Yesterday, she knocked on our door.
She’s not the only one. Others have also. And each time, I ask, “What do we do?”
Yesterday, the doorbell ring came with tears. And we know her. She’s not a stranger. She was standing there (I’ll just say ‘she’ and not her name, to protect her identity) with her two daughters. And we know her two daughters. Sometimes there’s 3 of them (1 of the 3 is her neice, but like her daughter), and they have become our family/house/base friends. They’re such great little girls. Ages 3, 7, 12 I believe. These little girls walk and spend their days on the streets of Antigua. Kacie has been making friends with their grandmother, whom we call “Abuelita” for about a year now. Abuelita sells gum, snacks, and little items at the bus stop on the street hoping to make a living out of it.
Recently we’ve been having the little girls over to our house. And we have met the mother before. Read this past blog post, You See Me…, to read more about this family. It’s a powerful short story.
Well yesterday, the mom, with 2 of the girls, came over to our house. Our team was in the backyard taking communion, and praying as a group when the doorbell rang. I opened the front door and was excited to see the girls and her mom. But the conversation quickly exposed, even if unintentionally, the pain and hurt that was in her eyes. She teared up regarding some really hard and challenging circumstances she is currently in. I had to do everything I could to hold back my tears from coming. My heart just couldn’t contain God’s compassion that was welling up inside.
We eventually brought her into the house, with her daughters, gave them all food to eat, chatted in our broken Spanish, and then prayed for her and the girls on their way out.
She’s not the only one. We have had others ring our front doorbell.
A 15 year old young boy, who walks around Antigua looking to clean cars, backyards, homes – anything to make a dollar. His Father left his family at a young age. His step dad he doesn’t like. He goes to school only when he can afford to pay for that week or semester. He lives walking the streets, trying to make money. He is now a regular of our family. We pay him a little money to work at our house, but mostly, we invite him to our community outings. He’s joined us to worship God at the cross on top of the hill. He’s gone with me to the airport for the first time in his life, to pick up new team members. We walk together buying groceries, and we disciple him along the way. We are his friends, mentors, and fathers and mothers in the Lord.
A mom and her disabled daughter. We met her selling plants from on top of her head. She walks around Antigua hoping to sell her 10 or 15 plants, which would make her about $10usd/day. Not much money for her and her 4 kids. She is ALWAYS with her youngest daughter, a little angel, who is mentally challenged. This little one has the brightest smile. She now often will ring our doorbell, and see if we want to buy a flower. We sometimes buy, but mostly we just do life with her. We play with her daughter, give her coloring books, give them food, and pray for them. We recently gave her several hugs, some medicine (her lungs are really suffering) and washed her feet as one of our team members was led to do so.
These people that ring the doorbell – we don’t know always exactly what to do. But we do have God, and that’s who we ask. We don’t get it right every time. But it’s not about that, as much as it is about wanting to be perfect in our love. But we hope to be light, and bring life – God’s life to their broken hearts and situations.
And it brings us life, to our lives also.
It’s becoming one of my favorite things – when I hear that doorbell ring. Because it might just be an opportunity, one that is brought to us, that we didn’t have to create or make happen, but one that God wants to make happen.
It’s a great picture of God with us. When we hurt, have a need, we can knock on his door, ring the doorbell to his home/heart, and He’s there to respond – with His perfect love. He knows what we need more than we do, a hug, a word, a teaching, a drink of water.
Pray for us as we walk out what to do with these doorbell rings, and with our ongoing ministry here.
Thank you!
Blessings
Team Guatemala!
