Thursday, March 20, 2008
Guatemala Update - Thursday
I decided to try something different tonight for an update. Below you will hear from five team members as they give brief updates about how the past 24 hours have gone. Enjoy -
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Guatemala Update - Wednesday
Buenas tardes,
It’s a great day to be in Guatemala. Our team is having a great time, despite the fact that some of us are a little sore today. Monday and Tuesday were work days for us, and most of the teams had one day of hard work mixing and pouring concrete or tying rebar, and one day washing buses, painting desks, or working on various other projects. The team has been working incredibly hard, and we’re ahead of schedule in every project. What rewarding news that was after working so hard for two full days!
For all of you parents out there, we’re all healthy and safe. We haven’t had any major problems so far with anyone getting sick, and we hope to continue that streak through the end of the week.
As I type, the teams are working on setting up a youth program for tonight. We have had the opportunity to team up with the youth group at Shalom to create ten stations that focus on the cross, in honor of Holy Week. The Guatemalan observance of Holy Week is much more prevalent than in the United States, and many of the schools and businesses close for all or at least part of the week.
After these stations are set up, the students will have the opportunity to experience each station. The stations focus on particular verses from the Bible, and the teams have created a different activity at each one. For example, one group has placed rice paper at their station, explaining to the students that they may write their problems on the page and place their papers at the feet of the cross in a bowl of water, where their problems will disappear.
In addition, at each station the students will decorate a banner that represents a different stage of Christ’s crucifixion; these banners will eventually hang at Shalom for the whole church to see. We’re hoping that it’s a powerful experience for the students, but our teams are certainly excited about them as well.
However, one of the highlights of today will come this evening when the students join us for praise and worship. A few of our students have teamed up with their youth worship band, and we will have a bilingual worship service tonight. I’m looking forward to giving you reporting to you tomorrow about the amazing things that God will do over the next few hours.
As for prayer requests, please pray that we will continue with our positive attitudes and plenty of energy as we continue throughout the week. Please be praying for the people with whom we’re working, as we hope to impact their lives. Finally, pray for our team leaders as they continue to do an excellent job working hard to lead us throughout the week. Everything has been fantastic thus far, and I hope to bring more good news tomorrow.
Lastly, I have a few pictures to share with you. I’ll let them speak for themselves –
Hasta mañana -
It’s a great day to be in Guatemala. Our team is having a great time, despite the fact that some of us are a little sore today. Monday and Tuesday were work days for us, and most of the teams had one day of hard work mixing and pouring concrete or tying rebar, and one day washing buses, painting desks, or working on various other projects. The team has been working incredibly hard, and we’re ahead of schedule in every project. What rewarding news that was after working so hard for two full days!
For all of you parents out there, we’re all healthy and safe. We haven’t had any major problems so far with anyone getting sick, and we hope to continue that streak through the end of the week.
As I type, the teams are working on setting up a youth program for tonight. We have had the opportunity to team up with the youth group at Shalom to create ten stations that focus on the cross, in honor of Holy Week. The Guatemalan observance of Holy Week is much more prevalent than in the United States, and many of the schools and businesses close for all or at least part of the week.
After these stations are set up, the students will have the opportunity to experience each station. The stations focus on particular verses from the Bible, and the teams have created a different activity at each one. For example, one group has placed rice paper at their station, explaining to the students that they may write their problems on the page and place their papers at the feet of the cross in a bowl of water, where their problems will disappear.
In addition, at each station the students will decorate a banner that represents a different stage of Christ’s crucifixion; these banners will eventually hang at Shalom for the whole church to see. We’re hoping that it’s a powerful experience for the students, but our teams are certainly excited about them as well.
However, one of the highlights of today will come this evening when the students join us for praise and worship. A few of our students have teamed up with their youth worship band, and we will have a bilingual worship service tonight. I’m looking forward to giving you reporting to you tomorrow about the amazing things that God will do over the next few hours.
As for prayer requests, please pray that we will continue with our positive attitudes and plenty of energy as we continue throughout the week. Please be praying for the people with whom we’re working, as we hope to impact their lives. Finally, pray for our team leaders as they continue to do an excellent job working hard to lead us throughout the week. Everything has been fantastic thus far, and I hope to bring more good news tomorrow.
Lastly, I have a few pictures to share with you. I’ll let them speak for themselves –
Hasta mañana -
Monday, March 17, 2008
Guatemala Update - Monday
Hola todos,
Don´t worry, we´ve made it to Guatemala, although I´m sure you have assumed that by now. We´re still working on getting the password to the wireless network on our campus, so the internet is currently spotty at best.
All 108 team members are now here, after a couple of us came in on different flights, and the team members´spirits are high. Saturday night after we arrived was somewhat uneventful, as we just traveled across Guatemala City to the Nazarene seminary where we will be staying all week. It was late when we arrived, so after some time to wind down we called it a night.
On Sunday, we attended church at Iglesia Bautista Shalom, or Shalom Baptist Church - the church that we will be working with all week. We attended their worship service and then ate lunch with some of the kids from the congregation. Afterward we had the opportunity to visit the houses that our group helped to build last year. It was an incredible sight to see how much they had changed over the course of the year, and how much work had been done since. We worked on five houses last year, and are told that because of the work of our group and others that have come since, 20 people have come to know Christ Jesus. This was certainly exciting news for our group, and I´m sure that this has provided extra motivation for our team as we look forward to the hard work that we will do throughout the week.
After visiting the housing sites, we went back to the seminary for the remainder of the day. We had praise and worship through singing and teaching last night, and ended the night in our small groups. It has been encouraging to see the team´s excitement in taking part of the many things that God is doing here, and that was evident as we reviewed our observations and insights from the first day. Shalom Church is doing some incredible things, and is seeing great growth in their various ministries, but this will be a topic for another time. For now, I´ll simply mention that we are excited to be here and honored to be able to be of assistance to these people.
Today is Monday and it our first day of construction. Most of the team is working at the church, as there are many things to be done here. As they continue to build and grow, we´re able to assist by mixing and pouring concrete. Other parts of our group are working with the rebar that forms the foundation, and still others are working on cleaning and painting all of the students´ desks for the school. I might mention that Shalom also has a school for children that is essentially K-12, and the kids are off this week due to Holy Week. Two other groups are doing construction in other locations; and lastly, a few team members have been working to wash and wax one of their buses before the rainy season comes, as they want to preserve the life of the buses, some of their most valuable assets.
For those of you looking for specific prayer requests, I ask that you pray for the energy of our team as we proceed throughout the week. This certainly has not been a problem thus far, but after so much manual labor today, I fear we´ll be slightly more sore and less energetic tomorrow. Please pray that we will continue to be willing servants and will be open to doing whatever is asked of us. Pray that we will be a blessing to these people, yet in turn will be open to receiving the love that they are showing toward us. Everyone has been working incredibly hard today, which has been a blessing. Please pray that we will continue to encourage one another, as this is what will fuel us as the week continues longer. And don´t forget about the teams that we have in Mexico, Kentucky, and Houston - we´re praying for many blessings over their groups as well.
Thank you for the many prayers that I know have been showered over us already, and we look forward to seeing the amazing things the God will do in the lives of both the Guatemalans and us. I hope we can update you again soon. Hasta luego -
Don´t worry, we´ve made it to Guatemala, although I´m sure you have assumed that by now. We´re still working on getting the password to the wireless network on our campus, so the internet is currently spotty at best.
All 108 team members are now here, after a couple of us came in on different flights, and the team members´spirits are high. Saturday night after we arrived was somewhat uneventful, as we just traveled across Guatemala City to the Nazarene seminary where we will be staying all week. It was late when we arrived, so after some time to wind down we called it a night.
On Sunday, we attended church at Iglesia Bautista Shalom, or Shalom Baptist Church - the church that we will be working with all week. We attended their worship service and then ate lunch with some of the kids from the congregation. Afterward we had the opportunity to visit the houses that our group helped to build last year. It was an incredible sight to see how much they had changed over the course of the year, and how much work had been done since. We worked on five houses last year, and are told that because of the work of our group and others that have come since, 20 people have come to know Christ Jesus. This was certainly exciting news for our group, and I´m sure that this has provided extra motivation for our team as we look forward to the hard work that we will do throughout the week.
After visiting the housing sites, we went back to the seminary for the remainder of the day. We had praise and worship through singing and teaching last night, and ended the night in our small groups. It has been encouraging to see the team´s excitement in taking part of the many things that God is doing here, and that was evident as we reviewed our observations and insights from the first day. Shalom Church is doing some incredible things, and is seeing great growth in their various ministries, but this will be a topic for another time. For now, I´ll simply mention that we are excited to be here and honored to be able to be of assistance to these people.
Today is Monday and it our first day of construction. Most of the team is working at the church, as there are many things to be done here. As they continue to build and grow, we´re able to assist by mixing and pouring concrete. Other parts of our group are working with the rebar that forms the foundation, and still others are working on cleaning and painting all of the students´ desks for the school. I might mention that Shalom also has a school for children that is essentially K-12, and the kids are off this week due to Holy Week. Two other groups are doing construction in other locations; and lastly, a few team members have been working to wash and wax one of their buses before the rainy season comes, as they want to preserve the life of the buses, some of their most valuable assets.
For those of you looking for specific prayer requests, I ask that you pray for the energy of our team as we proceed throughout the week. This certainly has not been a problem thus far, but after so much manual labor today, I fear we´ll be slightly more sore and less energetic tomorrow. Please pray that we will continue to be willing servants and will be open to doing whatever is asked of us. Pray that we will be a blessing to these people, yet in turn will be open to receiving the love that they are showing toward us. Everyone has been working incredibly hard today, which has been a blessing. Please pray that we will continue to encourage one another, as this is what will fuel us as the week continues longer. And don´t forget about the teams that we have in Mexico, Kentucky, and Houston - we´re praying for many blessings over their groups as well.
Thank you for the many prayers that I know have been showered over us already, and we look forward to seeing the amazing things the God will do in the lives of both the Guatemalans and us. I hope we can update you again soon. Hasta luego -
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