My Guatemala Journal 2012

So I just got back from my missions trip to Guatemala and decided I would type up my journal entries in an effort to kind of relate what it's like to be on the mission field. I know it's a long blog, but if you would just take the time to read it, that would be great. I hope that God touches you through it.


8-22-12
(3:52 a.m.)
 I'm wide awake right now, and not entirely sure why. It could be the thunder and lightning outside or the cup of delicious coffee Guatemalan coffee I drank right before bed. Anyway, yesterday was an incredible day one to the trip. The weather has been the kind of tropical weather a travel agency would try to sell you. Absolutely beautiful. On to what this trip is really about though. Yesterday we visited the feeding center in Quetzal. One of the first things that struck me was the common misconception we in the U.S. have about people in the 3rd world countries. We assume that they are dirty and dingy. This is such a far cry from the truth, I doubt most people who have never been to a third world country can even fathom it. Though they have next to nothing, they are still very clean and clearly take pride in their appearance. Then there's the kiddos. These children exhibit such joy, I can't even explain it. Their joy is simply unshakeable. They had a playground, a street made into a makeshift soccer (fútbol) court, a mud puddle, and some rocks to throw in it. And they were excited about this. They also displayed flawless 1 Corinthians 13 Love. It was pure, selfless, patient, kind, it didn't envy, it wasn't proud or rude. And I'm certain it will never fail. There were two different más present, two different ways of life, but everyone was able to communicate perfectly with each other. We all spoke the language of love. Yes, we were able to communicate through words a little bit, but that's not what's important. I keep thinking of the quote "Preach the Gospel at all times, when necessary use words." Yesterday, words were not necessary. God's Gospel of Love was communicated flawlessly in both directions. They ministered to us as much as we ministered to them. A few of my favorite moments of the day were while Holly, Sydney, a couple other Crosspointers and I were giving piggy back rides I told the little guy on my back "Yo soy cansado, uno más." ("I'm tired, once more.") Well, my new friend Britney told me "No, dos más." ("No, twice more.") She wanted her last turn too. I had to give in partly because she was so firm, and partly because I lacked the language skills to argue. Another moment that sticks out to me is after I put the video camera away I stood off to the side taking everything in when I felt a tug on my shirt. A little girl named Daniela wanted to be held, nothing else. This moment was again such an amazing example of 1 Corinthians 13 Love. All this teeny tiny 9-year-old girl wanted was to be held and it meant the world to her. Then my all time favorite moment of the day was while we were driving away I said out the window to Daniela and her sister Mishelle: "Adios, amigas!" And seeing their faces light up to the word "friend" touched my heart. It's a word we take for granted , yet it meant everything that this "gringo" who went and played with them for an hour thought of them as friends. God has already done so much this week and there's still five days left. I can't wait for whatever else He has in store!

(7:43 p.m.)
 So last night was a pretty sleepless night. I think I got around two hours. No matter. Today after a 6:30 breakfast, we headed for the black sand beaches of La Gomera. The water was amazing and the sand felt extremely fine for being volcanic. We also chowed on some of the local fried shrimp. Very different from fried shrimp in America, but still VERY good! After some recreational time we headed to the feeding center about 20-30 minutes away. While I did not interact with the kids nearly as much today due to some serious overheating (La Gomera was a lot hotter than Quetzal was) and shed exhaustion, I did feel God further confirm His call for me to missions. Watching the kids play and be joyful in the 90+ degree heat touched me deeply. It was as if the heat didn't even affect them while it clearly was taking its toll on us "gringos." Honestly and regrettably today is very much in a haze for me. I didn't learn any of the kids names personally, just by word of mouth, and that really breaks my heart. Although, today is not totally at a loss. A little girl got a hold of our roll of stickers and presented me with one of a monkey. It is now proudly on display on the back of my cell phone where it will stay as long as the stick lasts. I don't know where I'll put it after that, but I will definitely be keeping it. I wasn't much more than a bump on a log today, but one little girl showed me she cared by giving me what could have all she had, one of our stickers.



8-23-12
He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; He seats them with princes, with the princes of their people. Psalms 113:7-8
 Today is turning out to be one of those days that simply can't be put into words. Sumpango was a very different part of Guatemala. In Quetzal and La Gomera the children were excited and raring to go as soon they saw us. The children in Sumpango had to warm up to us. But once they were warm, there was no cooling them off. They were an amazing group of kids. I definitely connect with more kids today. Yoni, Marisol, Marco, Yoni (Yes there were two Yonis), Sonia, and several other kids whose names were too hard and long to pronounce. Oh! And Jose, I connected with him today too. Gave that little guy my Crosspointe wristband. One thing that stuck out to me today is that names didn't really seem to be a factor as did actually getting to know us. How old were we? What was our favorite color? What was our favorite animal? How big was our family? Were we married? Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. They really wanted to know us. They wanted to know who we were. Not just our names. Speaking of names, Jeff got a new nickname today. Pastor Pedo. (Pedo is spanish for fart.) That's right, he ripped one during a game of soccer this afternoon. And they thought it was hilarious! That was another thing that stuck out to me, these kids are not all that different from us. They laugh at farts, the boys jokingly call each other girls. We're not so different as most people might think. Today again just proved that a language "barrier" is really just a gate, easily passed through. And the fact that our Spanish is getting better by the hour just makes this trip that much more exciting! So I guess today was able to be somewhat put into words even though they don't do the experience justice. Oh! And I had the hands down BEST Chile Relleno for dinner tonight in Antigua! Again words will not be able to do justice.



8-24-12
 So, today is yet again a day that I can put into words, but without the full, hands-on experience it will be difficult to fathom. Today after a morning of zip-lining, (incredible experience by the way) we visited the feeding center and orphanage in Eagle's Nest, about 2 1/2 hours away. I've had some trouble connecting with as many kids as everyone else because my job on this trip has been the videographer. So while I have been able to interact with the kids, I've really only been able to connect with about five or six max. Not the case today. Today the camera turned out to be what caused a lot of the connecting. Kids were lining up to get their turn to look at the innumerable amount of buttons and knobs on it. Now as I said, part of the establishment we visited was an orphanage, so I was thinking off the bat today was going to be a difficult day. I had no idea. Seeing the joy on these kids faces and knowing the fact that they have nothing and no one but each other is eating away at me. So many kids in the U.S. today are downright grumps, that take EVERYTHING and EVERYONE for granted. I'm getting angry right now just processing that fact. But today has been by far my favorite day. Not that I'm picking favorites among the kids or the centers, but today's experience has by far been my favorite. While just sitting and filming some of our group play with the kids, a little girl who was about two or three came and plopped down right in my and latched on to my right arm. I can still feel the strength of her embrace. She simply wanted to love, and be loved. Her name was Lupe. And for a good hour, to hour and a half we just played and loved on each other. Now every kid this week has showed a level of pure and innocent love, but not one of them matched that of Lupe's. (Looking at that in writing looks really bad, but like I said, no words can be used to describe this, so I'm working with what I've got…) But Lupe was the sweetest child on the face of the planet, and I didn't want to let her go. I honestly wanted nothing more than to scoop her up and take her home. She was in the area where we were with one of the women who helped run the orphanage and I honestly almost lost it when it was time for her to leave up the hill. After a while though it was time for us to go and when we went up the hill I got one last big hug from her, which MADE MY DAY!!! I won't ever forget that little girl. Another thing that has really been pressing on me is the fact that I know I'm called to the mission field. However, I don't know how that's going to happen. What steps to take. Who to connect with. However, a few minutes ago God gave me a great word picture: On the first two zip lines today I tried holding myself up by my own strength. That proved to be a mess. I slammed into trees, was twisting all over the place and by the end of the second line I really was not enjoying the experience. It was painful, and not working well in my favor. When I was getting ready for the third line one of the guides told me out of the blue to just put my hands on the trolley and let the harness carry my weight. When I did this the ride was so much smoother. It's the same concept in my problem with figuring out a missions career. I need to take the first jump to get my momentum then let God carry the weight while I just hold on for the ride. So today has proven to be my favorite day. Tomorrow we return to Quetzal and Sumpango.



8-25-12
 Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly, defend the rights of the poor and needy Proverbs 31:8-9



8-26-12
 So this is it. Our last night in Guatemala. It's hard to believe that it's over. Not nearly as hard as saying goodbye to those kids today, though. Well I forgot to journal yesterday's activities, so we'll start there. Yesterday after breakfast we headed back to the feeding center in Quetzal. They were having "Kid's Club," which is kind of like Sunday School on Saturday. Seeing the kids' faces light up as the "gringos" returned was priceless. Mishelle came up and ran alongside our van, it's an image I can't really describe, but know I won't forget. Other than a few moments like letting Daniela use my sunglasses, or teaching Ada a few words in English, (dulce-candy, amiga-friend, fútbol-soccer, escuela-school, and pavo-turkey) or teaching a group of kids to play "Pato, Pato, Ganso" (Duck, Duck, Goose) yesterday is kind of in a haze, which really just illustrates the importance of journaling. After going to Quetzal we were supposed to go to the youth service in Sumpango, but it was cancelled due to a carnival in the area. This morning we went back to Quetzal for Sunday morning services. I honestly had trouble focusing today though. Not because of the language difference, but knowing the fact that it was the last day really got me down. Knowing that it was time to go home (forgive me for the lack of better words) really borderline depressed me. Being in this country , interacting with these AMAZING kids, seeing what God is doing through Manna has really encouraged me and lifted me up. I came to Guatemala planning on "getting my feet wet" in missions. I feel like God has pushed me all the way in, soaking me from head to toe, and told me to start swimming. I don't know exactly where I'm swimming to, or how I'm getting there, but I know that I'm ready to start swimming…

Quetzal
-Britney
-Daniela
-Ricardo
-Ada
-Mishelle
-Alex
-Nancy
-Richard
-Rosa
-Marlon

  La Gomera
-Christian
-Claudia
-Josue

  Sumpango
-Jose
-Marisol
-Yoni
-Yoni
-Marco
-Sonia
-Marisol and Sonia's older sister

  Eagle's Nest
-Lupe
-Irma
-Yuli