Hosting groups and planning trips has become a significant part of our six month journey to Guatemala, and we just finished sharing this country with the final group. Our friends Dave and Juli Thompson came down nearly two weeks ago, and while Juli stayed at a language school in Antigua Dave joined the nine other guys who came down from the Cincinnati area. There are not enough words to describe the amazing things we saw God do in and through us, so here a a few of the highlights of the week:

 

-Continuing work on six bathroom projects for needy families in La Limonada.

-Hearing Tita’s vision for a second school for Limonada children and praying over the land.

-Encouraging Caesar, a man who as lost his family to cocaine, and seeing his daughters come in crying tears of joy while we were praying with him.

-Hearing the stories of the school teachers and encouraging them as they wept for the children and their seemingly hopeless situations.

-Late-night dancing and singing “God is the powerful God of the streets” with street children, then watching them devour the food we brought.

-Sharing testimonies and stories with gang members in prison.

- Smelling the soles of our shoes burn as we stood ten feet away from an enormous lava flow on Volcan Pacaya, and watched fire dance and sparks fly out of the cone.

-Taking Tita for a day of relaxation to the black-sand beaches of Monterrico.

-Meeting Polo and learning about the history and struggles of the Garifuna people in Livingston over a delicious bowl of Coconut Banana Fish Soup; visiting the Garifuna orphanage.

-Jumping off a 25 foot cliff into a cool fresh water pool mixed with hot spring cascades at Finca Paraiso.

-Learning about the ancient Mayan culture just after sunrise on top of Temple IV in Tikal.

-Craig giving Tita a beautiful cross tattoo, representing her freedom in Christ and her struggle with the pervasive legalism in the Guatemalan churches.

-Visiting Shorty’s rehabilitation center and covering up gang tattoos for former gang members.

-Painting the teenager’s room at the school and playing futbol and games with them in their new bright environment.

-Praying through sobs with Tita and Monika as they perservere in the ministry to La Limonada.