Guatemala 2011: First Full Week!

I survived my first week on the field...yay! I was so blessed to be able to work with a team made up of 5 people from Virginia and 1 from Alabama. They were a joy to work with and we definitely had a good time sharing Jesus with the people of San Bernardino.

I feel like I have sooooo much to talk about so Im just going to hit the highlights of the week so here goes nothin'...

We arrived on Sunday at "the monkey hotel" as Larry calls it, and we attended our first service with the Mahaniem mission church. We worshipped with the sweet people, and the kids laughed when I tried to ask them questions...knowing words in Spanish and speaking it are two completely different stories haha. During our debriefing time, I shared a scripture that I found in my quiet time on Sunday morning and it became my verse for the week.

Luke 1:76-79

"...for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give His people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace."

On our first morning, we set out to prayer walk around the city. We must have been a site to see because there were 7 gringos and probably 20 nationals in a single file line. As soon as we formed our line, I saw a beautiful butterfly. This was special to me because Mrs. Carla told me to pay attention to them because they seem to be a reminder of God's presence. We prayer walked for almost 3 hours, stopping on almost every street corner to gather and pray for the doors to be opened and walls to be torn down. This was such an amazing time because we all came together as one unified group.

That afternoon, we began going door to door and visited some church members who hadn't been active in the church in a while. This marked the beginning of an amazing time of sharing the Gospel with the people of San Bernardino. God really blessed our time with these people and God worked in the hearts of those people. We saw many professions of faith, and I was so humbled because God used me to lead 5 people to salvation this week. I was amazed at how lost these people were. Many of the homes we visited had never even heard the name of Jesus before, and to be given the opportunity to plant those seeds was so overwhelming. The majority of the homes we visited couldn't be reached by car, and most of them had dirt floors and were made of random pieces of tin. They lived so simply, and it opened my eyes to how spoiled we are in America. We take so much for granted and still want more and more when people in Guatemala have never had a new pair of shoes and children cant go to school because they have to work. Why do we seek to find our treasures in this world?

Matthew 6:19-21

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thievs break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is there your heart will be also."

We had a service on Wednesday night at the church, and it was so encouraging and exciting to see the faces of some of the people we shared with during the previous door to door times. It was sad to say goodbye to the people of the church, but I was also full of joy because of the work that God did in San Bernardino this week. I am so blessed to be here, and I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for the weeks to come! Thank you so much for your prayers and support...I love each and every one of you!

And the team would want ya'll to know that I fell over backwards off of a stool...during a share session. It was definitely a moment that should have been captured on film...needless to say, the locals made sure that I had a sturdy chair in the other homes we visited.

these kids are "hermanos" and they were so sweet

i loved her

This is Marilyn. She is a young mother who is a seminary student in Guatemala. We got caught in the rain...and I mean a down pour :)

This is a street in front of the church. The trees and plants were beautiful in San Bernardino.

This is a very special family. Two members of the team shared the Gospel with them and this 92 year old woman, her grandson, and his wife all accepted Christ. This was an amazing time for our team. We were all so humbled because we knew that God was working in the city.

These are my new friends Katarina, Cristian, Erick, Bro. Chet, and I can't remember the name of the one on the far left...and of course Gustavo. I really enjoyed meeting these guys. They endured my awful Spanish, and we laughed a lot.

Yep, I tried to learn to make tortillas, but I failed miserably. It is wayyyy harder than it looks. Mr. Don told everyone that my esposo (husband) will be very skinny.

Our hotel had 2 monkeys, and this sign says "careful with the monkeys." If any of you know Larry's history with the monkeys you would understand the need for this sign ;)

This is Hotel San Pablo. It was really pretty...and pink.

This is the team I worked with this week. John, Mike, Brad, Missy, Chet, and Don. They were great to work with, and I really enjoyed being able to be a part of this team.

This is pastor Jaime (pronounced HIGH-ME) and his wife Suzana and their three beautiful daughters Mitzy, Kayla, and Susan. They are such a sweet family.