Well, I’ve officially been in Guatemala for 4 weeks. So, I figured it was about time to updated you all on all that has happened so far. But fair warning, this is long. You might need snacks. Are you hydrated? Maybe a cup of coffee wouldn’t hurt either. Don’t worry, I’ll wait…
Okay. Are you ready? Let’s get to it then!
As some of you might know/remember I was in Guatemala back in October of 2017. It was my first country on my international World Race trip. Being back here again 3 1/2 years later and post covid has changed a few things. So for those of you who are curious about some of the things that are different post covid, this is the part for you!
So the first and probably most noticeable difference is the face masks. Here everyone is required to wear one at all times outside of their homes or personal vehicles. It doesn’t matter if you are walking down the street with no one else around you, you must be wearing a mask. Driving on a motorcycle? You must wear a mask. Riding in a tuk tuk? Mask on! The second thing is that pretty much every store, coffee shop, or supermarket that you go into you are required to stop, allow them to take your temperature with a thermometer-gun thing, put on some hand sani, and step on a mat that has disinfectant on it. ( Just in case you got some covid on your shoes! ) Then you are allowed to actually enter the store. It’s not too weird once you get used to it though.The final thing is the chicken buses. The once packed buses with at least 3 people per seat, people pressed up against one another in the aisle, and even sometimes a person or two hanging out the front and back doors are now running at 50% capacity. Which just means it looks like a normal bus now. 2 people per seat with no one standing up anywhere. It’s very different than it was before.
Now that I’ve answered all the pressing covid curiosities, I’ll move on to what I’ve actually been doing during these past few weeks. But if you have more just leave the questions in the comments and I’ll try to answer what I can.
So, I arrived in Guatemala City on January 2nd. I was picked up and driven to Antigua to my apartment where we, my roommate and I, realized we needed to hit the grocery store immediately. (I guess this is the best time to put in that I am one of 6 people here doing a vision/internship with the base.Anyways…) Thanks to the many many moves during World Race America, I was able to quickly make a mental assessment of what I needed. (ie. Toilet paper, dish soap, food for dinner, coffee press, etc…) After returning, I was able to unpack and begin to settle in to my new home.
That first week, I went to house church (they re-opened churches after 3 weeks of being here. But until then…),orientation, staff meetings, and prepared for our first gap year squad to arrive. Unfortunately, one of the gap year racers tested positive for covid and the whole team had to remain in the states and be quarantined. So what was looking to be a really busy week for us suddenly slowed down. Which actually ended up being a blessing, because I was able to have a couple meetings and even set up my Spanish classes. (I am taking 2 hour classes 2 days a week with a private tutor.)
Week number 2 started with staff meeting immediately followed by my first Spanish class with my teacher Axel. I also got the opportunity to greet 2 World Race squads at the airport and got to ride back with one of them to the base where they were staying for a couple of days before going to other areas in Guatemala. I got to know them a little and hear about their journey so far with the World Race. They had actually spent the first few months of their trip in the states doing missions, so I got to hear some of their testimonies of what the Lord had done so far. It was sad to tell them bye that evening, but I’m excited for what the Lord has in store for them. The next day was more Spanish lessons and then it was time to finally pick up the gap year squad! They had all tested negative and were able to fly in.
Unfortunately we woke up that morning to a bathroom full of water. As my roommate was cleaning up the water, the sink completely detached from the wall and fell to the floor. So our day went from going to welcome the squad, to calling the landlord and waiting for a plumber. We were told the plumber would arrive around 2:30-3:00, but in Guatemalan time that actually ended up being around 6:00. It may have taken longer than anticipated but our sink is back on the wall, so I’ll take it!
The next day, I got to actually meet the gap squad at their base orientation. This was basically a day of teaching them about the history and culture of Guatemala, what expectations we have for them, etc. This squad will be living at the base for about 3 months so I will have a lot of opportunity to interact with them, which is super exciting!
By weeks 3 and 4, there was a very loose pattern set for my time here. (Meaning I have yet to see that pattern fully happen, but its a good starting point!)
Monday- staff meeting and Spanish lesson, Tuesday- bible study with gap year and village ministry, Wednesday- Spanish lesson, Thursday- activation with gap year and worship room, Friday- village ministry. That’s essentially what my weeks look like.
I want to talk about Thursday a bit more because those are really important days. Gap year racers are between the ages of 18-21 and are doing a 9 month mission trip with Adventures in Missions. On Thursdays, we do what we call activation. What that means is we do teachings in the mornings with them over topics like identity, hearing the voice of the Lord, etc. Then in the afternoons we go out with the gap year racers and they put into action the things they just learned. Its discipleship and its absolutely incredible! One of the racers was even baptized after our very first activation day!
A quick testimony from activation this Thursday. The teaching was on how to hear the voice of God. One of the girls shared before we went out in the afternoon that she had doubted if she even heard from God at all. But as she sat in prayer after the teaching, the Lord began to show her all the ways he had spoken to her in the past and how she truly did know His voice. Which if that was the whole story, it would have been enough, but that isn’t all. When we went out, she then turned around and used that testimony to share with a tienda owner about how even though she doubted God would speak to her He actually did. The tienda guy then shared how he felt like God talked to him in his dreams and I was able to tell him in Spanish (thanks to all the lessons I’ve been taking) that I believe and hope that God will speak to him in his dreams again that night. That’s just one of the cool testimonies that have come out of these activation days.
Thursdays are also the days I go to Worship Room. Worship room is basically a worship night that is held in a coffee shop with a big outdoor space. Its mostly bilingual and is such a great refresher at the end of the week. It is one of my favorite things to do here. I didn’t realize how much I missed worshiping outside. Its one of my favorite things and I’m so thankful to have that here.
Tuesdays and Fridays are the days I get to do what (if I were to move here) my job actually is. Those are the days I go out into the village with Rake, my co-worker, and get to meet and minister to the women. Right now it looks like home visits. Because of covid, big groups aren’t really a thing. So instead of a group gathering for a bible study, we go to them. We sit in their homes and hear their hearts. We get to pray for them, and encourage them. It’s such an honor to be invited into that space. To get to begin to know some of the women.
There is also what we call kitchen makeovers that we do for the women. We choose one of the homes of the women we have been working with and we redo her kitchen. For the women in the villages 90% of their days are spent in the kitchen. By coming in and doing a kitchen makeover, it shows them they are seen. It tells them that what they do everyday is important and matters. That they matter! Depending on the resources we have, it can be as simple as cleaning and rearranging things or as big as installing a new stove, painting walls, bringing in new utensils, etc. We are planning to do one in the next couple of weeks so look out for a blog or video about it soon!
One testimony from our time going out so far was the day we got to meet Luz. We were just going to drop off some baby clothes at her house because she was at the hospital having her baby, but when we arrived we found out she had actually just gotten home from the hospital earlier that day. So we got to sit with her and her new baby and talk to her for a while. As we were about to leave Rake asked me if I wanted to say anything else to Luz. I told Rake all I could remember to say was the lyrics of The Blessing in Spanish. So I prayed that over her. I said, “Dios te guarde y bendiga. Que extienda su amor y te muestre favor.” It was so sweet to be able to speak to her, even if it was only a small portion of a worship song. At least in learning Spanish worship songs, I’m learning how to speak about God in Spanish!
Speaking of worship, I also got the opportunity to co-lead worship for activation this past week and am leading a bilingual worship session soon. And by soon I mean next week! I’m also learning songs for when we are able to have bible study with the women in the village again. I am excited to be playing and worshipping again. I love it so much!
Also there’s a whole story about how my phone was stolen on the bus, but I think this is long enough as it is. That may be a story for another time…
To begin to wrap this up, thanks for reading all this if you did. You’re a trooper! I promise I’m almost done but first I wanted to share what I see as far as my job and the reason I would be moving here. What I see is a huge opportunity for growth. Ministry with these women takes time. Right now, just in one village, there are 25 women that are a part of the group Rake is working with. So far in the 4 weeks that I’ve been here we’ve been able to see 3 of them. That means the time it takes to see all 25 women and circle back to see someone again is crazy long. If another person were here to help and be able to go everyday to see these women it could make a huge impact. I also see the opportunity to begin new groups with other women. While doing ministry orientation with the gap year group, I went out to a new village that is only a few minutes walk from the base. This is the first time the base is doing any work in that village at all. When I asked, zero work is being done with the women there. Meaning there is a huge opportunity to begin building relationships there and hopefully begin to disciple some women in that village too. I see there is a huge need and a big opportunity to love these women.
I swear I’m done now, but before you go I’d love to ask for your prayers. Prayers for community. I realize that I thought that community would be a given here and in reality its not. It’s something that has to be created and cultivated. So if you could pray for wisdom in how to do that, I would truly appreciate it. Also if you would pray that I get a clear answer from God as to what He wants me to do and a softening of my heart to hear and accept what that is. And finally, pray that I can continue to improve my Spanish and begin to grow in my confidence of speaking to people.
Okay that’s it. You did it! I’m so proud of you! Thank you for caring enough to commit to reading this! I love y’all!
