Day 10 | Return to Guatemala City

Betty's place was the stage for our last meal in San Pedro. We ate our delicious breakfast while contemplating a question posed us by Mr. Henriques. For the past couple of days we had been talking about the will of God. This morning the question was asked, "Is there any wiggle room in the will of God?" Of course, this ignited some discussion among the group. I like questions that make me think. I enjoy the challenge of finding a passage or principle in the Word of God on which I can base my opinion. Then I know what I believe and why I believe it.

After breakfast we headed across town to the Baptist church where we would be ministering that morning. A few minutes before service started, our group traipsed up the spiral staircase to the top of the tower. Several of us kicked ourselves for having not brought our cameras that day as we were struck by the panorama of color. We almost had to be dragged back down into the church away from the beautiful view.

As the rest of the church sang in Spanish our group joyfully belted out the words to the hymns in English if we happened to have them memorized. Even though I knew many of them, sometimes the songs were hard to recognize when sung in Spanish. I kept having to ask Kristi which song they were singing! At one point they even sang the Battle Hymn of the Republic. I had always considered that an American patriotic song, so it was awesome to sing it purely as a battle hymn of God's kingdom. The singing lasted for an hour before the service was handed over to Mr. Henriques for the message. Then the rest of our group left for the children's program where Luke and Co. presented 'The Muddy Glove' story. Bethany did an awesome job in her debut as the 'Mud Girl' even thought she still wasn't feeling 100%.

Service being over, we jumped back into our beloved truck and sang gospel songs all the way back to the hotel - well, almost all the way back. In the center of town we met a parade and after a few minutes of deliberation we finally decided to just hoof it and see if we couldn't beat our own ride back to the hotel. Beat it we most certainly did. Quickly we grabbed our belongings and made our way to the dock for our boat ride back across Lake Atitlan.

This boat ride was much different from the first. Everyone was awake, for one thing. The sun was shining with all it's might so Jerry and Nomeish decided to take advantage of the fact and pretend to nap on the bow. For some reason Karen kept getting splashed, but I think everyone else managed to stay relatively dry.

Back at the missionary camp compound we had to say our goodbyes to Esdras and Sinai. They ran to catch their bus as we began our journey back to Guatemala City in the beloved Japanese 15-passenger van. For some reason the return trip was not nearly as stressful. Construction and clouds had a cleared a bit - and I was not sitting in the front seat, closest to oncoming traffic.

On our last evening in Guatemala we enjoyed the company of Pilo and Hosanna at the Henriques' home. Over dinner Pilo shared his testimony with a few of us describing how God had worked in his life to bring him to that point. Hearing his story strengthened my faith in our ever-faithful, omniscient God.

Our final speaker verbally walked us through the impact the past ten days had on each of our lives. After our debriefing, most of us went to our rooms to pack. As I passed Mr. Henriques' office a couple hours later, Luke asked me to round up everyone I could find and pray that our flights would work out the next day. A hurricane was threatening the coast of Florida, so our flight from Guatemala City to Miami might have to be cancelled. If that happened we would all miss our connecting flight and our flights home the next day. About ten of our number gathered in the living room and discussed our options and finally brought the situation before our heavenly Father.

After talking with the airline, Luke was able to exchange two of the tickets for a flight that was departing about two hours earlier and flew into Dallas, rather than Miami. Because of extenuating circumstances, Jerry and I were given those tickets. I was so grateful, as I crawled out of bed at 4:30 AM the next morning, that the next day I would be on my way home to Oregon. It had been a good trip, but I was ready to see my family!

I'm so grateful that God allowed me to be part of this first VOICE mission. He has stretched and grown me so much through it. He has shown me His power and just a few more reasons why He is so eager to save mankind. He has shown me that He is at work in Guatemala.

Celia Anderson

Let's see,'How did I see Jesus in Guatemala?'

I saw Jesus in the gorgeous creation, the missionaries who dedicated their lives to Christ, the children that had hope even though they grew up in "the dump," the family who fed us for 3 days with such a loving spirit, the pastor who lived what he preached by persevering after the death of his wife and child, and in the unity of all the many believers united to serve the Lord. I saw Him in a prison as a pastor chose to serve the Lord in stead of grow bitter. I saw Jesus working through awesome things in all different ways. And I also saw Him in me. I saw Him help me do things I didn't think I could.

For me Guatemala was an opportunity to see missionaries in action and be able to help and give to them. It was an awesome chance to see how God was working in a country with so many different problems. I'm so glad God brought me there.

Anna Lukachick

Day 11 | The End

Seeing as the last day of this trip has fallen to me to blog, it seems appropriate to write about thoughts from the past two weeks rather than what we did today. As much as you all must like us, I’m not sure you’d be interested to hear how we frittered away our time on the airplane!

So what DID happen on this trip? Where did I see Jesus, and what is He doing? In numerous places, through so many people. Perhaps most of all though, through the missionaries who served and shared their stories with us. Ideally, all Christians work together in perfect harmony and love, for “by this the world will know you, that you love one another.” But of course we all know that things do not always work this way. Too many church splits and hard feelings have left me cynical that this actually works with fallen people.
These missionaries in Guatemala are human and certainly have their misunderstandings and clashes too. But I was blown away by how in spite of it all they can maintain a love for each other and the ministry while staying real and good-humored. Watching how they respected one other and spoke highly of each others’ work, I realized that it IS possible for Christians from differing backgrounds to work together for God’s kingdom.

In one word, this trip was refreshing. I was reminded of how much God loves people, and how big His heart is towards them.

As we concluded this trip with an indecently late dinner at TGI Fridays, Luke challenged us to break down the wall separating our ‘spiritual’ and ‘secular’ lives. Just like on the trip, everyday situations can and do translate into a spiritual reality. I know that all of us expanded our views of God, His people, and His work during this time in Guatemala. Tomorrow we will all go very separate ways back to “normal life,” but God will continue using this trip in our lives.

Rebecca Hung

Day 9 | Bethany Returns

My Thursday morning started out a little differently than everyone else’s. The team had left to go visit the sick and elderly and I was banned to the hotel to “recover” from whatever “Cyclops, stomach eating” disease I had . I awoke suddenly to find a lady hovering over me. I screamed, she screamed… it was quite the picture. The very Guatemalan hotel maid, (whom I didn’t hear ENTER) had begun cleaning my room and we both didn’t realize the other person was present until that very moment. After our blood pressure returned to normal, she grunted and gestured indicating she was glad I wasn’t DEAD :-)! I completed our happy enter counter by giving her some (Kristi’s :-)) very American bubble gum that was sitting on my bedside table that I saw her looking at with longing eyes. Wow! What an interesting wake-up call. Can I go back to sleep now?

Hours later as I hobbled back from the bathroom for what seemed like the hundredth time, I wonder why God had allowed me to get sick. Why now? Why in Guatemala? This was my second day of doing “nothing”… and I was tired of it. I stepped outside and while drawing in breath I gasped at what I saw and heard; a child getting beaten by what I only assume was the mother. My insides churned (even more than they already currently were), and I began to chasten myself for the “being sick” pity party. I was determined from that moment forward to NOT allow the devil ANY room to attack. It couldn’t have been 5 minutes after this decision that a Swedish man plopped down next to my hammock and began bombarding me with questions about who I was and what I was doing in Guatemala. I swiftly prayed for wisdom in speaking to this man (I have 6 brothers that knew would tan my hide if I wasn’t careful). I was able to share about the purpose of our trip and what brought all of us (from all over) to Guatemala. I’m not sure how interested he was in spiritual things; (it seemed like he might have just been bored and wanting to talk) but I feel like God gave me an opportunity and a seed was planted.

After lunch, the team returned (with positive feedback about how God had worked that morning) and we all had a very relaxing afternoon sipping lemonade and swinging in hammocks! :-) sounds like the life huh? After a couple lively games of slap jack, a nap and some medicine.. I was ready to face the world! We went back to the children’s rally for our second night (my first) with them. Everything was new and exciting for me after missing it the night before. I felt a little helpless after nearly falling over after climbing a couple flights of stairs (I was extremely weak from not eating and LOSING all nutrients ), but was never the less happy to be there! Our evening was completed by a late (Chinese style) dinner at a restaurant that had been reserved for us. On the third floor of a building served by a sweet lady and her sons. Despite being scared to eat anything for fear of the results :-) it was a very enjoyable evening (especially after it started raining! Ah! It was so romantic!). Finally we piled into our fancy covered wagon like a bunch of stow-always and headed back to the hotel. The rain started coming down in force giving the phrase “raining cats and dogs” a new meaning. We huddled in our “wagon” and sang campfire songs as we waited for the downpour to lessen. Finally we all made a mad dash, only to find a RIVER of slush (water and garage) to wade through to make it back. I closed my eyes took a deep breath and just ran! I don’t even want to KNOW some of the things I touched walking through that mess! Ah! Finally safely back in our room! Cleaned off in the only cold water, spider and scorpion infested shower, and hop into bed for a good night’s rest!?!?!

Can’t wait to see what tomorrow holds. :-)

Bethany Cook

Day 8 | Rain and the Ride

I wish you could been with us as we hoisted our bags onto our shoulders and walked down to the dock this morning. I wish you could have enjoyed the chilly morning with us as we climbed on the boat at the ungodly hour of 6:00 am. I wish you could have seen beautiful Lake Atitlan (similar in size to that of the sea of Galilee) surrounded by majestic volcanoes and lush green landscapes. I wish you could have joined in the 40ish minute speedboat ride across the lake to Matteson Ranch. It was beautiful, fast and fun! I enjoyed every minute of it, especially when we made it across the entire lake without Bethany (my very sick sister who was the first to fall to the dreaded “Foreign Travel Sickness”) puking all over me.

I wish you could have joined us because it was a great day. One of those “live-over” days you want to remember. We arrived at the ranch via a short hike through a grove of coffee trees to a beautifully prepared breakfast and where given instructions for the day: hiking and an horseback trail ride.

Argh! Hiking? Did anyone happen to look at that HUGE volcano they told me we were hiking up? That thing was camassive and though my brother may have calves that churn like pistons when hiking, mine certainly don’t! But, I haven’t been running 3 miles every day for nothing, so I gamely set out with the rest of Group 2 and hike I did. Drum roll please: Kristi Cook is a hiker! Our guide, Juan and six of the ranch’s 23 dogs led the way and hacked his way through the overgrown brush so we could proceed up the very steep, seldom used path. We fought off mountain lions and rattlesnakes… ok, not really, but we did have to get a bug out of Anna’s ear, pull out a few splinters (also Anna’s) and devise a plan to get water off of “BGL” (Big Green Leaves) in case we got stuck there for weeks without rescue. “Always be prepared” that’s what I always say! :-)

Group 1 began with a trail ride. From their reports, their ride was great fun. Naomi dressed perfectly in her cowboy boots, huge belt buckle and cowboy hat (which probably took 10lbs of her limited luggage space) was the advanced cowgirl among us and rode “Zeus” the ranch’s stallion. From what I hear, he was quite a handful and kept Naomi busy and sufficiently out of trouble during the ride.

Then we swapped. Group 2’s turn on the horses. I did not ride Zeus.

Everything was going just fine. Uneventful. As a trail ride should be. Then… well… did we mention that this was Guatemala’s rainy season? Yup, you guessed it, we got DRENCHED! Our tranquil trail ride turned into quite an adventure as we rode the 45 minutes back through very wet corn and coffee fields, ravines and slippery rocky mountain paths! Though it was questionable at times, we all made it back in one piece, looking like drowned rates. Turns out the hiking Group 1 got caught in the rain too and we met them on the road about a ¼ mile from the ranch.

The Matteson’s took great care of us and found us all quite a hodge-podge of dry clothes. DRY being the key adjective, though Jerry’s shorts were something to behold. They put our soaking wet clothes into the dryer with the hopes of having them dry by the time we were done with lunch. No luck, but it was a kind attempt. After filling our bellies with an exquisite steak dinner, we changed back into our wet clothes and shoes for the boat ride to San Pedro and our new lodging for the weekend. It’s called Hotelito El Amanecer – which means Day Break Hotel! It’s a cozy little place on the edge of Lake Atitlan. My room even has a hammock outside my front door which I made use of immediately after changing into dry clothes.

The rest of the group showered and changed and headed out for a service at Getsemani Baptist Church. Luke’s team led a children’s program using the story of the Muddy Glove. Beth and I stayed back in hopes that a little extra rest will help her get over the dreaded sickness.

All in all, I wish you could have experienced today with us. I wish you could see Guatemala and what we are seeing. I wish you could meet the missionaries and local believers that we have the privilege of meeting. I have been blessed by the way they are pouring out their lives for the people here and by the way God is at work in this country. I am learning so much. I wouldn’t be anywhere else!

Kristi Cook

Day 7 | Out of the city

Today started bright and early with coffee cake breakfast at 6:00 am, an hour earlier than usual. Today, we traveled to Lake Atitlan, a lake we’d seen only in paintings and wall murals. We piled our duffels on the top of the van, and then piled ourselves into the van, every little seat filled. I can’t say anything about the first hour of the trip because I was sleeping, but I’m sure it was wonderful. I awoke some time later because the van was bouncing in strange ways. We were definitely in Guatemala City no longer, but in the country with corn stalks on either side and narrow dirt roads that are the antonym of flat. It was quite the experience.

But there was more to come…

We got on the curvy mountainous roads which happened to be under construction. Then for a while, there was a fog that limited vision, and always were there speed bumps and buses that insisted on passing us and spouting black smoke in our faces (well, in the van’s face). But Bob did an amazing job navigating, driving very safely, and maintaining patience in difficult driving situations. It was pretty great tearing down those Guatemalan roads. We were all glad we weren’t behind the wheel.

We got to Chichicastenango and visited a mystic Catholic cathedral. Their religion is one of syncretism. (Look it up.) It was comparatively bare cathedral, but had candles and flower petals on metal slabs down the center aisle. A man kneeled before the first slab (each slab representing some aspect of nature and life) muttering prayers and lighting candles. It was darker and more oppressive than usual Roman Catholicism.

The cathedral is in the middle of a market offering a variety of colorful merchandise. We shopped here for a while, practicing our bargaining skills and finding nifty souvenirs to bring home. It’s kind of like the Ladies’ Market in Hong Kong, except with more aggressive merchants. I decided I should quit asking how much something was in Spanish (Cuantos Es) since I couldn’t understand their Spanish reply. (What’s vientesinco??) Some kids tried to charge me 5 quetzales for taking their picture, but I quickly (and a bit sheepishly) ducked away.

We partook of our delicious bagged lunches on the side of the road and shared tracts and cookies with some eager local children, a super-eager grandmother, and a skinny dog. (No tracts for the dog.)

After more incredible driving by Bob, we made it to Panajachel where our lodging lies by Lake Atitlan. A little more shopping, a tasty dinner, evening team discussion & sharing, and now we’re all turning in for the night, ready for another early morning tomorrow.

God has been teaching each of us different things on this trip. Please pray that we would keep our focus on Him whether we are teaching kids, shopping, traveling, or mingling with locals. Please also pray for the health and safety of the team, as some of us are feeling under the weather. Thank you!

Tune in tomorrow to hear about our horse-riding adventures….

Rachel Hung

Day 6 | We go to prison

The sight that opened before me as I walked through the gate was not one I expected. From the outside, high fences topped with row upon row of barbed wire, guards with machine guns, men peering through barred windows...this is what I expected, and these things I did see...but once inside the prison called Pavon all expectations fled.

The interior of Guatemala City's prison was unlike anything I've seen...stalls selling food, men making hammocks and purses, basketball courts, actual streets, men everywhere-just milling around...am I really in jail? One glance at the razor wire and towering fences told me yes, but the life led within was unique to what I thought of as "an inmates life".

We made our way though the prison complex toward a building that was bursting with sound. Joyous singing spilled out of every door and window letting the rest of the world know without a doubt that this was the house of God, and that even here in the center of hopelessness, there were followers of Christ...who IS hope.
Inside the building there was gathered a core group of convicts; men in a physical prison whose spirits had been set free through the love and grace of Jesus Christ. Their faces turned upwards, their hands raised- lifting their voices to their Savior...a ray of light in a dark place.

The words of their Pastor echo in my mind, spoken in sweet broken English: "Remember...how blessed you are."

To be ministered to in a prison church was not expected...but it was incredible. These men know God. They know Him in a way I never may- they have such a real appreciation for Jesus' saving power. Their love is real, their faith is real, their thankfulness is real.

"Remember how blessed you are."

I was so blessed to meet these dear brothers. Another aspect of God revealed to me today--I saw God, I MET God today...in Prison.

Que la Gloria sea para Dios

(I could continue to write about what we did today...lunch, shopping, our evening session...all of which was amazing, fun, and a learning experience...but really, this is what is in my heart. This is how I saw God today...how is He showing Himself to you?)

Nomes Kallberg