the previous two years – it was not only hard on my body – but my heart was severely damaged too.

***
The other two pics? Well they were taken yesterday…. when Fabi slept in her new home for the first time.

She lost her first home in the hurricane. We finished her new home this weekend. So yesterday marked the official start of her transition back home.

We are leaving each other better, stronger, healthier, and happier than when we started this journey.

God knew we were exactly what each other needed – and our lives will forever be connected and changed.

***

Jody Owen Castillo February 16 at 12:22am ·

I’m SO thankful for the Haiti 323 Project! We’ve got 36 children who will need new uniforms this fall!

Haiti requires uniforms for every child that attends school. Not only can these mommas make them for our orphans – but they can make them for their own children too. It’s a pretty big deal for the Mole – especially since you typically have to travel hours to get them made.

 ***

Jody Owen Castillo  February 21 at 4:12pm ·

***

Jody Owen Castillo at Nwhcm, Mole St Nicholas Church.

February 21 at 9:09pm ·

Since the hurricane, our clinic has been OVER-FLOWING with patients. We’ve had families walk as much as 8 hours to reach us. We see 60-90 patients each day we’re open and we turn dozens away as well.

Many of you have heard my testimony – how God called me to the medical field… I was just 9 the first time a baby died in my arms from wet-malnutrition. I knew then as I rocked her little swollen body that I was called to medical ministry. Her mom was so struck with grief that she couldn’t find the strength to hold her baby. So I held her close, and with tears streaming down my face, I sang her into heaven. 

I remember so vividly the mother falling to the ground – weeping with every ounce of sorrow in her…unable to compose herself. It completely altered my life. I shadowed every medical team that visited Haiti from that day forward. I graduated high school in 3 years – just so I could get a jump-start on nursing school.

A few months ago I had another mother come to my clinic with her 5 children. They walked 5 hours in flip-flops to find us. The youngest child was just 2 years old and all 5 children had typhoid. How they found the strength to reach us? Only God. The mother didn’t have enough money to pay for all her children to be seen. She had gone from clinic to clinic for 5 HOURS! So when we told her we would see ALL of her children for free – she fell to the floor weeping.

***
Here I am – now 27 years later – watching another little mother lay in the same position – face to the floor – weeping with everything in her. Only this time – they were tears of joy! This time I wasn’t a little girl unable to do more. No, this time was different!

The mother in front of me was weeping with everything in her because on that day – she didn’t have to look her sweet little kids in the face… she didn’t have to choose which of her children would receive care and which would continue to suffer.

So why do I share this part of my testimony today? Well….we received INCREDIBLE life-changing news this past week.

First United Methodist Church in Durango, Colorado held a special Christmas offering – something they do every year to bless others outside the walls of their church. Our Mole Clinic was one of the projects chosen.

SO THIS SUMMER WE WILL BEGIN EXPANDING OUR CLINIC!

Thanks to their generous giving – we will nearly double our clinic space… allowing us to effectively treat & better care for the people in the Mole & the surrounding communities! AMAZING! ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!

When I shared this news with our Haitian staff – they broke out in song & danced a happy jig! The hurricane brought SO much sorrow – but I’m seeing things happen here – blessings that can’t be explained outside of Jesus. It’s humbling….so very humbling that He chooses to use our family.. that He allows us to join Him in the work He’s doing in Mole St Nicolas.

Tout Bagay Deja Byen…
Pwoblem nou yo rezoud…
Maladi yo geri..

 

Merry Christmas From the Castillo Clan!!   

The week leading up to Christmas has been a busy one to say the least!! I hope you’ve been able to see our Facebook posts – –  and read about all our Christmas Celebrations on this blog and our ministry one – molehaiti.org

We spent most of Christmas Eve serving the community – there’s absolutely no better feeling than that.  I’ve been watching how God has been moving here…  through the storms – through the suffering – through the numbness.  He continues to allow me to see the beauty through the mess…. as He makes His presence known to me almost daily.

I managed to completely throw my back out Christmas morning – and while I could sit here and complain – I really can’t. My back started to hurt the day after our Staff Dinner. Yet I got to participate in all the things that I hold dear to my heart!  AND – with no responsibilities these past two days  – I’ve been able to rest securely in His arms and reflect on ALL the reasons I love Christmas!

No, it’s not because of the decorations and the lights – though they are SO beautiful! No, it’s not because of the perfectly wrapped presents …. I learned a long time ago there’s nothing in a box that can bring me long-lasting Joy. 

Our greatest JOY at Christmas is simply giving others a reason to smile –  a reason to believe in the goodness of God again! Our greatest JOY is reflecting the Father’s face  – while celebrating His birth with others!

I have a Bible App that I use for all my Bible Studies. While I was doing the Study of Mark last month – the speaker made a comment that there’s just something about holding a Bible in your hands – feeling the pages of God’s Word with your finger tips. Something I had forgotten about since I’ve used an electronic one for so long.

Well… the girls got me a new Bible & highlighters for Christmas. The Bible is absolutely beautiful. I love the smell (if that makes sense) and the feel of the pages. There is nothing like it for sure.

On the cover of the Bible:  Romans 15:13 – May the God of Hope fill you with all JOY and PEACE as you trust in Him. 

How perfect is that after the past few months of trials and tribulations?

I was stuck in bed – which meant I got to spend my Christmas Day reading God’s Word – marking my favorite passages – reflecting on what it all means!

I learned a long time ago – Christmas isn’t necessarily about WHERE you go – nor is it necessarily about WHAT you do. At least for me – MY best memories on Christmas Day are all about who I was surrounded by.  You see I can’t complain about a bad back – because it set me up to have an intimate Christmas with Jesus! And it is a new memory that I will cherish for years to come!

***

Below are a few snippets from our Christmas Eve…

Again we hope & pray you had a wonderful Christmas…  and that you were able to create long-lasting memories that you will cherish & hold dear to your heart!

***

Opening Gifts From Each Other…

When the kids were in the states this summer they shopped for each other! We didn’t have a lot of money to give  – for them to spend on each other – –  but everyone was happy and thankful for their presents! That makes this momma very happy too!

Baking Cookies For Santa…

We got to bake Nana’s homemade sugar cookies! The kids had such a blast but I think Fabi had the most fun!

Spreading the Reindeer Food & Waiting For Santa…

A few years ago my dad brought Reindeer Food for the kids to spread in the yard! This is so Santa can find us in Haiti! 🙂 So every year since  – we’ve been scattering the seed… waiting for a harvest! LOL!

Then the kids spent the night together in our bedroom waiting for Santa. This is what we did when I was a kid. All of us kids would spend the night together – we’d laugh and worry about who was on the naughty list! LOL! Some of my best childhood memories are those nights where all of us brothers/sisters were cozied up together!

I really miss those nights. I hope as my children grow older – they appreciate those Christmas Eves –  where things were simple and all of them were together.

Santa came around 3:30am…. 

…..  And my back went out a few hours later….

I wasn’t sure if we were going to pull this off this year…but as you can see below – the campus is full of Christmas Spirit & Lights Galore!!

In speaking with full transparency  – I haven’t had much Christmas Spirit – even though everyone knows this is my favorite time of year. I have felt pretty numb the past few weeks. I’ve been on a journey to reclaim my JOY and it’s taken a lot longer than I thought it would.

This past weekend while we were having our Youth Staff Party – I got into a REALLY long conversation about our Campus Christmas Lights. I was told and I quote – “You are really breaking the heart of the town”. 

WHAT?

Don’t you know that everyone is waiting for your lights? Don’t you know that people are watching you? When you put your lights up then we know two very BIG things. 1 – You must believe the worst is over because you are decorating and you wouldn’t want to ruin your things. 2 – It’s okay to have Joy now. It’s okay to stop grieving. 

After I listened to them share their hearts with me  – I went to talk to the “adult” staff. Surely those kids are just projecting their own feelings because they like it when we decorate.

Sure enough when I asked the adults I received this response: Oh yes. That’s very true. We’ve been waiting for YOU to show Joy so we can have permission to show it too. 

Well if that ain’t a little slap in the face to WAKE UP! My long journey to find JOY is slowing down the process for everyone else. I’m not going to lie – my first response was to sob. I don’t ever want to be a stumbling block for anyone else….and honestly I thought I was “faking” my JOY fairly well.

When groups come to Haiti I often tell them a little story about what it means to be the Face of Jesus here. Yes we are His hands & feet….but you do those things on “your” time. You sign up to work in a soup kitchen – it fits your schedule.  When you take a mission trip  – you make sure that everything else is taken care of so you can come. Those aren’t bad things. It’s SO important to schedule your time so you can be intentional about your work for the Lord!

But to be the Face of Jesus – you can’t put it on your calendar. Let me ask you this:  While you are being His hands and feet – – what is your face saying about who He is? I mean all of us can fake a smile. But the Face of Jesus is actually bigger than your face. 

Numbers 6:24-25 : May The Lord bless you and keep you. May The Lord make His face shine upon you. And be gracious to you. May The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace.

Proverbs 15:13: A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit.

What does your heart say about your face? There is one thing that you can NOT fake – you can’t fake the face of Jesus! The Haitians will see right through it as they watch you. They KNOW true JOY and they can recognize it AND the counterfeit in all of us. 

So all that to be said….I totally got called out on my fake Joy! And I’ve spent the last three days with my family & several staff members  – decorating the courtyard like you see below!

Somehow in all our excitement for buying lights this past year – we forgot about getting enough extension cords!  We’ve got tables/tubs full of lights and no way to plug them in! It’s okay….just means next year’s will be even brighter!

I’m not sure where your emotions are right now as you read this. Whether you’ve had to fake your JOY this season or whether you are totally  beaming with the face of Jesus….

But might I suggest that either way – people are watching – taking their cues from you  – maybe even waiting for you….. and none of us want to be a stumbling block – or a JOY BLOCKER –  for others who are desperately searching for their JOY too.

**

Below are some pictures of our campus. It’s hard to get good pictures at night – and none of them can capture the true beauty! I know many of you who’ve been here are trying to picture in your mind where everything is…so I tried to put the pictures in order as you are passing the clinic – walking to the church – past the school – on to the orphanage – – all OUTSIDE THE GATE.

Then I came back through and got some close-ups of the big courtyard we just cleaned with the tractor & dump truck.  There are gingerbread men jumping on a trampoline, on a seesaw, playing volleyball, jump roping, & playing basketball all along one side. Those displays along that side didn’t show well because the lights are “moving” and so they were blurry. But you can still see how festive that line of displays are even though it’s not clear.

Tomorrow begins our 10 Nights of Christmas Movies for the community! Let the JOY begin…

You may remember a few weeks ago our Staffs’ teenagers got together for a fun night which included a meal, card game, and movie!

While at this party – they also drew names. We played our version of Secret Santa. In our version you have to complete 3 Acts of Kindness without getting caught. Then the day before the Christmas party – each of you have to tell me who you think has your name. I then tally all the results and reveal at the party – who they guessed  AND who actually was their Secret Santa.

I collected all their “guesses” last night. So tonight is the big reveal! If they guess correctly – they get a prize. If they guess wrong – then the person who drew their name gets a prize!

Here’s a pic of those results….

Our party started at 5pm and everyone wore their Sunday best! Right before I got up to speak – three of the young men wanted to do a special presentation. One spoke in English, one spoke in Spanish, and the other spoke in French! It was such a BEAUTIFUL speech – thanking us for the way we have surrounded them with love since the Hurricane! Momma Gigi and I were both in tears.

After they spoke – I shared my heart with them…. how proud I am of the way they take care of their moms…. how important they are to our ministry here…. how they are the sons & daughters of a mighty King who smiles down on them every single day…. how I want to show my appreciation for them more often.

Then we had a wonderful feast of food!

After we ate Susan showed them a new card game – called Bad Neighbor! Basically you pass out one card to each person.  They can then change it with one neighbor or pass. The person with the lowest card loses. So you want to give your neighbor the worst card. Each person is given 3 pieces of candy. Every time you lose you put a piece of candy in the middle … until you are out.  The winner then gets all the candy! 🙂

After our card game we did the Secret Santa Reveal and passed out prizes! 🙂

After the Santa Reveal I had one last game! I knew from their parents that they didn’t have any money to buy Christmas gifts this year. So on a table with a tree were 16 glittery boxes. Each box contained a different amount of money in it. A heavy box might indicate a lot of money – or it might mean a lot of small bills. A light box might be a bigger dollar value.  Or I could have mixed both small and large bills together. Who knows?

They walked in a circle on numbered Santa hats. When the music stopped –  you stood on a number. I then drew a number out of a hat. If it’s your number – you got to pick from the table first. You could shake the boxes and hold them to compare weights – but you couldn’t open them until the last person had their box! They LOVED this game! 🙂

Then we finished the night off with dessert & more fellowship around the table! 🙂

A good time was had by all….they had never been to a fancy dinner before…. in fact they said they’ve never been apart of anything like this before. They were so thankful and I was so humbled by their gratitude! I should have been doing this a long time ago….

Hurricane Matthew and subsequent flooding nearly destroyed our community – but it also brought all of us together. I wouldn’t have thought about pouring into these kids had I not watched their nightmare unfold before me. Beauty from ashes….

It was our staff and their children who were shaken awake with rivers running through their homes. It was the young girls and their mothers who were carried to safety. Even today more than half are still displaced. They’re living in our girl’s dorm above the clinic – unable to move back home.

So Malaya and Mikela wanted to do something special for their friends to encourage them. Since 2pm Mikela & two of the staff girls have been making food in our home. Malaya made the dessert.

At 6pm we invited 16 teenagers into our home for a night of family fun. They started the night off in prayer – giving thanks for God’s protection over their lives and for the food that was prepared just for them. They thanked God that tonight they get to forget about what’s happening outside this room – even for just a few hours.

After we ate – we divided them into 2 groups to play the card game PIT. They played it for an hour! It’s a game where you try to get all the cards in your hand to be the same number. So you hit a bell to begin the trading. You yell you need X amount of cards – you might say you need 2 cards or 5 cards. You trade with people around you several times until all your cards are the same. This creates quite a lot of yelling! 🙂  Then you hit the bell once all your cards are the same and you win!

After the card game we watched a movie. After the movie I introduced them to a special “game” we’ve been playing with the staff adults for the past several years. It’s called Kindness Partners. You each draw a name. Then you do 3 Acts of Kindness WITHOUT getting caught.

Then at our next party you have to guess who you think had your name. If you guess correctly – you get a prize. If they guess wrong – then the person who had their name gets a prize.

They were SO excited to play the game and to have something else to think about these next few weeks!

I’m SUPER PROUD of Malaya & Mikela for hosting the staff kids tonight! Here are just a few pictures from our night. You may notice Fabi pretending like she’s just one of the teenagers!