8 Days...

On Tuesday we went to an area of Guatemala called Villa Nueva.  It is a dangerous area and has been on the news often because of crimes so we went to shine some light in a dark place. 

Our first stop was a public school that had about 500 students.  We got to have assembles with the 1st-3rd graders and then with the 4th-6th graders.  It was really cool to be able to do this in a public school.  In fact, the government has been meeting with us and has been sharing their desire for us (YWAM) to be more involved in the public schools.  They realize that by bringing the Gospel in, the dark is driven away and they are interested.   It is pretty cool.  We cleaned bathrooms and painted as well in the morning and with 50 people it flew by! 

Speaking into young lives

The cutest sound man around!

Then in the afternoon we went to another public school.  There were about 1,000 kids at this school, but the teachers were really organized and the students were well behaved and ready to hear the truth.  The team that we are working with did dramas and shared testimonies.  They also replaced a roof, painted and cleaned bathrooms.  Again, it all went by fast with so many people working hard.  We even had a clown, who is a volunteer from a local church who wanted to help us out.  It was a fun place to be!

Painting away

The roof the team repaired

Thanks for reading!

9 Days...

I can't believe we are in the single digits!  It hit me hard on day day 9 that we are actually leaving.  Leaving this country, leaving these people. 

We had an orientation and time of worship with the El Paso team in the morning and then in the afternoon we went to the Christian television station, Canal 27, to pack bags of food that we will be taking with us to the village we are going to on Friday.  300+ bags of food is a lot to make, but not when you have 55 people packing them!!!  We made an assembly line and it felt kind of like Trick-or-Treating.

Then last night we went to our friends Guatemalan family, the Colom's house.  It was going to be the last small group for our church that we would be able to attend, since next Monday is Holy Week and they wouldn't be meeting.  After the devotion, Priscilla and Stuardo (mama and papa Colom) said that they have mixed emotions because they know that we will be happy in Bakersfield so they are happy for us, but that they are going to miss us so they are sad.  I, who was already fighting back tears, began to realize just how much I am going to miss them.  I began to cry as they asked us to come to the middle of the room and prayed for us.  What a great church family we have here in Guatemala!  We have been blessed time after time by them and they will always have a very special place in our hearts! 

Thanks for reading!

10 Days...

Saint Patrick's Day, or the day we had 10 days left in Guatemala was a full day.  We didn't go to church in the morning because the team of 50 people from El Paso, Texas came in so we went to the airport to pick them up.  They came in two groups because I am pretty sure that there is no way they could have come on one flight unless they booked the whole thing for themselves.  We waited a long time for the first group to come out.  We speculated about what they would look like and as each group came out we asked ourselves if that was them.  Finally, after seeing about 4 or 5 youth groups come out the airport doors, we saw the group.  The evening pick up wasn't too bad since there weren't as many people there.  We finally crawled into bed around 12:30, just in time to sleep and wake up to make breakfast for the team the next day. 

All in all it was a good day, but still no camera.  I did take a beauty shot for you all and am willing to share my St. Patrick's  Day 2013 self portrait with you all.  Enjoy!!!

11 Days...

Saturday we had 11 days left in Guatemala and it was good day, indeed!  We did laundry, got stuff ready for the team who arrives on Sunday, I went to Mega Paca (more on that later) and lunch with two other friends on staff while Mario stayed back and fix some stuff at the base, and we ended the evening off by hanging out with our friends the Coloms. 

So Mega Paca is like a second hand clothes store heaven.  There are clothes from the States that they bring down, sort into size, discount and resale for a ridiculously cheap price.  The reason we went yesterday was to look for long skirts because we are going to a village on Friday where we need to wear long skirts, plus we kind of used it as an excuse to go :)  Mario HATES the Mega Paca.  Why, you might ask.  Not because he isn't a fan of second hand clothes because he definitely is.  It is because he does not like spending the time going through and trying on clothes if the end result is me walking out of the store empty handed.  For me, the going through and trying on is half of the fun, but for him it is a big fat waste of time.  That is why I try my best to avoid having to go with him and I take full advantage of going with girls when I have the chance.  So yesterday we went and I didn't find a skirt but I did get two shirts for a super low price.  It was great! 

In the afternoon our friend Stuardo Colom called to see if we could give him and his family a ride to a 10K night run they were going to do.  We gladly agreed, since this family is like our family away from home.  They invited us to dinner afterward and we laughed late into the night with them.  We are definitely DEFINITELY going to miss this family.  They have done so many things for us and saved our sanity numerous times since we have been here.  They are like a breath of fresh air for us and are always looking to do something to bless us.  They are amazing!!!

Last but not least I have to tell you that I do not have pictures to put in this post because I tried to take my camera out twice to get some photos of the day just to realize that our camera is slowly dying and it decided that it didn't want to play along.  It turned on, but pretended like it didn't have an SD card in it (even though it did- I checked and double checked), so there are no pictures from our 11th day left in Guatemala.  Hopefully I can talk it into working for just a little bit longer so that we can get pictures up for the rest of the days! 

Thanks for reading!!!

12 Days...

We only had 12 days left on Friday.  That means we have LESS than two weeks... eeek!!!  Anyway, Friday was a busy day because we have a team coming on Sunday.  We had a staff meeting all morning long to discuss details (not my or Mario's favorite way to spend our morning, but definitely a necessary thing to make sure all of us are on the same page).  Then in the afternoon I worked on getting the schedule perfected and Mario finished painting.  He has been painting around the base all week and it looks really good. 

This really doesn't do his painting justice because he hasn't taken the tape off yet and the lighting is horrible, but his creativity is great and he does such a good job!!!

 Then after lunch Mario got a shot and of course I had to document that!  Actually shots here are really common and he was getting a vitamin B complex shot. It was his second injection of the week.  It was super inexpensive to get everything for the injections and so we took advantage of it before we get back to the States and everything medical related will be more expensive.  I had actually gotten the same shots a few weeks back and had told him that it had hurt, but I guess he didn't believe me because after he got the first one he commented on how bad it had actually hurt.  I am glad we could go through the pain together.  Thankfully we have a friend here on staff who can give injections and she gladly injected both of us with the vitamins.  Here are some pictures of Sara and Mario after the shot...

 Mario decided that he would rather take pills than get shot, which for him is a huge deal because he HATES taking pills.  Now when he needs to take vitamins or anything else I have something to remind him of when he says he doesn't want to take them.

So that was our interesting Friday.  Everyday I start the day thinking that I won't have anything to blog about for that day, but something always comes up and I am glad it does!!! 

13 Days...

So Thursday we officially only had 13 more days of being in Guatemala before we move back to the US and here is what happened...

I got to eat MANGOES!!!  They are seriously my favorite fruit in the whole wide world.  I am sad to say that Bakersfield doesn't know mangoes because the 1 version (Tommy) that we have is good, but it is definitely not the best.  Here I am finishing off my favorite, one called Pashte.  It is really orange inside and is super sweet and juicy.  Someone said that they are the kind of mango that you eat at home where no one can see you because they make such a big mess.  To me they are so worth the mess!  Guatemala has around 13 different kinds of mangoes (!) and I have tried maybe 5 or 6 and have been a fan of them all.  Mangoes are truly a delicious fruit and I am going to miss them while we are in the States! 

14 Days...

On Wednesday we were on day #14 of our 15 day countdown to Bakersfield.  We had Street Ministry in the evening, like we usually do on Wednesday.  It was our last time going as just the staff because next Wednesday we will have a huge team with us and then the next Wednesday we will be in Bakersfield!!!

I must admit that I love Wednesday night ministries and it is one of the things that I am going to miss most about being here.  The people on the streets know my name, they want to share things with me and they know that if they ever want to get off the streets that we will be there to help them. 

one of our favorites, Juan

Last night was kind of a crazy one and many strange things happened.  First of all, during our weekly soccer game in the street, one of the guys from the streets kicked the ball and his shoe came flying off and went through a second story apartment window.  The person inside was NOT HAPPY at all and we did everything to calm him down as he threatened us with different things.  The owner of the building came and was not any happier with us and after accusing us of things and saying some not very kind things, we decided that we would pay for the window and they needed to give back the shoe. 

The hole where the shoe went in

The guy who lives in the apartment and us trying to calm him down

Not too long after the shoe incident, the street lights went out.  Just like that, they were off.  It was weird and we didn't really know what to do for a second, but we decided to play in the dark and not too long after that they came back on.  That has never happened to us, though, and so it was strange. 

Then, one of the last events of the nights was when a car came down the street, aka our soccer field, and didn't see the cinder block we were using as a goal.  It drove right over the bock and drug it a few feet before quickly driving away.  What a NIGHT!!!

Day 14 was interesting, to say the least!!!

15 Days Left

I decided I am going to try to do a post a day for the last 15 days we are in Guatemala.  It might get tricky towards the end because we will have a team here, but I will do my best.

So yesterday, Tuesday, we had 15 days left in Guatemala.  The day was pretty normal.  We had a prayer meeting in the morning, worked in the office and then Mario shared in Teen Challenge (for the last time) in the afternoon.  I made chicken enchiladas for dinner and they *almost* tasted like my Mama's.  Someone had given us free tickets to the movies, so we decided to go last night.

We saw Oz and it was a good choice.  I have discovered that I am not such a huge fan of the movies.  First of all, for some reason I would rather watch TV than pay to go sit in a freezing theater with a bunch of other people where they don't even let me put my feet on the seat in front of me.  Mario, on the other hand, loves to go to the movies.  There have been a few times we have gone to the movies since we have been married, but other than that Mario usually goes with a friend.  For us, free tickets was the perfect thing because I didn't have to worry about paying and Mario was more than happy to spend an evening in the theater. 

I took this picture before we went in because, well, to tell you the truth I like to think that if I weren't married to Mario, Channing Tatum would probably be the next in line.  Mario and I both agreed that G.I. Joe looks like it is going to be a good movie, but for obviously different reasons.

A few of the things that I noticed when we were watching Oz is that to me it is definitely not a kids movie.  I jumped in my seat a few times, which made Mario laugh, but still, if I am getting scared I would hate to see how a young child responds.  It was a really good movie, though.  There was one particular part at the end that I really liked.  It was when Oz had proven to the wicked witches that he was indeed the wizard.  Theadora, who was good at the beginning and then turned evil, began to fly away and Oz stopped her and told her that if she even decided that she wants to be good again, she is welcome back in the land of Oz.  It made me think that is exactly how God is with us.  No matter what choices we make, He is always willing to accept us back.  What a great message! 

Thanks for reading!!!

A Little Piece of My Mind

I asked a "what if" question this morning when I was having a conversation with God.  I said, "What if all Christians started walking in their full identity in Christ and actually looked for their calling and did whatever that looked like on a daily basis?"  It was a question that I actually asked out of frustration.

WARNING:  What you are about to read is something that I am passionate about, so bear with me for a few sentences...  I am tired of seeing Christians who know who they are in Christ (which most Christians would say they do) but act like they don't.  I mean, really, if God is a King, which He is (1 Timothy 6:15) and we are His sons and daughters, which we are (2 Corinthians 6:18) then that makes us princesses and princes.  Royalty.  That is just ONE of sooooooo many things that we are in Christ. 

So, going back to my question, like I said I was talking to God and I wasn't necessarily asking Him for the answer as much as I was just thinking what it would be like.  Then I felt a small yet powerful thought cross my mind.  It was this: it starts with YOU.  And just like that I had a wave of conviction come over me.  I know that if I want people to change, that I also need to be willing to change.  I know that judging others is not my place (although I often seem to fall into the sin of thinking that it is).  I know these things, but knowing something in your head and putting them into practice are two totally different things. 

Now I am faced with this knowledge moving from my head to my heart and with that comes a word called RESPONSIBILITY.  I have the knowledge and now I am responsible to do something with it.  I have thought to myself throughout the day, "Why did I even ask that question?". I have also thought to myself, "Okay, what is this going to look like in a practical way in my life?", and "What lies have I been believing about who I am in Christ?".

I share all this with you not to make you think any differently about me and my walk with the Lord, but instead in hopes that you might look at your own life and ask yourself some of the same questions I have been chewing on throughout the day.  It is not easy to stop believing a lie, especially if you have believed it for a long period of time, but it is worth it.  If you don't know who you are in Christ, then I challenge you to find out.  There are so many places you can look, but my favorite is the good old B-I-B-L-E.  It never lets me down.  So there you have it, something to think about.  I pray that as you think about it that God will reveal to you things that you need to clean out and other things that you can cling to.  And I promise, it is worth it!

Faithfulness

Faithfulness is a word that I have been learning a lot about lately. God's faithfulness to me.  God's faithfulness to others.  God's faithfulness shown through others.  God's calling for me to be faithful.

It is one of my favorite things.  I love faithfulness.  I love when I see God's faithfulness at work in my life and in others lives.  I love the result of my faithfulness.  It is not always easy being faithful.  It is also not always easy to be patient and trust that God will be faithful.  He always proves Himself, though.  And boy, oh boy, has He been proving Himself!

About 3 months ago Mario and I began to feel like there was going to be some changes in our lives after DTS.  We didn't have plans, which made it easy to leave the future open to what God wants.  We both prayed and felt that we were supposed to leave YWAM Guatemala and move back to Bakersfield- something that I was not really expecting... like at all.  Mario shared with me that he felt this and I honestly couldn't believe it.  Could it be true that after 3 years of missing out on birthdays, holidays, time with friends and family... could it be that I would be back in Bakersfield, not alone, but with my amazing husband by my side?!?  It was something that brought up some strong emotions in me.

I really didn't realize how much I have missed the United States until I really let myself think about moving back there.  Maybe it was some kind of defense mechanism that I have been using to be able to survive here or something, but I honestly have gotten used to the way of life here.  One thought, though, at being back makes me miss it.  I am excited about going to church and hearing a message in English.  I am excited to share my heart and God's heart for people in English.  I am excited to be able to go places by myself and not be worried if I am safe or not.  God is so faithful!!!

As we take this next step, I can't help but think of God's faithfulness.  A month and a half ago we didn't have enough money to buy our plane tickets for the DTS outreach and now not only do we have our outreach paid, but we also have plane tickets to Los Angeles!  I mean, seriously, this God we serve is amazing!!!  We don't really know what we are going to do in Bakersfield, but we do know that we can trust God.  He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  That means that the faithful God He was yesterday is the faithful God He is today and is the faithful God He will be tomorrow.  How exciting!!!

We do know that we will most likely be staying with family, at least for a while, when we get to Bakersfield.  We will need to get a car and look for jobs.  Mario cannot work, technically, so that will be something that we will have to figure out.  Am I worried about money?  Not really, and when I do start to worry, I remind myself of God's faithfulness.  Will it be challenging?  Yes, without a doubt.

We have been living off of support from amazing people for 3 years and God has provided.  Sometimes I think it is easier living the lifestyle of trusting God to provide like we have for these years because it depends really little on us.  This next season is going to depend more on us and with that comes the temptation to think we are doing it on our own.  Whether we are getting a monthly support check or earning money from an employer, WE really aren't the ones who provide the money and this is something that I don't want to forget in this next season.

Also, I have been living in a different culture for 3 years.  Mario has been living in his culture.  That is about to change.  Thankfully, Mario is a pretty adaptable person and doesn't have a problem with different cultures (obviously, he married me!), but it is still going to be hard.  English instead of Spanish (for the most part, I mean, we are going to be living in Bakersfield so there is definitely Spanish around), pancakes instead of eggs and beans for breakfast, calm driving instead of driving for your life... the list could go on and on and although some things might seem small, they make a difference.  I am praying that the transition goes smoothly for the both of us and I know God is faithful.

So, after reading all that, you must really care about us or you wouldn't have made it this far in the post.  Thanks!  We would love your prayers as we step out into this new adventure.  Here are some points that you can be praying for:
-A smooth transition
-A car
-Renewing/new vision and that we wouldn't lose our vision for the future (we still feel called to Livingston, Guatemala!)
-Finances 
-That we can grow deeper in love with God

Thank you!  We are so excited about this!!!


Blessings to you all and thanks for reading!