I had the amazing opportunity to go back to Guatemala last summer! I went back to the same children’s home as well as Adam’s Mountain which houses a ministry called Live Him Loud Ministries. It was a different experience as an adult than as a teenager. I acted differently, and my perspective was different. As a teenager, I just wanted to play with the kids. As an adult, I played with the kids, but I also took more time to think and talk with God. I needed direction for what I should do with my life.
At the children’s home, I played with the kids for a little while then needed to take a step back, reflect, and talk with God. I saw the teenagers mostly playing with the kids like I did as a teenager. It’s amazing how things change. God changes us and our perspectives! Playing with the kids is awesome, but there are other important things too. God uses some people through playing with the kids while others He uses in different ways (helping get lunch and dinner ready, translating, cleaning, planning, etc.). Sometimes He wants you to just sit and spend time with Him.
We did more manual labor with Live Him Loud Ministries. We helped around the property, and we went to both the mountains and the coast to install stoves in people’s homes. That was again a time God used people in various ways. Some people mainly did the physical work of installing the stoves. Other people spent time talk with and interacting with the families whose homes we went to. I did some of both.
I remember not wanting to go to the mountains. I wanted to stay on the Live Him Loud Ministries property with some of my teammates. They were leaving really early in the morning, and at that point on the trip I was tired. I went to bed the night before without setting an alarm. I thought if I woke up naturally before they left, I could make a decision then; and if I slept past when they left, I wouldn’t go. Of course, I woke up before they left and decided to go. I still didn’t want to, but I thought I would regret it if I didn’t go.
After installing stoves that day, we gathered at the local church to hand out food. The local people made us dinner! They had so little, and we had a lot. But they still made us dinner. That should tell us something. I didn’t help hand out the food (enough people were already helping with that), so I played chase with the kids instead. By the time I stopped running around, I had a headache. I took an ibuprofen, and my headache was gone within 10 minutes! That is practically unheard of for me. God completely got rid of that headache! That day reminded me of my love for the Guatemalan people. I’m so glad I went instead of staying back!
I thought about and prayed about being a missionary at the children’s home. That was a big part of my time with God. I ultimately didn’t feel like God was calling me there at that time, but it was still a big reminder of my desire to do international missions. I cried when we left Guatemala. I didn’t want to go home. Guatemala has a special place in my heart. God has really used my experiences there to change my life.
Now I’m preparing to go on The World Race! It’s a great opportunity for me to be a part of international missions. I still need over $17,000 for the trip. I would love for you to join me on the journey! Will you pray about supporting me? If you want to donate, click the donate button toward the top of the page. Donations are tax deductible. Thank you so much! God bless!
