We’ve been here a day shy of two weeks now, and I can hardly believe how quickly the time has flown… and yet how much has happened! With an unexpected bit of free time tonight, I know I need to blog. But how do I begin to encompass the stories in a few words here?
As I consider the myriad of colors and activities and action-packed days, I am realizing that all these stories have one thing in common. Each story has a face attached to it.
The impact that Guatemala has made on my heart and life is not the beauty of the mountains or the brilliant butterflies or the embrace of thick humidity and sunburn in January. It is the individual faces and lives. I pray that I have been able to touch them. I know that they have touched me.
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Here are a few I want to share with you.
This is Kendra. She is one of the neighbor kids that we met about a week ago and have been playing soccer with every evening before dinner. It is the most unexpected and incredible ministry that God dropped in our laps! Tuesday was her birthday, so my squadmate Priscilla bought candy for all the kids, with a big bag especially for Kendra.
These kids are absolutely priceless! Each day when we walk by they call out, “Hola, hola! Futbol? Cinco cero cero (5:00)?” In the evening, as we come walking down the road after getting back from afternoon ministry, they run out, shouting and laughing, and tackle us with bear hugs! Jennifer, one of the girls, brought beautiful rings for three of us who have been playing with them. I’m falling in love…
Crazy fun times! Every time someone scores, it’s a huge celebration of hugs and high fives. Pray that Alfonso, Kendra, Marcos, Danny, Jennifer, Carmen, Andrea, Carlos, Christopher, and the other kids that join in will sense Jesus’ love through us and grow up to love and serve Him!
I met this woman today in one of the bars during our prostitute ministry. I got to talk to her for a few minutes in halting Spanish and learned that she has 6 children! She was very willing to talk, showed me pictures of her kids on her phone, and even let me take a photo with her. It is so hard, every time we do prostitute ministry we encounter many different women of all ages. Each has a unique story yet most of the time I can barely understand what they are trying to communicate to me. Pastor Rony helps translate, and often they say the same thing, “Pray that I can find a different job.” Some are closed and seem to feel awkward when we approach them. In many places there is fear in the air. Yet others are like dry sponges ready to soak up every bit of love we have to offer. They will give us all hugs and let us hold them in our arms. I so wish I could speak their language and tell them how beautiful they are and how deeply the Father longs for their broken, aching hearts.
This is Jessie, a woman at the old folks’ home (picture by Kate Kovach). She is one of the friendliest, warmest people we have met in Guatemala, despite being bound by a wheelchair and other disabilities. Yesterday while we sat with the elderly people in the gazebo, singing songs and chatting, she reached out and ran her fingers through my hair. Then she held my hand contentedly. Later some of my teammates began to dance and pull the residents into the joyful banter. This picture is of Chase dancing with Jessie while I pushed her wheelchair. Her smile is fixed in my mind. Only a few hours earlier that day, we went to a school for children with special needs, and it was absolutely the high point of my entire experience here so far. Running around with little boys hanging off my back, daring me to catch them, and laughing as I swung them around and around until my feet were filthy and my shirt and hair soaked in sweat – nothing can beat that. The laughter and simplicity and love brought back memories from Kiwanis camp this last summer. I never knew I would grow to so love this population of people who used to terrify me.
God is full of surprises. Today was yet another one – for ministry, we ended up overlooking a beautiful bay, praying and worshipping (and ultimately, jumping in… 😉 Then we drove to another beautiful spot and soaked up the sun and sea breeze, reveling in that moment of refreshment. Here are just a few more faces that are impacting my heart and inspiring me to new heights in chasing after Jesus!
(picture by Kate Kovach)
