Guatemala

Buenas!

Hi everyone! It’s been a few weeks since I was last able to sit down with Wi-Fi and tell y’all what’s been going on. But now I can!

Last week we left base in Gainesville, went to the airport in Atlanta and left the United States for the next seven months.

It was a crazy travel day but from the stories I’ve heard, we had it easy. Our flight took off from Atlanta at 5pm with a layover in Dallas, Texas and then a flight to Guatemala. That’s right, I was in Texas for about an hour! It wasn’t much but I did get to see one last sunset in the US.

Going through customs, security and roaming around for dinner in the airport was really fun. Even with all the insanity of fifty young adults leaving the country, there was so much excitement. We were all finally leaving the US and going out into the field.

We arrived in Guatemala at around midnight due to some flight delays, but we made it!!!

The rest of that night was spent driving to the Adventures base in Parramos and then arriving at our home for the next two and a half months. Even in the middle of the night, I could see that Guatemala was beautiful. Waking up the next day, was incredible.

 The mountains reach so high in the sky and are covered with hundreds of shades of green. All of the buildings are bright blues, yellows, white, pale green, and tan. Over the wall in base, you can see all of the lights in the cities and villages. Arriving and looking around, I could see the lights and I knew that this was exactly where I was meant to be.

It’s been an insanely busy few weeks since arriving, so I’m going to share a few stories of what I’ve been up to so far and also some information about the ministry I’m helping with. Also, since I haven’t been able to update much, if you’re interested in hearing more check out the J-Squad newsletter on Instagram! @worldrace.jsquad

Alrighty, so for our ministry in Guatemala, my team, Alabaster, get the opportunity to work with Bethel where we help to clean and repair wheelchairs along with a whole bunch of other incredible things. Our ministry allows us the chance to serve God by literally being His hands and feet. We help at their school for people with special needs, we have gotten to go on house visits to deliver food to families in need and most of all, we get the chance to share in the joy of Christ with our hosts every day. Ministry has been so, so good! It’s a lot of ‘mundane’ things (cleaning, dusting, organizing) but in that, my team has grown so much closer, and we’ve had some amazing conversations about the Lord. Our hosts are also the sweetest people and have blessed us by letting us work with them.

We’re one of the first world race teams to ever work with Bethel. So please be praying not only for us, but also that future teams get the chance to serve the Lord together with Bethel.

I literally cannot thank the Lord enough that we are here doing His will with our ministry and I can’t wait to share more of what happens as the months go on.

Time for some stories!!!

One of my favorite things that I’ve done so far in Guatemala has been spending adventure days with my team, Alabaster.

The first week we were here God called us into Chimaltenango (Chimal for short) during our ATL (Ask the Lord) time. It was very hard to go up to people and talk to them about God, especially with a language barrier but God got us through. We got the chance to talk and pray with a few people. I was super nervous but learned a lot and God has been growing my confidence every time we get to go out. We didn’t get to go out that weekend because we all got very very sick, two with food poisoning from street gummies and the rest of us with a stomach bug. It was a very bonding weekend either way. Because we all got sick, we all got to pray for one another, and God was with us through all of the pain and tiredness.

The second weekend was a lot more fun! We went into Antigua on both Thursday and Saturday. Thursday was ATL. I was in a group with Hope, Josephine and one of the AIM Guatemala staff. That week of ATL, God gave me so much more boldness. He highlighted a woman on a bench so we went over and got the chance to sit with her. We talked with her for a little while and then prayed for peace over her and she received in. Jesus was sitting there with us and He put her mind at ease. It was amazing. We then talked and prayed with a grandmother and her granddaughter who were selling candy to support their family as well as a woman working in a store across the street. On Saturday we spent the entire morning in Artista, a beautiful coffee shop. We then went out into the town and took pictures together and just had fun. Josephine and I went to a really fancy McDonalds (it had a fountain and courtyard!!!) and then to a tattoo shop. I didn’t get anything, but Jo did and we both sat together watching Top Gun until it was done.

This week, week three in Guatemala has been awesome! On Sunday our squad had a movie night watching Cars, eating popcorn and acting like kids again. We all hadn’t seen it in a long time so all of our reactions were priceless and the atmosphere was full of laughter. Then on Monday we had a worship night and a prayer burn. Each team selected an hour to get up and pray for our squad. My team had the 1am-2am slot. I was so nervous I would fall asleep or that it would feel like forever; but I didn’t. I spent the entire hour talking with God, fully awake and enjoying His overwhelming presence. Then on Tuesday, we had the day off from ministry, so my team rested together. We watched movies, played games and spent time hanging out with Jesus. Wednesday, we went back to ministry, and it was so much fun, we were sorting clothes for donations and then got to drop some off. Thursday, Friday and Saturday were all amazing too and God has been such a good Father through it all. 

I love y’all so much and I cannot wait to update y’all again as soon as I can! 

-Em