Across the Street and Down the Road...

Early workday and VBS

By Josh

            Today called for an early morning start. We set our alarms to 6:30am so that we could get an early start on the construction of the church. The old guys rolled out of bed earlier than that but my cabin rolled out of bed at 6:45.  After breakfast Corby and I continued to finish the welding on the new gates for the church. Corby and I worked hard and fast because the welding, while fun was beginning to drive us crazy! The welding was finally coming to an end and we were actually looking forward to laying more blocks for the church. The morning seemed to fly by on the construction site. By the end of the morning we had almost finished laying the last blocks that we had set out to accomplish by the end of this week. Lunch was next and we were so hungry from the early morning start. The food here has been absolutely incredible. Maria Jose and Mirna are incredible cooks. Every meal has been tastier than the last. After lunch it was time to go to Membrillal to do VBS. As the team was loading into the vehicles you could tell everyone was very excited and eager to see what God had in store for us and the kids. On the way from San Lucus to Membrial the poverty became more pronounced. Once we arrived at the church it was go time. We showed up and within 5 minutes it was VBS time! Carter, Will, and myself were in charge of games. I was especially thankful to have Will since he knew some Spanish and Carter as always was really helpful.  We basically played two games that were pretty epic. The first game we played was a game called vlocker ball which is a mix between soccer and volley ball. The kids went crazy over the game.  However when we tried to play the same game with the younger kids we could tell quickly that it was a bad idea. The game pretty much turned into 20 children piling on top of one kid. One kid went down so hard that I could actually hear his head hit the cement. Luckily kids are tougher here in Guatemala than in the states. He didn’t cry but just got back up and rubbed the back of his head and played some more.   After this we quickly nixed that game and played musical chairs the rest of the time.  As we got back from VBS it was about 3:30 so we all decided it would be fun to go explore the neighborhood a little bit. As we were walking along I saw a barber shop. This was the perfect opportunity to experience a hair cut in Guatemala and my hair was looking like one of the street dogs here. The hair cut was amazing and it only cost 8 Qs (about $1) Over all the day was amazing and it has been a ton of fun building relationships with the team. Its been really cool to see how God has used everyone.

Kenzie

What a joy it is to be back here in Guatemala serving alongside our friends at Iglesia Galilea! It has been an eventful week, and I have been incredibly blessed by the unity of our team and by how incredibly hard everyone has worked. What has impressed me most about this team is the servant’s heart each person has and the love they all have for each other and for the people here in Guatemala. It has also been an honor to work with God’s faithful and hard-working servants Tono, Rudy, Lester, and many others of Iglesia Galilea, and to enjoy the delicious food served by our gracious hosts Maria Jose and Mirna.

Honestly, today was the most challenging day of the trip so far for me due to the physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion from the work done this week so far. I can’t speak for everyone, but suspect that others on the team felt the same. However, by God’s grace and strength we were all able to get up early and get going for another successful day of construction on the church and our first day of VBS. It is amazing to see how much progress we have made on the building in just the past few days. Everyone has really given their all and then some to get the job done. It is a blessing to get to see the fruit of our labor so far, and we are looking forward to seeing how this new church building will bless Iglesia Galilea and the people of San Lucas.

We had the pleasure of doing VBS with the kids at the school in Membrillal in the afternoon, which I have personally been looking forward to. And what a joy it was to hold part of VBS under the roof that we as a team had the pleasure of putting up last year! We all enjoyed worshipping with the kids, and they seemed to have fun with the activities we had planned. And just like our trip has been so far, every member of our team worked seamlessly together to pull it all off. I personally had a very special moment during VBS today as I got to meet the boy at the school that I have had the privilege of sponsoring at the school (all of the kids are supported by sponsors). I also learned that the mothers of the kids who go to the school are on a rotation to help clean at the school, and it just so happened that the mother of the boy I sponsor was on rotation today, so I got to meet her as well! What a blessing it is to witness first hand how children and families are blessed by the ministry of Iglesia Galilea and their partners. After VBS, some of the team got to hang out and explore San Lucas, grab some good Guatemalan coffee, and pick up some of the now famous Picamas hot sauce.

This week has been a good reminder of the many ways in which we can glorify God and show Christ’s love to others. Whether laying bricks, shoveling dirt, mixing mortar, equipping pastors to reach Mormons, or sharing the love of God with children, our team has done so unto the Lord and with all of their hearts, and I hope this is a lesson we are able to take home with us. Thanks again to our family, friends, and Risen Life Church for your prayers and support. We wouldn’t be here without you! Please continue to pray for our team the next few days as we continue construction, have another day of VBS, and get ready to head home.