Friday, April 26, 2013

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.

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