I saw right before my eyes kids lives transformed..with the poor in the community of magdalena. The house visits..the worksites..devotional times each day...quiet times each morning...team times (very SPECIAL sharing times)..some through tears, some through laughter. THIS is what keeps me going each year. Some may say..you did what? You spent 3 weeks with a group of high schoolers???!!! i wouldn't do missions any other way...i love those kids..Im actually missing them right now. I only hope that they remember what we learned on the trip. God will take hold of their lives and change them, if not right away, it will happen and they will not forget. Lean on Him and He will guide you. As we sang in church in Magdalena and each team time...
"Take me, break me, mold me, make me INTO something new. Wake me, shake me, pull me, change me I will live for you."
megan borges, your talent and your smile is SO encouraging, never lose that. Thank you for leading worship for us each team time and being a shining light to the rest of the team. anna leyendekker, I am so thankful that you saw it to return again this year. you make me laugh and the media team loved having you there.you two were the best roommates ever in Antigua and I will never forget hearing Megan play worship music with both of you singing behind closed doors in Dona Elvira's house. My two co-leaders Steve Gann first, I can't thank you enough for being my backbone on the trip. Your humor, your wit, your frankness and your heart for Magdalena and the carpentry site are admirable. Christine Thomas, thank you for being there for the week you came. I am so very blessed to have had you on the team. you have a tender heart and way with the guatemalans that is unmatched even through the language barrier. I appreciate too, your heart for the young kids traveling on the team...they all love you so much as well and it made my job so much easier. there is a confidence people have in you, as do I, as if we have known each other for years. i am so sorry that your trip was cut short, and pray for your friends the Roberts family. i know they feel your angst and your heart for them, i am so happy you were able to attend the funeral and be with them upon your return last week. Love you!!! And coby! Antigua wouldn't have been the same without you, seriously. Your laughter and your smile are genuine, never lose that..and your salsa steps we all learned. haha.
that first week was a good one, classes were great and 3 excursions: one to a coffee plantation La Azotea, another to Common Hope, a non profit organization working with over 8,000 impoverished people around Antigua and Guatemala City to promote hope, through education, health care and housing, another was a hike to Cerro de la Cruz overlooking Antigua, and on Saturday we went to visit an orphanage and poor community La Pinada run by my friend Hilmar who received a suitcase of shoes from the Visalia Ckidz.
My students (all 14 of them) took language school. Taylor Vos joined us from Ripon, CA as an individual and spent the language school week with us. taylor how amazing it was to have you with us again and I really appreciated how you jumped right in and became friends with the others on the team once again. your bright smile and encouraging attitude was felt by everyone on the team, including myself. kaitlin was one of this students that never made anything awkward or unpleasant. even through the mission trip, you showed compassion and love to the others on the team. my daughter caitlin mentioned savanah as being one of those on the team that she really had an appreciation for, for being one to work well with the rest. canon her brother was also on the team and is not one i will soon forget because of his infectious happiness -this boy has energy-positive energy to spread around to others. sometimes that may not have been as well recieved as you meant it to be, but that is what God want from all of us, to be willing and ready to serve! Keep that up. brandon was his roommate and even though quiet at first,
made people laugh from the start and on through the mission trip. how can I begin to share about brian..during language school he was always the one to put forth effort, the one who I could depend on and it didn't stop there..that continued through the mission trip and he was able to share from his heart on the last night of the trip to the entire team at the banquet. having ruby return this year was so beneficial to me as she knew about language school already, the way it worked with the host family, and she made the most of her time for the newcomers. that helped me in so many ways....summer staffer in the making? we small see with all of those excellent leadership skills. I can't wait to see what God does with your life, sweet girl. Did we laugh or did we laugh? well, let me tell you shelby had that one mastered with her infectious giggle. it made everyone smile. taryn was just a joy to have around. her encouragement was evident to all, and her smile was a light to the team. she made these weeks enjoyable for e as I observed her especially with the kids in the preschool in Magdalena. Erica had a difficult time at first being away from home, but exemplified long-suffering throughout the entire 3 weeks! Hey! was a frequent thought of hers..when something came into her mind, she had to share it--haha..love you Erica! Here are a few pics from the week:
The language school week was a jumpstart to what was to come next: 4 more added to the team and new host families in a mountain town, Magdalena with it's population of 18,000 and 6,000 feet above sea level, all for the next 2 weeks. The mission trip, organized by Students International. As we headed to the shuttle to go to Magdalena, I told the kids they would be receiving their new host families once we arrived and some kids may not be together as they wished, students International will listen to my requests, but it may be not as they wished. An attitude of gratitude is best and I needed to have flexibility from them. they were all excited to see Magdalena, and it went very smoothly.
Upon arrival in Magdalena, we slept and I needed to say goodbye to my oldest daughter Caitlin who was with me to help the first week. Did I say how special it was to have her with me that first week? And my youngest daughter? so special to have had a surprise wedding shower for her in Antigua given by my dear friends that live there and the entire Students International community! Wow!
The rest of our team arrived then as well, there were 4 additional to my team, Steve Gann, Christine Thomas, Skyler Griffin, and Katelyn Erickson. this year we were fortunate enough to have Kingsburg First Baptist join us-there were 22 of them! Add to that our 18, and we have 40 people! plus 2 individuals!
Once in Magdalena, we moved 2,600 avocado trees into trucks that could make it up the hill as the semi trailer could not. So then it started raining! You should have seen the kids...all running on no sleep because they had been traveling all night!
The next 2 weeks were spent in ministry sites: sports, the preschool, a medical clinic, media, carpentry, agriculture, sponsorship, micro finance, etc....every kid was used by God where they were placed. Some visited homes, some bought items for families, some vaccinated animals, some prescribed medicines, some gave loans, some played sports with young kids, but ALL served where they were placed.It was so exciting to see your kids in ACTION!
Hebrews 12: 1,2 says " Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith." I remember so clearly Miriam, a Guatemalan missionary working in the micro finance sharing site and her testimony. Her job is to manage the micro finance loans and the families that have them. Hers is what she did with the team:
In a relay, she had all of us on both teams line up at one end of the room in 5 separate lines. The first person in that row needed to hold a coin in between their knees until the other end of the room and drop it in th bucket after holding it between their knees for about10 feet. The goal was to keep the coin in the bucket, and get it there by either hopping, walking or running, but keeping the coin in it's place. For many, the coin jumped out of the bucket after hopping. The person tends to get the distance as fast as they could, but the more we jerked along the way, caused the coin to not reach it's destination. The joy is in the journey....and if we keep our eyes focussed on Him, we will get there..with the coin, or without the coin.
And in Phillipians 3: 1-21 it says to " Press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining forward to what is ahed, I press on to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.".
As I observed Skyler Griffin in the Preschool site with Kara Denton, a missionary and good friend from Magdalena, I saw Christ in action. Her genuine love for the kids and for the site was evident. Not only to me, but also to her leader who spoke to me of her appreciation for her and her always being willing to help. Skyler is a natural with the students there and it made me proud as a leader to have her on the team. Thank you Skyler, for giving of yourself to the Guatemalans there. They love you Cieeeelo!
One of the days I was able to accompany the Child Sponsorship site on a shopping trip to the grocery store to buy food for a few needy families. Katelyn Erickson was my student there who demonstrated, truly, how maturity and grace is extended to others. She spoke at the banquet and shared how much of a difference the families, Nivia Saravia, and the girls in the girls club has made for her. Her compassion and love for others was so appreciated. I am so grateful that God brought you back to join us again this year, and anticipate hearing great things from you.
How amazing was it to once again have a summer staff intern there from CVC? Alexa Blundell was with me the past two years and came that first time not really knowing why God wanted her there. God used that time to make clear to her that agriculture was her chosen fiend and is now studying to be a Veterinarian after having worked with Mario Mendez. 3 years ago, adjustments were made in her life we, including me as leader, never knew about! God is so good! Love you Alexa soooo much!
In 5-10 years, as you all look back and recognize what drew you to be with God in Magdalena Milpas Altas, Guatemala you may be married or engaged. Seek Him with the same passion you had on this trip and in your ministry sites, on this outreach. Pray specifically now to find that calling and how God wants to use you. Surrender and allow God to guide you. Our trip may be over for now, but God goes with you on the road of life. I will never forget how God used you here. Remember that time Victoria, in her devotional had us wear the shoe of someone to our right? That is what you did while on the trip and during life you will put on many different shoes, many times for God's sake, and not our own. Things may be uncomfortable at times, but stay focussed on Him and God will use you for His glory. Blessings to you all!
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