Spain Update #4 Curious Minds, Soft Hearts

Laughter fills the community center. I smile listening to the mix of Spanish, Catalan, English and multiple dialects of Arabic floating around the room. The women cheerfully pick up the colorful beads our team brought for jewelry making, swapping them back and forth until they find just the combination they’re looking for. Laura, Kassidy, Liliana, Jordin, Nancy and myself spread out around the table and help the women through the different steps of stringing the beads and bending the wire into loops to create the earrings.

Around the time most of the women are working on their second or third pair, Jordin stands up and begins to share about the difference between outward and inward beauty. She asks the women—most of whom are refuges— how beauty is defined in their home country verses how beauty is defined in Spain. The answers come quickly. The women are eager to jump in and incredibly engaged.

Next, Jordin transitions the conversation to ask which characteristics make a person beautiful. The goal of the talk is to encourage questions. Due to their classification, the centers can’t directly preach the Gospel but rather aim to spark curiosity and demonstrate the love of Jesus. When the women ask questions, the door is opened to share freely. Most of the women first came to the center for language classes—both Spanish and English for themselves, their husband’s and their kids. But it’s clear as I glance around the room that the center has become a place that represents so much more than a classroom. The community and comfortability of the group is evident.

Please pray that God would soften the hearts of these women and their families. Pray for the women to see the Holy Spirit at work in the center and be curious and bold to ask questions.

Hannah and the Spain Team

X