Fellowship Bible Church - Guatemala Trip - Day 6

Our final day in Matochos began with no showers!  That’s right, the electricity has been out since about 11:30 last night, so we had no showers, no electricity, no fans, no noise (except the roosters crowing at 3).  It was a long night.  However, everyone seemed in good spirits as we met for breakfast and devotions – and walked through James 2.  Our discussion was centered on judgment and mercy, and focusing on people the way God does.

We headed off for the child care center with the intent to finish the things we needed to accomplish by noon.  Our goal was set and eventually achieved.  By lunch time, we had completed painting 5 classrooms and an office, 2 murals – Jonah and Daniel, the logo and the descriptive words on the front wall, the foundation for the water tower, 5 “coke lights” installed, everything was cleaned up and we were ready for lunch. 

Throughout the morning, various team members played games with the kids, sang songs with them, they even taught them games like “rock-paper-scissors”.  They have done an excellent job this week balancing completion of tasks and interacting with the students and teachers.

For lunch we had pasta and a meat/vegetable patty.  It was good.  The team has eaten very well this week.  I am certain that they enjoyed most, if not all, of the meals we were given. 

After lunch the team gathered together with the teachers and they presented them with gifts.  The teachers were overwhelmed as they received the gifts.  However, the teachers (and students) had gifts for the team as well.  They gave the team plastic cups with handmade flowers.  The team was very thankful and hugs were handed out all around.

After the presentations, we stood together and prayed and then took some group photos.  The kids, the teachers, the team – everyone present jumped in on the action!  What a wonderful way to end the week of working together.  Finally the team and the teachers took a few photos by the logo on the outside of the facility.  It was a great conclusion as we hugged and said goodbye to our new friends.

We returned to the hotel to check out – expecting to be able to shower before we left, but wouldn’t you know – still no electricity.  Many of us jumped in the pool – some even took soap with them (if you want to know who, you will have to ask – and NO, I was not one of them).  Eventually we packed up the van and headed for Thelma’s house in the city.

We drove the 2 hour ride back to Guatemala City with the team bubbling with excitement.  Conversations were happening all over the van.  As the ride progressed, many began to be tired.  It was a long week – so far.  Tomorrow we have a long day – touring the main campus of AMG Guatemala, visiting kids at Las Vistas, and going to Antigua.  I pray that we will have the energy to do all that God has in store for us tomorrow!

Thought for the day: I had the opportunity to talk with Pat today, and she said that she was frustrated with the fact that she didn’t have enough time to paint the “rocks” on her Daniel mural grey to make them look like a real stone wall.  She mentioned that because we spent some of our time with the children, playing games, that we didn’t accomplish all that we could have.  It was as we were talking that I had the opportunity to encourage her with the eternal focus of the things we worked on.  From the painting of the walls to the “coke lights” to the foundation for the water tower, all of the things we worked on will be replaced, repaired, or destroyed sometime in the future.  However, the souls of the children we worked with are eternal, and therefore infinitely more important than anything else we could have done.

Even as I write about this, my thought is that I need to make sure that the things I am spending my time doing have eternal results.  Yes, the projects we did were beneficial, but at the point at which I sacrifice doing the eternal things to “master” the temporary, I am wasting my time.  This does not give me excuse to not do the things God calls me to do with less effort, but rather to make sure that they are done well with the eternal in mind.

Fellowship Bible Church - Guatemala Trip - Day 5

Our last full day of work at Matochos, and the team was up and ready to go early.  We were eating before 7:00, and began our devotions close to 7:30.  Our discussion centered around James 1:19 through the end of the chapter.  We talked about listening, hearing, being slow to speak and slow to wrath.  We discussed the righteousness of God and what true religion was.  Then we headed off to serve God by loving on the kids at the child care center.

When we arrived at the center, the team got right to work.  Some were playing with kids, some were painting, Jon and Jesse were mixing concrete, Pat began working on the Jonah and the whale mural, and Ronny began working on the AMG logo on the outside wall of the building.  Since Ronny was outside the gate, I sat and watched her work.  I felt rather useless as the rest of the team was working, and all I was doing was keeping an eye on Ronny’s safety.  Eventually Jon came out and we switched places and I had the chance to mix and pour concrete.  This team is getting a lot of work done – from painting 5 classrooms, painting many of the exterior walls, painting the bathrooms, to the digging of the footer for the water tower (and pouring the footer today) and putting up “coke lights” in the bathroom and a classroom.  They are getting a lot done and everyone is chipping in.

Today the kids asked us to sing some songs, so we attempted to do so.  I only have a few Spanish songs memorized, so after we sang them, we were at a standstill.  We tried singing some English songs, and the kids were gracious, but eventually they got bored with it.  For some reason I decided to play “Every Move I Make” and the team (and the kids) came alive.  They were doing hand motions, jumping around and singing.  It was a blast to watch.  I broke a string in the middle of the song, but the kids told me to keep going.  We sang “Father Abraham” in English and they sang it is Spanish.  Silas, Bailey, Emily, Kris, and Inger were all part of the “chaotic” singing – it was fun to watch and be a part of.  This would be the last time we saw these kids on this trip, so it was a great ending to the afternoon.

After giving the kids some candy, and finishing up some of the work that was needed, we packed up and headed for the hotel.  It was a wonderful day of ministry, working and loving on kids.  The people at Matochos (the workers and teachers) are so giving and hospitable – they have fed us well, kept us hydrated, and have loved us through their actions.  They have been a blessing to serve.

Tomorrow is our final day here and then we head back to the city.  I think it will be an emotional time as we say good bye.  But we still have much to do – we are visiting Las Vistas on Friday!!  I get to see Ludsvin.  It’ll be exciting seeing him again.

Thought for the day:  As I worked with Ronny, (yeah, I did some work) we were painting and drawing on the concrete wall.  It was very difficult – especially with the marker – getting the color into the crevasses of the block.  As we were working on it, we had our faces close to the wall (since we were on ladders) and the imperfections were obvious and easy to see.  However, when you stepped back off the ladder and gazed at it, the wall looked pretty well painted and complete.

As I thought about the devotions for this morning (a good hearer looks into the perfect law of liberty), and I thought about the observation we made, I couldn’t help but correlate the two.  Many of us stand back far enough from the realities of our hearts and observe ourselves as rather good and complete people.  However, if we get closer and truly critique our lives, we can’t help but notice the imperfections, and the closer we get the more obvious and evident these imperfections are.  There isn’t just one or two, but rather thousands of small minor issues that if left unchecked and un-confessed the will destroy our lives.

We must, no I must, look at the perfect Word of God and allow Him to evaluate me and show me the blatant areas of my life that need Him, that need His righteousness, that need the Gospel!

Fellowship Bible Church - Guatemala Trip - Day 4

Isn’t God great?  I am constantly amazed that  we have been chosen by Him to serve Him, and I am baffled that He would give me the opportunities to minister with various teams around the world.  Today was no exception.  The morning was a typical missions trip morning, breakfast, devotions, and then we headed off for the center to work.

We arrived after a brief stop at the hardware store and we got to work.  Pat found her way into a classroom and began interacting with the students.  Jesse and Jon continued working on the “coke bottle” lights, and eventually moved to a rebar form for the water tower.  The rest of the crew found their way into paint brushes and rollers, and the painting of the facility continued.  Shortly after we began working, we were asked to stop to go on house visits.

What a pleasure it was to walk with the children to their homes to meet their families and see where they lived.  Both of the children we visited lived in fairly nice (by local standards) homes.  The family I visited was a mother, her 2 daughters, a grandfather and some uncles.  The grandfather was 80 years old – which is old for a Guatemalan person – I was surprised that he was that old.  He looked to be in good health.  The family all professed knowing Christ, which was a blessing.  Pedro shared some verses and we talked with the family for a while.  Jon led in prayer, and eventually we headed back to the center.

We were met with bologna and ketchup sandwiches which we were told was our lunch.  I was fine with that, but about an hour and a half later they told us lunch was ready. Today was chicken and rice, with a papaya chaser.  Again, another great meal!

After lunch we got right back to work, but an hour and a half later we were on our way to Oratorio (another center close by) to visit with sponsored kids.  The Johnston family had 5 children there that they sponsor, and while they were visiting the rest of the team went on a tour of the center.  We talked with kids, asked them funny questions, hugged them, kissed them, and genuinely showed them that we were there to love them on behalf of their sponsors and Jesus Christ.  It was fun to interact with the teachers and the students.  This center is cared for by the teachers – it really is a nice place.

After a while, we were challenged to a basketball game by the teachers/staff.  We played for about 45 minutes!  It was a blast – I have no idea who scored more, or who actually “won” the game, but when it was all over, we took pictures, hugged each other (all nasty and sweaty) and prayed together.  One interesting highlight was the group hug with Inger (who did not play) by all the sweaty people (including my nasty self).  She was literally wet when we all backed away – it was disgustingly hilarious!

After the game we packed up and headed for the hotel.  It was nearly 6:30, so we cleaned up, ate dinner, had our “recap” time and headed for the pool by 7:30.  Pete, Phil, Silas, Ethan and I headed next door to get ice cream for everyone – it was a nice treat.  Eventually we headed off to our rooms to rest and get ready for tomorrow – another day of work at the Matochos Child Care Center.

Thought for the day:  I have had the opportunity to talk one-on-one with 4 or 5 of the team members so far, and I really enjoy that time.  It is great to hear what they are learning and experiencing.  What really amazes me is the path that many of them took to get here and what God has done in their lives to bring them to where they are today.

In light of our study in James today, it reminded me that our good God who is the giver of good gifts orchestrates our lives in such a way that if we will just trust Him with the outcomes, He will do amazing things with us – even more than we could ever imagine.  We long to have an eternal impact on this world, and He desires that we have an eternal impact as well – if we would just surrender our own passions and plans to His will, we will be amazed at what He does.

Fellowship Bible Church - Guatemala Trip - Day 3

It was a beautiful clear morning as I got up around 5.  The alarm was set for 6, but I woke up around 4 and rolled around until I finally got up an hour later.  I went through the hotel and knocked on doors a little after 6 – but almost everyone was already up.  I think they are excited about their first day at Matochos.

We had breakfast at 7, sang a “Berean”  Happy Birthday to Silas who turned 18 today.  After breakfast we had our devotions and by 8:30 we were on our way to Matochos.  We made it through the road block (that would have delayed us for an hour if we missed it), and were at the center a little after 9. 

The team got right to work.  Four different groups: group 1 – paint the front wall on the outside of the center, group 2 and 3 – paint the rooms in the center (we had 3 to paint), group 4 – dig a ditch 5’ x 5’ x 3’ deep.  The painters did a great job as they finished a first coat of yellow on 2 rooms and they got much of the outside wall finished.  The diggers got the whole ready for the footers that would eventually hold a 300 gallon water tank about 7 feet in the air.

Highlights for the day included games with the kids, throwing worms to the chickens, catching a rather large grasshopper and showing it to the kids, jump rope with the kids, laughing with and playing with the children.  Also, lunch today was something you need to ask the team about – Talapia!  It really was delicious, but the original presentation was a complete fish on the plate – scales and all – with the head/eyes in place.  For those who don’t travel regularly, this was an interesting meal – and for those who don’t necessarily like fish, it was a challenge.  Truthfully though, it was good – more than one person said it tasted like chicken.

Other notable events today included one of the students having a seizure and taking nearly an hour to recover, and then having another seizure.  Pat was able to help as she has medical training, but without serious medical attention, Pat fears that the worst is yet to come.  It was neat to stop and pray with the people as Kathy (the student) attempted to recover. 

In the afternoon, it began raining, and the team moved to different opportunities.  Some played music with the kids, Emily did some ballet moves and the kids tried to mimic her, others played games and interacted with the kids.  Jon and Jesse worked on some “coke bottle lights” that we plan to install tomorrow.  Some of the others helped with that endeavor as kids went back to class or headed home.

Eventually Phil said it was time to go home, so we packed up and headed for the hotel.  We got stuck in traffic, but Pat had a few games for us to play – you will have to ask about the “I’m going to the beach and I am taking…” or the “green door”, or the “who has the hat?” games.  Not to mention the jokes – “what do you call a man with no arms and no legs…” various answers included… Bill, Matt, Phil, Pete, Art...  Just ask, I am certain someone can tell you the jokes.

As the evening drew to a close, we had dinner, ate Birthday Cake, had a worship time, and talked about our experiences for the day and how we saw God.  It was a great day.

Thought for the day:  As I sat on the ground holding Kathy with all of the others caring for her, I hear Pat ask Phil, “Can’t we take her to the hospital?”  Phil had to respond and tell her the hospital was over 1 ½ hours away, but “they are doing what they know to do, they are praying for her.”  Amazingly enough, this is the third time in 3 days that we as a group have had this conversation.  We talked just yesterday about the fact that we as Americans have lost the dependence on God to turn to Him first in calamity.  We do our best to resolve it ourselves, after all, “God helps those who help themselves”.  (As if the scripture says that anywhere).  Yet, I believe God sits back and allows us to try all the things we know to try when all the while He has the answer we desire and the answer we need.

The thought is, in what areas do I do this in my life?  How many times do I find myself turning to God first?  Before calamity, before answering things myself, before figuring things out on my own, when do I really seek Him first?  If I believe that He is good, if I believe that He is my source of wisdom, my source of healing, my source of sustenance, my “all in all, shouldn’t I turn to Him first? 

I believe the answer is in my prayer life – how often do I pray? What do I pray for?  How earnest is my prayer?  It is in the answers to these questions that I will be able to test my confidence in my Father and my God.

Fellowship Bible Church - Guatemala Trip - Day 2

I woke up bright and early – 4:00 local time, but 6:00 back home.  I lay in bed until just after 5:00, and finally got up and began the day.  After my daily dose of “spark” (if you need more information, you just need to ask), I did some exercises and then showered and dressed for church.  I went out and “facetimed” Dee, and when I returned back to the room, the guys were out of bed getting ready for church.

We all met together for breakfast at 8:00, and Phil showed up at about 9.  We left for the Fraternidad church – a building that holds about 12,000 people, but normally it is about ½ full for church.  Today was no different – probably in the neighborhood of 6,500 people in attendance.  The place is huge.  The worship is full of expression.  The preacher, very animated!  The team was able to listen in with headphones, but I attempted to listen to the Spanish service.  It was difficult, but I was able to understand much of what he was saying. 

The message for today was a contrast of the rich and poor, and the dangers of wealth.  I was expecting him to head to James, and eventually he got there.  I am really looking forward to talking about some of the things he mentioned today again as we get into James 2 in our team study.  This is the second time I have been to this church where the Sunday message was part of our weekly study – go figure – what a “coincidence”.

During the service, they had a time of “anointing with oil” those who needed healing – it was not a “charismatic” style scenario, but it was unusual for our team.  Again, James was used as a defense for the practice – I think God is trying to tell us something about this book.  We had a good discussion about this practice later during lunch – if you want to know more, just ask…

After lunch at Thelma’s, we headed off to Los Esclavos, arriving there around 3:30 in the afternoon.  We got unpacked and sat down by the pool to wait for dinner.

At the pool, we met Rosa, and her 3 children, Arochelle (16), Eddie (7), Amy (4).  Phil had found a ball for the kids to play with, so you know it wasn’t long before I was in the pool (in my bathing suit and blouse [again, just ask]) and I was playing with Eddie and Amy.  They were very cute kids.  I love getting them wound up and playing with them.  I pray that as some of the team members talked with Rosa that they will understand some of the things they heard.  Pat had the opportunity to share the gospel with Rosa.  They are supposed to be here at the hotel until Thursday.  We will see where God takes this one.

After dinner we had ice cream and talked through rules, the schedule, and the events of the week.  We also encouraged the team to share any anomalies with their bodies/bodily functions.  Jon is experiencing some swelling in his feet – I pray it is nothing serious.  Tomorrow the work begins – I think these guys are going to do an excellent job.  They are chomping at the bit to get going.

Thought for the day:  As we traveled to Matochos (Los Esclavos area), we were able to see much of the country south of Guatemala City.  From some of the wealthiest houses with amazing views of Guatemala City from the mountain tops to some of the poorest shacks, the variance here is baffling.  We saw cars that were very expensive, and then we saw vehicles that you wondered how they were even running.

In line with what the preacher was sharing today, how much does any of this matter?  If we are rich, we have been given the responsibility to share with others.  It is our role to be generous and giving.  If we are poor, we are to recognize that the things that really matter are eternal, and our station here in this world does not determine our situation in the next life.  We are to glory in the low estate we have been given by God.  Either way, rich or poor, it is from God.  We ought not glory in what we have, nor should we long for something we don’t have.  We should be content in Him. 

The question is, “Am I??”