The day started out cool and cloudy but it cleared as the day progressed. We started our day with devotions a the Chemche School. they thanks us for everything we are doing for them and thanked God for us!
We then went to Pombach (a mountain village) to visit. It was a very steep, winding ride up the mountain. We picked up the Pastor on our way up. When we got there he told us some of the story of this village and the struggles to bring Christianity to it. When he arrived he discovered a village with only a few men. Many men had been killed during the revolution, as well as some women. This left many children abandoned. The result of that was children (age 15 or so) started having families due to no proper parenting and guidance as they grew. He spoke of how he approached a couple about being saved. The man of the house said yes but the wife said no. Six months later his wife was saved as well. He kept doing his work with the help of Impact Ministries and a year later another couple was saved. As years went by more people were saved in this village. Now he has about 50 adults and 35 children in his congregation. He spoke of how it has not been easy doing this work. He told us a story of how some of the people in the Village, in an attempt to run him out of the Village, hired a lawyer. There were all kinds of stories told but they didn't win. Eventually he managed to build a Church in the Village. Stories were still being told in the Village, telling people not to go to his Church because the Canadians ate Children. One night the Pastor was in the Church with the doors locked and a knock came to the door. He opened the small window in the door to see who was there and discovered 4 masked men standing there. He closed the window and got very scared. He decided all he could do was pray, so he did and eventually the men went away. Hearing what he has gone through to bring God to these people I am not sure I could have done the same. We finished up and went back to our house to have lunch.
After lunch we went on a Hospital visit in Coban. While there we visited sick children in the Pediatric unit. Almost all of the children there were sick with pneumonia. This is a very common illness for the children here. This is due to houses not being very clean as well as the cooking fires inside the houses. One family we spoke to travelled a full day to get their sick child to the Hospital. We gave out stuffed animals to the sick children as well. We prayed with each child and family we visited. We then went to the labour and delivery area where we (the ladies) gave out baby bundles. They also seen a lady who lost her baby and they prayed for her.
We loaded up the vans and headed back to the house, but not before Rocky and Karren treated us with Ice Cream!!
We had supper at the house followed by Birthday cake as it is Joanne's Birthday tomorrow.
After cake and debrief we packed to leave for Antigua tomorrow morning.
My Bike
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Guatemala Mission Trip - Jan 20, 2011
Another sunny day here in Guatemala. I believe the temperatures were about the same as yesterday. We were on the road at 7:30am for Puralha. Today we were going for morning devotions, to give out parasite medicine and to work. This was the first time we really interacted with the children of this school and as with pretty much most of the kids here they welcomed us with open arms. After the devotions they lined us up and prayed for us and gave us all a hug. We then gave out the medications to the kids. Last and the least fun we worked in hot temperatures until lunch. It wasn't much fun but it was satisfying to know ever piece of dirt we dug or moved we were helping to build on the school.
After lunch we went and did some more home visits to give the gifts we had brought because we didn't have them when we went the first time. I got to visit Jose and his family again. I had the gifts in the bag I brought down. I told him through Heber that I had the gift for him that I was supposed to have the first time I visited him. He took the bag and looked in and his eyes went to the size of saucers when he seen the soccer ball. He ran in the house right away with the ball. LOL His mother talked him out of the house and he came to me with his new ball and sat on my knee. Every one started taking pictures. :-) While that was happening his sister was inside looking in the bag and she put the camo hat on his head while people were taking pictures. We had brought some stuffed animals with us for his sisters so we gave them those as well. When I picked up Jose when I first got to his house he gave another huge smile and put his head on my shoulder. I found out that his mother is single mom with 3 kids and about to have another within days. We said our goodbyes and left. As we walked away I could see he had a bouncy ball that was in the bag in his hands. It was cool to see. I think I would like to send some extra monies down to help the mother out. I have some money left over from the trip and perhaps I should do just that..
We left there and on the way back to the house we stopped at Chijacorral High School to meet a student called Milton. During our initial home visits we visited Carl and Wilma's sponsor child name Milton. During their conversation with him they discovered that he was not going back to High School this year. When asked why the mother said that she could not afford to send him. She also has a daughter that was in Grade 11. When boys hit a certain age in Guatemala they are sent out to work to raise money for the family. Carl and Wilma were quite upset because if Milton left school he could not stay on as their sponsor child. The people that were with us from Impact said they would check into the reasons. We had prayed over his family while there initially and asked that God find a way to get Milton to school so that his dream of becoming a teacher would be possible. I guess the next day after we were at his house his Mother took him to the school and registered him for classes!!!!! When we seen him at his house he looked very sad. Today when we met him at the school he had a smile a mile wide. This was awesome to see for sure.
After we finished the visits we came back and took a walk through the market. We being Graham, Joanne, Christina, Sarah and myself. We then made our way back to the house and had supper. After supper we went to the school for a Bible meeting. This was mostly music, mixed with prayer and singing with some scripture readings as well. After the meeting we went to play soccer with some of the school teachers. we played from 8pm to 10pm. My body felt pretty good today until that ..... oh well..LOL
4 more sleeps until we are home..
After lunch we went and did some more home visits to give the gifts we had brought because we didn't have them when we went the first time. I got to visit Jose and his family again. I had the gifts in the bag I brought down. I told him through Heber that I had the gift for him that I was supposed to have the first time I visited him. He took the bag and looked in and his eyes went to the size of saucers when he seen the soccer ball. He ran in the house right away with the ball. LOL His mother talked him out of the house and he came to me with his new ball and sat on my knee. Every one started taking pictures. :-) While that was happening his sister was inside looking in the bag and she put the camo hat on his head while people were taking pictures. We had brought some stuffed animals with us for his sisters so we gave them those as well. When I picked up Jose when I first got to his house he gave another huge smile and put his head on my shoulder. I found out that his mother is single mom with 3 kids and about to have another within days. We said our goodbyes and left. As we walked away I could see he had a bouncy ball that was in the bag in his hands. It was cool to see. I think I would like to send some extra monies down to help the mother out. I have some money left over from the trip and perhaps I should do just that..
We left there and on the way back to the house we stopped at Chijacorral High School to meet a student called Milton. During our initial home visits we visited Carl and Wilma's sponsor child name Milton. During their conversation with him they discovered that he was not going back to High School this year. When asked why the mother said that she could not afford to send him. She also has a daughter that was in Grade 11. When boys hit a certain age in Guatemala they are sent out to work to raise money for the family. Carl and Wilma were quite upset because if Milton left school he could not stay on as their sponsor child. The people that were with us from Impact said they would check into the reasons. We had prayed over his family while there initially and asked that God find a way to get Milton to school so that his dream of becoming a teacher would be possible. I guess the next day after we were at his house his Mother took him to the school and registered him for classes!!!!! When we seen him at his house he looked very sad. Today when we met him at the school he had a smile a mile wide. This was awesome to see for sure.
After we finished the visits we came back and took a walk through the market. We being Graham, Joanne, Christina, Sarah and myself. We then made our way back to the house and had supper. After supper we went to the school for a Bible meeting. This was mostly music, mixed with prayer and singing with some scripture readings as well. After the meeting we went to play soccer with some of the school teachers. we played from 8pm to 10pm. My body felt pretty good today until that ..... oh well..LOL
4 more sleeps until we are home..
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Guatemala Mission Trip - Jan 19, 2011
Well another day another warm Sunny morning!
We were up for Breakfast at 6:45am to leave at 7:45am. Our first stop today was a Catholic Church in the mountains overlooking Tactic. The name fo this place is Chixim (sounds like shisheem). Karren went over some of the history here, talk about a mixed up situation. On one hand you have a Catholic Church built by the Spanish then just a few steps in front of the main entrance you have a small temple with two crosses where they worship their other god, the god of corn. This was setup by the Mayan people. Again here they burn coloured candles (in the Church) for health, finances, etc or they can burn a black candle to put a curse on someone. There was a picture on a wall that showed a Mayan knelt down and looking up at Mary in the sky surrounded by flames (Sun) offering her items. They also say that Mary didn't die but that she was taken to Heaven by two angels. There are many other confusing pictures on the walls that portray other religious figures in strange situations. The number of people that can't read in Guatemala is very high so they base much of what they know from stories. Unfortunately these stories are not always fact based and can really mess things up. They don't have the ability to read a Bible and come to their own conclusions.
We finished up here and and went to Chamche School to give out parasite medicine to the Children. Many kids don't get much to eat so if they get parasites, the parasites will eat the small amount of food the child may have in their stomach. Once we gave out the medicine we were split up and told to go to a specific classroom. I was sent by myself to the Grade 5 class. Once here they sat me in the Teacher's chair and asked me some questions. The Teacher didn't speak English so it was a bit hard. He did ask my name and I told him. He asked what my favourite food was as well. Then all the kids came up and gave me a card from each one of them that they had made. They all gave me a hug as well. Then they all gathered all around me very close (Guatemalan style) and prayed for me. The myself and the children went to the main area (auditorium) and played games. After a while all the kids and the rest of the team came in and we played more games. Once all this was finished we lined up and all the kids walked down our line saying Goodbye and giving hugs. We then went back to the house for lunch.
After lunch we went back to finish our Children's ministry. Today we taught the children the 10 Commandments. After this we made worship sticks with the children. Once this activity was complete we went outside with the Children again. Once we were done playing we went back inside where the Pastor thanked us and he and the kids prayed for us. The then fed us sweet tea and cake. This was quite the thing when you consider what this cake (made in a bakery) would have cost them. Again these people that have so little have no issues with sharing what little they have. I can't honestly say if I was down to my last 5 dollars whether I would give it away. This is basically what they did. The have nothing but bought us cake.
We then went back to the house and cleaned up and I did some laundry in the Pila. We then went for supper at Rocky and Karren's. They fed us a traditional dish and drink. We also played some games with some of the teachers of the schools that were there. Once this was over we went back to the house and did our debrief. Not so much crying for me this time. :-)
I"m starting to miss home more each day. I can't wait to hold my wife and daughter when I get home. I think this is even more difficult on me considering how sore I am. It makes me want to cry knowing I have to go back to the work site tomorrow and finish digging the trench for footings. My knee, back and hip are not doing so well at all. I guess I need to suck it up as these people are probably dealing with much worse. I am frustrated though that we have people with us that might be able to help me but have not offered to do so.....oh well..... :-)
We were up for Breakfast at 6:45am to leave at 7:45am. Our first stop today was a Catholic Church in the mountains overlooking Tactic. The name fo this place is Chixim (sounds like shisheem). Karren went over some of the history here, talk about a mixed up situation. On one hand you have a Catholic Church built by the Spanish then just a few steps in front of the main entrance you have a small temple with two crosses where they worship their other god, the god of corn. This was setup by the Mayan people. Again here they burn coloured candles (in the Church) for health, finances, etc or they can burn a black candle to put a curse on someone. There was a picture on a wall that showed a Mayan knelt down and looking up at Mary in the sky surrounded by flames (Sun) offering her items. They also say that Mary didn't die but that she was taken to Heaven by two angels. There are many other confusing pictures on the walls that portray other religious figures in strange situations. The number of people that can't read in Guatemala is very high so they base much of what they know from stories. Unfortunately these stories are not always fact based and can really mess things up. They don't have the ability to read a Bible and come to their own conclusions.
We finished up here and and went to Chamche School to give out parasite medicine to the Children. Many kids don't get much to eat so if they get parasites, the parasites will eat the small amount of food the child may have in their stomach. Once we gave out the medicine we were split up and told to go to a specific classroom. I was sent by myself to the Grade 5 class. Once here they sat me in the Teacher's chair and asked me some questions. The Teacher didn't speak English so it was a bit hard. He did ask my name and I told him. He asked what my favourite food was as well. Then all the kids came up and gave me a card from each one of them that they had made. They all gave me a hug as well. Then they all gathered all around me very close (Guatemalan style) and prayed for me. The myself and the children went to the main area (auditorium) and played games. After a while all the kids and the rest of the team came in and we played more games. Once all this was finished we lined up and all the kids walked down our line saying Goodbye and giving hugs. We then went back to the house for lunch.
After lunch we went back to finish our Children's ministry. Today we taught the children the 10 Commandments. After this we made worship sticks with the children. Once this activity was complete we went outside with the Children again. Once we were done playing we went back inside where the Pastor thanked us and he and the kids prayed for us. The then fed us sweet tea and cake. This was quite the thing when you consider what this cake (made in a bakery) would have cost them. Again these people that have so little have no issues with sharing what little they have. I can't honestly say if I was down to my last 5 dollars whether I would give it away. This is basically what they did. The have nothing but bought us cake.
We then went back to the house and cleaned up and I did some laundry in the Pila. We then went for supper at Rocky and Karren's. They fed us a traditional dish and drink. We also played some games with some of the teachers of the schools that were there. Once this was over we went back to the house and did our debrief. Not so much crying for me this time. :-)
I"m starting to miss home more each day. I can't wait to hold my wife and daughter when I get home. I think this is even more difficult on me considering how sore I am. It makes me want to cry knowing I have to go back to the work site tomorrow and finish digging the trench for footings. My knee, back and hip are not doing so well at all. I guess I need to suck it up as these people are probably dealing with much worse. I am frustrated though that we have people with us that might be able to help me but have not offered to do so.....oh well..... :-)
Guatemala Mission Trip - Jan 18, 2011
Well another day and another beautiful sunrise. The day warmed to what seemed to be at least 25c and perhaps more.
We had our breakfast at 6:45am, no sleeping in here. After breakfast we went to the local school (Chamche) for morning devotionals. This was the first day of the school year. There was prayer and music with all the kids present. It was very awesome and very loud. :-) All the songs were Faith songs and these kids sing their hearts out to them. The hold absolutely nothing back and I took some video to prove it. After the service was finished the parents left then we left to go outside. We were asked to form a line on our knees, then one by one the kids started coming out. Every kid starting with preschool gave each one of us a hung and we hugged back and said Buenos Dias or Hola, most of the kids replied the same way. We did this with every child from every grade. It was a pretty cool experience. After we finished here we had to go to work.
We drove to a school in Purulha to work. Here we spent the rest of the morning digging with picks and shovels. It was very hot and hard work. We finished our work here and then came back to the house for lunch.
After lunch we went back to Chamahoj for day 2 of our Children's Ministry. Today Christina did the Bible lesson which spoke about walking a mile in someone elses shoes. She basically spoke about us coming here and walking in Guatemalan shoes for a short period of time. To demonstrate this she tried on Peter's shoes and my shoes. Peter and I both tried on her shoes and walked around as well. We then did a craft with the children where we handed out construction paper cutouts of a foot as well as crayons. The children were then instructed to draw or colour on the foot. We then gave them a blue stick and glitter to decorate the cutout. The kids loved this. After the craft we went outside to play with the kids again.
I seem to be a magnet to the little girls because I had them hanging on me again today. At one point I went over to where Karren (host) was sitting and had our water bottles. I drank some water then walked away from where she was sitting. I later found out that the women (Guatemalan) were giggling and talking about something. Karren asked them what they were giggling about and it turns out they were giggling about the hair on my legs. Guatemalan men don't have hair on their legs and arms for the most part. I also had a number of other occasions where the kids would rub my arms. It was to feel the hair I am told. When I am carrying these little girls around they hug me like I am their Father. It must be lonely for them to not have much of a relationship with their Fathers. I believe many of them truly Love us for being here.
We finished up and went back to the house for supper and our normal nightly debrief. No crying for me tonight,,,well not much anyway. :-) I didn't have the room crying as I did other nights.. lol
Although they keep us very busy here (probably in an effort to keep us from getting homesick) I am beginning to miss home.....
Sleep tight Beth and Lauren..I love you guys lots!
We had our breakfast at 6:45am, no sleeping in here. After breakfast we went to the local school (Chamche) for morning devotionals. This was the first day of the school year. There was prayer and music with all the kids present. It was very awesome and very loud. :-) All the songs were Faith songs and these kids sing their hearts out to them. The hold absolutely nothing back and I took some video to prove it. After the service was finished the parents left then we left to go outside. We were asked to form a line on our knees, then one by one the kids started coming out. Every kid starting with preschool gave each one of us a hung and we hugged back and said Buenos Dias or Hola, most of the kids replied the same way. We did this with every child from every grade. It was a pretty cool experience. After we finished here we had to go to work.
We drove to a school in Purulha to work. Here we spent the rest of the morning digging with picks and shovels. It was very hot and hard work. We finished our work here and then came back to the house for lunch.
After lunch we went back to Chamahoj for day 2 of our Children's Ministry. Today Christina did the Bible lesson which spoke about walking a mile in someone elses shoes. She basically spoke about us coming here and walking in Guatemalan shoes for a short period of time. To demonstrate this she tried on Peter's shoes and my shoes. Peter and I both tried on her shoes and walked around as well. We then did a craft with the children where we handed out construction paper cutouts of a foot as well as crayons. The children were then instructed to draw or colour on the foot. We then gave them a blue stick and glitter to decorate the cutout. The kids loved this. After the craft we went outside to play with the kids again.
I seem to be a magnet to the little girls because I had them hanging on me again today. At one point I went over to where Karren (host) was sitting and had our water bottles. I drank some water then walked away from where she was sitting. I later found out that the women (Guatemalan) were giggling and talking about something. Karren asked them what they were giggling about and it turns out they were giggling about the hair on my legs. Guatemalan men don't have hair on their legs and arms for the most part. I also had a number of other occasions where the kids would rub my arms. It was to feel the hair I am told. When I am carrying these little girls around they hug me like I am their Father. It must be lonely for them to not have much of a relationship with their Fathers. I believe many of them truly Love us for being here.
We finished up and went back to the house for supper and our normal nightly debrief. No crying for me tonight,,,well not much anyway. :-) I didn't have the room crying as I did other nights.. lol
Although they keep us very busy here (probably in an effort to keep us from getting homesick) I am beginning to miss home.....
Sleep tight Beth and Lauren..I love you guys lots!
Monday, April 11, 2011
Guatemala Mission Trip - Jan 16, 2011
We awoke to a beautiful sunrise today. It was the first day of real sunshine since we arrived here. It was warm and amazing. We had breakfast as usual. We then prepared for our Market activity. This involved everyone being broken up into teams, provided a list of tasks to complete and items to purchase as well as $100 quetzal (sounds like consol) to buy anything that needed to be purchased. My team consisted of Karen Banfil, Christina Keuper and myself.
Graham and Joanne walked us to the Market Square and told us we had 1 1/2 hours to complete the tasks. We had to do things like buy vegetables, get a shoe shine, get a picture taken with a Police Officer in front of the Police Station, buy a tortilla hot off the grille and eat it, get a picture with a live chicken and pigs head as well as get a hair cut. We also had to find a bridge and get video of team members singing their National anthem. Christina and I attempted to do the National Anthem on the bridge. Our first try was the best but I discovered I had my camera incorrectly set so we didn't capture any video and had to try again. This time Christina and I tried again but kept getting the words wrong.....I gave up and got Karen to try with Christina and they got them right. We did very well with our list but one of the things we missed was a hair cut. We found the shot without a problem but there was a large lineup so we moved on to other things. I did manage to get my picture taken with a pigs head. This activity was a hoot and I think everyone had fun.
After the activity we had a bit of down time before lunch. I went up on the roof and soaked up the sun and read.
We had another great lunch which was beef ribs, rice, bread and fruit.
After lunch we went to a coffee plantation. Karren explained the history of the coffee trade here. She explained how this idea of fair trade coffee has really hurt Guatemala. At one time Guatemala was #2 in the world for coffee exports but with the introduction of Fair Trade coffee they slipped to #9. Many growers reduced crops or stopped growing coffee all together. Here in Guatemala a good wage in the country is $25.00 quetzal a day, or about just under $3.00 our money. Coffee workers get 2 cents a pound. Due to this poor wage many family's would be in the fields picking, this would included the children. Fair Trade coffee means no child labour. The coffee plantation was up high in the mountains. The road up was very steep with huge drops at the side with no shoulders!!!! I have pictures.. :-) After our tour we went back to the house for supper.
We had tortilla's, rice and fruit for supper.
After a little rest we walked to Church. There were many people there. The preacher spoke about us and our long trip. How we came from a land far away with lots of snow. IT was a very lively service with lots of singing and dancing. Les Peters gave a great sermon. One of the key parts for me was when he spoke about the Holy Spirit and repentance. He spoke about how we will go and ask God for forgiveness of our sins and just carry on our sinful way (path). He spoke about how people wonder whey they don't seem to ever feel the Holy Spirit. He said without repentance and changing our path we won't feel the Holy Spirit. He said change our path and we will then feel the Holy Spirit. This was a very hard hitting sermon for me that has made a major change in my life.
The Guatemalan's are so friendly.. They pray like I have never seen before. It is very loud and heartfelt. They have no issues with being loud. :-) Even the Children, while singing scream out the words. No one is afraid of what someone may think. If only we could be that free to express ourselves and to not worry about what others think. These people have so little but have so much more than we do......
God is very much alive here!!!
Graham and Joanne walked us to the Market Square and told us we had 1 1/2 hours to complete the tasks. We had to do things like buy vegetables, get a shoe shine, get a picture taken with a Police Officer in front of the Police Station, buy a tortilla hot off the grille and eat it, get a picture with a live chicken and pigs head as well as get a hair cut. We also had to find a bridge and get video of team members singing their National anthem. Christina and I attempted to do the National Anthem on the bridge. Our first try was the best but I discovered I had my camera incorrectly set so we didn't capture any video and had to try again. This time Christina and I tried again but kept getting the words wrong.....I gave up and got Karen to try with Christina and they got them right. We did very well with our list but one of the things we missed was a hair cut. We found the shot without a problem but there was a large lineup so we moved on to other things. I did manage to get my picture taken with a pigs head. This activity was a hoot and I think everyone had fun.
After the activity we had a bit of down time before lunch. I went up on the roof and soaked up the sun and read.
We had another great lunch which was beef ribs, rice, bread and fruit.
After lunch we went to a coffee plantation. Karren explained the history of the coffee trade here. She explained how this idea of fair trade coffee has really hurt Guatemala. At one time Guatemala was #2 in the world for coffee exports but with the introduction of Fair Trade coffee they slipped to #9. Many growers reduced crops or stopped growing coffee all together. Here in Guatemala a good wage in the country is $25.00 quetzal a day, or about just under $3.00 our money. Coffee workers get 2 cents a pound. Due to this poor wage many family's would be in the fields picking, this would included the children. Fair Trade coffee means no child labour. The coffee plantation was up high in the mountains. The road up was very steep with huge drops at the side with no shoulders!!!! I have pictures.. :-) After our tour we went back to the house for supper.
We had tortilla's, rice and fruit for supper.
After a little rest we walked to Church. There were many people there. The preacher spoke about us and our long trip. How we came from a land far away with lots of snow. IT was a very lively service with lots of singing and dancing. Les Peters gave a great sermon. One of the key parts for me was when he spoke about the Holy Spirit and repentance. He spoke about how we will go and ask God for forgiveness of our sins and just carry on our sinful way (path). He spoke about how people wonder whey they don't seem to ever feel the Holy Spirit. He said without repentance and changing our path we won't feel the Holy Spirit. He said change our path and we will then feel the Holy Spirit. This was a very hard hitting sermon for me that has made a major change in my life.
The Guatemalan's are so friendly.. They pray like I have never seen before. It is very loud and heartfelt. They have no issues with being loud. :-) Even the Children, while singing scream out the words. No one is afraid of what someone may think. If only we could be that free to express ourselves and to not worry about what others think. These people have so little but have so much more than we do......
God is very much alive here!!!
Monday, March 7, 2011
Guatemala Mission Trip - Jan 15, 2011
We had to be up for breakfast today at 7am so that we could get underway early. We had 2 goals today. One was to visit the sink hole and, Two was to work!!
First though a few of the team went through and organized the bags. Again it was amazing to see the bags again and the contents in them.
We went to the sink hole first. We arrived at the sink hole and prepared for the hike up the mountain to the entrance of the sink hole. While we were gathering to head up , a group of Guatemalan's also arrived. Before this though our leader Karren spoke of what happens at this sinkhole. She spoke about how many of the people of Guatemala regard the sinkhole as a sacred place, full of power (energy). She mentioned how people come here from all over to partake in rituals preformed by a witch doctor or shaman. She identified the witch doctor or shaman by a red scarf or kerchief. She said that people now say the sinkhole has less powers because Christians have been down to it. Karren says this is a good thing!! She says now groups don't come as often to do rituals. So here we are as a group of Christians heading into this sinkhole that now has a group of Guatemalan's in it along with a witch doctor about to perform rituals. The ritual usually consists of perhaps a sacrifice of some sort. It can be animal or food, burning of candles, or perhaps a fire and chanting. We made our way up to the entrance of the sinkhole and started our way down. It was a steep and risky climb in places. At the bottom it was quite dark except for the light from above shining in. The group of Guatemalan's that came in first had setup behind some rock formations which apparently has a cross and shrine setup. You could see all around signs of rituals past. Burnt candles and other items littered the floor of the sinkhole. After exploring a bit was assembled in a circle. Karren led us and spoke about praying to God about leaving our garbage/trash behind in this sinkhole. She also spoke about praying for these people because they are lost. She says that these people don't like to have to hire witch doctors or shaman's to try to help them with their problems but they don't know any other way. I prayed all these things. While we were in the sinkhole another group of Guatemalan's came down as well. It is interesting because karren had just told us that this sinkhole isn't used as much as it had in the past but while we are in there two groups show up. It was an odd situation to have a group of Christians praying for these Guatemalan's to see the light in Jesus while they are no more than 50 - 60 feet away with a fire burning performing witch craft. We also sang while we were in there. As we were done praying we made a silent trek out of the hole.
*Karren told us of a situation of a family and what happened to them in regards to witch craft and Christianity. A couple were expecting their first child and to try to ensure its Health they went to a witch doctor. The witch doctor wanted too much money so the family opted out. The wife went full term but delivered a still born. The witch doctor then told them that their baby died because they were too cheap to pay for services. The witch doctor wanted something like $1200 dollars to perform a ceremony for the family. Wages in Guatemala are not high with the average worker in the country making $25.00/day with wages in the City being about $35.00/day, which is about $4 US dollars. The family wanting to have a child went to the witch doctor the next time they got pregnant . They could not afford 'the full ritual' so the witch doctor did a small ritual. The woman went full term, but again delivered a still born. Again, the witch doctor told them it was their fault because they didn't pay the full price for the ritual. Time went by and again the woman got pregnant. This time they went back and paid full price to the witch doctor. They went full term but again delivered a still born. After this they started going to Church and turned to Jesus. The lady got pregnant again and went full term and delivered a healthy baby. She has had two more since then. Figure that one out!!! :-)
We drove back to the house and had lunch. After lunch we went to work at the High School (Chijacorral) moving gravel to fix the driveway and a parking lot. Many of the residents came by and smiled and said Hello. The kids were curious and before long were helping us. This was tough hard work but was satisfying to see it complete. Once we had finished we went back to the house for showers and supper.
After supper we went to Les and Rita's for dessert and debrief. We heard from a young man named Hector Davide. His story was emotional and heartfelt. From him living at home with a father who was drunk and beat his mother, doing military training, to getting Teacher training and finding Les and Rita and becoming a Principal at one of their schools. I told him I appreciated his story because even though we live so far apart, my story is not much different than his. We all prayed for him. He then prayed for me!!!!
We finished up and went home to rest our weary bones....
First though a few of the team went through and organized the bags. Again it was amazing to see the bags again and the contents in them.
We went to the sink hole first. We arrived at the sink hole and prepared for the hike up the mountain to the entrance of the sink hole. While we were gathering to head up , a group of Guatemalan's also arrived. Before this though our leader Karren spoke of what happens at this sinkhole. She spoke about how many of the people of Guatemala regard the sinkhole as a sacred place, full of power (energy). She mentioned how people come here from all over to partake in rituals preformed by a witch doctor or shaman. She identified the witch doctor or shaman by a red scarf or kerchief. She said that people now say the sinkhole has less powers because Christians have been down to it. Karren says this is a good thing!! She says now groups don't come as often to do rituals. So here we are as a group of Christians heading into this sinkhole that now has a group of Guatemalan's in it along with a witch doctor about to perform rituals. The ritual usually consists of perhaps a sacrifice of some sort. It can be animal or food, burning of candles, or perhaps a fire and chanting. We made our way up to the entrance of the sinkhole and started our way down. It was a steep and risky climb in places. At the bottom it was quite dark except for the light from above shining in. The group of Guatemalan's that came in first had setup behind some rock formations which apparently has a cross and shrine setup. You could see all around signs of rituals past. Burnt candles and other items littered the floor of the sinkhole. After exploring a bit was assembled in a circle. Karren led us and spoke about praying to God about leaving our garbage/trash behind in this sinkhole. She also spoke about praying for these people because they are lost. She says that these people don't like to have to hire witch doctors or shaman's to try to help them with their problems but they don't know any other way. I prayed all these things. While we were in the sinkhole another group of Guatemalan's came down as well. It is interesting because karren had just told us that this sinkhole isn't used as much as it had in the past but while we are in there two groups show up. It was an odd situation to have a group of Christians praying for these Guatemalan's to see the light in Jesus while they are no more than 50 - 60 feet away with a fire burning performing witch craft. We also sang while we were in there. As we were done praying we made a silent trek out of the hole.
*Karren told us of a situation of a family and what happened to them in regards to witch craft and Christianity. A couple were expecting their first child and to try to ensure its Health they went to a witch doctor. The witch doctor wanted too much money so the family opted out. The wife went full term but delivered a still born. The witch doctor then told them that their baby died because they were too cheap to pay for services. The witch doctor wanted something like $1200 dollars to perform a ceremony for the family. Wages in Guatemala are not high with the average worker in the country making $25.00/day with wages in the City being about $35.00/day, which is about $4 US dollars. The family wanting to have a child went to the witch doctor the next time they got pregnant . They could not afford 'the full ritual' so the witch doctor did a small ritual. The woman went full term, but again delivered a still born. Again, the witch doctor told them it was their fault because they didn't pay the full price for the ritual. Time went by and again the woman got pregnant. This time they went back and paid full price to the witch doctor. They went full term but again delivered a still born. After this they started going to Church and turned to Jesus. The lady got pregnant again and went full term and delivered a healthy baby. She has had two more since then. Figure that one out!!! :-)
We drove back to the house and had lunch. After lunch we went to work at the High School (Chijacorral) moving gravel to fix the driveway and a parking lot. Many of the residents came by and smiled and said Hello. The kids were curious and before long were helping us. This was tough hard work but was satisfying to see it complete. Once we had finished we went back to the house for showers and supper.
After supper we went to Les and Rita's for dessert and debrief. We heard from a young man named Hector Davide. His story was emotional and heartfelt. From him living at home with a father who was drunk and beat his mother, doing military training, to getting Teacher training and finding Les and Rita and becoming a Principal at one of their schools. I told him I appreciated his story because even though we live so far apart, my story is not much different than his. We all prayed for him. He then prayed for me!!!!
We finished up and went home to rest our weary bones....
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Guatemala Mission Trip - Jan 14, 2011
I would advise you to get comfortable as this update is kinda long...I can't believe I actually wrote so much. :-)
Today we arose at 7:30am for Breakfast. We started with prayer. After prayer we all got ready and travelled with Les to one of the schools here (Chijacorral). This school is a Middle School as well as a High School. They were getting it ready for school to begin (which was soon). This building also houses their medical clinic. There we met a husband (Walter) and wife (Cathy). Cathy is a Doctor. We heard from them both about how pleased they were about the clinic. It is actually quite nice. They have a number of exam rooms as well as a Pharmacy. There is also a dental chair and dental xray unit in a room waiting to be installed.
We went up to a room in the school and met the Principal of the school, her name is Evelyn. We heard her story of her life and about how tough it had been. She spoke of attending the school and Impact Ministries had setup. She now speaks of her Love of God and thanks Les and Rita for helping her during her tough times and her journey to God. Her story was so emotional and heartfelt. I am pretty sure we were all crying, but in the end we were all smiling due to her success.
After leaving the school we went to a new building site where Impact Ministries has bought land to build another new complex. This site will have Bible Chapel as well as a school that will give the kids that graduate from High school an opportunity to continue their studies of God and Scripture and perhaps some day become Missionaries themselves. The hope is that by teaching these people (Guatemalan's) an even higher understanding of God then they already know that someday they can go out abroad and teach the word of God to more of their own people or perhaps even Muslams. The thought is that hearing about God may be more accepted coming from people of the same colour. They are hoping to build parking for something like 3000 vehicles, very optimistic according to Les. :-)
We then left here and went to Les and Rita's for tea. (yes I drank it! ;-)) It was a lemon tea. Les and Rita told us a bit of their family and of their adopted son Tim, who is Guatemalan and his story of how they received him. After tea we went back to our house in Tactic for lunch.
After lunch Karren (Activity Host) spoke to us about the home visits we were about to do. We then left for our home visits. I have to say that what we experienced over the next number of hours was both shocking and amazing. These people although appear to have nothing, they have great Love for God and family. We had some very tough walking up the mountains to get to these families. The trails were very steep and muddy in many places. At times you had to wonder what we were doing there but once we reached the homes it would soon become apparent as to why we were there. Each sponsor would meet their sponsor child and their family. We had an interprator named Heber (who also came up through Impact) who translated for us. At the end of the visit we would give a food box (due to our gifts not arriving) and then we would pray with them. We would sing sometimes as well. It is amazing to hear these mothers tell us that they pray for us always and that they wish us success and all of God's Blessings. At our second last stop we did like all other and at the end we prayed. To me this prayer was different because the mother prayed with us. Although I don't understand Spanish, hearing the mother praying was nothing short of life altering. She prayed so hard and with so much emotion, we cried with her.
After this visit we worked our way down the mountain to our vehicles. Heber, Cassie, Sarah, Christina and myself got to the vehicles first. When we got there, there were a number of kids sitting there and playing. Heber had a small boy on his knee and was going over his list for our next visit. He asked me where Wilma was. I said she was still making her way down the mountain. I seen his list and pointed to my name and said that is me. He looked at me with surprise and said, "oh, you are the sponsor", I said yes. He then looked at the little boy and said something. He then looked at me and said Jose. I said yes Jose is my sponsor child. Heber looked at me and said, "no, this is Jose!!!"...LOL I was shocked. Here I was standing in front of my sponsor child. I have to admin I didn't know what to say. Here was this little brown eyed boy staring at me and I am dumb founded. Eventually I started playing with him. Soon all the rest of the team showed up and found out what was going on. Everyone started taking pictures. I picked up Jose and we all made our way to his house. I carried him pretty much most of the way. I was getting very tired from carrying him so I tried to put him down, but he would not let go. :-) I eventually got him down and we walked the rest of the way holding hands. He talked to me all the way to the house, but of course I had no idea what he was saying. We made it to his house and with the help of Heber I spoke to his mother. I told them about my family at home, the kids and their ages. I told them how Blessed I felt to be there to see them. The mother said she felt blessed for us to have come so far. I gave them the food box and then we all gathered in the house and I led prayer for them. Since this really was the first time I tried to pray openly it was awkward for me but I did it. When prayer was finished I got my picture taken with Jose and his family. Jose during most of the visit was in my arms holding me like I was his Dad. I wasn't trying to put him down so this 'hold' was genuine. I held him in my arms and he put his head on my shoulder and sucked on the lace to my hoodie. i have to wonder if he gets hugs from his Father?
We all made our way back to the vans. At the vans the group starting commenting and asked about my experience. I lost it trying to explain it.....Graham came over and hugged me and cried with me. I have to say it was an amazing moment in my life I will never forget. To meet this family and to know I can make a difference in their lives with my sponsorship is very special. We went back to our house and had supper.
After supper we had a debrief with Les. He had a number of questions for us but we ended with a question about a moment that touched our hearts today. I explained about Evelyn's story, about the mother that we prayed for, but mostly I spoke about meeting Jose and his family. I bawled through the whole thing and I had everyone else crying as well. When they came to Graham he started crying right away. After a short time he said for him it was when we were in my sponsor childs house praying for them. He said to hear me pray knowing how hard it is for me was an awesome heart moment for him. We sang some songs then made our way to bed. Tomorrow we work.....
*****Update****
I was awoken from my sleep by the sound of voices and vehicles outside. It was just after 11pm. This is not totally unusual except for the fact I could hear English!! I got up an met Graham in the hallway. Our bags had
arrived!! It was like Christmas, only better. As I have told a number of people here. It is not that we invested alot in the bags, it's more that we would not be able to leave the items here with the people that need them.
Today we arose at 7:30am for Breakfast. We started with prayer. After prayer we all got ready and travelled with Les to one of the schools here (Chijacorral). This school is a Middle School as well as a High School. They were getting it ready for school to begin (which was soon). This building also houses their medical clinic. There we met a husband (Walter) and wife (Cathy). Cathy is a Doctor. We heard from them both about how pleased they were about the clinic. It is actually quite nice. They have a number of exam rooms as well as a Pharmacy. There is also a dental chair and dental xray unit in a room waiting to be installed.
We went up to a room in the school and met the Principal of the school, her name is Evelyn. We heard her story of her life and about how tough it had been. She spoke of attending the school and Impact Ministries had setup. She now speaks of her Love of God and thanks Les and Rita for helping her during her tough times and her journey to God. Her story was so emotional and heartfelt. I am pretty sure we were all crying, but in the end we were all smiling due to her success.
After leaving the school we went to a new building site where Impact Ministries has bought land to build another new complex. This site will have Bible Chapel as well as a school that will give the kids that graduate from High school an opportunity to continue their studies of God and Scripture and perhaps some day become Missionaries themselves. The hope is that by teaching these people (Guatemalan's) an even higher understanding of God then they already know that someday they can go out abroad and teach the word of God to more of their own people or perhaps even Muslams. The thought is that hearing about God may be more accepted coming from people of the same colour. They are hoping to build parking for something like 3000 vehicles, very optimistic according to Les. :-)
We then left here and went to Les and Rita's for tea. (yes I drank it! ;-)) It was a lemon tea. Les and Rita told us a bit of their family and of their adopted son Tim, who is Guatemalan and his story of how they received him. After tea we went back to our house in Tactic for lunch.
After lunch Karren (Activity Host) spoke to us about the home visits we were about to do. We then left for our home visits. I have to say that what we experienced over the next number of hours was both shocking and amazing. These people although appear to have nothing, they have great Love for God and family. We had some very tough walking up the mountains to get to these families. The trails were very steep and muddy in many places. At times you had to wonder what we were doing there but once we reached the homes it would soon become apparent as to why we were there. Each sponsor would meet their sponsor child and their family. We had an interprator named Heber (who also came up through Impact) who translated for us. At the end of the visit we would give a food box (due to our gifts not arriving) and then we would pray with them. We would sing sometimes as well. It is amazing to hear these mothers tell us that they pray for us always and that they wish us success and all of God's Blessings. At our second last stop we did like all other and at the end we prayed. To me this prayer was different because the mother prayed with us. Although I don't understand Spanish, hearing the mother praying was nothing short of life altering. She prayed so hard and with so much emotion, we cried with her.
After this visit we worked our way down the mountain to our vehicles. Heber, Cassie, Sarah, Christina and myself got to the vehicles first. When we got there, there were a number of kids sitting there and playing. Heber had a small boy on his knee and was going over his list for our next visit. He asked me where Wilma was. I said she was still making her way down the mountain. I seen his list and pointed to my name and said that is me. He looked at me with surprise and said, "oh, you are the sponsor", I said yes. He then looked at the little boy and said something. He then looked at me and said Jose. I said yes Jose is my sponsor child. Heber looked at me and said, "no, this is Jose!!!"...LOL I was shocked. Here I was standing in front of my sponsor child. I have to admin I didn't know what to say. Here was this little brown eyed boy staring at me and I am dumb founded. Eventually I started playing with him. Soon all the rest of the team showed up and found out what was going on. Everyone started taking pictures. I picked up Jose and we all made our way to his house. I carried him pretty much most of the way. I was getting very tired from carrying him so I tried to put him down, but he would not let go. :-) I eventually got him down and we walked the rest of the way holding hands. He talked to me all the way to the house, but of course I had no idea what he was saying. We made it to his house and with the help of Heber I spoke to his mother. I told them about my family at home, the kids and their ages. I told them how Blessed I felt to be there to see them. The mother said she felt blessed for us to have come so far. I gave them the food box and then we all gathered in the house and I led prayer for them. Since this really was the first time I tried to pray openly it was awkward for me but I did it. When prayer was finished I got my picture taken with Jose and his family. Jose during most of the visit was in my arms holding me like I was his Dad. I wasn't trying to put him down so this 'hold' was genuine. I held him in my arms and he put his head on my shoulder and sucked on the lace to my hoodie. i have to wonder if he gets hugs from his Father?
We all made our way back to the vans. At the vans the group starting commenting and asked about my experience. I lost it trying to explain it.....Graham came over and hugged me and cried with me. I have to say it was an amazing moment in my life I will never forget. To meet this family and to know I can make a difference in their lives with my sponsorship is very special. We went back to our house and had supper.
After supper we had a debrief with Les. He had a number of questions for us but we ended with a question about a moment that touched our hearts today. I explained about Evelyn's story, about the mother that we prayed for, but mostly I spoke about meeting Jose and his family. I bawled through the whole thing and I had everyone else crying as well. When they came to Graham he started crying right away. After a short time he said for him it was when we were in my sponsor childs house praying for them. He said to hear me pray knowing how hard it is for me was an awesome heart moment for him. We sang some songs then made our way to bed. Tomorrow we work.....
*****Update****
I was awoken from my sleep by the sound of voices and vehicles outside. It was just after 11pm. This is not totally unusual except for the fact I could hear English!! I got up an met Graham in the hallway. Our bags had
arrived!! It was like Christmas, only better. As I have told a number of people here. It is not that we invested alot in the bags, it's more that we would not be able to leave the items here with the people that need them.
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