It is 8 pm on a rainy Tuesday night in Santa Cruz, Guatemala. As the rain falls on the cobble stone streets of this town nestled almost 7,000 feet above sea level in the mountains of Central America, I am sitting in a very western style cafe named, Regi. The espresso sitting on my right, in order to warrant internet access, will most certainly keep me up all night, which is exactly the time I will need to write about what has happened in these last few weeks.
On the evening of July 7th S squad arrived at Agape International Ministries, here in Guatemala. Agape has a partnership with the local hospital in Santa Cruz, so they are within the hospital compound. We have been living out of our tents for the last few weeks and have access to hot water for showers and clean bottled water. We even have a facility to cook our own meals! Since the entire squad is all together this month, we have been taking turns cooking dinner and breakfast for each other.
Having our entire squad together for the first month is a relatively new thing for the World Race, but I believe it has helped us grow closer together as a squad and created a safe environment for individuals to receive healing from past hurts. During the first week of the month we were blessed to have 24 hour access to our squad leaders, squad mentors, and our wonderful coaches, Tim and Lisa. These men and women of God have given us such a depth of knowledge and wisdom to take with us this year. They have poured out so much of their time and love to make sure we are fully equipped with knowledge and resources.
Team Ergaleio has been placed with pastor David Lopez this month. Pastor David runs a school in town that educates the children from an orphanage called My Father's House. During the first two weeks of ministry we would come into the school around 11 in the morning and would sing worship songs with the kids, play games, and teach a bible lesson. The language barrier has made interaction a bit more challenging, but Jacelyn has been such a blessing and has stepped up to help translate and teach these kids with such a passion for them.
After the kids left school, we would do manual labor to improve the school building. We helped to set a concrete pillar for the water tank, built a new office for pastor David, plastered the cinder block walls, and started painting a sign for the front of the school. Our service has changed in the last few days and we are now working with Pastor Victor who has just recently acquired land to build a new church. We are currently leveling off the land so that they can lay the concrete foundation.
The most important thing to remember in Guatemala is that relationships come first. The generosity of Pastor Lopez and his family has not only been a physical blessing to our team (Pastor David's wife Loli, cooks us lunch every week day), but also a spiritual one. I have been humbled by their humility, strengthened through their encouragement, and welcomed in their love. Watching the way this family serves us and their community in the name of Jesus sets a tangible and raw example of how we are to love and serve others.
There is so much to write about and only so much time in which to do it. Please pray for my team and I as we finish up here in Guatemala this next week. Please pray for faithfulness in our ministry and a servant's heart as it becomes easier for our minds to wander as we prepare for Honduras.
