Jesus' Name lifted high in the slums

This morning Liberty Baptist flew back home to Virginia. We had an incredible week in the slums partnering with City of Refuge Community Church. We were blessed to be a part of what just may be the most difficult part of ministry: breaking ground and gaining trust of a community. Pastor Jorge Cerritos and his family are investing in a very rough area in the slums of Guatemala. We joined them in building a wall that will define a widowed woman's property and also protect her home from floods and mud slides. Mrs. Erica is a strong and faithful woman of the Lord. However, Pastor Jorge has not yet formed relationships with the families who surround her. We watched from our first day in this area when a simple "hola" sent families running back into their homes to the last day when the children showed up to help us work and the people all came out of their homes to tell us goodbye. These people desperately need to be loved. It was beautiful to be a part of breaking into this hard-hearted community. As we finished work yesterday, we prayed for God to continue to move in the hearts of these people and for Pastor Jorge and his church to reach them with their greatest need, the Gospel.

We moved big rocks out of our working area

..and carried them down the mountain

One of the largest slums in Central America

View from Erica's house

A skit about hearing from God in an elementary school

Kissy Kissy :)

My friend from school

The kids came out to help Josh shovel gravel for the wall

This little guy was so proud of himself

Mrs. Erica's home

Walking through the slums

The students wrote words of encouragement on their hands

Unloading 38,600 lbs of Christian literature to share

You can't come to Guatemala and not play soccer

Praying over a pregnant neighbor whose baby is due this week

The team and the neighbors all together! Praise God!

Praying with the kids in the shcool

Precious moment

Pastor Jorge Cerritos

Guatemala's favorite fast food..our team loved it

We found fair trade products in one of the markets!

So excited to buy slave free products!

The Hill of the Cross in Antigua, Guatemala 

Vulcan de Agua

Though it can be hard to see the fruit of trips like these, we praise God for allowing us along with Liberty Baptist to obey Him in serving and loving the people of Guatemala. He is faithful to complete His work. Josh and I have 3 more days here in Guatemala. Please pray for His will to be done in all we do. We've been so blessed by being here.

"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3:20-21

Week in Parramos

We just completed our week with Biltmore Baptist from North Carolina. They were an incredibly flexible group of students who really seem to be seeking the Lord with all their hearts. It was a joy to serve alongside them. We partnered with an organization called Loving Arms and served in four villages surrounding a small town named Parramos.  During the week we planted crops, built a retaining wall and painted at a school, distributed food to sponsored children, and did VBS where we were able to share the Gospel in three schools. God is moving in these villages and we pray that the Guatemalans truly saw Christ through us. Enjoy some pictures from the week..

Bible Story Time at VBS

"Father Abraham had many sons.."

Before we began our work at the school in Chitaburuy

Sweet Patty loved to help us work

Fertilizing

Working the ground

They made me a skirt just like theirs!

The women of Paraxaj selling the items they sewed

Praying together at VBS

Ruins of the "Old Town" of Parramos

Pablo and Josh's Scooter Ride!

View from the town square in Parramos

Her first month to be sponsored

In Parrojas after the food distribution

The village women came to help us plant

Almost finished..Doesn't the new paint look nice?

Cooking lunch

Painting each others' nails

Amigos

The students made us fans to thank us for painting the school

And the women made us an authentic lunch

Leaders of the week. We love them dearly.

Josh and Hugo, the farmer

 Carmen and me 

The precious family who looks after the fields

It was such a blessed week. Tomorrow (July 22) we receive Liberty Baptist Church from Virginia. We will be serving with them in what we've been told is the largest slum in Central America. Pray for us to be led by the Holy Spirit as it will be a very different week from serving in the villages. We are praying for opportunities to love on people in the name of Jesus as we serve a widowed woman named Erika by building her a home as she currently lives in an open shack. Thank you always for your prayers.  

"...if anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen." 1 Peter 4:11

What's happening in Guatemala

We've been in Guatemala for almost two weeks now. We've been everywhere from Guatemala City, to the fields, to culture-rich Antigua, to the hospital, to the villages, and back to the City again. We have been getting to know the Guatemalans that our teams will be working alongside and preparing for their arrival. We are grateful for the opportunity to be here and are excited to partner with the Lord in His work. Enjoy some pictures from our time in Guatemala so far!

Guatemala City

Noel, a sweet boy who lives in Parramos

Dancing contest druing a celebration at the school in Chitabury

Delivering dresses from First Baptist Jonesboro

Future Guatemala National team

Wearing their new dresses

Geography Class

Choosing a pig for a local family to breed

View from our work site. Beautiful!

Water purification systems in Parramos

Building a fence around the family garden

Fields ready for the team to plant crops

We got sick. But these medicines have helped!

Famous arch in Antigua

Volcan de Agua

The Village of San Antonio

This little guy is just too cute not to include him!

New chicken project for the women of San Antonio

Teaching the women how to care for the hens

Beautiful village of San Antonio

Gilmar working on Pastor Charlie's house in Santa Louisa

Love Birds

Look who we found...my old friend Chuy

Sugar cane field. Learn more below.

While driving to Santa Louisa, Pastor Pablo taught Josh and I about the sugar cane industry in that area of Guatemala. We passed field upon field of sugar cane. He told us that the fields were owned by very large companies who hired the men of the surrounding communities to tend to them. He told us how hard the work is for these men and how they are paid very low wages. Only 30Qs a day ($3.83). This is modern-day slavery. Josh and I learned a great deal about today's slaves at the Passion conference earlier this year. It became reality as we drove past the very fields in which these men work. Visit www.slaveryfootprint.org to learn more about modern-day slavery and what we as believers can do to fight it. Our God is a God of justice and we are called to stand for the vulnerable.


Please continue to pray for our time in Guatemala. Our first team arrives on Sunday evening.
I will sing of Your strength in the morning. I will sing of Your love; for You are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.    Psalm 59:16