C’mon Vamanos!
It really is hard to believe that
this very short week is coming to an end.
I am so excited to see my family tomorrow, and am sure I am speaking for
all of us when I say we miss you!!
At the same time, it is difficult to be leaving this beautiful country
and the people here that we have connected with and come to love. Everyone we have come in contact with
has been open and welcoming and willing to serve alongside us. This is a very special place and I do
hope I will be able to come back again, God willing.
Today,
we split into two groups for the morning.
Six guys went back to Membrillal early to work on the roof and the rest
of us stayed back to sleep in (a little), have breakfast and then hit the
streets in San Lucas. I carried a
backpack with with extra invites and gospel tracts. Everyone had them in hand and we covered some major ground
and handed out every one we had.
It is amazing how much more receptive the people are here, and as we walked
back by, we would see people reading it on the spot.
The
guys got back and we all had lunch together and then we headed out for a day in
Antigua. Antigua is a beautiful
town in the shadow of a volcano, about a half an hour away, down a paved road
at about an 18% grade. We had the
day to spend walking around, visiting the marketplace and buying gifts and
things to remember Guatemala. It
was a shock to say the least to go from San Lucas and Membrillal to a wealthier
tourist community. After yesterday,
our hearts were still raw and very full.
Afterwards,
we went to Santo Domingo, a five star restaurant and resort, built in an old
monastery from the late 1600’s.
The food was delicious, and it was wonderful to share a meal together
with our group, Pastor Tono and his family, Maria Jose and her sister, Myrna,
who cooked for us all week, and George, who painstakingly drove us around these
chaotic streets. What a wonderful
way to treat them and honor them and bring our weak to a close. Even though I’m sure the poverty that
was witnessed this week crossed each of our minds, today was a day of contrasts
and an experience that was very valuable to see Guatemala in all it’s beauty
and as a whole.
Earlier
today in the market, an old man shared the gospel with Corby, Drayk and I in
very broken English. He told us
that his home is in heaven as well as here. As we talked with him, Corby shared that we were able to work
on building a church in Membrillal.
He said that there are two ways to share the gospel. To speak and with our hands. He reminded me that we have much to
learn from the people here and that God will speak to us in ways we aren’t
expecting.
See you soon!
Angie
1 Peter 1:3-9
All
week you have read the thoughts and words of everyone on this trip. It has
truly been a profound blessing on so many levels. The sentiments mentioned in
the blog echo my own. As I reflect on the week I’m still wrestling with my
emotions and observations and I will leave Guatemala processing how I will use
this experience to further His Kingdom.
On June 3, we arrived with two major objectives: build a
stove in El Zapote and build a roof for the church in Membrillal. We
accomplished the first on the first day and we will be departing having left
the roof largely completed but with more work to do. As I think about the work
we are to do as part of our walk, I think of James 1:27 “…to care for the
orphans and widows in their misfortune…” Nowhere in this passage is it said
that this work will be completed here on earth. It is an unconditional
commandment. Even if we had completed the roof, there is still work to do.
There are more classrooms to build, more funding to provide for students and
more outreach into the whole community.
Iglesia Galilea set out on an ambitious and worthy endeavor
to serve many communities here in Guatemala and we are blessed to be part of
that effort furthering His Kingdom. However, we know that there are opportunities
to serve in many different places and in different ways without traveling to
Central American to find those who need the gospel, who need to know God’s love
and plan for their life, and to know that there is eternal life through His
son, Jesus Christ. This can be done in an infinite number of ways even in Salt
Lake City.
Please be encouraged by the work of this team and the
leadership of our church to have the courage to plant new churches and support
other churches who are reaching out, even in faraway places like San Lucas
Sacatepequez. I encourage you to find your opportunity to serve in a way to
glorify God through the service of others.
The work is never completed. To be continued….
Steve Sala
Ephesians 2:8-9
This week God reminded me of his love for the kids of the
world. Being in Membrillal all week and really getting to know a lot of the
kids through our VBS really impacted me. To look in the eyes of these kids is a
special thing. The kids at this school demonstrate the grace of God that lifts
us up out of the world and places us within the body of Christ. Because of the
vision of Iglesia Galilea these kids get to go to school, these kids get to
hear the Gospel, and these kids get to learn the Word of God. God’s love for
these kids reminds me of his love for each and everyone one of us that claim
the name of Christ.
Building the roof of the church was intense. The team worked
really hard, overcame many obstacles, and avoided injury by God’s grace. We
were reminded of the importance of building this church as Rudy poured his
heart out to us one night telling us his story about coming to Christ. Without
Iglesia Galilea Rudy would not have heard the Gospel. For him this project
means that many more people will find Jesus because this church will faithfully
proclaim the Gospel.
I am so proud of this team for all the street evangelism we
did. We handed out several thousand invite cards to the various locations of
Igelsia Galilea and roughly 1800 tracts in Spanish. Unlike in the US, it was
joy to see store owners, people on the street, and others that we handed tracts
intensely read them and re-read them. It was a highlight of the trip to hear
that Igelsia had some visitors on Sunday because of our efforts.
Finally, today in Antigua I took a few minutes to myself.
After buying several things for my family in the market, I wandered to the
large catholic church in town. I prayed for a while and mused on the week.
There was a wedding going on in the church, I stayed and watched. The music was
great, the wedding was beautiful. I thought about the future and the wedding
feast of the Lamb, I though of my own wedding day with my wife 14 years ago,
and I praised God for all of his faithfulness in my life. After praying a older
Guatemala man sat in the pew beside me. I asked him for the time and then we
talked for 45 minutes. We talked about the Gospel, the centrality of Christ,
life, and took a picture together.
This has been an amazing week. God is faithful. I pray that
God will give me many more days in the nations proclaiming his Gospel.
Jared Jenkins
Such a great update! Praying for safe travels home!
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