Chimaltenango & Monte de Olivos

Well, this blog post is a lot different for me than the last few because this time I am back at home in Gurdon, Arkansas. I cannot believe how fast the time flew during my 8 weeks in Guatemala. Honestly, I was not ready to come home and I am missing Guatemala very badly! I know though that it is the Lord's plan for me to return to Ouachita, and I am excited about that. It was just very hard for me to say goodbye to the people and the country I have grown to love over the past 2 months. I can honestly say that this has been the best summer of my life. Serving the Lord on the mission field is what I am called to do, and if I wasn't sure of that before, I am 100% sure now! Sharing the gospel and loving on people who have so little is my passion, and I cannot wait to see what the Lord has in store for me!

My last week in Guatemala was so special to me because I got to spend it with a team from my home church. Some of my best friends in the entire world were on this team, and I could not have asked for a better last week in the country. Waiting for them to arrive at the airport was torture--I was so ready to see them! But let me tell you, when my team walked out of those doors, I was so excited that I couldn't hardly contain myself. I know the people in the airport thought we were all crazy! Even though seeing them in the airport was special, it was nothing compared to being able to work with them sharing the Gospel and doing Bible school throughout the week.

On the first night with the team, it was so wonderful just to sit and visit with my friends. We decided that we would have a devotional just for us. I got to share the devotional time with Regan, Kayla, Cady, Trevor, and Beau. These people have become so special to me over the past years, and this trip brought us all even closer. The Lord placed us all together on this trip for a reason, and I loved every minute of working in Guatemala with them! During our devotion, we talked about how important it is to have Christian friends. Genuine people who love the Lord and only want the best for you are the people that we need to surround ourselves with. God has been so faithful to provide me with wonderful friends from home and at Ouachita. I would not be who I am or where I am without the people God has surrounded me with.

On Monday and Tuesday, we did two full days of Bible school in a church in Chimaltenango. It was so amazing for me to be able to sing silly songs and share bible stories with the children, and to be able to do that with my best friends working by my side was the best feeling. I am passionate about children, and I could do Bible school every single day if it meant that I could bring just a little more joy into a child's life. 

While part of our team did VBS, the medical team worked upstairs to see patient after patient. They worked SO hard for the Lord, and over the 4 days, they touched around 1400 people's lives with medical care! Those 1400 people also heard the Gospel while waiting in the medical clinic. The members of the 2 churches we worked in were so intent on sharing with every single person who stepped through the church doors. I am not sure of the exact number, but several people made professions of their faith in Christ. They were not only given medicine to help their physical health, but they were also introduced to the Great Physician. He healed their hearts.

On Wednesday and Thursday, we got the opportunity to go door-to-door and share the Gospel. I could not have asked to serve in a better group. Larry and Sarah, Mitch and Lynsey, Noah and Tess, Lawson and Cole, and Regan, Kayla, and I made up our door-to-door group. 

At the first door, Larry told me I was up. I shared with a lady named Maria. After visiting with her for a while, I found out that she went to the Catholic Church, but she did not know a lot about Jesus Christ. I shared the Gospel with her, and I asked her if she had ever made the decision to receive Christ into her heart, and she said no but she wanted to. Gustavo helped me lead her in the Sinner's prayer, and through all of this, I forgot that I had an audience. After taking a picture with her and her children and saying our goodbyes, I turned around to see my two best friends Kayla and Regan balling their eyes out! Of course I teared up too, and it was such a special moment for me because I knew that they could feel my call too. The Lord has taught me this summer how to let Him lead my conversations, and because of that I have become bold in sharing my faith. The fear of rejection still lingers, but the fear of seeing those people go to Hell is stronger, and it is for that very reason that I love to share the Gospel.

Thursday morning was really great too. We went to several houses to share, and it one home, we encountered 4 young women. Those beautiful women reminded Regan, Kayla, and I of the friendship we share, and it was absolutely amazing to be able to talk to them TOGETHER. After visiting for a while and sharing our faith, all 4 of those women made the decision to accept Christ as their Savior. That was one of the best feelings knowing that we did it together.

On Wednesday afternoon, our Bible school got rained out, and it was so sad to see the children running after our van in the rain! They wanted to come so badly, and it broke our hearts to see that. But on Thursday, we decided that we would have Bible school rain or shine! So sure enough, it began raining during our lunch break. But this time, we got our rain jackets, ponchos, and even trash bags out and walked down to the small field where the Bible school would be held. A few cows attended our Bible school as well as 150 children plus mothers! 3 of those mothers were the young women we witnessed to earlier that day. We sang, gave the kids tattoos, and told the story of Jonah and the whale to the kids. It was so much fun! 

We got finished a little earlier than the medical team just because we couldn't really do our coloring sheets in the rain. While waiting for them to finish, we began to sing outside of the church. We started out just singing to occupy ourselves, but over time, a crowd of about 50 people gathered. A lot of them were children, so of course, we had to sing some of our cheesy church camp songs. I personally love to sing silly songs--especially those with motions :) The favorite song of the day was "Baby Shark." Even though we couldn't sing it in Spanish, the Lord blessed our hearts by allowing us to connect with the people and see their beautiful smiles!

As the end of the week drew near, I was constantly reminded of the fact that I would be leaving very, very soon. I had knots in my stomach on the last night because I was dreading the next day. Leaving Larry and Sarah was so hard. They have become like family to me. They served as both parents and grandparents for me--and I mean that in a good way! They taught me so much this summer about what it is going to take for me to make it on the mission field. They are truly an inspiration to me, and I hope they know how much they mean to me. 

Even though leaving them was hard, leaving the people and the country was one of the hardest things I have ever done in my entire life. I had not realized just how attached I had become, but I left a big piece of my heart there for sure. The Lord blessed me so much this summer, and those blessings are greater than anything I could ever describe through a story I write on this blog or a picture I could show you. The impressions the people have left on me this summer will be ones that I will never forget. 

Please continue to pray for the people of Guatemala. Pray for their health and safety and for work, but most of all, pray for their hearts. So many people still have no clue who Jesus Christ is. So many of them are hungry for God's Word but have no access to it. So many need to know their worth in God's eyes. Just pray please...

And pray for me. I am assured of my calling to missions, and I know that the road before me is probably not going to be easy. Serving the Lord is never guaranteed to be a smooth ride, but I am willing and ready to go where He calls me, when He calls me. Please pray for me as I return to Ouachita and search for the place I will serve in the future. 

I want to thank each and every one of you who has read this blog and prayed for me faithfully over the summer. You have no idea how unworthy I felt in just knowing that so many people were praying for me daily. You are truly a blessing in my life, and I will be forever grateful for the support you have offered me. 

Dios te bendiga.

God bless you.

Coatepeque

This was an amazing week...I enjoyed every single minute of working with the team from South Carolina, and the people of the village we worked in were so sweet. God has continued to work on my heart by showing me new things every time I go out. He is so good and faithful to provide for His followers, and I feel so extremely blessed to be serving Him in Guatemala. I have a lot of stories and pictures from this week, but I can't even begin to express the love I feel for these people and this country. God has given me a passion for them that I could have never dreamed of, and He has constantly touched my lips with the words I need to be an effective tool for Him. He has continually reassured me of my call to missions through the teams and people I have worked with, and the change in my heart is so evident. It is amazing what God will do when you give yourself to Him. He will bless you in ways you could never imagine if you allow Him to be your guide. 

I went into this week EXPECTING God to do great things--and He did!

Verse for the week:

"So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

2 Corinthians 4:18

I met these sweet ladies at our first church service. The mother is on the far right, and she is 81 years old. She told me she had 9 children and 15 grandchildren. She loves Jesus, and so do her daughters who are also in this picture. I sat by her in the church service, and she held my hand the whole way through. The people of Guatemala are so loving, and they are so hungry for love.

These kids met us almost every single day in front of the church before we would go out. They were so sweet, and they loved to play. Also in this picture is Mr. Dick. This man had an amazing week, and it was such a blessing for me to hear his testimony and work with him. He is truly on fire for Jesus!

The church sat directly across from a palm tree plantation. They were some of the biggest trees I have ever seen!

This home was such a blessing for my team and I. I was so blessed to work with Liz, Kristen, David, and Austin. We worked sooo well together, and the Lord blessed us with such an awesome week together! But anyways, in this home there were two sisters. One of them was a firm believer in Christ, but the other was hesitant about becoming a believer. There were many distractions because this home was right across from a place that ground corn for tortillas. Many of you have probably never heard what that sounds like, but trust me, it is LOUD! We planted seeds, and the sisters were open to a bible study in their home.

Liz and I were in charge of entertaining the children at one home, and we didn't do a very good job with keeping them quiet. They were so much fun, and their beautiful, toothless smiles made my heart happy.

The children carried their chairs into the school on top of their heads!

The opportunity we had to work in the school this week was one that many of us will never experience again. In the US, having a bible school inside a public school would never be an option. But in this school, Pastor Carmelino had connections that opened the doors for us. As we walked in, we were greeted by around 750 children! We got to share the gospel with 750 kids!--in a SCHOOL! How awesome?!

I was in the craft group at the school, and we were really worried about having enough supplies for 400 children on the first day. But we should have never worried because God always provides. We literally prayed over the papers as we handed them out to our last class of the day. Kristen, Tina, Martha, Jessica, Andrea, and I all got chills when we picked up 8 left over sheets. It was just like Jesus multiplying the fish and bread! We were so grateful.

This home was one of the most special homes for me. Three beautiful sisters lived here with their children. They knew very little about Jesus Christ, and my team and I got to share the Gospel with them. This visit was so genuine, and they truly listened to what we were saying. Even though they didn't make the decision to receive Christ, they were open to a bible study in their home, and I trust they one day they will all accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

This young boy in the middle is named Daniel. He followed our team around the entire afternoon on our second day of work, and in every home he heard the message of Christ. Austin, a 16 year old on our team, felt the need to ask him some questions about the things he had heard throughout the day. Through that conversation, Daniel accepted Christ into his heart!

This picture is powerful...PRAYER IN SCHOOL.

This young girl made a decision to receive Christ as her Savior this week. We were attempting to minister to another woman in her home, but instead our words spoke to her heart. She was very nervous, but so sweet. When we asked if we could have a picture she ran and changed her clothes because she wanted to look her best.

Once again I was in charge of entertaining the group of kids who followed us around. This time I did a lot better. I painted fingernails, braided hair, passed out candy, and stuck stickers on little heads and hands. Kids in Guatemala are so sweet and loving, and it makes me so genuinely happy to be able to love on them.

This sweet family was such a blessing to us. Each of them were believers, and we were able to pray over them for healing from fever and cataracts. We stayed in their home for an hour and half, but we could have stayed the whole day. It was awesome for us to be able to minister to the needs of the people, and God gave each of us the words we needed.

Once again, I just want to stress how good God has been to me this summer. I could have never dreamed that this experience would mean as much to me as it has. I have formed so many Christian relationships, and my heart has been touched and changed by living among these people. I have learned the meaning of true needs, and I have seen the darkness in this country. I know that there are so many places in this world that have never heard the name of Jesus Christ, and I feel honored to have been able to speak His name to some of these people for the very first time. 

Please continue to pray for me as I serve for one more week with my home team from Beech Street Baptist Church. Pray that God will continue to do big things here in Guatemala. Pray that the words we speak would be only from Him. I also want to say thank you so much for the support everyone has shown me. Just reading my blog is support in itself, and I thank you for that. I hope that the work God has done here has touched your heart just as much as it has touched mine. I love you all!

"Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands."

Psalm 63:3-4

Yupiltepeque

I could never express the depth of knowledge I have gained by working here in Guatemala. My life is being transformed little by little, and this missionary lifestyle is one that I truly enjoy and am becoming more and more passionate about. The needs of these people are far greater than anything I have ever experienced, and I have a new appreciation for so many things. I find myself feeling guilty for taking so much for granted when these people live with the basic necessities and are doing just fine. I am truly more blessed than I could ever deserve.

Shalom is one of our awesome translators. I have been so fortunate to be able to not only work with her but also form a great friendship as well! She is a wonderful Christian and she has a beautiful heart for the Lord.

This is Joslyn and Dami. They are members of the church that we worked in. Joslyn is 18 and Dami is 23. They are beautiful, and I got to know a lot about them during our time working together.

These girls are from the first home we visited. I shared the love of Christ with the girl in the middle, and she accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior. She was very shy, but I made it my goal to help her to feel comfortable talking to me because I know that it had to have been intimidating for her.

These are the people that were at our first home. I painted all of the girls nails and handed out stickers and candy. As I painted one of the women's nails, I told her the story of Jesus washing His disciples' feet. I explained to her that the reason I liked to paint fingernails is to show people that I care, and that I desire to serve people the way Christ served His disciples.

As one of the members shared with a man, the women in my group all sat outside of the home. While we were sitting there, these four pretty girls came outside of a home across the street. I felt the need to go and talk to them because they reminded me of my close group of friends from home. As Mrs. Betty and I talked to them, we discovered that they were 14, 15, 16, 16. These girls are so young and as you can tell from the picture, one was pregnant. Another one already had a young son. They touched my heart because of the close friendship they shared. I hope and pray for a bright future for these girls. Young women in Guatemala aren't always treated like princesses and beautiful children of God. I just want them to know how special they are, and I want them to know the love of Christ.

This sweet, sweet lady came up to Mrs. Marsha and Mrs. Betty and spoke to them while Shalom and I were sharing in a home, and they had no clue what she had said to them. When they told us that, we literally ran up a very steep hill after her because we felt like God had placed her there for a reason. After talking to her, she explained to us that she was very sad. She had no family, and her health wasn't great, and she really didn't have much hope. Pastor Lucas shared the Gospel with her, and she willingly accepted. She was 81 years old, and praise the Lord that we will see her again in Heaven some day.

This is Jon with a young man that he got the opportunity to share with. This 16 year old guy had never heard anything about Jesus Christ. Every single time you come across someone who has never heard the name of Jesus, it absolutely breaks your heart. It makes you wonder how these people have any hope. Jon's passion is for youth, and so this opportunity to share fit perfectly. He did very well, and this young man accepted Christ. Praise the Lord for putting us in that home!

This lady was a talker. She talked to me for a while even when I had no clue what she was saying! I can usually get the first little bit of a conversation, but when you ask several questions, sometimes these people assume you can speak Spanish and they talk and talk and talk. All I can do it say "Si, si!" I really get tickled at myself sometimes. But anyway, this lady was Catholic, but she had such a sweet spirit and I truly believe that she knew the truth about Jesus Christ. Her two sons were alcoholics, and so we prayed for her and for them.

I finally made a good tortilla! When Gustavo asked a lady if I could make one without me knowing, I was thinking, "Oh goodness, here we go again..." But Mrs. Nancy and I got it on the first try!

 These are just some scenes from the city of Yupiltepeque this week. This pictures truly do not do this place justice because it was so gorgeous. It was a mountainous place, and even though prayer walking was difficult, it was beautiful. I found myself just completely in awe of such a beautiful place. The fact that God created that place just makes me emotional because He put every single detail into place.


I just want to share with ya'll one of my journal entries from this week because it is something that has been made very clear to me lately:

"God has taught/shown me several things today and throughout the rest of this week. The thing that has stuck out the most to me though is the power of prayer. It is such a special thing especially to believers and the body of Christ. The life of a Christian should revolve around constant, genuine, heart-felt prayer. Our Father desires to hear from us. When we call upon His name in faith, He is faithful to hear us and He is faithful to answer us. God answer us in mysterious ways sometimes though and things don't always turn out our way. But prayer is the key to communicating with God. Just like any other relationship, you must have effective communication in order to maintain a relationship. It's the same with God--when you don't talk to Him, He doesn't answer you. He already knows your needs, but He needs to hear you confess that you are trusting Him to provide. Your God is BIG. Your God is FAITHFUL. Your God will answer you! You know how important prayer warriors are to the body of Christ. Make prayer a priority and fight the battle with all of your heart. Make prayer a constant necessity in your life--for God fulfills your deepest needs when you lay your requests at His feet."

God is changing me day by day. He is testing me with new challenges all of the time, and through those challenges I am learning what it means to truly trust in the Lord with all of your heart. I can't share the Gospel on my own. I can't go to the mission field on my own. I can't give my testimony on my own. These are things I have tried by myself, and it just doesn't work. I know it may seem like I'm preaching, but God has laid it on my heart to share with you the things I am learning. I gave my testimony 3 times this week. Some aspects of my testimony are difficult for me to share, and sometimes I wonder what people will think. But honestly, this isn't my testimony. It's God's testimony of His grace and mercy and power to change people. If you have know me for a while, you know that I am a different person than I was just a year ago. That is not because of anything I did--it's because I let go and let God change me. If you will let Him, He will change you too.