Guatemala: Last Day of Ministry and Saying Goodbye

6-29-2012

Puppet Master at the School

This morning I got to hang out with Juanito!  I talked with him about longer term trips before having breakfast.  After breakfast we had a devotion and talked and prayed about our attitudes when we go home.  Then we packed up the van and left for our last school assembly.  This was a bilingual high school, so many of them knew at least a little english.  One boy called out to me and said, "Hello, you are my friend.  I love you!"  I'm guessing his friends dared him to use the little english he knew. haha  We had to wait around for a while before starting our program.  My team performed La Casa Se Quema followed by the teachers at the school doing their own version of the skit.  Apparently it was hilarious, because the kids loved it, but I couldn't understand.  After that we did Jalon.  Only a few kids and one or two teachers were willing to participate.  After the skits I shared a life story!  It made me so nervous, but I think it went well.  I hope it made an impact!  Juanito translated for me, but he introduced me as "Mir-I-nda," which is a kind of soda that they have there.  Juanito thought that was pretty funny. After my testimony my team did Puppet Master and Pastor Chris spoke.

English class at the school

Basketball at the school

Following Pastor Chris's message most of the guys went to play basketball against the school's team while another group of us sat with some English students and tried to make small talk.  Mauri and I talked with a group of four young men.  Most of them were in their last year of school, and the majority wanted to be engineers.  We talked about family, hobbies, places we'd like to visit or places we have been, and a little bit about church.  There were many times we couldn't understand each other, but one of the boys was pretty good at English and ended up translating for the rest of them when they didn't understand.  He also told me I had pretty eyes.  When the guys were done with basketball we were served lunch by the tourism class.  The kids in this class were learning out to serve tourists and prepare food for them.  They did a great job; the food was great!

Missionary Juanito, and his girlfriend, our cook.
Please keep them in your prayers!  Such wonderful people! 

We went back to the base just for a little bit and then went to Antigua to an orphanage for kids with cerebral palsy.  The kids we saw were between the ages of 8 and 15, but you really couldn't tell.  They are going to be in that facility for the rest of their lives.  They were all in medal cribs that looked to me like cages.  The women who were working there are angels, but they are really under-staffed and so unable to give the amount of attention these kids need.  It's so sad.  Most of them just laid there.  Not many were responsive.  There was one little boy who was actually sitting up and I talked to him for a while.  He understood me when I would say body parts in spanish and would point to his nose, eyes, lips, knees, etc.  He would also copy me if I clapped and several times stuck his hands through the bars and would just hold my hands for a little bit.  We then helped the staff feed the kids.  I fed Diego.  They told us to make sure the kids eat all of the food, because they don't know that they need it.  Diego couldn't even hold himself up, but propped up on a pillow and with lots of coaxing for him to open his mouth and a little bit of a mess I got him to eat most of the food.  One of the boys, who wasn't in as bad a condition as most of them were, was in a wheel chair.  He was a feisty little guy and would yell at you if you didn't do what he wanted.  He was getting upset trying to do something with a toy drum and a string, so I helped him and then went to walk away, but he yelled "Muchacha!!" We walked around and tried to talk with some other kids for a little bit when we were done feeding them and then we went back to base and had dinner and played on the street with the neighborhood kids.  I had to tell the kids we were leaving in the morning.  Chelsea gave me a big hug and started crying.  It was one of the hardest goodbyes.  We had to come off the street and back inside by 9pm, so I just spent time with my team before going to bed.

Guatemala: Just flow

6-28-2012

Doug leading devotions

After breakfast this morning we walked to a small park/wood the missionaries refer to as "Prayer Forest."  We spent 30 minutes by ourselves spread out around the area.  I spent my time praying, listening, singing, and reading.  It was a great time to re-focus and spend some time just me and God.  Then we gathered as a group under a tree and the missionary, Doug, led us in a devotion.  Then Nathan led us in some worship songs and we all talked about what we had been learning from this trip so far and we encouraged each other.  After that we walked back to base and made PB&J and loaded in the vans to head to a school for a school assembly.

Town square 

  When we got to the school, no one was there.  We learned that the government had randomly shut down 90% of the schools for the week.  The missionary, Jonathan, shared with us one of the things he has learned from living in Guatemala: Never ask Guatemalans why.  Just flow.  Things happen and "it is what it is."  God has a plan.  Jonathan talked with the people at the school for a while and found out that one of them had a connection with the "second in command" of the city.  He told us where to go and who to get in contact with for permission to do some street outreach in the "town square" of the relatively large city the school was located near.  They asked permission, and it was granted us!  The missionaries told us they had only done a street reach in this city once before.  So, we set up our sound system in the middle of the city and started announcing that we'd have a program in 10 minutes.  A lot of people stopped by and even more stayed around the outskirts just listening and watching from a distance.  They were a tough crowd.  Not many laughed and most didn't want to engage, but they did listen.  My team did La Casa Se Quema, Puppet Master, Jalon, and Heart skit.

Trying to get the kids on the street involved in Jalon

Puppet Master

Teaching dances =)

Dana, the sound man

The kids dancing and watching

The other two schools we had planned to go to were shut down as well, so we ended up just going back to the base.  Instead of sitting around the base since our plans were canceled, we took our sound system to the soccer field, blasted some music, did some foot races, and started a soccer game.  So many kids showed up!  Whole families sat around the soccer field visiting and watching us goof off with their kids.  We were there until it started getting dark.  Me and some from my team who weren't playing soccer started a dance party!  We taught the kids the Cha Cha Slide and the Cupid Shuffle.  It was a blast.   I also got together a big group for "Pato, Pato, Ganzo" (Duck, Duck, Goose).  This ended up in kids dog piling and tickling me and Alex yelling, "Loco! Loco Mirinda!!"  We came back to base for some pizza, took a trip to the tienda, and then I ended up passing out in the main room for a few hours before waking up, getting ready for bed, and spending some time with some people on my team.

Everything we had planned for the day didn't turn out, but God had a different plan, and this ended up being one of the best days of the trip!  The missionary, Juanito, said that he  hadn't seen so many of the people from the neighborhood gather together like they did tonight.  He might possibly continue to do an outreach like this.  Praise God!  His plans are so much better than ours!

Guatemala: No words could explain..

6:27-2012
Today I got to help Brittany with breakfast! After breakfast Juanito shared his testimony and told us about a youth ministry he is wanting to start through soccer!  He will be will be putting together a soccer team to play locally and also to serve locally.  (If you would like to learn more about this ministry and what Juanito is doing or if you would like to support him you can go to his newsletter at this link: http://www.scribd.com/doc/99148548/July-Newsletter-2012  )

Jalon skit on the street! 

When he finished sharing we went to a church and partnered with some of the youth from the church to walk around and invite people in the town to come to our program in the street and later that night at the church.  Daniel, the young man from the church in my group, pointed out the volcano.  It was much closer than when we are at the base.  He also showed us a video of it erupting at night when you can actually see the lava!  When we got back to the church the street program had already started.  My team did the Puppet Master, La Casa se Quema, and Jolon, skits and then passed out t-shirts and Pastor Chris preached.

When the program was done we talked with some of the kids who hung around after the program before going into the church for some down time.  There was a small carnival going on, so we took some time to walk around that and played some games with the little girls outside the church.  The pastor's wife made lunch for our whole team and the people who were there from the church!  After lunch we walked down the street a little ways to a school, where we had an assembly with the Puppet Master skit and La Casa se Quema.  We also had a dance party.  This group of kids was pretty easily excited.  They laughed, whistled, and cheered more than any other group we've had!

Once the school assembly was over we went to the missionary's house to relax and have dinner before going back to the church for another program.  Their house is higher up in the mountains.  We were so high up that we were literally in the clouds!

La Casa Se Quema at the church

Once we got back to the church we stood outside and invited people walking by to come to the program.  One man I invited had a very swollen hand, his finger was cut off, and there was something wrong with his arm.  He let me and Dallas pray for him.  I couldn't understand most of what he said, and he didn't show up for the program, but that time of prayer was definitely powerful, and I could feel the Lord there with us.  There was also a group of girls playing on the street in front of the church, and I quickly made friends with them.  The service started with four worship songs.  They had a power point, a track, and a guy singing.  Then our whole team went up front and were introduced to everyone before Matt have his testimony.  The girls followed me to the front of the church and rolled around on the floor and untied my shoes while Matt was talking.  Then we sat down again and we did the Puppet Master.  During the service one of the girls fell asleep on me and Courtney, and her mom came and got her.  At the end of the service Pastor Chris did an alter call, and the only way I can describe it is powerful.  Many of my team members didn't really know what was going on, but we knew the Lord was working.  People were sobbing and crying out to God while my team walked around and prayed for them.  Everyone was a little shaken up after that!

When the service was over my team was served coffee and cake before going to a woman's house who needed prayer for healing.  My whole team squished into her small house and prayed for her.  She said she felt a little better when we got there and started praying for her.  We then left the house and came back to base.

Guatemala: A Day of School Assemblies

6-26-2012

Today I woke up and got dressed for our three school assemblies today!  I went outside to brush my teeth and found Pastor Chris going crazy while doing his hair.  He's probably the most loco gringo on this trip. haha  But anyways, we had breakfast and I got to put the missionary's baby to sleep. =)

We then loaded up all our stuff and ourselves into the vans to head to the first school.  This school was a high school.  We did a few skits and Pastor Chris spoke.  At the end he did an "alter call."  Many of the kids raised their hands to accept Christ!!  Pastor Chris then had our team go around and pray for the kids.  I just went around and put my hands on and prayed for many of the girls.  I came to a couple girls and started praying that they would know God's amazing love, and that He would pour it out on them so they could start to comprehend the realness, deepness, and perfectness of His love!  I almost started crying.  I wish I could have told them all about what I've been learning about God's love.  I wish I could have helped them understand.  I wanted so badly for these girls to feel His love like I have been.  I longed for more time with them, but they all had to go back to class after we were done praying.  A sweet lady served us cake and pop at the school before we left.

Sitting with the girls during the program.  Can you find me?

After our snack we went to another school with younger kids.  We had just the girls in the gym this time, and we came back later and did a program for the boys.  When we got there we had about 30 minutes to just hang out, so we blasted some fun music, played limbo, and had a dance party before the actual "program" started!  Then we all sat down for the program.  I sat with a big group of girls, who I talked with and became my special group of friends for the day! =)  Sadly, their names were hard to pronounce and remember, and I forgot them. =(  For the program we did heart skit and La Casa se Quema.  Pastor Chris pulled up some girls from the school to do La Casa se Quema.  The little girl he picked to play the daughter was hilarious!  She got so excited she was jumping up and down.  So precious.  After the program the girls gave me so many hugs!  I was attacked by group hugs like crazy. The girls I had been sitting with gave me a huge hug!  I told them they were my sisters in Guatemala and that I loved them and would miss them.  They squeezed me even harder and said they loved me too.  It makes me cry just writing about it.  I miss them so much!  We just stood there hugging for a while.  Then they all started getting their notebooks and asking us to sign them.  We had to leave after that to go get some lunch before coming back for the boys.

Hugs!

Me with some of the boys

When we came back to do the program for the boys we got to go to their theatre!  It was a pretty nice space for the program!  We didn't have the time to just hang out like we had had with the girls, but I did get to go around and talk with some of the boys about school and how old they were and things like that.  We did the program and then passed out candy.  The boys went INSANE for the candy!  Someone would toss a handful from the stage and they would all be on top of eachother to get some.  It was hard to make sure every boy got some, because there were so many!

When we left the school the missionaries took us to a place where we got to hike up to a cross that overlooks Antigua, Guatemala!  We got about 10 minutes of time on our own to pray.  Then we came together and one of the missionaries, Jonathan, shared a little of his testimony and about the ministry they have in Guatemala.  He then passed out a book he had written called Beyond the Pain.  It's an incredible book that I would recommend to everyone!  Then we took some group pictures and loaded back in the vans to go have dinner at a taco place in Antigua!  The tacos were delicious, and after dinner we got some ice cream and walked around Antigua a little bit in the rain.

When we got back to the base there were kids outside, so we went out on the street and talked with them for a while.  Six year old Brittany was stuck to me.  =)  We had a meeting about tomorrow's schedule and went back out to play with the kids.  One of this girls had a lid of something with a panda on it, so I told them about my nickname "Miranda Panda."  They thought that was pretty funny.  I also got to go in someone's house and see their flowers that they sell!  They were very pretty, and pretty much filled their little yard.  A group of little girls taught me how to play a game that involved some sort of tag and walking around in circles doing different things like pretending to brush your hair, or hopping on one foot.  Then I went to the tienda with Matt, Jaci, and Dallas to give some money back to a guy who had given Matt too much change earlier.  I didn't do too well communicating what happened, but there was a woman there who understood my awful spanish and explained it to the store owner.

We walked back to base where I just hung out with people while they played cards and then stayed up talking with Cooper, Dallas, and Jaci.  While we were hanging out we felt an earthquake!  It was a pretty cool way to end the day! =)

Guatemala: Concrete and Kids!

6-25-2012

Today I woke up at 6 with everyone else in my cabin.  This gave me the opportunity to have some quiet time in the main room for a while before breakfast.  I was pretty tired, because I had stayed up so late, so I had a few cups of coffee with my breakfast.  After breakfast Jason led us in a Bible study on unity.  Each person on my team shared what strengths and talents they believed they brought to the team.  After this we all got ready to work on some stairs on base for the missionaries.  I got to share my brothers' adoption story with Doug's wife then went to help carry buckets of concrete to the guys working on the stairs.  I had so much energy, it was crazy!!  Must have the been the coffee . . . or God! =)  We worked on the stairs all morning and a little into the afternoon.

When we were finished with all we could do on the stairs for the day we changed for children's ministry.  We had some time to rest up a little.  I got to go on the roof of the bunk house.  From the roof you can see into everyone's yards.  The houses were very small shanty type houses.  Nicer than some of the houses I had seen in the dumb in Nicaragua, but still very small with dirt floors and animals crammed into their tiny yards.  We also took a walk to the tienda.  The second I stepped inside the tiny shop a little girl named Chelsea attached herself to me.  She was precious!  We chatted a little and she walked with us as we headed back to the base from the tienda.  

Me, Jessica, in my lap, and one of her friends

Painting faces

After we had some time to relax and catch our breath from the construction work we got our supplies together for children's ministry.  I was pretty tired and almost fell asleep, but I regained energy when I saw the huge line of kids from the neighborhood lined up outside waiting for us to bring them candy!  We walked with all the kids to the soccer field where the older boys played soccer, the younger kids played baseball, and the little ones did face paint and nails.  I helped with the face paint the whole time.  I was surprised again that I was able to hold some longer conversations with some of them.  I painted butterflies, flowers, hearts, poka-dots, and even a car on a little boy named Thomas!  I accidentally painted a bug, so, after I pointed it out,  a little boy dumped a big handful of them all over me!  We wrapped up the face paint, nails, and games, and we walked back to the street in front of our base to have the B team perform "La Casa Se Quemma."  Then Pastor Chris played a game where he gives a prize to the first kid to bring him something like a shoe, a necklace, or a jacket.  The last thing he asked the kids to bring was a gringo, so me and a few others from my team were immediately grabbed, dragged into a mob of kids, and shoved at Pastor Chris.  It was during this "program" part of the evening that I met Jessica.  After the "program" we brought the kids into the base and helped serve them dinner.  This is something the missionaries do every week, and it's probably the best meal a lot of them get all week, and maybe the only thing they get to eat all day.  When all the kids had finished eating, I went back out to the street and just played with the kids there in front of the base for hours.  Jessica was attached to me the entire time.  I would be holding her and then she'd call me a grandma, so I would pretend that I was too weak to hold her and collapse on the ground, so she would start to yell "You're not a grandma!  You're young, you're young!!!!"  To get me to stand back up and hold her.  She thought it was hilarious.  Eventually it ended up in kids attacking me and creating a dog pile.  Then I hung out with Jessica and a group of her little girl friends and they taught me a few hand clapping games.  Their names were Lizzy and Daniel, and Chelsea from the tienda also came and played with us.  They all held onto my hands and arms and told me I was their favorite and they loved me.  A few people from my team and I stayed on the street playing with the kids through dinner until a while after dark when Pastor Chris made us come in.  It was awesome!

Me and Jessica

Jose, Mauri, Me, Chelsea, and Matt

God gave me a few jobs today that I didn't really care for.  They were definitely not my forte.  1. I have no clue how to build things or mix concrete.  I felt very helpless and was worried about getting in the way or messing up while helping with the stairs. 2. I am not an artist.  I don't know why the kids kept coming back for my blobby butterflies and hearts, and I knew the other people doing face paint were better at it than me.  But, missions trips are not about me.  I need to give my all in every task I'm given and have a good attitude about it, which God helped me with!  It ended up being one of the best nights of the whole trip!

Reflections from Guatemala

Prayer Forest

While in Guatemala our team got the chance to spend some time in solitude and prayer in what the missionaries call the prayer forest.  I would like to share with you a little of what God spoke to me during my time there, and some of the things He showed me during this Guatemala trip.

I have been going through a book called God's Love Letters to You by Dr. Larry Crabb.  It's a 40-day devotion that has taught me so much about the love of God.  I never realized how deep His love is for me, how jealous He is for my attention, and how everything that happens in my life has God behind it trying to bring me deeper into His love.  I brought this book with me to Guatemala, and in prayer forest I spent some time reflecting on the things I have learned and how I have grown these last few months.  As I was doing that and asking God some questions I felt that God was telling me to pause, wait, and be still.  I felt He was telling me that He has so enjoyed having me so close these last few months, and He wants me to continue going deeper in my relationship with Him.  God told me that He has me where He wants me.  He is still teaching me things in this stage of my life, so I shouldn't try to move on too fast.  I felt that God was longing for me to stay in His presence and delight in Him as He delights in me.  He didn't want me to leave.  I felt Him warning me not to try to replace His perfect and pure love with things or people in this world.  The rest of the time there I spent reflecting on those thoughts and words I felt God was speaking to me.  I sang to God two songs that came to my mind "Awesome in this Place" and "A Little Longer" by Brian and Jenn Johnson.

The entire Guatemala trip, for me, was confirmation of my call to missions.  God blessed me with more boldness than I've had on a missions trip before as I walked up to people and talked to them.  I was surprised how much I was able to communicate with my little spanish.  There are times when I struggle thinking "How in the world can God use me?"  Sometimes I feel like I have nothing worth anything to offer.  I'm boring, I'm shy, I'm not funny, . . . But, on this trip the kids crowded around me.  They remembered my name.  They called for me, wanted to talk to me, wanted to be near me, cried when I left . . . This was a confirmation that yes, I am called to missions, and God can use me how I am with the things He has gifted me with, and He will provide boldness when it is needed.  All glory to God, because without Him I would be a worthless! Nothing!  I am blessed and privileged to have this call on my life and be chosen as God's tool in the places He has called me.  I shouldn't worry about having what it takes, because where God has called me He will provide.  If I was "qualified" by all appearances God might not get the credit, so I'm glad that I am weak, because through my weaknesses God's strength will show!  I can boast in God every time He uses me!  (1 Corinthians 1:26-31)

View of the Mountains from Prayer Forest

I also have to put in a word for my incredible team.  They were so encouraging, and they worked so hard.  This was the first missions trip for many of them, but my experience did not make me any better than any of them.  They threw their whole selves into each project, each program, each outreach, . . . I learned so much from them in our discussions every day.  I was blessed my each incredible person on the team.  God bless them!

Guatemala: The First Ministry Day

6-24-2012

It was a little hard to sleep because it was so silent, and I got woken up by dogs, roosters, and a horse.  When I got up I went to the second floor of the bunk house and watched smoke come out of an erupting volcano!  After that I went to the main building for some coffee.  The missionary, Doug, was there learning all of our names.  For breakfast our wonderful cook Brittany made egg sandwiches.  After breakfast Nathan and I washed the dishes in the pila, which is a stone sink outside also used for washing clothes.  Once that was done we met to go over what we were going to do all day.  The Pupped Master cast practiced their skit for a while and got some pointers from the missionaries.  The rest of us watched and had some down time.  A group of us were able to go outside the base and walk around the neighborhood.  It's very small and quaint with lots of little snack and drink type stores called "tiendas."  We watched some boys play soccer at the neighborhood soccer field and I tried out my spanish talking to a woman with an adorable chubby cheeked 4 month old baby.  I was really nervous to use spanish, but it went pretty well.  =)  We then had to get back to the base for lunch and to pack up in the vans to head to our first outreach.  I got to ride in the back of the pick up.  It was a little scary going up and down the winding mountain roads, but the view was incredible!  Guatemala is so beautiful!  We finally made it to the little village where we were doing our first program!!  We split into groups to walk around, knock on doors, and invite people to "una fiesta en el campo a una y media con dulces, musica, dramas, y mas!" Translation: A party in the camp at 1:30 with candy, music, skits, and more!  Mauri, Clay, Cooper, the missionary's wife, Alicia, and her three kids were in my group.  I invited a few people, and, to my surprise, my brother Mauri asked to invite some people, too!  He was so great!  Then we went back to the camp where we were holding our program.  Our team at already set up chairs and the sound system.  No one showed up at 1:30.  We were all a little nervous that no one was going to come!  So we stood on the street asking people to come sit down and pretty soon welcoming many people as they came for the program!  They were all pretty shy at first.  I stood with the audience from the town while team A did the skit "La Casa Se Quema."  That's where I connected with my special group of 8-11 year old boys.  When Pastor Chris announced that he had brought a group of crazy white people, I informed them that I was not one of the crazy ones.  That's all you need to say to make friends with those kids.  For the rest of our time there they called me crazy and I called them "Mis Cuatro Amigos Locos."  Although, they insisted I was crazy, too, and we were "Los Cinco Amigos Locos."  Their names were Marcos Antonio, Victor, Dario, and Herder.  Brian and Deb shared their testimonies and Pastor Chris spoke a little then dismissed the kids to a tree nearby for crafts, games, and face paint!  I was surprised at the amount I was able to translate and how much I was able to communicate in spanish with the kids!  Most of the time I helped with the craft, translated, and goofed off with my crazy friends.  The boys got me to get my face painted and my nose ended up getting covered in red paint when Marcos Antonio got a hold of the paint brush!  It was already hard leaving this first place after only being there a few hours.  Marcos Antonio tried to take me to his house instead.  But, we had to go.  From that village we went to a small church service where Pastor Chris spoke and Curt and Jaci shared their testimonies.  We all got the opportunity to lay hands on and pray for the people in the congregation.  When service was over we spent some time just hanging out at the church and then came back to base and walked around the neighborhood for a while.  The streets aren't very busy, so a lot of the kids play soccer and other things in the street.  They like to laugh at us as we walk around, and especially if we try to talk to them. =)  We watched Pastor Chris eat a couple gringas at a little carnival food type of booth and then just talked to kids on the street until dinner.  After dinner our team all shared something special from our first day of ministry.  I took a mostly cold shower and then stayed up with some friends to play Mafia and talk.  Then I finally went to bed!

Me, Marcos Antonio, Dario, and Victor! =)

Coming Off the Mountain Top

It's always hard coming back from a missions trip.  You've just had an incredible life changing experience, but everything back home is still the same.  Everything is going on just as it was when you left.  How can everything be the same after what I just experienced?!  How can people go on and live their lives like nothing happened after what I have seen, heard, and felt . . .  Well, that's my job.  I'm the one who had the experience, so it's my responsibility to be changed and and spread the word of what I saw and experienced to those who haven't experienced it with the hope that the testimony of my trip will inspire people to come closer to God, serve God better, support a missionary, or go on a missions trip and see for themselves how they can be changed.  Sometimes it's frustrating and hard to explain.  People who weren't there just cant understand.  Probably the most important part of a short-term missions trip is what you do when you come home.  The challenge is to not go back to the way things were once you come off the missions trip high.  The challenge is to stay close to God, share your experience with people, and live every single day at home with the same missions trip attitude from your trip.  It's so easy on the missions trip to get up and be excited thinking "Where will I go today? Who can I share Jesus with?  Who needs me to be Jesus in their life?  Who needs me to show them love today?"  On the missions trip it's easy to constantly be looking for what God's going to do next and where He can use you.  It's easy to jump right in, walk up to a stranger, try out some spanish, ... because you have the missions trip attitude.  This attitude says "I'm here to serve God and do great things for Him.  I'm expecting to see God move. Dear God, show me what you can do with me here.  Show me your power!"  Why is it so hard to have that attitude at home?  Our daily lives should be covered in the same prayer that we give to the week or so we're on a missions trip.  We should be ready and available for God to use every single day.  We need to be an example of Jesus wherever we are.  God has us where we are at this exact moment for our own special mission.  It may not be as exciting as leaving the country, but He has a plan.  He's waiting for you to lift up your hands in surrender at the beginning of each day and say to Him "Here I am, Lord.  Send me."

Guats up in Guatemala?

Me and my team at the cross in Antigua, Guatemala

What can I say?  Words can't describe everything that happened in Guatemala this past week.  I'm still processing it all!  Thank you everyone for your prayers!  No one got seriously sick, no one was seriously injured, and we all made it to Guatemala and back!  We had an incredible trip!  We did our program of dramas, testimonies, music, and games on streets, in villages, in churches and in schools!  We built stairs for the missionaries on base, helped feed the children from the village the base is in, did crafts with children, helped feed orphans in a special needs orphanage, prayed for and just plain loved on people.  At almost every outreach there were many people who raised their hands to except Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.  Overall, it was powerful.   Not only were we able to serve the people of Guatemala for a week, but the lives of everyone on my team were changed.  Some in huge ways feeling a calling to ministry and some whose eyes were opened and were ready to return and live life differently and I believe we all became much closer in our individual relationships with God.  There is no way to explain this trip in one blog post.  This is just an extremely brief overview of what we did all week, so I will be posting several of my journal entries from the trip very soon.  Thank you again to everyone who supported me and lifted me and my team up in prayer during this incredible trip to Guatemala!  Dios te bendiga! <3