August Campaign--Guatemala

We rode the church bus to Guatemala on Saturday, July 30, with the rest of the team from Vida Nueva, San Salvador.  The trip was uneventful--just the way we like it.  We arrived with about a half hour to spare before the scheduled evening event.  

Forty-six people from four different churches (First Baptist, Ferguson, MO; First Baptist, Gulf Shores, AL and Bell Shoals Baptist, Brandon, FL) came to Guatemala to help us share the gospel and help our Guatemala church.  

Instead of a regular family festival, after a short meeting to assign translators, the team went out on the streets around the hotel to share one-on-one.  It was awesome to see the group jump right in and share with the people on the street.

There was a 5K road race near the hotel on Sunday morning, so after orientation, the group picked up some bottled water to pass out and headed over to the park.  Although the church had a regular church service, it was the first time I can remember not joining them for worship.  There were hundreds of people in the race so there were many opportunities to share with the runners and their families and friends who came to watch.  Even when the race finished, this area of the city is full of families who spend their Sunday running, walking and visiting.  

  
After a quick lunch break and a short rest, we all returned to the park for the afternoon.  The crowds seemed even larger in the afternoon.

What a Saturday!

There were five things on our Saturday calendar and we managed to work four of them in.  

My day started early with a 7:30 a.m. breakfast/baby shower for Annie Sofia, the baby girl that Erick and Lila are waiting to meet.  Keeley and I went together, but due to the next thing on the calendar, we couldn't stay the whole time.  We enjoyed the breakfast and the first game.  

The afternoon was filled with lunch with our IDEM group (yes, we just had breakfast with them last Saturday.)  Today's lunch featured "sopa de frijoles," Salvadoran style.  Not only did Delmy and William host the lunch, but she also prepared the soup.  Last Saturday when we asked what kind of soup she was making she said, "bean soup with everything" and she was telling the truth!  There was every vegetable imaginable (some we couldn't identify), boiled pork (with bones included), corn flour dumplings and, of course, lots of beans.   The soup was served over rice, with hot homemade tortillas.  A picture is worth a thousand words:

At 4:30 we were back at the apartment waiting for our landlord, Miriam, her son and his girlfriend.  We invited them to see the presentation of Soñador at our church in Miravalle.  They really enjoyed it and it was so fun to watch them laugh and clap.  What was even better was that Miriam made a profession of faith at the end of the evening.  

It was an amazing day from start to finish and evidence of God's hand at work!