Hola! I made it to Guatemala!
I’m spending my month with team Flames to Fire, and we are serving in the city of Chemaltenango. We are living at Los Gozosos, an orphanage for about 20 disabled children ranging from 1-24 years old. The host is from the States, but she has been living in Guatemala since the 90’s. We also get to work closely with a team of nannies that serve 2 day shifts before taking off and having a new group come in.
Here’s a glance at what our daily schedule looks like:
5am-6:30am Good morning! We wake up and help get the kids cleaned and dressed for the day. This also includes doing all the girl’s hair, which we have learned is quite the challenge. Usually the nannies will finish about 3 girl’s hair by the time we can finish 1. Maybe we will be up to speed by the end of the month! A few of us also go in the kitchen to help prepare breakfast.
6:30am-7:30am Breakfast time. We help serve and feed all the kiddos that can’t eat completely on their own. After breakfast we help out with cleaning dishes.
7:30am-9am Cleaning! We have been given a list of daily chores as well as month long projects, which include sweeping, mopping, laundry, cutting grass, cleaning out the shed, and creating a battle plan to get rid of the lovely cockroaches that are currently our roommates.
9am-11am Personal time. This usually consists of reading the Bible, working out, showering, and blogging.
11am-12pm Staff devotional. During this time we sing songs and read scripture together. We are lucky that they have song books so we can pretend we know how to sing in espanol!
12pm-1pm During this time we either help out feeding the babies, prepare lunch, or get the older kids ready to eat.
1pm-2pm Almuerzo! Same deal as breakfast.
2pm-6pm Break. During this time we will either finish up a project from the morning, rest, have team time, or maybe even go on an adventure to find ice cream.
6pm-7pm Dinner. The best part about dinner is that it always ends in a dance party with all the kids. It’s definitely one of my favorite parts of the day!
7pm-8pm Devotional with kids. This looks the same as the staff devotional, except it’s waaaay louder with all the kids together at once. The kids that lead the songs have them memorized, so we are usually lost as to which song we are singing. It gets a little chaotic and is an absolute blast.
8pm Bed time! We walk all the kids to their room, and we follow quickly after. Since we have such long days we are usually in our beds by 8:30 and falling asleep within an hour. We are all split up into rooms with the kids, and I have the privilege of being roommates with some of the team and 2 super cute toddlers. They like to laugh for no reason randomly throughout the night, and I always wonder what’s going on in their heads.
I get the chance to do ministry outside of the scheduled times each day. I’ve been able to start the discipling process with this team to help them cast vision for healthy community. It has been such a pleasure to get to know these women and see their love for the Lord.
I can already tell that the next few months are going to be incredible. I literally get to walk alongside these women and continually point them to the Father. I get to be there for them during hard times and celebrate with them as they have revelations and breakthroughs in their faith. What an amazing role that God has placed me in!!
When I was leaving South America in August I was wanting to continue practicing my Spanish, and the Lord listened! I am somehow one of the people that knows the most Spanish, meaning I get to communicate with all the nannies through Spanglish and charades. My brain has started to think in half English and half Spanish, which may or may not be correct. I’m excited to see how my Spanish will hopefully improve over the next few months.
Prayer requests:
-As I head back out I’m easily able to tell how little time I really had back at home. My time at home was basically equivalent to how long I’ve been in each country, and this essentially makes month 13 that I’ve been on the move. Pray for energy and that I consistently seek God, because He is my constant in this time of change.
-My co-leader and I are constantly split up between teams, meaning that our main way of communicating is through brick phones and minimal WiFi. Pray that we are able to continue seeking each other out, supporting one another, and pushing ourselves to look more like Jesus.
-Thankfully, I’ve already met my first two financial deadlines, but I am still in need of funding. Please pray for an abundance of support, for me to have patience when fundraising is moving slower than I would like, and for trust in God’s timing.
Thank you all for the love and support you’ve shown me as I’m continuing to do mission work overseas. I’ve felt incredibly loved by you all through communication and support!
-Audrey
Fundraising update!
I’ve raised $2,253 so far, which means that I’m about 35% funded! I was praying hard that God would provide at least $2,000 by the time I flew to Guatemala, and I got the update just 24 hours before that I had made that goal. What a blessing!
I would love for you guys to prayerfully consider financially partnering with me during the next 6 months. Your investment makes reaching the unreached and making disciples of Jesus possible. Know that if you choose to donate, the money will go to this mission and not to me personally.
I’m hoping to find monthly supporters because it makes the investment more sustainable on both ends. You are able to be reminded of what you are investing in and pray for the nations each time you see the money has been sent. Consistent support is a very practical way to be in the process with me to the end, and that’s the ultimate goal: to have the opportunity to bring Kingdom on earth together, as the body of Christ. So I don’t want you to just see it as “sending” me, but rather as you being a part of mission work with me.
You can make a monthly or one-time (tax deducible) donation by clicking the “donate” link on this page.
You can also support me by entering into my “Buy a Box Raffle” fundraiser. There are more details located here and on my social media accounts.
