Today the architects needed to meet with the Pijal church again to make some decisions. We learned after our initial plan that a soccer field was desired in our proposed building location and also the local ministry was having a hard time being open to a design different from what they had envisioned. With limited exposure to other architectural ideas, a lot of communication and trust was necessary for them to buy into our ideas. And of course, their vision differed from what the budget allowed, which we can all relate to. Fortunately, the pastor from the Texas church who is largely funding the new building was in town and was able to be a part of the meeting as well. All went well and the result of the meeting gave us the green light to move ahead with an agreed upon direction. But in the mean time, we were in a holding pattern. So the rest of the team went to the market for a little bit of shopping at Plaza de los Ponchose in Otavalo. We took in some city sights and enjoyed some coffee from Daily Grind. When we all joined back together at the house, we got on the same page and started to move forward full steam ahead! I think the time that everyone invested in creating relationships paid off as trust was formed and a consensus was found. God was truly at work in easing tensions and allowing everyone some humility to hear each other's concerns. Direction today was answered prayer.   |
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