Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Portsmouth Christian - Guatemala Trip - Day 2


The day began with a clear sky, cats screaming (sounding like babies crying), dogs barking, and some fireworks off in the distance.  It was a typical Guatemalan morning.  The team seemed well rested and were ready for our eggs and pancake breakfast. 
We followed breakfast with our morning devotional – an overview of the book of Philippians, and we began the study with verses 1 and 2 of chapter 1.  We had a great discussion, although I look forward to them opening up more as the week goes on.  The beginning of a book kind of lends itself to more of a direct conversation than a group discussion anyway.
We left for Verbana (the main campus of AMG Guatemala) on time, and arrived close to 9:00.  We took a brief tour of the campus, and then planned to head off to work.  But we were interrupted by children… literally hundreds of them.  The bell rang and the flood gates opened, and kids just kept coming and coming.
It was fun to watch the group as they saw the kids approaching and you could see the wonder in their eyes as to how this was going to play out.  The hesitation didn’t last long, as the kids ran up to team member after team member and hugged them, kissed them, and played with them. 
For the next 30 minutes or so, the team spun kids around, chased them around the field, played “pato-pato-gonso” (duck-duck-goose), and just hugged and loved on kids.  I love seeing the faces of the kids light up as they interact with the team members, and I love watching the “nervous anxiety” melt away from the team members as the kids lavish them with love.  It really is a lot of fun to be part of.
As the kids headed off to class (with the prompting of the team members), it was time for us to get to work.  During the day, the team helped install part of a drop ceiling in the new At Risk No More facility, they installed 4 toilets (Andrew helped with this), they taught English class, they interpreted sponsor letters, they helped feed the children, they helped the kids brush their teeth after eating, they raked the leaves over various parts of the facility – they worked hard! 
In between the working, we had lunch around 12:30.  We ate, talked about what we had worked on in the morning, shared how we were feeling about the day, and talked about what was next. 
About 2:00, we had another great surprise, the afternoon group broke for recess.  More kids, more hugs, more spinning around, more soccer, more kisses, more activity…  It is fun, but very tiring!  The team loved it, and they did a great job playing with the kids when it was time.
At 3:00, Brian Dennett (AMG Guatemala National Director) and Chad Smith (head of the At Risk No More aspect of AMG) shared with us their vision and passion for the ministry here. As always, it was eye opening, and encouraging.  The people of Guatemala have a hope for a better future – not because of AMG, but because of Jesus Christ.  AMG is just one of the organizations sharing Christ with them.  They are doing an excellent job.
We were supposed to end our time at Verbana with a soccer game against the maintenance crew, but they had to back out, so we just played a brief game of adult against kids.  Don’t ask who won – ask who scored more!  (We did one of those, “next person to score wins”, so the kids think THEY won.)
We headed back to Thelma’s, ate dinner, and then had our evening debrief session.  It went on and on.  Story after story, experience after experience, lesson after lesson, it just kept coming.  Everyone shared something, and it was great to hear them wrestle with their experience.  We laughed together – man, did we laugh.  This group loves laughing. 
One of the girls asked me on the van on the way home, “what one word would you use to describe our team?”  I said initially, “estrogen” – after all, there are 14 girls in this group.  But then I told them, “fun”.  You can tell this group knows how to have fun with the kids, together, and – and most importantly – not at the expense of others on the team.  They have fun together.  Which is what we did tonight. 
After our wrap up, we watched the pictures from the day, and laughed even more.  It was a great day.
Tomorrow we are beginning our 3 day work in Amparo.  I know we are in for even better times as we are able to build deeper relationships with the kids, the workers, and each other.
Thought for the day: As I worked with Andy on the drop ceiling, I was reminded that his church (Raymond Baptist) was key in building the second floor we were working on.  It is neat to see team after team build on the work of other teams before, but it is even cooler when the teams are interconnected.
My thought for today is, isn’t that really what the body of Christ does – if we are working well?  Paul said, some plant, others water, while others harvest.  It is God who brings the increase.  As each part does its work – no matter how “unnecessary” it may seem – you lay the ground work for people after you to build on the foundation that you laid.  If you lay a solid foundation, the work to follow is much easier to do.  If you do not do your part, someone else will have to do it for you, and the project is just that much further behind.
God help me to do my part as you give me opportunity so that others who come behind me may be able to reap a large harvest for the glory of Your Name.  Help me see beyond my own capacities and abilities and just be faithful to do what you call me to do.

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