My team and I are staying at a bed and breakfast in Antigua, Guatemala. We really wanted to stay close in the city, and booking a hostel near Parque Central would have been perfect, but they just weren’t in our budget.
So I researched, read reviews, sent emails and finally settled on this particular Airbnb about a ten minute walk from the city. And it is absolutely perfect. It is secluded and beautiful. It’s a cute little yellow house on the top of a hill that is right next to a small soccer stadium, so we hear the cheers from the crowd a few nights a week. There are countless types of plants growing with fresh herbs to pick, a big kitchen to cook in, a washer and dryer (bougie!), warm-ish showers and we each get our own bunk bed. We are in Heaven y’all.
And we know there are many missionaries and teams that come here to Antigua, and their ministry is usually focused on the locals and doing outreach in the city, so I just assumed we would be doing the same. There is a long-term AIM missionary team here who works with a network of churches, and I had already looked up their Facebook page before we arrived. I was going to plug our team into their Bible studies, outreach teams and maybe even visit an orphanage.
However, God had other plans.
We have been going out as a team and talking to locals, prayer walking and building relationships, but our main ministry here as a team has definitely been the couple hosting us at the bed and breakfast we are staying at.
I won’t reveal their names for privacy purposes, but I will share with you a few details. They have a 6 month old baby boy who is the sweetest thing, and they are getting married next weekend! The mother is Guatemalan and the father is American. In their home, they have a carving of Jesus’ face, a small ceramic statue of a praying Mary and a red glass Buddha. On their book shelf, I see puzzles, board games, and a handful of books including Twilight and one titled “More Than Two: Ethical Polyamory.” They are a wonderful, cute little family who love to make visitors feel comfortable and enjoy sharing their home. We told them about our trip and a little of what our year has looked like, and they shared with us that they really don’t believe in anything.
One of the girls on my team asked the father if he would be interested in sharing his story with our team, and I think that was the first seed planted in my opinion. He was shocked. It was so interesting to hear his response to her question. He asked her, “Uh, really? Why? Why would you be interested in hearing my story?”
And she proceeded to tell him more about us. About how we value people. We love to hear about who they are, what makes them unique, what their passions and dreams are, how we can pray for them etc.
He said to her, “I’ve only had one other person in my entire life ever ask to hear my story. But yes, I will share my story with you.”
And so, he’s shared half of his story with the team, and I’m hoping that the other half will soon be delivered as well – he is currently recovering from a little sickness.
What’s even more exciting – my team attended church at Shoreline City in Antigua, and some of us attended last Sunday as well. When we got back to the house today, the mother asked us how church was and then began to ask more questions about it, “How big is it? Where is it located? What time is the service? What’s it like?”
She was so curious about church and we were ecstatic! I told her a few of us would love to go to church with her next Sunday if she was interested and we could introduce her to people who live here in Antigua as well.
And I also bought them a Bible to keep in their house as well. The girls and I are writing prayers, highlighting verses, and are excited to see how God will show up while we’re here and even when we leave. I know He is working and I am so thankful to play a small part in this story.
I thought the last week of my time with my team would look like a lot of traveling, adventures, exploring and more. I thought it would be us trying to squeeze in every fun activity under the sun before we go home. However, it’s been quite the opposite. We have done a lot of worshipping – three hours everyday for the past four days – prayer walks, and Bible studies. And while a huge part of me has wanted to go out and challenge myself with multiple activities, I know God is doing something bigger just by our obedience to give Him the first three hours of our day.
We are creating space and welcoming Him into this home, and in turn, He is working on the hearts of this family. He is moving in the yellow house on the left.
