Forgiveness and Restoration

How can you experience life’s greatest adventures if you are too afraid to leave your comfort zone? The bibles even says, “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power” in 2 Timothy 1:7.

            It has been a week since we have been back in the states but has been one of the hardest. It usually takes a few days to emotionally and mentally recover after returning from Guatemala, but this week has seemed to take a bit longer. Coming home to a car, roof over my head, an amazing job, and just the freedom to be an individual seems to be extra extravagant and overrated, yet it is just the average life of an American.

            While we were in Zacapa, we found out that our village was struggling with unity. We were able to talk through some issues and pray with those who are facing difficult situations. Through time spent in our women's bible study, we were able to remind the ladies that they are worthy and have a purpose. We left feeling like some of the major issues were resolved and continue to pray that the Lord will be in the midst of everything in that community.

"Do we not all have one father? Has not one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously each against his brother so as to profane the covenant of our fathers?” Malachi 2:10

            We met many women who have very dark pasts. Some had been tied up for years and taken advantage of by family members while others were passed along through men in their very own village. One woman is one too many for this to be happening to, but there are hundreds who go through this nightmare every single day and can’t escape. I was fortunate enough to meet the lucky ones who have been rescued from it.

            Each orphan has their own story. One little boy, who is now 6 years old, was left and found in a trash can as a baby while dogs were fighting over his body. Others were just an extra child that their parents could not take care of and left to die. 

            All of this brokenness in Guatemala yet the believers still worship God and thank Him for what he has blessed them with. I’ve never experienced so much joy and excitement as I did at church on Sunday in our village as we praised the Lord together. We sang, danced, and lifted our hands.

My heart aches so much for this country yet does not diminish the love I have for it. God had a purpose for us being there last week even if it was to bring a little bit of joy to those who desperately needed it. Traveling to Guatemala and being light to those who are trapped in the darkness of this world is one of my greatest adventures. 

Please keep Guatemala in your prayers.

In Memory of Chalito

           It was the day of my college graduation and I was sitting in backed up traffic. There were so many emotions running through my body and I couldn't believe that this day was already here. While waiting for traffic to move, I opened Facebook hoping that it would take my mind off of everything. As I was scrolling through my newsfeed, I saw a picture of a familiar face that never failed to make me smile. I clicked on the post completely unprepared for what I was about to read. My smile quickly disappeared while my heart sank into my gut.

            A few days before graduation while I was celebrating my 22^nd birthday, my sweet friend Chalito passed away. 

            My eyes burned with tears and I felt like I was going to be sick. I was leaving the next Saturday for Guatemala where he was supposed to be, greeting me with his contagious smile. 

            I met Chalito in 2013 on my first mission trip to Guatemala. When I first saw him, I figured he was about 14 years old because he was so small. His legs and feet were curled up close to his body and he could only lie down. He was able to move his hands and head but relied on someone else to feed him. I soon learned that he suffered from a condition known as cerebral palsy and was actually two years older than me.

            The summer of 2014, I spent a month in Guatemala. Chalito was super smart and knew that I desperately needed some Spanish lessons. During the times when he wasn’t laughing and making fun of my awful Spanish, I was helping him learn more English. He already knew a little bit but was able to pick up and catch on to new words pretty fast.

            Some of my favorite memories of Guatemala are with Chalito. Whenever we went into the village to get cucos (a frozen ice-cream dessert), we would sneak one back for him. He loved them. He also loved soccer and whenever there was a game on, we would watch it on tv together. He would get so excited and yell, "GOOOOOOAL" every time his team scored.

            Even though he was unable to do simple things like walk or run, he had the happiest soul. There was no possible way to be around him without smiling. One thing that he was physically able to do was throw a ball. I remember sitting there for what felt like hours, tossing a hacky sack back and forth with him.

            Chalito always knew the day that I would be leaving to go back to the states. After breakfast I would walk down to Kelly’s House, into his room and sadly utter, “Chalitooooo”. Since he knew I was leaving that night, he would make himself frown the saddest frown I've ever seen and repeat, “noo". He would hold my hand until it was time for me to leave. I always reminded him that it wasn’t good-bye forever and I would be back before he knew it.

            It still isn’t good-bye forever. As hard as it was returning to Guatemala without seeing Chalito’s smiling face, I know that he is in the presence of the Lord and completely healed.

In loving memory of Chalito

Feeding Time at the Dump

      Going to the dump never gets easier. Neither does telling a little girl that you are serving milk to that she can't have anymore because of the line of children behind her that need some too. Today was our last day in Guatemala but also my third time at the dump in the last three years. My eyes burn with tears every time we pull up to the feeding center there and see the crowd of people covered in filth that are waiting to get food for their families.
      Hope of Life feeds three times a week and people will travel for miles on foot all day to fill their plastic cups and bags with food. The kids wait in line to fill old coke and water bottles that they found in the dump with milk while their mothers wait for the food. We give them tortillas, chicken and noodles and rice milk. This time around, Eddy from our group was generous enough to buy 25 watermelons for us to cut and to hand out as well. My job was to pour milk into the containers that the children held but was only allowed to fill each one to a certain point. After I filled the bottles the kids would take them over to an even larger bottle that their family shares and would pour it in there and then would get back in line.
      The dump was exactly how it was the first two times I went, sad and hopeless. There were two houses that were made out of stick, tires and tarp in the middle of the dump. Our translator explained that Hope of Life offered the two mothers that live there each a real home on campus but they declined. The dump, believe it or not, is their comfort zone. They have lived there and raised their kids there for so long that they did not want to change locations. It absolutely broke my heart.
      The dump is by far my least favorite part about Guatemala because my heart breaks every time we visit it. Although it makes me grateful for what The Lord has blessed me with, it makes me almost sick to my stomach and I can't help but have sympathy for the people. When I walk back to the bus I never turn around and take one last glimpse and think, "I'm really going to miss this about Guatemala" because it is the worst place on the planet.

Prayer Circles

      Today we visited the village, La Colonia, that our church adopted. We went from door to door delivering care packages for the families. The pastor of the village came with us and explained that they were so thankful because they never have people come and love on them. It was awesome getting to meet the people that we are going to grow together with in the next few years.
      In one of the first homes that we delivered to, we walked in and two women were making tortillas. They asked us if we would like to try and make some, so we dipped our hands in the water and broke off some dough sitting in a bowl. They smash the dough with their hands very fast but I couldn't go half the speed that they were going because the dough kept sticking to me. Once we were done "shaping" the dough, we put it on a hot skillet to fry. Our tortillas turned out pretty pathetic compared to the perfectly round ones that the women made.

      In November we have two groups coming down to Guatemala to start building a church for the village because they don't have one. They have already cleared a spot for us to start building on that we were able to see today. My group of eight circled up with the village pastor and prayed on the dirt where the church will stand in a few months. This was my favorite thing that we did today because I'm reading a book called The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson which talks about drawing prayer circles around your dreams. The dream of adopting a village in Guatemala and building a church started with my mother and a few others from my church. That dream is going to become a reality in November because we have been circling it and praying about it for years. My mom prayed some bold prayers and God is delivering because she kept circling them.
      We organized a bible study with the women in the village that my mom and Mrs. Karen led while the rest of us played with the children. We made bracelets, read, played games and soccer with them. I got my butt kicked in soccer by some of the boys but learned some cool new tricks.
      Today was so much fun and absolutely amazing. My heart is overflowing with joy from being reunited with all of my kids yesterday to starting a new beginning in La Colonia today. It gives me chills thinking about how God is using each of us individually in this process of starting something new. I'm so thankful for the calling that The Lord has placed in my heart for Guatemala.

      "Drawing prayer circles starts with identifying your Jericho. You've got to define the promise God wants you to stake claim to, the miracles God wants you to believe for, and the dreams God wants you to pursue. Then you need to keep circling until He gives you what He wants and He wills."

                  - Mark Batterson 

Beyond Me

      We are here! The 12 hour trip felt like it doubled because I was so antsy to get to Guatemala and see all of the children. We were all pretty delusional by our last flight into Guatemala City since we all have not slept for a day and a half. I had my headphones in and kept dozing off and waking up the entire plane ride.
      When I woke up right before we landed, a song was playing on my iPod that I had heard many times but had never listened to what it was actually saying. I replayed the song a few times and felt exactly what Toby Mac was describing.

                                                    "Beyond Me"
                                                    by Toby Mac
     

Call it a reason to retreat
I got some dreams that are bigger than me
I might be outmatched, outsized, the underdog in the fight of my life
Is it so crazy to believe

That You gave me the stars put them out of my reach
Called me to waters a little too deep
Oh, I've never been so aware of my need
You keep on making me see
It's way beyond me
It's way beyond me
Yeah, it's out of my league
It's way beyond me
It's way beyond me
It's way beyond ...

Anything that I got the strength to do
In over my head keeps me countin' on You
I'm leaving the sweet spot, sure shot
Tradin' it all for the plans You got
Is it so crazy to believe

You take me to the place where I know I need You
Straight to the depths that I can't handle on my own
And Lord I know, I know I need You
So take me to Your great ...
Take me to Your great unknown

      This is how we are supposed to feel as Christians every day if we want to be obedient and rely on God. It was a good reminder for me coming into the week knowing that I'm going to need The Lord in every circumstance that I face this week and that I can't do it without Him.

Guatemala round three; What our week looks like

      It's that time of the year again when I pack up and head to the country that has a special place in my heart. As I prepare both my heart and mind for my third summer back to Guatemala, I can't help but to reflect on how much the Lord has blessed me in that country. I've been looking forward to this week since I stepped foot back in America last summer. This trip to Guatemala will be different because I unfortunately won't be able to stay for a month this summer due to my job. Although I'm sad that I won't be spending more time there, I am still very thankful for another opportunity to travel to Guatemala again!
      Many people have asked what we specifically do during our time in Guatemala so I decided to share our itinerary for the week.

Sunday: 
- Arrive in Guatemala City (@2 pm)
- Drive to Hope of Life (4 hour bus ride)

Monday:
-Tour of Hope of Life for new members
         *Elderly Home
         *Baby Rescue Center 
         *Special Needs Home
         *Orphanage 
         *Liberty College
         *Warehouses
         *Tilapia Ponds
         *Greenhouses
         *Hope of Life Village/ Causelife Village
         *Baby Hospital
-Lunch
-Choose a place on campus where you would like to serve for the rest of the day

Tuesday:
-Depart for La Colonia
-Go door to door with gifts to meet the people and pray for the families
-Lunch
-Activities with the children
-Bible study for the women

Wednesday:
-Ministry at Hope of Life
-Lunch
-Depart for the feeding center at the dump
-Return for afternoon of ministry at Hope of Life
-Have dinner with sponsor children

Thursday:
-Depart for La Colonia
-Go door to door with gifts to meet the people and pray for the families
-Lunch
-Activities with the children
-Bible study for the women
-Fiesta dinner

Friday:
-Ministry at Hope of Life

Saturday:
-Depart for airport (@4 am)
-Depart from Guatemala (@ 1:30 pm)

      When we are on Hope of Life's campus we are able to decide where we want to spend our day ministering. La Colonia is the village that my church adopted last summer. We are investing in that village in the next few years and will start building a school and church for them starting in November. During this trip we really want to get to know the families that live in that village and start relationships with the people there. 
      The feeding center is a place where many travel on foot for miles to get food for their family for that day. The dump is just like any other dump where trucks from the city will empty their garbage but it is also home to a lot of families. The dump is also where the feeding center is located. It is definitely the saddest place that I have ever been to and my heart breaks every time I return. Our job there is to feed the people and fill their containers with food and water so that they can take it back home with them.
      My family has been sponsoring a little girl from Guatemala named Ilda for the past 7 years. Our first trip to Guatemala in 2013 we had the opportunity to meet Ilda and her dad in person and have dinner with them. On Wednesday we are going to see Ilda again and spend some time with her and her family!
      I am itching to get back into those beautiful mountains and have my kids back in my arms again that I can barely wait to board the plane in 7 hours! Please keep my group in your prayers as we start our long and exhausting trip tonight and for the rest of our week ministering to the people of Guatemala.

Guatemala 2015 round three, here we go!