Short Mission Trip: Long Blog Post

2024 February; Guatemala Trip

Church For All Nations

There are so many tidbits I could add to this commentary of our trip, so many little details, some of which belong to their own story tellers. But if you make it through to the end, you’ll agree, it’s already too long.

I do want to mention the names of those who journeyed with me, starting with the world’s best roommate, Normandy! Our incredible leaders are Tommy and Jade. We couldn’t have asked for better leadership. They did so much more than just babysit the rest of us. They are true leaders in every sense of the word.

In no particular order, we have Lisa and JR, Judy, Kylie, Alicia, John, another Lisa, Brittany, Greg, Kendra, Jim, Kevin and Natalie, Noelle and Olivia. They created an awesome team to travel and become friends with.

Throughout this blog post, I’ve shared many pictures, some may have been taken from one of my teammates, they're all mixed together in my files. From scenery to children to project lists at the orphanage. Believe me, I took more than I feel at liberty to share here.

  

 

Friday morning, February 16, 2024:

We got to the airport in plenty of time for the 4am call of duty. I left my phone in the car, so Dave had to circle back around to give it to me.

It took quite a while to get checked in. Going through security was easy. But it was already time to board when we got to our gate.

The flight was a bit bumpy at times, but only took about an hour and a half to get to Dallas. We didn't even have an hour on the ground there before boarding the flight to Guatemala. Expectation and excitement abound and exudes from all of us.

All of the announcements on this flight are spoken in English and Spanish.
This is supposed to be about a 3-hour flight. We lifted off at 10:50 Texas time (CT).
We'll live in central time during our stay in Guatemala.

 
I wish our group was sitting together so we could all get to know each other better. Alas. I'm next to strangers on this flight.
I was fortunate enough to get the aisle seat on the first flight. Seat 24A - window seat this time, I got some great pictures. Thirteen minutes off the ground and we're completely in the clouds already.

Arriving at the Guatemala City airport, I took a few pictures, but I didn't get one of the huge sink-hole in the middle of a neighborhood.

It took a while to get out of the airport. Most of us needed to stop at the restrooms. I don't know what might be on the wall near the men's run, but outside the women's room is a carving in the wall of a naked woman, quite prominent and impressive.

It's quite warm here.

The drive away from the airport took us through the craziest traffic! No lanes! Motorcycle drivers weave in and out of traffic taking their lives into their own hands.
Thank God for air conditioning in the van we rode in!
We traveled in two vans while our luggage came along in the back of a pick-up truck.
The drive was actually fun, though.

There's barbed wire at the top of garages and the houses on top of them, like we have at the top of prison fences, twisted around in gnarly circles and there’s broken glass cemented into the top edges of buildings, so people won't climb up to break into the houses.

They have some incredibly beautiful trees here!
I was told that most of Guatemala is a jungle, but I haven't seen that yet. In front of the mountains, it looks foggy or smokey, kind of like the Smokey Mountains.

Because of traffic on a Friday afternoon, it took longer than planned to get from the airport to the hotel.
Thank God for an air-conditioned van! Did I already mention that?

A van carrying other missionaries we met on the second flight broke down on this insanely busy road. I don't even know how help got to them.

Hispanic chatter floats through the van, only four of us can understand it. Some of the signs are easier to figure out than I would've thought.

Next trip I'll grab a window seat so I can take some decent pictures.

Fear check: none!

I had a 6" Subway sub at the Dallas Airport and munched on just a few crackers, but surprisingly, I'm not hungry at all.

Goods are sold along the road as people market their wares dangerously close to the crazy traffic.

We drove through mountains most of the way.
Antigua is a tourist town and so is San Lucas so more signs are in English. There are a LOT of American companies represented here! Papa John's, Dominoes, Taco Bell, McDonald's, Shell stations, Circle Ks, motor oil companies, to name a few.

I couldn't wait to get a picture of a banana tree in its natural habitat, (but that never happened).
There are so many gorgeous trees and flowers along our drive.

“Alto” is written on their stop signs, not that they heed them.

The El Fuego (this one spews fire) and Agua (spews water) volcanoes are both active and putting on a show today.
So many things to snatch pictures of, including so many beautiful doors. There are bars on nearly every window, some are quite ornate, others are basic security bars.

We arrived at the hotel four hours after leaving the airport. At first, I didn’t even see a hotel, then I didn't know what to make of it. We walked through some big, beautiful doors in the continuous wall that lines the city block, and down an alley to get to it. I'm guessing it was a house at one time. It's clean and laid out like no other building I’ve ever been in. Normandy and I are sharing a room and have our own beds. We'll fall asleep fast tonight!

There's a GORGEOUS roof top terrace! I wish I could sleep up there! The views are breathtaking. There’s so much to see from up there, magnificent ruins and a huge Catholic church, a shopping center and mountains and volcanos.

Dinner Friday Night:

We walked cobblestone streets a short distance to a restaurant, it was a very nice place, offering American foods at a great price. All meals are included in this trip, which is very helpful. I had fettuccine with seafood in it. I couldn't even eat it all. There were fountains in every dining area. There were people in costume, I presume for entertainment purposes. Plants are hanging from ceilings and roof tops, there are a lot of statues everywhere.

It was dark by the time we walked back to the hotel. But not a scary kind of dark. A peaceful, chilly dark.

We met briefly once we got back to the hotel to discuss plans for tomorrow. I showered and we got our clothes and bags ready for a busy Saturday. Breakfast at 6am! Yikes. Time for sleep.

Saturday morning:

Breakfast at 6am, scrambled eggs and a gray paste, which turned out to be beans, some fried plantains, coffee and orange juice.

A long bus ride to the Land of Hope for ministry. This place was described to me as Casa Angelina in her infancy, but no – they’re completely different. Land of Hope is just getting off the ground, and they have a long way to go, but they seem to be aiming in a slightly different direction. They gave us bags and T-shirts (and water) last night to use for the day we spent with them.

It's hard to take pictures on the van rides, it's bumpy and fast. Although I got some good pictures of a smoking volcano.

There’s a lot of trash along the roads and occasionally, some very strong smells. The ministry is next to a dump that is continuously burning. We'll be painting, gardening, and doing some electrical work. Tommy prepared us for the poverty we will see.

We drove past a Bimbo plant, but I couldn't get a picture in time. For those reading this that don’t know, my dad’s nickname was Bimbo, so the company name always stands out to me.

We stopped at a gas station that employed an armed guard, yes, I discreetly got a picture of him. We went to the bathroom there and a few people purchased drinks or snacks. Thank God it was clean, and the restrooms had paper (which cannot be flushed)!   

After arriving at Land of Hope, we met Oscar, the man who runs the ministry, and we broke into three teams (including another mission team from SD) and prayed in a big circle. Then we had a lengthy devotional service before breaking into work groups and a tour group.

My work group planted flowers from 1100-1230. We used hand trowels in dirt that was as hard as concrete, in 85° temperatures in the blazing sunshine. I've never sweated so much in my life. Praise God I didn't get sunstroke! Hallelujah! Then we carried buckets of water to water what we planted, along with some other plants.

We broke for lunch. We had a small bowl of pasta and chicken, with freshly made tortillas.
Thank God for water!

Eventually, we got the tour of the place the first bunch got earlier, while they worked. It was even hotter. The tour showed us a glimpse of the dump behind the Land of Hope. Oscar, our host pointed at it and said, "No, that's not a mountain. It's a dump that's been there for multiple generations." We could see people climbing on it, reflecting the stories from Oscar's testimony. The dump is hotter than other places because it's always erupting with fires and chemical combustion. Oscar said it melted the soles of his shoes when he walked on it. Yet people dig through the rubbish by hand looking for something they can sell to a recycler. Some people actually live at the dump.

Land of Hope makes it possible for parents to scrounge while leaving their children with them from 0800-1530 every day. The parents apply to the government for permission to leave their kids there. They help quite a few families. They take care of the children, feed them and bathe them daily before sending them home. They have a nursery area, but oddly, no beds, cribs, or playpens. I have no idea where the infants might sleep. 

At the end of the day, about 1545, the younger members of our group broke a pinata and the children scrambled to grab up the goodies.

Back on the bus we drove by some atrocious sites. Fires burning piles of garbage along the side of the road. The smoke is so thick. How do the locals breathe? Often, the air is unbreathable to us Americans. The air at the hotel and around Antigua seems okay. Maybe sometimes the air just doesn't look quite as bad. But it's always off in the distance.

The pictures I'm taking don't begin to do this place justice.
There are large and small roadside stands selling local produce, although I haven't really seen where they grow it yet.

It's amazing how many very, very young children are working for someone, selling things. It'll make you cry.

My phone began to overheat. I put it in my camelback next to the cool pouch. Jade had given me some iced water! That cooled it down so I could continue to use it to take notes and pictures.

I'm pretty gross. Can't wait to get into that shower at the hotel.

The most popular mode of transportation here seems to be motorcycles/motorbikes. It's crazy what people can carry on them. We saw a man driving on a motorcycle with a woman on the back and a box that looked like it had a big screen tv in it between them. I don't know how the couple could afford one though. Parking lots in the middle of seemingly nowhere are packed with hundreds of motorcycles all neatly parked in rows.

Took us about an hour to get to Land of Hope this morning. On the way back, it has been at least 75 minutes and our driver said it would be another 40 minutes to get to the hotel. Oy! It’s got to be hard to live with any kind of schedule down here.

Sunday morning:
Breakfast at the hotel, then church at a bilingual service. We walked the cobblestone streets, past the huge Catholic church where many vendors are displaying their goods outside.

We worshiped at Iglesia Del Camino, the sermon was from the book of John, Jesus's second miracle; healing the official's son. These are the notes I took on the sermon.

One of the most impactful things he said (to me) was that most of the miracles Jesus performed took place in Galilee; a place that was (already) prepared for the miracles of God.
For the official, of a necessity; he listened, he sought, and he found.  Verses 4:46-48
He was told to go there, that's where he could find help. (Jesus)
Like the official, we have to listen. We have to seek Jesus, and we will find the help we need.
Romans 10:17, 49-50
The official remained in his petition, he didn’t relent, even when he didn’t get the response from Jesus he expected. He believed Jesus's word, and the next day, he went home. He took Jesus's words as a promise.
The man asked Jesus to go with him. But Jesus told HIM to go. He didn't receive what he came and requested (for Jesus to go with him and heal his son), but he obeyed Jesus, and his son was still miraculously healed.
Obedience is a decision. Verses 50-52
Take refuge in the Word of God.
We put obstacles in God's way because we're so short sighted. Re: coming to Guatemala - plenty of reasons came up why I should not come. But I pushed them aside, persisting in God’s plan.
The official’s reaction to his instructions met the pivotal point of his story; belief.

After church, we broke up into smaller groups and went shopping at a giant indoor mall of sorts. It was a huge collection of little shops like the ones that line the streets, all rolled into one big superstore of vendors. They want to barter. I didn't. So, I paid a bit much for the postcards I bought.
My friends sure love to shop! I must be the odd man out. I'd rather have been napping!

We all met up again and had lunch at a chicken restaurant that served food much like KFC, but in a fancier dining room, then came back to the hotel to change clothes so we could hike a small mountain climb up to a park dedicated to the Cross landmark. It was a bit too much for me. I was the last one to the top, but I eventually made it. Group Leader Tommy and JR hung back with me and Lisa (V). We all thoroughly enjoyed the views from up there, we took lots of pictures. Some bought from vendors up there. A storm was brewing, but never happened. Just a light sprinkle later in the evening. From up there we could hear the festivities of the parade making its way through the city streets in honor of Lent. Some carried floats filled with flowers, some carried giant statues depicting the last days of Jesus before His crucifixion. A highly Catholic region, there are purple cloths hanging from windows everywhere.

Returning to our hotel, some took showers, and some enjoyed their siesta time! Afterwards, we all made our way to a wonderful dinner at a Mexican restaurant and a little more shopping before the shops closed for the night, casually walking home in the dark.

Then up to the rooftop for our nightly debriefing.
Everything shared is so rich!

Monday at Casa Angelina:
It took about an hour to get there where we were welcomed by soooo many hugs.
After a little social time, we had a short service to get our workday started out right. During praise and worship, I was talking to God. I can't imagine how He's put up with me so patiently for so long, just because He loves me!

I gave God my detachedness – (my coping mechanism) and exchanged it for His love for the situations I "cope" with. Big bawl!

Divinely given, we can't earn what God is giving us right now. We can't get it by earthly means. We can't get it from someone else. Like Jesus told Peter, flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven.

Bethany (Ivan Tait's daughter) and Andrew, her Australian husband, run the place. They met in Australia at college.
Bethany shared a welcome message that was incredibly powerful, she mentioned that some seeds in Jerusalem take 2000 years to germinate. What has God planted in me that hasn't grown yet? What seeds do I plant? What seeds WILL I plant?

The prayer after Bethany's introduction was exactly for a problem many of us were experiencing, whether we recognized the prayer or not, it included: Open doors that gave been closed. Break free the things that have been bound up. Set free what has been held back. (Many in the group were constipated due to a bacterium in the soil there that gets into the air and either constipates you or gives you diarrhea.)

The Leah's house story:

A man named Chad from South Dakota has been coming to Casa Angelina for years. In 2009 he visited his Aunt Leah who was terminally ill. During the visit, she gave him a sizeable check so that he could continue to return to Casa Angelina. He talked with Ivan (Tait – the man who owns/runs the place) and got permission to start a fund for Leah's House. In ten months, he'd raised almost enough to build another house for children at Casa Angelina that would be called Leah's House. As he was preparing to return to Casa Angelina again in 2010, he still needed $26,000. The next day a check came in for that amount! At that time, it cost $65,000 to build the house and $20,000 to furnish it.

                 We toured Leah's House today. It's bonita!

Casa Angelina was established in 2002. (I’ll sometimes refer to Casa Angelina as CA now.)

The people who live and work here are a whole different kind of rich! They are among the richest people in the world.

Andrew led us on a tour of the houses, the clinic, the Chapel, the school. There was a lot of climbing so I praise God for Lisa's (V) invitation to ride with her in the golf cart.

The houses are beautiful, and I am not exaggerating! The clinic was very impressive. The Chapel was all donated (by one person or church) and is totally spectacular. Nothing third world about these structures. The school could be envied even by many American schools. The classrooms are top notch and colorful. Education is very important here. The only thing more important than school is play. These kids grow up to be prosperous adults, going to colleges and nursing schools, becoming nurses and doctors; or going to trade schools. Some go on to work here at CA. It's inevitable that they will break the cycles of poverty and change their country and their world.

1300 lunch:

CA served us delicious chicken with bbq sauce and mashed potatoes and fresh veggies.  Dessert was ice cream with fig pie.

The riches and wealth at CA are beyond imagination.
The tour I thought would be pointless (just put us to work, get the most out of us you can!) was magical and heart melting. I fell in love.

We went to see the widow Maria's house. Simple, but adequate and more than she'd ever had before. CA checks on all the widows they care for, bringing them food and provision weekly, and has a doctor that checks on their medical needs monthly. If they need more care, they bring them in to the CA clinic.

Right now, they take care of more than 120 widows, and the number continues to grow. Many are quite old; Maria will soon be 94! Including the widows that have passed away over the last 20 years, they've taken care of 170 of them. By the end of the year, they will have built 184 widow’s houses!

As we prepared to leave her house, we prayed over her. I began to pray: Let our prayers drip blessings all over Maria - but my words morphed as tears filled my eyes, Lord let her blessings drip on us!

Onto the avocado farm! 751 trees with 751 more to be planted soon. They acquired the land three years ago and planted these first trees and have been nurturing them and caring for them beautifully, trimming them back, cutting off the first fruits so the trees will grow strong and healthy before they begin to harvest. This first yield should bring in 6 figures of profit that will go right back into the orphanage. They plan to become self-sustaining. I could see myself being a part of this.

Next, they took us to a newly (miraculously) acquired acre of land where they are building a house for the older boys (18+) next to what will be a vocational school that will be of such great asset to teach the young men, teaching them how to provide for their own families.

Everything here is a miracle, or a miracle in the making. The pastor's sermon (at the church we went to yesterday) really echoes through CA. God has prepared the land where CA is growing for miracles before Ivan Tait even stepped foot on it, like God prepared Galilee for miracles before Jesus ever walked there.

We played with the children for the last hour or so before heading back to the hotel.

Yesterday I had no desire to live in Guatemala.
Today I can see God calling us here someday. A few years ago, He did tell me that our dream house isn't where we'd think it would be. Could it be here? If so, that house will look nothing like what we were envisioning as we discussed what we'd want in a dream house.
I would imagine there is nothing anyone could say that could make me want to live in a third world country. Clearly, that doesn't include God.

I spoke with Nikki as she so graciously drove Lisa (V) and I around in her golf cart, she answered questions I wouldn't have asked Andrew in front of everyone as he led the tour. Questions about what happens when one of the widows dies: they pay for the burial expenses, etc. No children have died there, yet, but two are in facilities for children that need serious/terminal medical care.
I asked about promiscuity among the older children. She joyfully responded that they really don't have a problem with that, even with the children's backgrounds.

I asked Andrew how they deal with the anger issues that many of the children must come here with. They do have psychologists who work with these children. But seldom does the anger last. For at least the first month the children are here, they're in a special house. They aren't mixed in with all the other children right away. They tend to their medical needs; deworm or delouse or treat for scabies, etc. All their needs are assessed.

As they're integrated with the other children, they see how happy they are all the time, and that the happiness is real and that they're allowed to just be kids! They are actually expected to have fun!

Clearly, we're not here to love on these people as much as they're here to love on us and love away the hurts inside of US!

Eli's story:

Eli went down to Casa Angelina, like many others, for a short-term mission trip. He arrived just as covid was making itself known to the world. Bethany made the decision to turn the van around and take those who had just arrived back to the airport as word that the president of Guatemala was going to shut things down. Eli begged to stay. She hesitantly let him. He got covid and was sick for a while, but as he recovered, he discovered that he was meant to live there and be a permanent part of Casa Angelina. When he was a child of about five years of age, he was asked what he wanted to be when he grew up. He said he wanted to work in an orphanage – and here he is! I asked how a five-year-old even knew what an orphanage is, with a smile he replied, “Exactly!”

At some point, I asked Eli about the weather here. From the sounds of his descriptions, they have two seasons, rainy and dry. Right now, February, they enter the dry season and the hotter temperatures, usually high 80s mid-day. In the wet season it can get down to about 40 degrees. The team that planned our trip chose the perfect time to come.

Imagine if all God's children obeyed like this; like Ivan and Kimberly and Bethany and EVERYONE here at Casa Angelina! This is the definition of Christianity, to catch God’s vision and to submit, obey and run with it!

I'm very impressed with how clean and organized everything is. In my mind, that doesn't really mix with having 170 children around.

I really enjoy our quiet time together in the evenings, sharing the highlights of our day. It's meaningful, it's powerful and encouraging and very revelatory. Tonight
Tommy said, "I've watched these kids go through so much, but it's not defining them, it's not limiting them."

I want to let God love me like these children let God love them. God WANTS to love me like they let Him love them.

Young Kendra said, "Oh my gosh, they (at CA) live in the Garden of Eden!"

Truly CA is what God intended life on earth to be like; such joy abounds like nowhere else I’ve seen.

This morning, a young woman named Suzanna shared her testimony with us.
She had created a circle of walls for protection from the abuse she suffered. The walls didn’t even protect her, but there were there, in her mind, built up in a futile attempt at escaping pain.
She eventually invited Jesus into her heart and He began to help her tear down the walls that ended up holding her prisoner.
In my mind, I could see that there was no room within the walls filled with hate and unforgiveness for Jesus to thrive there and love her completely. I could see Him hug her tightly as she started to let Him help her break down the walls a block or two at a time.
He became her walls of protection and broadened her world a little at a time. She began to dream, and she's seeing her dreams fulfilled.

Isaiah 55:8 – “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.”

I recall singing a song at a high school concert called Happy Talk (a song from the movie South Pacific). It was a memorable song because Dave was one of the AV guys videotaping the program. It’s one of “our memories”. The chorus of the song says,

“Happy talk, keep talking happy talk. Talk about things you like to do. You’ve got to have a dream, if you don’t have a dream, how you gonna have a dream come true?”

Though that applies to dreams; mine, yours, and Suzanna’s – it also applies to our testimonies. If we’re not sharing our ‘happy talk’ we’re denying others the blessings God has for them in our story, whether they can relate to our circumstances or not. Our God is a miracle working God and the world needs to hear about it! We all have a circle of influence that grows daily. We’ll never truly know the impact of the stories we share until we get to heaven and see how God was glorified through them.  

Tuesday morning:

Breakfast was a little earlier because we left for CA earlier.

Once we got there, the children were again eager to join us with laughter and games. Most of them speak English to some degree, some better than others. I didn’t chat with many that wanted to show off their English skills, but they challenged my lack of Spanish! They learn English in school, and we’re encouraged to get them to practice using it.

After the kids ran off to school, we shared in some awesome praise and worship. What makes it awesome? God always speaks to me!

Kimberly Tait spoke to us from James 1:27
Choosing puzzles she said she looks for how many pieces there are. 3000? Too many. 1500, yeah maybe. Ivan, however, looks at the picture. “Oooh - this one's pretty! Let’s get it!” Kimberly responds, “5000 pieces! We can't do that!”

That's how Ivan picked out this land, listening to God, without consulting her. She said that he’s the visionary, and that she’s more practical and down to earth. When she saw the barren mountainside, she didn’t understand how God could do anything with it. Yet the ground was already prepared for the miracles God would do there.

“Oh, to see Jesus come quickly!
Who am I to deny what the Lord can do?
We, (the people at CA) are the pipe, we (the people who contribute) are the flow.” Kimberly brought out the most beautiful truths from James 1:27 as she continued to teach us, captivating every heart there.

“Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”

Pure means clear and not confused.
Here, religion means worship. Worship is about the interior, not the exterior. Not what's going on outside of us.
Clear, not confused, worship, in the sight of God is this:
To visit orphans and widows in their distress, (He sees what we're doing as worship) and to keep OURSELVES unstained by the world, (by visiting orphans and widows.)
Our spirit gets contaminated by rules.
“You have to __{fill in the blank}____. or are you even really a Christian?”
When you say, “I voted for Trump, I march in the pro-life marches, why can't I hear from God?” ask God to talk to you about this.

She went on to tell us that darkness will never quench the light. It's impossible! There can be no fear in love. That’s why there are no monsters at CA.

She said the widows say:
“I prayed God would send you.” 
Her response, "I wondered why my feet were going this direction."

Bethany and Ivan are co-CEOs of CA and they, and everyone else there, do all that they do with an excellency the world has rarely seen.

I joined the work crew painting the inside of a house. Our first step was to use sandpaper on the high gloss walls so the paint would stick better. That made a lot of dust! The next step was to cut-in with the new paint. Queen Brittany taught me how to do that. I can't say I'm great at it now, but I got better with each stroke.

We broke for another delicious lunch. Kabobs, tender veggies, and perfectly seasoned rice. Apple turnovers with ice cream for dessert.

Arriving back at the house we're painting; it was time to pull out the rollers and get the paint on the walls. Although I wouldn't have chosen this color (looks to me to be a battleship gray), I think we're doing a pretty good job. I found myself right in my element when Queen Brittany, the ruler of the paint brush, asked for help cleaning up paint spills from the tile floor. We are a messy little bunch! But cleaning is right up my alley, so I felt quite useful. I also felt quite achy, as I was on my knees or getting up from my knees because earlier, I'd fallen on a ladder. You may think I misspoke there, but I didn't. I was up on a ladder sanding the wall when I fell. I didn't land on the floor, but rather, on the collapsed ladder. So, I didn't actually fall OFF the ladder. Of course, this got everyone's attention, so I immediately announced that I was okay. Turns out I do have a few bruises and achy places. If anything, I thought I’d hurt my legs, but all day my hands have been buzzing with a tingly vibration feeling. Not sure what that's about. As the day progressed, my feet began to tingle, too. After play time with the children, we boarded the vans to ride back to the hotel and I popped a Motrin because my shoulders and neck were bothering hurting, too. But as I laid in bed trying to catch up on my notes, I got to feeling pretty good.

Dinner was nothing to write home about tonight. But I was too tired to eat much anyways.

During debriefing time tonight, we got to hear JR (and Lisa's) testimony about their move to Colorado from Texas after losing his job and how God orchestrated every step of the way, including raising him from the dead.

Normandy and I spent plenty of time chatting this evening, even though we were tired. Time for a few zzzzzzs, tomorrow will be another early morning for another day of hard work.

“Therefore, by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.”

 Hebrews 13:15-17

Wednesday at Casa Angelina:

Did I mention that the coffee here is phenomenal? What have I been drinking up till now?

We have social time, or “play” time with the children every morning when we get here and again before we leave for the day. This can include jumping rope, drawing on the ground with chalk, blowing bubbles together or more physical things like playing basketball or volleyball. They have quite the sports set up, between some great playgrounds, a soccer field, volleyball, basketball, and a pickle ball court. The gymnasium in their school is quite spectacular.

While “helping” my little buddy (we’re not supposed to share the names of the children), with his bubble blowing bottle, I had a few good laughs. He wanted more agua (water) in his bottle. His water wasn’t soapy enough as it was, so what he really needed was more soap in it. But he insisted. I added water from my water bottle, yet still he couldn’t blow any bubbles. He asked for my water bottle. I guess he thought that pouring it into his little bubble bottle himself would do the trick. But to my surprise, he didn’t add to his, he drank the water down faster than I could have! He looked quite satisfied with himself, but still needed more agua for his bubbles. A friend of mine helped by going off to find some soap near the (outdoor) restrooms. That fixed it! But this little guy was persistent. He wanted more water in his little bottle. We walked to the outdoor sink near the restrooms to add more soap, which I had taken to calling “soap-o”. From behind a restroom door, a teenaged boy laughed and told my little buddy that “the American woman didn’t know Spanish at all.” I later discovered that “soap-o” apparently means soup. No wonder he didn’t want to add any to his bubble water!

During this morning’s devotion, Ivan taught that you can see who you are when you begin bearing fruit.

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

Eph 2:10

We can do nothings unless God touches us and empowers us.

“God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.”

Acts 10:38

This requires a lot of personal death. Does God get credit for your life or do you?
Letting God wrap you in divine purpose means releasing our will for His. I’ve got to ask myself, is my purpose divine or self-centered?

God invests in what He believes in, and He believes in US!
Wrap yourself in what He says and does.

What eternal things do we do to please God? Life isn’t about the clothes or shoes or guns or things we acquire. Discovering our purposes in Christ, involves resting in Him and trusting Him to lead and guide us into His plans.

Do we want God to do His thing in our lives? Then we need to do His things.

God is all about rescuing orphans and widows, helping the poor. As Kimberly mentioned Monday morning, scripture tells us this is very near and dear to His heart. How is God instructing you to meet the needs around you? How does He want US to help rescue orphans and widows? What role in it do we play?

What is God doing in the earth? Jump in!

Take your temporal life as a child of God and aim it at Eternity; aim it at something God is involved in.

You need beauty in your life. Is there anything more beautiful than an orphan, than helping a widow, than helping the poor?

What benefit is there in talking about nothing? Yet we do it every day. We need to be talking about things that will make an impact in the lives God brings across our paths, whether nearby or far away; we can bless everyone God directs us to bless, because He’s doing the blessing through us.

Divine encounters with God will cause you to be truly defined by God. In His hands, we’ll make a worldwide eternal difference. All encounters with God lead to transformation, inside and around us.

Jesus told the woman at the well that if she drank from His well, she wouldn’t need a man to be happy. That doesn’t mean we don’t need each other because we do. It simply means that He needs to be our source.

You are an arrow, He's making you straight. You have a target. When you are in God's bow, He will send you out.

Children need divine encounters. Who were you born to be? How do you get there? Flesh and blood (man) doesn’t reveal this to us, but our Father in heaven.

I absolutely loved it when concluding his teach, Ivan said, “May your hearts burn like the men on their way to Emmaus.” When I ponder on my time in Guatemala, I’ll recall, “Didn’t my hearts burn within me?!”

Off to Margarita’s house! This morning, we started the task of painting the inside of her house a soft yellow. Painting cinderblock isn't as easy as one might think. It absorbs the paint quickly. It requires several coats to be pretty.

We painted three rooms. Two bedrooms and a front room that serves as a sitting area and a dining room/kitchen.

We tried not to get paint spills, splashes, or splatter on the newly poured concrete floors. That was a REAL challenge.

The men poured her front patio area while us women folk took care of the painting.

The men also tore down Margarita's old makeshift toilet, too. So, the afternoon might have been rough on some of us ladies.

As I cut-in the corners, I found myself being fearful of dropping my paint bottle.  (We used liter bottles that had been cut in half to hold the paint for those of us cutting in.) I was afraid of leaving drops of paint on the floor or splattering. Then it dawned on me. Fear is not of God. So, I had a little talk with Jesus about it and I did much better. When I felt it coming back, Jesus nudged me.

We discussed which scriptures we'd choose to pray over the house. Lisa (V) wrote verses on the walls before we painted them. We all left a little bit of ourselves behind in her home.

We met Margarita as soon as we got there. She is so sweet and filled with smiles and appreciation. She's beautiful! She says she's 62 years old. Her husband died two years ago, and the rest of her family abandoned her. She'd been living in a tin shed with an ugly makeshift toilet. Like many widows, her family may "rediscover" her because now she has something or worth and isn't "just a burden and another mouth to feed". Since CA checks on her and brings the Spirit of God with them along with food and medical care regularly, her returning family will find her home to be a haven. She's likely been praying to be reunited with her family, as so many other widows are, so even that will be a good thing. When she dies, the house will become theirs.

Lunch was again, soooo good. And again, they gave us so much of it! We each got a large chicken breast made into delicious cordon bleu, a generous portion of perfectly baked seasoned potatoes and a veggie mix of squash, carrots, and chickpeas. Plus, another fabulous dessert, too. A slice of a fruit roll I believed to be apples and raisins, with a scoop of ice cream. And they expected us not to take a nap!? Lol

We headed back to Margarita's place to finish painting the inside. Nope, didn't gitterdun. We resumed the following day. Greg brought us some better rollers and more drop cloths. Hallelujah!

We had play time with the children again and headed back to the hotel. I'm sure we were all exhausted!

It sure took a long time to get back to the hotel that afternoon, apparently an accident held up traffic.

Throughout the day Dad and I have had to have a few pow-wows. Humble. Humble doesn't need to be seen or heard. I've been TRYING to be quieter. But I pout and say, 'Father - what if you give me something important to say!?' He said, 'If I give you something to say, I'll give you permission to say it.'

This will be something I'll continue to work on for a while, I'm sure. When I begin telling someone a story and the person I’m talking with walks away in the middle of it or starts a conversation with someone else while I'm still talking, I can get offended. I don't think my stories are boring, but that's just my opinion. So, if they're walking away from the story, I'm concluding that I need better discernment as to when to talk and who to talk with. The rest of the time, I need to be listening. Ooooo. This won't be easy.

I hardly took any pictures in two days. I know I haven’t gotten enough pictures of the children. I can't bring myself to call them orphans because they have an awesome family now. Without coming to see them for yourself, you'd never believe they could be so happy and that their lives could be so dramatically turned around so quickly.

I got to hear part of Greg's story while the children played around us. He's such an awesome man. He told me about his childhood, that he became a Christian as a teen - the details are his to share, I won't record them here. He's so giving and loving and great with the kids. They love him. We all do.

Getting to know all my teammates has been a huge part of what makes this trip so special and memorable.

By late afternoon, I'm so beat, I totally forgot to take pictures of the kids, again. You’d think I’d get the pictures in the morning before we start working.

Thursday morning:
Normandy went out to a coffee shop early with several others. I got an extra half hour of sleep. We had our normal breakfast, plus a few pieces of sweet pineapple.

I needed to ramp up my quiet time in prayer. The enemy's lies have been weighing on me. His lies began to bombard me again already today. What gives??

I think I've found the cure for the pooping issue. At least for me. A cup of coffee in the morning, bouncing on the bumpy cobblestone roads and I'm ready to go by the time we get to Casa Angelina!  😄

There are more than 100 volcanoes in this country, 67 along the coast, 38 of them are active volcanoes. Impressive. We got to see smoke billows, but that was about it.

At Casa Angelina, we have devotion/teaching time every day before the work starts. Ivan is in the house!

During praise and worship, we sang the song, “You're a Good, Good Father, it's Who You are....
I am loved by You, it's who I am....”
Afterwards He whispered to me, “It’s who we all are.”

"The Famous Jessica from Casa Angelina” as she calls herself, shared her heart-wrenching story of life before Casa Angelina and how her hand was so severely burned. She’s a very strong young woman who has been through so much, yet her testimony turned to preaching as she shared all the wonderful things God has done in her life and how He’s brought her so far.

We all listened intently, with broken hearts as she explained the torment her stepmother put her and her brothers through and how she never felt accepted.

While she spoke, I felt God’s whispers in my heart as He told me He's going to teach me the many facets of acceptance.

There are 159 widow’s homes already, there will be184 by the end of the year.
Someone just donated the funds for 25 of the new ones.
The teens build 5 widows houses a year; they say I need to do better so I can do more. All work that any of the children or teens do at Casa Angelina is voluntary. They give because their hearts are full, and they have so much to give away to others.

Today was hard. I find myself feeling very emotional, not exactly sure why. Maybe because I know I’m leaving soon. My heart has already grown securely attached here. More spiritual warfare, no doubt. God will always meet me where I’m at!

We painted more at Margarita’s house, inside and out. We got the outside wall finished in just one afternoon, but we only did the front wall. I worked mostly with Lisa (S) and Judy. After finishing up with that, I worked on varnishing door frames. Lisa joined in towards the end of that. Sadly, her paint brush was quite wide, so it was harder to do the frames. It did great on the doors.

My hands were sticky from the oil-based paint we used on the exterior and the varnish we used on the doors. As we drove away from the widow's house, sadness engulfed me.

All afternoon I felt like Normandy was mad at me, but I don't know what I did wrong. I feel like we're middle schoolers. When we got back to the hotel, I asked her what was going on with a big hug. She laughed and replied, “Did I not spend enough time with you today, Helen?” She’s right, I was being silly. But a trip like this will mess with your emotions!

I feel achier than ever tonight; more tired and more emotional.

I was thrilled to find out tonight that Queen Brittany is Fiona and Abby's youth leader at Church For All Nations. They're in good hands!

We had dinner at the hotel again tonight. I'm not very hungry. Though, I would LOVE to sit in a hot tub!

Friday morning:
The song we sang this morning, For the One by Jenn Johnson is one I’ll share with as many people as I can.
We were told that the “Bawling Place” is the bus. When we cry, we make the children sad and the adults at Casa Angelina are left with the mending of hearts after we’re gone, so Bethany asked that we hold our tears till we’re on the bus, if we can.

Juanita Hernandez shared her testimony before we headed out to Margarita’s house for the morning. Hers was another tragedy turned to triumph. Their stories are hard to listen to, but the blessings that come out of the hardship are worth waiting to hear.
Life wasn’t too bad until she was kidnapped, but after being returned home, her family turned on her, some family members committing the same assaults as those who had taken her. That led her to run away numerous times, until she was finally taken to Casa Angelina. At one point, her mom came to visit her and promised that things would be different if she came back home with her, so she did. But she regretted it, nothing changed. The parallel with the prodigal son’s story stood out to me because she thought that perhaps if she could return to Casa Angelina, they’d at least let her work there. She was surprised to be welcomed back as a child and allowed to continue to be a child, and so her story goes….

My mind thought back to Suzanna’s testimony, about the walls she had built around herself to survive.

Like Suzanna, when you receive Jesus into your heart, as He embraces you, can you hear Him softly say, “Hey, it's getting a little crowded in here mind of we knock out a few of these bricks?”

What a rewarding day. We knocked out the finishing touches on Margarita's house, moved in her furniture, got her beds put together and made. Had cake and drinks with her to break bread, celebrating her new home. The pictures tell the story.

We were all there today, our whole team. So many of us, plus the construction crew. Her house and front yard we're pretty much packed with people, many of us with little to nothing to do but get in the way. Being in the way is tough! No matter where you move to, someone needs to be in that spot for some reason. But it was an honor to be there!

When we dedicated her home, we all had a dab of oil to anoint and pray over her house - and her. Bethany was there to translate and dedicate.

The place is beautiful, the furniture is beautiful and so much more than she had living in a tin hut. She's excited that now her son will come to stay with her; this restores family. Others will come to visit now, too. This gives her community. She's filled with joy.

We are, too.

Margarita is a very happy new homeowner. But I think she was ready for us to leave so she could cry in privacy.

Lunch was a pasta dish with veggies and chicken with tomatoes on them. As well as an ice cream dessert.

A little more time with the children, they had the afternoon off. That would be the last time we'd see them this trip.

Friday night:
It was at least a three-hour trip to the hotel in Guatemala City. But it was worth the wait! Talk about a glamorous, swanky hotel! Whew!

We ate dinner in a buffet restaurant in the hotel. Shopped at the boutiques there. Took in the beauty.

Right after dinner, I went up to shower and go to bed instead of perusing the shops again. After a quick shower, I was in bed by 9pm. I found a tv show in English, a CSI show I wouldn't normally watch.

Normandy came up to the room close to 10, announcing, “It's a good thing you're awake or I'd have had to wake you up!” I fell asleep while she was in the bathtub. As I was dozing off the first time, she called to me from the bathroom wanting to know which bottle was the shampoo. I almost fell (again) as I entered the bathroom. Of course, water was all over the floor. She’s the best roommate ever.

Sleep in that bed was SWEET! The perfect mattress surrounded me with coziness, the soft pillows felt like I fell asleep on a cloud.

I awoke to the sounds of Normandy's alarm at 3am. She didn’t hear it at all. It went off seven times before I finally decided to wake her. We were dressed and out of the room in no time, downstairs and ready to go home.

After taking care of our QR codes, I was loaded into a taxi with Natalie and Kevin and Noel, but not without falling, again, this time in the lobby on the way out the door. A hotel employee wore great concern on his face as I scrambled to get up. I banged up my right knee pretty good. By the time I boarded the plane I was fine, though.

Normandy and I sat in the same row on the first flight but had to talk over a man between us. Again, God blessed me with an aisle seat. Hallelujah!

It's grown normal to tune out the Hispanic version of anything that accompanies the English version. I should be paying attention if I expect to pick it up anytime soon.

While in the taxi, Natalie and Kevin and I were discussing Normandy having her own sitcom. I was thinking something along the lines of That Girl from the 70s. Kevin suggested a reality show like Keeping Up With the Kardashians. They could call it Storming Normandy. Natalie chimed it with, I was thinking something more like I Love Lucy. But then I realized, that would make me her straight man, her boring sidekick. Hmmm.

We got to the airport in plenty of time. Grabbed some Starbucks and even had time to chat in the boarding area. Again, they took my carry-on bag. Didn't bother me a bit this time. Less for me to drag through Dallas Airport during the layover.

Security isn't very strict. Normandy got through with a whole bottle of water in the pocket of her carry-on bag! 

There's so much to process from this trip.
What did God do in my heart?
What is He still in the process of doing?
What does He want me to do?
Where does He want me?
I can serve widows and children where I am.
But is that HIS game plan?
I'm afraid that's going to have to wait until after I get a few more hours of sleep.  

P.S. Editing my notes didn’t go well, I write more than I organize. So here you have it all, 9,200+ words that filled 40 pages. If you made it to the end, congratulations!