Last night, as I sat surrounded by 12,000 Christians praising Jesus, I thought of my street boys. I thought about where they were and what they were doing. I thought about them sitting on the streets huffing and getting high. I wondered if they were safe. I wondered if they were participating in traditional Guatemalan Halloween that consists of worshipping the Devil. I wished they were with me. I prayed for them. Prayed that they too could experience Jesus in such a wild and crazy manner. I prayed they felt the joy that I felt as I danced, screamed, and head-banged with my team. My teammate, Baylee, always talks about receiving winks from God. Her mom has always told her that God gives us little winks to show He cares about the details and is always watching. Last night, as I was leaving a Christian Rave with over 12,000 people, I received a BIG’OLE wink from God.
Halloween in Guatemala is different than in the States in that it’s considered an extremely spiritual holiday. Therefore, Christians here do not celebrate the traditional Halloween. To deter from the spiritual warfare associated with Halloween churches host mega parties that consist of hours of music and dancing. Last night we attended a rave at our home church, Casa De Dios. From the outside this church looks less like a chapel and more like the Cowboy’s Stadium. The auditorium seats 12,000 and the rave was sold out.
About 3 hours into the rave my team and I were just about danced out. We were 4 artists down and only halfway through the lineup. It was around 10 O’clock and we debated whether we wanted to leave or not. Between girls being tired and the steak we knew was waiting for us at home, we decided to leave. Some of the team was already out of the auditorium so we had to meet up with them before we could head out. Note- this church is the size of a stadium. Finding people is not always an easy task. After about 10 minutes we found everyone and were on our way out.
As we were walking out one of my teammates, Shelbie, talked about wanting McDonald’s French Fries. She also had to pee. She debated whether she wanted to wait for the bathroom until we got to McDonald’s, or if she wanted to stand in the mile-long line at the church. She decided to wait until McDonald’s, but as we approached the doors to exit she decided she couldn’t wait. We turned back around and headed to the bathroom so she could pee. As we stood outside the bathroom waiting, surrounded by thousands of people, God gave me a big’ole wink.
There I was standing outside the women’s bathroom when this young Guatemalan boy started walking towards me. His tiny body, huge crooked smile, sideways hat, “tough guy’s wear pink” shirt, and black tennis shoes looked all too familiar. As he came walking towards me I realized that was no stranger. That was KEVIN! KEVIN! Kevin is 14-years-old and one of our favorite street boys. As he came walking towards me he realized who I was and came running into my arms for a huge hug. Then behind him came another familiar Guatemalan face. It was SELVIN! SELVIN! Selvin is another one of our boys off the street who attended the rave with another ministry in Guatemala called The Ark.
There were 12,000 people in that church last night. 12,000. In front of the women’s bathroom I found the 2 young men who have stolen my heart. I found the 2 young men who I had been praying for minutes before. There was a 2 in 12,000 chance and I found them. My heart about leaped out of my chest as I hugged and took pictures with my street boys. Guatemalan’s all around us stared as we all yelled and leaped for joy. Kevin and Selvin both had smiles from ear to ear.
In Kevin’s words, “I thought the concert was boring, but then Jesus took ahold of me and I started to dance. Then finding you guys made it even better.” Last night God heard my prayers and He knows my heart. Last night God staged a divine encounter between my team and my street boys. Last night my street boys got to laugh, dance, sing, and praise Jesus in a wild and crazy manner. Last night my boys were safe and sober. Last night, as I hugged and took pictures with the boys who have stolen my heart, God smiled down on me and gave me a BIG’OLE WINK.
Keep your eyes open! You never know when God might send you a little wink. He is always watching. Always listening. Always wanting to bless you in little ways. Last night was my best Halloween yet and I didn’t even eat one piece of candy. Happy Halloween from Guatemala- I hope yours was as great as mine.
Blessings from Guat
Dubs
