Guate Day 2

 

Worshipping at Access Church

But be sure to fear the Lord and faithfully serve him. Think of all the wonderful things he has done for you. 1 Samuel 12:24 NLT

Well, another day that didn't quite go as we planned, but God had planned for us. First the good news ... our luggage finally arrived at 10pm tonight. We will have the items we need for ministry tomorrow (as well as some clean clothes!). Thank you for your prayers for this matter. 

Rundown of the Day

After a delicious breakfast of fruit and French Toast this morning, we gathered to talk about the upcoming day. Mikenna read our Scripture for the day (1 Samuel 12:24), I read an email of encouragement from one of our members, and we prayed together. We went to church at Access Church in San Cristobal. It was a wonderful service that was mostly in English, but we did sing one song in Spanish. They had a guest speaker, a pastor that was visiting with his mission team from Georgia. We celebrated the Lord's Supper and the speaker preached on the Armor of God. After church we headed back to Antigua to eat lunch. Because of a tragic bus accident, what would normally only take about 40 minutes took us nearly 2 hours, so we had a late lunch (at Taco Bell because everything else was packed, lol). After lunch some of us visited the school where Lydia taught when she lived here, and then went to the market for a brief shopping trip. We then headed back to the mission house for supper, and then our group time. Mikenna led the devotion tonight, talking about "Why do bad things happen to good people?" from John 9. Though we don't know the reason for every bad thing, God has a purpose and He is always bringing good from terrible situations. We shared how we were seeing God work, and then closed in prayer. And then our luggage arrived and we have been preparing for our work tomorrow. 

Reflections on the Day

1. Through the blessing of technology some of us were able to worship with you through Facebook Live. I am thankful for our leaders, Stiel, Paola, and Jeremy and blessed by the music and the message. It was a great way to start the day.

2. This morning some of our ladies were prayed over by ladies from the other mission team that is staying at the mission house. The prayers were audible and were heard throughout the mission house, and it was powerful not only for those who were in the room, but also for those who were within earshot. The other mission team are mostly African Americans, and they are working in Zone 3 which is the city dump for Guatemala City. We are blessed to have fellowship with them. 

3. Our worship time at Access Church was also a blessing. The message on the Armor of God was very practical and encouraging. The worship music was moving. During the worship music time there was a special needs young man in the aisle who was playing an air drum, and air guitar and dancing with the music. After the worship leader came off the stage, he fist-bumped the young man. We felt at home with a church that loves special needs people like Grace Point does. (We also saw a man who looked just like Jimmy Hicks, so we really felt a t home, lol.)

4. On the way to Antigua after church we were stuck in traffic caused by a bus wreck. We learned that it was a church bus, on their was to church that morning that lost control and rolled over. 45 people were injured and there were at least six fatalities. Our hearts broke when we heard the news and JBob led us in prayer for everyone involved and the families of the injured and deceased. 

5. Antigua was crowded with people today, but our team has handled every delay and difficult situation with grace and poise. While in Antigua, David had an opportunity to speak with a gentleman who was from Canada and had been diagnosed with cancer. He said his doctors in Canada had instructed him to head south, so he had been traveling by bus for about 68 hours through the US and Mexico. He was only in Guatemala for a little while and was planning to go to Rio De Janerio, Brazil. David told him he was part of a mission team and that we would be praying for him, and we did tonight. 

6. Mikenna did a great job leading our devotion tonight and God had obviously orchestrated. It was the perfect message after learning about the bus accident this afternoon. It reminded us that God knows what we need to hear, when we need to hear it. God is good. 

Tomorrow begins our real work. We have a construction team and a VBS team heading out at 7:30am. Please pray we will continue to pay attention to how God is working and how we can join Him in His work here in Guatemala. 

Thank you again for your support and prayers.