{GUATEMALA LOVE}

"Therefore, as you go, disciple people in all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit . . ."  ~ Matt. 28:19

Hi all! I hope everyone is having an awesome summer! My summer has been great and flying so by fast! 

Now that the summer is almost up, get ready for this throwback and read about some of the amazing things that God did on my trip to Guatemala and also get ready to see some awesome pictures!!

To start off, I want to give you a little more background info about this mission trip. My church has partnered with a missionary in Guatemala for the past 10 years and started taking teams down there ever since the beginning. My church has grown in its love for Guatemala and what the Lord is doing there. Since 2007, my church also started a sponsorship program with a private non-Christian school and now the program has grown and expanded to our missionary's own school.

~ TEN DAYS FAR FROM HOME ~

//  D A Y  1  //

It felt so good to be back in Guatemala (as this was my second time)! Our first day was filled with touring around Antigua, learning some history, and then going to our missionary's school to get started on a couple of our planned projects.

This is one of the main Catholic Churches in Antigua, Guatemala

The arch downtown

This is a Mayan market

An outdoor street market that we walked past

The courtyard of the school and the three new picnic tables that our guys put together 

The freshly painted sky blue bathroom 

//  D A Y  2  //

Our second day there was Sunday and another fun day for the group. First on our agenda was Church, and I have to say that worshiping the Lord with strangers in another land was an experience that I know the Holy Spirit was involved in. All our hearts were focused on One, even though the language barrier kept our minds from understanding it all. It amazing me that when we are focused on the Lord, language, color, ethnic backgrounds, or disabilities cease to exist and what is left is LOVE.

The place where we went to Church (this building is a school, we went to Church in a tent behind it)

After Church, we got to go back to Antigua to have lunch and to do some souvenir shopping.

        

Also, in the main square, there are people that are selling all kinds of jewelry, toys, food, and instruments. The ones that get me are the kids that are trying to make a living by selling different things, like these two little boys below. When I see them, I can not help but ask "Why are they out here?" "Are they all alone?" "Are they forced to sell items?" All these questions I know will probably never be answered for me and I just pray that God has His hands in their little lives. Being in a country that has a high percentage of children that often have to fend for themselves is heartbreaking and I thank the missionaries that devote their lives to help and be there for these children. 

       

//  D A Y  3  //

Oh, how I was so excited for this day! for this was Monday and the start to a week with precious kiddos! 

They start their day off in a big circle to sing, dance, and just get their bodies moving together

An essential part of their day is worshiping the Lord and it was such a pleasure to worship with these kiddos. Most of these kids live in small areas with a lot of people, do not have clean water, wear worn-out clothes and shoes, and some have to walk close to an hour just to get to school. To realize all that they go through and to yet see them sing their heart out to the Lord is overwhelming. It reminds me that I could never go through anything too bad that I could not still lift my hands and eyes to my one true King.


After we were done at Light of the World school, our next stop was at the San Lucas school.
 
They were all so excited about our visit and decked out the whole school!

We did basically the same VBS program at this school, except with a wider range of students. I was on the recreational team and so I got to help with different games and basically just hang out with the students.
   

Monday was also a very emotional day, as we visited the city dump and a place called Kairos House.

What amazes me, is all the trash that we throw away and how it ends up. More than a couple football fields in length and width is a landfill full of toys we wanted so badly, plastics of all sorts, and more. Worst of all in this dump, there are real people living among the trash and making a very little living off what they can find to recycle. For most of them, this is all they know and so are stuck in this cycle of life.  

Some people have asked, "Why can't you just move these people to a better place with the tools that they need to succeed?" It is not that simple, as it is a mindset. To change the outcome of a situation, the person's mindset must be changed first. 

There is an organization in Guatemala City, right out side of the dump, that walks along side these people. Their goal is to empower the people to make significant changes in their lives, their communities, and their nation. I would highly recommend you to check them out and to just pray over what they are doing. Check out Potter's House by clicking on the link. http://pottershouse.org.gt/

To tell you about Casa Kairos is to share with you just how God provides, how His mercy and grace resides in this house, and how His LOVE is just surrounding His children. Kairos is the Greek word for God's timing and for that to be the name of this house is so touching, as this place is sorta like a Ronald McDonald house. As in Guatemala when people are getting treated in a hospital, they cannot stay there and so a couple seeking God for guidance (after going through a similar experience) decided to open a house where families could stay while member(s) are getting treatment.

An abundance of HOPE, GRACE, FAITH, and LOVE radiates through this home and to meet people who fully place their trust in God's hands, is inspiring. These people are INSPIRING, ENCOURAGING, OVERCOMERS, and ROLE-MODELS. 

I met this little boy, named Cami, and his mom at Casa Kairos. He was so adorable with new shoes on his feet, a panda bear in his lap, and one of the biggest smiles stretched across his face. His mom was telling us how there is a defect in his legs that keeps them from bending and it was so heartwarming and touching to see how much his mom appreciated and gave thanks to the Lord for the smallest things. It just opened my eyes to see them keep a smile with all they have gone through.

http://www.cmmhost.com/kairosguatemala/home/

//  D A Y  4  //

This was the classroom I was assigned to and I have to say that I just love these kiddos! <3
Oh and sorry for the blurry picture

As I mentioned at the beginning of this blog post (which probably feels like miles away :D), our Church started a sponsorship program for children in both of the school that we visit. With that program, once a year all the sponsors put together a packed zip-lock bag for their child/children and then the mission team delivers them. This time around I had more of a privilege to be a part of this area and to really see the impact their American families have on them. 

The peace sign is universal!

This year the kids were surprised with the addition of new shoes!

     

//  D A Y  5  //

Day 5 was another day having fun at both schools and so here are a few photos:)

We also got to hand out friendship bracelets to everyone and toothbrush sets to the kids at LOTW!

    

      

After we were done for the day at the schools, it was time to do some house visits. House visits are for the people who came that had a sponsor child. They are able to pack extra things for the whole family and then go visit and spend time with the family at their house. The extra people (like me) get to go with of course! :D

On our way to one of our visits

//  D A Y  6  //

Well, the four days spent at the school were amazing and I could have stayed there forever, but this day was our final day and goodbyes had to be said :( Perhaps maybe not total goodbyes, as I know that our paths will cross again in some way.

   

The kids even put on a little play for us. It was the story of Joseph. 

  

Can I just take them all home???

// D A Y S  7  &  8  //

Our last two days in Guatemala were kinda like our regroup days. We got to go to a lake and just have fun together and enjoy our last days in our home FAR from home. 

The End :)

WOW! If you are reading this right now, I want to thank you, thank you for sticking with this very long blog post!! <3 <3 It means a lot to me when people take time to read my posts and I appreciate all of you!!

This post took me a while to write and I am glad that I have finally finished it so that I could share with you guys a little of what I experienced.

If you ever have the opportunity to go on a mission trip, I would totally recommend it!! God will use your life in incredible ways and He will also change it by using the people you thought you would change. Trust me! It is definitely WORTH IT!!

Thank you all again!!!

Blessings,

Izzy<3

P.S. I took most of these pictures, but some were taken by other team members.