FPC Guatemala 2018

If there is one thing that I have learned in my short stay here on earth it is that routines are terrible. We get so comfortable in our own worlds that we tend to block out the rest. We go to church on Sundays, we make it through the work week; but we never take the time to stop and look around. This trip is a giant breath of fresh air. We are constantly surrounded by people much less fortunate than we are; but we are greeted with smiles and a love that so pure that you are awestruck. Coming down here breaks the routine, it forces you out of your comfort zone and straight into the work of the heavenly Father. To watch the tears stream down a child’s face after you have blessed them with simple hand me down clothes, it’s so fulfilling to know that God has worked through you and you have done holy work that will forever change this child’s life. Yesterday we built a house for a family and were able to build such strong relationships in such a brief time. It’s like saying goodbye to a

8/29/18 What a week we have had - so many hugs, so many smiles, so many tears! Three families now have a secure place to live, a bed to sleep on, stove to cook on, and a bathroom! How blessed we have been to be a part of providing them with the bare necessities. Fifty people are now able to move about without having to be carried. Nine of the wheelchairs provided were specialty chairs for children. As the recipients met with the local pastors to hear the Good News of God’s love, eleven of them gave their hearts to God. Wheelchair distribution is the heart of Bethel Ministries, and it has a way of gaining our hearts as well. Home visits this year brought a lot of need. We had plenty of clothes and food to share, but there is an ongoing need in many of these families. I want to share just a hint of what some of them are going through. Concepcion and Paula took in their three grandchildren five years ago, when the children’s mother died. They have provided a loving secure hom

Craig asked us tonight in devotions if we had seen someone cry this week. Every hand went up. Then he asked if we had seen someone cry every day. Many hands went back up. The last question was if we had been moved to tears since arriving. We are working with people in extreme poverty and difficult situations. It is true we see love and joy they extend to each other, their community, and to us. It is also true we see tears well up in their eyes when asked what they would like us to pray for, or what they would want more than anything. Food for their family, money for the children's schooling, health and strength to work - are their answers. Our eyes fill in response. There is some we can do to help - food sponsorship, wheelchair, house build, medicine, school sponsors -  and some we cannot do. But we can share the message of God's love, hug them, pray for them, and cry with them. "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." Marcy

It is true that the days have been whirlwind of activities and it is hard to capture the many unique and special moments.  Thus, I thought I would bullet some of these as follows: -           Children laughing while helping us build their future home.  Carrying buckets of rock and water on their small shoulders -           Broad smiles during clothing distribution -           Young girls elated with their handsewn dolls -           Packed auditorium awaiting for their wheel chair for themselves or their family members -           Our volunteers working with individual families to size their wheelchairs -           Parents holding their disabled loved one on their shoulders when they came to the auditorium and leaving with tears of joy as their loved one was settled into a custom fitted wheelchair -           The second story of the warehouse being full of clothes and finding out that this would only provide clothes for the needy for 1 ½ months -           Many of the w

So much has happened it is hard to capture the moments.  Today a group of us went on home visits.  We go to see people that have come to Bethel Ministries seeking help.  As a team we go out with a basket of food that will feed a family for a month and a supply of clothes for members of the families.  We spent time listening to their stories, sharing Jesus love and praying.  The first family we visited was with a father who has been a diabetic for 12 years.  He had been sick for 20 days probably because he has not been able to afford his insulin.  His family is close to eviction.  His wife works fulltime and one of his young daughters had dropped out of school to care for him.  Bethel has been providing food for his family for a year but is no longer able to continue.  They are looking for a sponsor to provide the food.  Sponsors commit to $50 per month. His land lady was there and was actually the one that shared he couldn’t pay for his insulin.  She joined us in prayer and was in tea

Monday morning at 0300 came way too early. We dashed off to San Francisco airport only to get stuck in traffic at the tolls. As traffic crawled along we spoke of our upcoming adventure to Guatemala. We spoke about what our toughest day would be, mixing the foundation for the houses we would soon build or reconstructing the wheelchairs and distributing them to the families. The excitement built as we met the rest of the team at the airport. Marcy organized the passports as Noah, Nick, Karen and I consolidated the clothes to be distributed. Mary, Laura, and Katie printed boarding passes as Christian and Alta guarded the bags. Craig and Kathy located food and coffee to make sure we were well fortified. The plane flight to Dallas was smooth and we touched down with moments to spare. Everyone ran to the next plane to make the flight. We landed in Guatemala City at 2100 and were quickly greeted by Ben and Emily. Ben loaded the luggage atop the van, tarping, tying and securing. Ben, I woul