Our kids here at CMP are terrified by witches.  I’m not talking about little green ladies with pointy hats riding around on a broom.  I’m talking about real people who use real witchcraft aided by demons to do really wicked things.  These types of witches really do exist in Monte Plata, and our kids know it.

On a recent walk, a few of our little boys found a peso lying on the road. One of the boys went to reach for it, but the others grabbed his arm, rapidly firing warnings of “brujeria” -- witchcraft.  Apparently witches have been known to put curses on coins, drop them, and the curses fall on whoever picks them up.

To our western mind, this might sound like nonsense, the imaginations of little boys, like being scared of monsters under the bed.  But the Bible repeatedly tells us that there are spiritual forces at work, both for good and for evil.  And I can tell you that witches and their powers are real.  Thankfully, we can teach our kids that while these powers are real, those who have put their faith in Jesus are filled with the Holy Spirit, who is far more powerful than any power of darkness. 

But it is no wonder that our children are afraid of witches.

So when a strange looking lady came muttering things as she repeatedly walked circles around Casa Monte Plata, we anticipated that our children would be afraid that she was a witch cursing our property (in all honesty, we were afraid she was a witch).

What we witnessed, however, was just the opposite.  One by one, our kids stopped her as she walked by.  They asked her name.  They talked to her about her story.  They found out she was homeless, having walked to Monte Plata from a neighboring town looking for work.  They brought her food and offered her matches to build a fire.  When they heard that other children in the neighborhood were throwing rocks at her  and calling her names, they felt protective of her and asked for us to find a way to intervene.  They prayed for her. 

In so many ways, this woman, whom the world had rejected, found compassion and love in the children of Casa Monte Plata. 

Watching our kids love and compassion for our destitute neighbor made me think of the love the God shows to us through Jesus.  In our sin, we are destitute, evil, helpless.  We have nothing to offer God, and worse than that, we are considered His enemies because of our rebellion against Him.  However, God, in His great compassion and mercy sent His Son, Jesus, to make a way that we could be rescued from our dark lives of sin. And not just rescued.  God did the unthinkable and  made a way to adopt us as His sons and daughters.  He offers to ake us from our spiritual poverty and wickedness and make us part of His family.  He will clothe us in righteousness and cover us in compassion.

I pray that our kids’ compassion continues to grow as they understand God’s compassion on a greater scale.  And as they pour compassion on others who do not deserve it, may the message of God’s great mercy spread across Monte Plata.