Month 5: Guatemala
Ministry Host: GO! Ministries
Ministry: Widows and Orphans Outreach
In Guatemala we were able to have a very relaxing combination of work and play. Each day looked fairly similar for the most part; we went to schools to teach English, play with kiddos and feed the kids a hot meal. It felt great to be in a classroom again!! I hadn’t realized that I missed being in a room full of kids. We also did house visits with widows and the sick & shut in on a very regualr basis. We would stop by the house, see if they had any chores that needed to be done and then we’d talk with them, pray with them, sing songs of worship over them and just enjoy time hanging out. Team Alabanza especially loved visiting a man named Martin, whose diabetes was so severe that he could no longer work due to his very limited mobility. But I’ll write more about him in a blog later…
Overall Guatemala was great! It’s definitely in my top 3 favorite countries thus far. We got to spend off days in beautiful Antigua and breath-taking Lake Atitlan. I look forward to visiting Guatemala again sometime very soon.
Month 6: Thailand
Ministry Host: Abba House Foundation
Ministry: Leading Bible study, Teaching ESL, prayer walking in the community
This was a tough month for me. The extreme, oppressive heat was very difficult to acclimate to. Coupled with the culture shock of coming from 5 months in Latin America, and I found myself struggling to “count it all as joy” everyday. But, in time, I was able to overcome the temptation to allow my circumstances to dictate my attitude and I enjoyed my ministries.
We began each week with an early morning prayer walk all over our community. And every afternoon I got to lead a boy’s Bible Study, which was so diverse and great because the “boys” in the group ranged in age from 15 to 73 and I, a female, was the leader! It was a wonderful group and we all earned from each other. Most of the men in the group were teens who had been saved from sexual slavery and prostitution and I’m ho predicted to have discipled them and shared the Good News with them.
Every evening, my teammate Kevin and I taught ESL to tween and teen girls. They were a handful, but I loved seeing them grow each week.
Month 7: Malaysia
Ministry Host: YWAM(Youth With A Mission) Penang
Ministry: Feeding Center, Nursing Home, Rock Climbing Ministry, joining local church’s Community Group
I loved my time in Malaysia! It was just us girls together all month because the guys had their “MANistry” month together. We were able to serve the needy, homeless and hungry 3 days a week at a feeding center and I loved it. The relationships I built with people there were so amazing. And then, 2 times a week we joined a local church at their wall climbing ministry. We got to hangout with other young adults, many of whom are not Christian, and just share common interests and answer questions they had about Jesus or life in general. And we were also fortunate enough to serve once a week at a nursing home. Pastor & Mrs. Theva, who run the home, are amazing, loving, hospitable lovers of Jesus and I cannot say enough good things about them and the worm they’re doing to care for the sick, elderly people in their care. Malaysia was a great experience and I hope to one day return to the island of Penang.
