Wow…I know it has been awhile and so let me try and catch you up on everything.
Sunday Jess and I went to a church called Caminos. We chose to go here because the service was in English and since we had the opportunity to go, we decided to take it. Jessica and Laura went to a Spanish service with Abner and Paul and Elliott worked on painting the kitchen in the coffee house. Carol (the baker) is very picky about some things and since her ceiling was black and the rest of the kitchen white, she decided to use Paul and Elliott so she could have a white ceiling.
Monday was a day of meetings in San Pedro with the rest of the teams. Jessica and I were suppose to take a shuttle to meet them and after a long series of events were unable to go. So she and I hung out around the computer try to meet and catch all the info that was going on over there.
Which brings me to Tuesday…Valentines Day!!!! Though I am so far away from my family and the ones I love the people here were did what they could to make up for it. All of the girls woke up to chocolate and a rose on their pillow from Paul and Elliott. Abner gave us all Hershey Kisses with a Gerber Disy (my favorite). Then Paul and Elliott cooked us dinner (well not actually cooked, but got us pizza). So…that was sweet and brightened my day. …I definitely needed it.
You ask why? Well here goes…I (my team) is still fighting an incredible attack from the enemy. We know that he can not win and in the end that we ALWAYS win…but at times it does get to us and we get weak.
Monday night about 11:00 I looked in my purse for my camera and what do you know…it was not there!!!! So I started searching for other things that were missing and $100 US dollars of the team money was gone!!! Someone had stolen it. The only time it left my purse was at the Bodigonia (aka Grocery Store). You have to check your bags before you go in. So Jess and I checked our bags together, as we always have done and it was then that the guy working took my camera and the money. Nothing of Jessica{s was bothered…Praise the Lord, but everything of mine with somewhat of value is gone now.
When I discovered this I knew that it was a continuation of the attack that we are under. So I had a choice to either let it get to me…or pray and fight off the enemy. So…I decided to fight. Our group got together an all fought of the enemy. We remindedim over and over that he is under our feet, that he is defeated, that we are covered by the blood of Jesus Christ, and for him to go to HELL. He can continue to attack, but I am not going to let it get me down. I am going to fight and stay strong. Those of you that know me know how strong wheeled I can be and when I make up my mind, it is made up…so it is made up. He is not going to knock me down anymore. Everytime an attack comes, its just going to draw me closer to the Lords side and rely on Him more.
After waking up to my flowers and chocolate, I was finally off for a full day of ministry…Praise the Lord, I could not wait. I was so excited.
I went to Hermano Pedro to finish my paper work, so I could do the volunteer work there that was needed. As some of you know they had already been giving me the run around about registering. Saturday the lady told me to come back the day I wanted to work and she could register me then and I could start then also. Well…I got there and she didn’t want to let me register and start then. So, I finished my registration papers and handed them to her. She refused to give me my badge (saying I was a registered volunteer) so what did I do…I volunteered anyway.
They had all my paper work and I knew that this was another attack trying to stop my ministry and like I told you…I am not going to let it knock me down.
I went into the children’s ward where all the kids were all outside playing. I saw Friske and Laura and they told me that Dick and Carlos (2 men that have committed their ministry to the hospital) were about to take some girls to eat lunch if we wanted to go…so…we went.
We took 5 girls and they had a blast. It is only about every 6 months or so (if that) that they get to get out of the hospital and see other surroundings besides concrete walls. The way the girls faces light up when they knew they were about to get a treat was priceless.
The little girl I had, her name is Sonia. She is 13 years old and has been in the hospital for quite some time. She has a light case of Cerebral Palsy and a rotated hip. She was in a full body cast for months to try and fix her hip and it did not help at all.
She is very very smart. She is currently in a school (with 5 other students) at the hospital that Dick helped start, but they are hoping to get her in a regular school within the next couple of months.
She does have a family. Her mom and dad care about her very much and want the best for her. They along with her siblings come to visit as often as possible. They don’t have the money to take care of her and know that if she is in the hospital that she will get the care that she needs. She does get to go home for holidays and special occasions.
Sonia is a very rare case. Despite that her dad is an alcoholic (a Guatemala hippy…pottery maker with long hair) he does want the best for her. Many of the kids are in this hospital and will be for life. They are such outcast that no one wants them, not even their family. Here in Guatemala handicapped people are looked down upon so greatly. They are treated and looked at as if the don’t even exist.
A ministry called Hope Haven (that Dick works for) supplies the handicapped people with wheelchairs or crutches. Since 1992 they have given out over 42,000 wheelchairs to needy families and kids. The wheelchairs cost $50 each, but if they can not afford it, the ministry will find a sponsor that can. No One gets turned down.
We took the girls to eat at Pollo Caperos (a chicken place here) and they had the best time. I think we might of actually had as much fun as they did. They ate chicken, french fries, and ice cream. The looks on their faces from just being out and being able to see people, colors, smells was pricless.
That afternoon Jessica, Laura, and I boarded a chicken bus (yes…you heard me…we braved a chicken bus) and went to a Kids Club ministry that World Changers sponsors in one of the near by villages. Every Tuesday they have Kids Bible Club and they can come and hear a bible story (taught on this amazing felt board), see drama, get to do a craft, and get sent home with a full belly.
The way that this group ministers to these kids is incredible. Yes, they have the bible club every Tuesday but they let the kids come over through out the week and play and minister to them 24/7. They (the missionaries) live in a compound like apartment building and the kids know that anytime of day or night they need anything, all they have to do is bang on the door (…and they do…all hours of the night.)
It was an awesome day of ministry. The enemy started to attack and stop me at the beginning, but I fought and in Jesus name defeated him and I know that the seeds that were planted from that day of ministry will prosper and grow. Maybe more than any other , considering Satan was attacking everywhere I turned.
Please continue to pray for us as we battle and also as we WIN. Win souls to the Lord, heal in the name of Jesus, and restore peoples joy and strength.
Today is my day of fasting. I feel like since we have been hit so hard that today is very important, so please keep that in your prayers also.
