Hola to everyone!
This is our LAST blog post of this Guatemala 2018 trip for Wooddale Senior High! Can you believe it?!
These last two weeks have both flown by and seemed as though they have lasted forever... I am so grateful to have spent time with these students and see them experience God in a beautiful way here in Guatemala.
Today was another R&R day, and this time it was in Antigua, Guatemala! This little touristy town is home to not only the most elegant and sophisticated McDonald's that I've ever seen, but also to an awesome artisan market where students were able to purchase handmade gifts and trinkets to bring home tomorrow.
Before we got to Antigua, we left Santiago this morning around 9:15. After a 4-hour drive we made it to Antigua! We parked the buses in a lot where a van from the hotel picked up our bags so we didn't have to carry them (thank you, Jesus!). From about 2-6 PM, students were able to grab lunch and shop for the afternoon.
The leaders spent a wonderful time at a lunch all together to celebrate the wonderful time we had on the trip. This restaurant had a lot of Guatemalan specialities, and many leaders had dishes ranging from fish, shrimp, steak, chicken and more chips and guacamole!
After everyone finished their lunches and shopping, we shared a dinner together at the hotel. There was a live marimba band where eventually dancers came out and performed for us! THEN - They picked people from the crowd to join them on the dance floor with maracas! It was such a blast and the dinner of steak or chicken was to die for! After finishing up with some ice cream, the team met all together one last time to share about our trip experiences.
We will be heading out to the airport tomorrow morning at 8:30 AM. Please pray for safe and smooth travels tomorrow as we head on our way home!
Thank you all for reading once again, and we will see you at the airport tomorrow night and also at 12:30 PM on Sunday afternoon for our Mission Celebration Pot Luck in the Great Room at Wooddale Eden Prairie!
Thanks again!
Friday, June 22, 2018
Thursday, June 21, 2018
Guatemala - Day 12
Hola from Santiago!
Wow. Our team had an amazing day and I can’t wait to share about it with you!
This morning started quite a bit earlier for some of our students and leaders because they chose to wake up at 5:30 AM to watch the sunrise at Eagle’s Nest Orphanage in Solola. Although it was sort of cloudy and foggy, everyone sounded like they had a great experience!
For others of us, we woke up for a breakfast of pancakes, watermelon, and pineapple at about 7 AM. Eagle’s Nest was hosting a teacher’s day with over 250 people coming later in the morning, so we ate early and headed out around 9!
It was only about a 20-30 minute drive to our next stop... The boat ride across Lake Atitlán to Santiago! The students LOVED being on the second level of the boat and just enjoying a peaceful time all together... But some did end up doing a pull-up contest from the overhang on the boat. I wasn’t surprised at all by this one. Gotta love 17 year olds!
Once we arrived we walked right up to our hotel and checked in. It was immaculate! It felt like paradise. We had lunch at noon which was burgers and French fries. Then for the rest of the afternoon there was free time! Students were able to spend time resting in their rooms, shopping, lay in hammocks, or go shopping! And I think everyone did a little of everything!
Dinner was at 6 PM which was steak or chicken with cooked vegetables, rice, black beans, tortillas, and guacamole! It was so tasty!!
After dinner some fireworks were shot off in honor of my (Emma’s) birthday today! Which was so thoughtful of our team to think of me today.
We were able to then enjoy a sermon from William, one of the Guatemalans who is working with the Mime team, about victory in Jesus.
Following the service we all shared some birthday cake (again, so nice!), then headed off to bed.
We are feeling SO rested today and are excited for our day in Antigua tomorrow!
Please pray for continued health for our students - Many of them are feeling lots better after a day of rest and relaxation today! And that we are able to come back to the US and remember and put into action the things we were taught here in Guatemala.
Thank you! See you just a couple days!
Wednesday, June 20, 2018
Guatemala - Day 11
Hello everyone!
Happy Wednesday! We had such a wonderful day and I'm so excited to share about it with you all.
Today we left San Marcos at about 9 AM. Many of the people we met over the time we spent in San Marcos were there to send us off, which was very sweet! There were definitely tears shed by some of our team members as we left since the time we spent in San Marcos was so special to us.
Then we were off to Solola! It was about a three-hour drive there, but we stopped to go to the bathroom around noon (of course), then the gas station had such good snacks so we all bought something (of course!). Some got American food such as a Twix bar and Pringles, others branched out for green tortilla chips and thought they were lime flavored, when really, they were jalapeno flavored.
Then we had a little ways to go, and we got to Eagle's Nest, the orphanage/school/church in Solola around 1 PM. We shared an AMAZING lunch together of steak, potatoes, black beans, and guacamole! Definitely a crowd favorite.
Then we were able to finish the LAST service day of the trip! The Mime team and Children's team paired up to put on one big performance, back to back, for the children that attend the school here. The Medical team put on a wonderful clinic for the people here and were able to give out lots of medicine and vitamins to the children and their families! There is also a team here from Texas who were performing eye exams, so that was awesome to have those two teams working together. And with all the rainy weather occurring here in Solola, a lot of the wind had kicked up trash and other rubbish on their hillside, so the Service team was able to help pick that up and the staff here was SO appreciative!
After we finished our team time, we ended up having a small service, just as a Wooddale team. The Children's team learned the Sports/Drama team skit on their own, then ended up performing it for us. It was incredible, and just so cool to see these students take ownership over this skit and be passionate about how God loves us in such a beautiful way.
Then, Victor, one of our translators and Guatemalan Mime team leader shared with us an incredible message about worship... How we worship in all that we do, how worship is a response to what God did for us by sending his Son to die on the cross. Amazing!
Then Josh Kjer, JT Bogle, and Allie Pementell led us in worship. They sang "Good, Good Father," "Reckless Love," and "Simple Gospel."
After that we had dinner which were some AWESOME burritos, potato salad, and watermelon!
To finish off our night Pedro, one of the directors here, shared his testimony and it was powerful. We are so blessed to have heard it. Then many students shared about their time here in Guatemala and how God has been at work in their hearts thus far on the trip.
All students are in dorm-style sleeping arrangements tonight and we'll be heading out for Santiago around 9!
Continue to pray for our students' health and hearts for these last couple of days of the trip. Pray for encouragement for these students to come back home and share what they've learned and how God has worked in their lives these last 2 weeks.
Thanks all!
Happy Wednesday! We had such a wonderful day and I'm so excited to share about it with you all.
Today we left San Marcos at about 9 AM. Many of the people we met over the time we spent in San Marcos were there to send us off, which was very sweet! There were definitely tears shed by some of our team members as we left since the time we spent in San Marcos was so special to us.
Then we were off to Solola! It was about a three-hour drive there, but we stopped to go to the bathroom around noon (of course), then the gas station had such good snacks so we all bought something (of course!). Some got American food such as a Twix bar and Pringles, others branched out for green tortilla chips and thought they were lime flavored, when really, they were jalapeno flavored.
Then we had a little ways to go, and we got to Eagle's Nest, the orphanage/school/church in Solola around 1 PM. We shared an AMAZING lunch together of steak, potatoes, black beans, and guacamole! Definitely a crowd favorite.
Then we were able to finish the LAST service day of the trip! The Mime team and Children's team paired up to put on one big performance, back to back, for the children that attend the school here. The Medical team put on a wonderful clinic for the people here and were able to give out lots of medicine and vitamins to the children and their families! There is also a team here from Texas who were performing eye exams, so that was awesome to have those two teams working together. And with all the rainy weather occurring here in Solola, a lot of the wind had kicked up trash and other rubbish on their hillside, so the Service team was able to help pick that up and the staff here was SO appreciative!
After we finished our team time, we ended up having a small service, just as a Wooddale team. The Children's team learned the Sports/Drama team skit on their own, then ended up performing it for us. It was incredible, and just so cool to see these students take ownership over this skit and be passionate about how God loves us in such a beautiful way.
Then, Victor, one of our translators and Guatemalan Mime team leader shared with us an incredible message about worship... How we worship in all that we do, how worship is a response to what God did for us by sending his Son to die on the cross. Amazing!
Then Josh Kjer, JT Bogle, and Allie Pementell led us in worship. They sang "Good, Good Father," "Reckless Love," and "Simple Gospel."
After that we had dinner which were some AWESOME burritos, potato salad, and watermelon!
To finish off our night Pedro, one of the directors here, shared his testimony and it was powerful. We are so blessed to have heard it. Then many students shared about their time here in Guatemala and how God has been at work in their hearts thus far on the trip.
All students are in dorm-style sleeping arrangements tonight and we'll be heading out for Santiago around 9!
Continue to pray for our students' health and hearts for these last couple of days of the trip. Pray for encouragement for these students to come back home and share what they've learned and how God has worked in their lives these last 2 weeks.
Thanks all!
Tuesday, June 19, 2018
Guatemala - Day 10
Hola everyone!
Today was our very last day in San Marcos! It’s crazy to think that today was our last full day of serving, too! It will be very sad to leave tomorrow, but we are looking forward to the rest of our trip!
I was at the hotel all day tending to some students who were feeling a little under the weather, but we still had a blast watching American TV shows all in Spanish! I have my laptop with me, so we were also able to watch “The Secret Life of Pets,” on my Netflix (in English, of course!).
I texted the leaders to ask for updates on their days and this is what they said:
Lynn Martinson from Children’s Team: This morning we went to a public school with 700 students. It was lots of fun leading games with so many energetic kids. Think... 100 kids doing sidewalk chalk, others jump roping, more kids playing ball games and 300 kids doing relay races. Crazy! All the kids listened to our program attentively.This afternoon we had our last program at a church in San Marcos... A perfect finish with a smaller group of kids and parents. Our students were engaged and loved serving all the way to the end.
Missy Beck from Med Team: Today the medical team saw 126 patients. We were so happy to be at our host church, so we didn't have to travel. Kudos to Missy, Kathy and Dr. Byron. They tirelessly see patient after patient! The rest of the team was able to take naps if they wanted to (which we try not to tell the doctors ☺️). We also disinfected all the water bottles, to try to stay healthy!
Chris Erickson from Mime Team: The Mime Team did their presentation 4 times in 4 locations (that’s the most they’ll ever perform in one day!) And the total was 1250 students!!! Amazing!
And Joel Johnson from Service Team: We along with our Guatemala partners Davis, Jaime and Joshua worked side by side with local contractors to begin repair on a retaining wall at a pastors home made up of rock, rebar and concrete. We also helped out a widow at a more remote site to update the floor in a room from dirt to concrete and also build a kitchen addition to that same room. At both sites the students were able to learn carpentry skills and mix many batches of concrete, by hand, on the ground old school way. We hope that through our service that seeds were planted for His Kingdom. I am too blessed to have gotten to serve alongside these wonderful youth in this place!” I lift my eyes up to the hills-where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:1-2. Gods peace and love 2U my friends!
Tomorrow morning we will head out around 9 AM to Solola. We will have lunch around noon, then do some serving at the orphanage there that afternoon.
Please continue to pray for the health of this team... Wooddalers and Guatemalans, both. These next few days will be full of fun and some rest, so prayers we are able to debrief adequately before coming back to the US on Saturday.
Thank you all! Here are some pictures from Children's team yesterday.
Monday, June 18, 2018
Guatemala - Day 9
Hello everyone!
Before I do a recap, I'd like to first and foremost inform you all of something that occurred today.
One of our students will be heading home tomorrow morning. This is due to a skin rash that needs to be looked at in the United States. Mike will accompany them and they should be home by 5 PM tomorrow. The parents have been notified and are aware of what is occurring.
We are deeply saddened by the fact that Mike and this student will be going home, but we know that this is what is best for this student. Please pray for safe travels tomorrow for them, as well as for this student to receive great treatment back in MN to cure their condition.
As for the rest of us - We are doing well! We have checked everyone for bumps similar to this student and thankfully no one has any. We will keep an eye out each day, for sure.
All the teams had wonderful days.
The Mime team members told me about a multitude of people receiving Jesus into their hearts for the first time today. They performed at a Catholic church and even some people there wanted them to turn off the speakers because of the message... But, the hope of the Gospel prevailed and a woman who was 90 years old accepted Christ, then her daughter did, then her granddaughter did! And others! God is on the MOVE!
The Children's team went to two schools where there was one group of 300 kids, and another of about 100 or so! Aja shared her testimony in the morning, and Jackson Pope in the afternoon. They did an awesome job, it's so great to hear the hearts of these students, then see them pour out God's love for these kids.
Service team was able to do more concrete work in the community. Joel Johnson, their leader, has done an awesome job of getting these students in the word and listening to podcasts to encourage them. You can tell this is a close-knit group and it is so fun to see.
The medical team was about an hour or so away and saw about 70 patients, then gave about 100 vitamins! It was a slower day for them, but they are looking forward for serving in the church that is hosting us for their clinic!
Tomorrow is our last day in San Marcos - Please pray for students to not be discouraged, but lean on the Lord and what He is doing on this trip. We will head out for Solola on Wednesday morning.
Thank you, everyone!
Before I do a recap, I'd like to first and foremost inform you all of something that occurred today.
One of our students will be heading home tomorrow morning. This is due to a skin rash that needs to be looked at in the United States. Mike will accompany them and they should be home by 5 PM tomorrow. The parents have been notified and are aware of what is occurring.
We are deeply saddened by the fact that Mike and this student will be going home, but we know that this is what is best for this student. Please pray for safe travels tomorrow for them, as well as for this student to receive great treatment back in MN to cure their condition.
As for the rest of us - We are doing well! We have checked everyone for bumps similar to this student and thankfully no one has any. We will keep an eye out each day, for sure.
All the teams had wonderful days.
The Mime team members told me about a multitude of people receiving Jesus into their hearts for the first time today. They performed at a Catholic church and even some people there wanted them to turn off the speakers because of the message... But, the hope of the Gospel prevailed and a woman who was 90 years old accepted Christ, then her daughter did, then her granddaughter did! And others! God is on the MOVE!
The Children's team went to two schools where there was one group of 300 kids, and another of about 100 or so! Aja shared her testimony in the morning, and Jackson Pope in the afternoon. They did an awesome job, it's so great to hear the hearts of these students, then see them pour out God's love for these kids.
Service team was able to do more concrete work in the community. Joel Johnson, their leader, has done an awesome job of getting these students in the word and listening to podcasts to encourage them. You can tell this is a close-knit group and it is so fun to see.
The medical team was about an hour or so away and saw about 70 patients, then gave about 100 vitamins! It was a slower day for them, but they are looking forward for serving in the church that is hosting us for their clinic!
Tomorrow is our last day in San Marcos - Please pray for students to not be discouraged, but lean on the Lord and what He is doing on this trip. We will head out for Solola on Wednesday morning.
Thank you, everyone!
Sunday, June 17, 2018
Guatemala - Day 8
Hi everyone!
Hope you all had a wonderful Father's Day! Thank you to all the dads out there who are praying over us and encouraging our students each and every day. We are grateful for YOU!
Today was our first full day in San Marcos and it was a great one!
The medical team, the mime team, and the children's team all went off to a small village about an hour an a half away from San Marcos. What we didn't realize is that we were all scheduled to be at the exact same church... At the exact same time.
Thankfully we have some awesome team members and leaders of those teams who were able to be flexible, so we made it all work!
The medical team stayed inside the church (before they even arrived, people were lined up out the door to be seen!), the children's team put on their program just right outside the church, while the mime team moved across the street to a saloon where they were able to perform there! It worked out perfectly.
The service team stuck around San Marcos today and was able to do do some work here with the local church.
After everyone got back to San Marcos this evening, we shared a dinner of pasta with red sauce, and some sort of fried mashed potato... Log, of sorts. It was great!! And of course, we had homemade tortillas, too.
Mike arrived and was able to eat dinner with us! We are SO excited to have him here for this second week!
What happened next was AMAZING - We were able to attend a service put on by the youth of the church here in San Marcos. The music was upbeat and so fun to dance and sing along to!
After the worship was done, the mime team performed and did an incredible job (as always)! Then Pastor Nery from the church shared a wonderful sermon with us.
The service finished and host homes came to pick us up and we headed out!
Please continue to pray for health of the students! It has been a great week, but hard when people are getting sick and the teams are missing people. Also pray for energy for the teams! We have 2.5 more service days left, then some time enjoying the sights and other wonderful things that Guatemala has to offer!
Below are some pictures - Thanks for reading!
Hope you all had a wonderful Father's Day! Thank you to all the dads out there who are praying over us and encouraging our students each and every day. We are grateful for YOU!
Today was our first full day in San Marcos and it was a great one!
The medical team, the mime team, and the children's team all went off to a small village about an hour an a half away from San Marcos. What we didn't realize is that we were all scheduled to be at the exact same church... At the exact same time.
Thankfully we have some awesome team members and leaders of those teams who were able to be flexible, so we made it all work!
The medical team stayed inside the church (before they even arrived, people were lined up out the door to be seen!), the children's team put on their program just right outside the church, while the mime team moved across the street to a saloon where they were able to perform there! It worked out perfectly.
The service team stuck around San Marcos today and was able to do do some work here with the local church.
After everyone got back to San Marcos this evening, we shared a dinner of pasta with red sauce, and some sort of fried mashed potato... Log, of sorts. It was great!! And of course, we had homemade tortillas, too.
Mike arrived and was able to eat dinner with us! We are SO excited to have him here for this second week!
What happened next was AMAZING - We were able to attend a service put on by the youth of the church here in San Marcos. The music was upbeat and so fun to dance and sing along to!
After the worship was done, the mime team performed and did an incredible job (as always)! Then Pastor Nery from the church shared a wonderful sermon with us.
The service finished and host homes came to pick us up and we headed out!
Please continue to pray for health of the students! It has been a great week, but hard when people are getting sick and the teams are missing people. Also pray for energy for the teams! We have 2.5 more service days left, then some time enjoying the sights and other wonderful things that Guatemala has to offer!
Below are some pictures - Thanks for reading!
Saturday, June 16, 2018
Guatemala - Day 7
Hola everyone!
We have made it to San Marcos! Hooray!
We left Tejutla this morning around 9 AM. We were so sad to leave, but feeling so loved by the community there! Many of the students such as Kiernan McKee and the guys at his home stay, as well as Grace Teal and the gals at her home stay received gifts from their host parents. Kiernan and the guys got mugs, and Grace and the gals got napkin holders. Super thoughtful!
We drove for about 2 hours then arrived at the surprise spot for the students... The hot springs! We pulled up and were told that "we're here!" ... But it looked like it was in the middle of nowhere. We for sure deemed it a hidden gem because it was immaculate!
We stayed there from 11 AM to 2 PM and the students got to swim in any of the 3 hot spring pools they had there, we had a lunch of burgers and chips, and some of us such as Rebecca Madsen, Bailey Pearson, and Suzy Smith bought some ice cream! It was the perfect way to finish our time there.
We drove about an hour or so after that to San Marcos. We got there about an hour before the church was ready for us, so we were able to explore together in groups! Some of us stayed and played basketball or soccer at the park nearby, while others walked around and explored the city! Girls such as Ellicia Woolf, Katie Schmid, Grace Witherspoon, Jamie Stites, Elayna Sitzman, and more walked to a beautiful area with a fountain and sat down. Missy Beck pulled out her Bible to talk to us about a verse she came across last night, James 2:14-18. It was really powerful and relevant to our time here in Guatemala!
Then some Guatemalans came up to us and introduced themselves. It was a man with two girls probably close to the students' age! They mentioned how they wanted to connect with us again while we were in the town. Lisa Schmid and Missy Beck told them about our medical clinic so hopefully we will be able to see them again!
After that we went back to the park and played some basketball with other team members. Baldy, a Guatemalan traveling with us with the Children's team used to play professional basketball for El Salvador! And Joshua, an American who now lives in Guatemala, who's super tall (probably about 6'4"!) played, too! Not sure what the score was in the end, but I think everyone had a great time whether they were watching or playing!
Then at 4:00 we went over to the church where they set off some LOUD firecrackers and had music playing for us when we arrived! It was so nice! We then brought in all the bags, then had a welcome from the pastor here, and his two sons did some standup comedy and singing and rapping with Chris Erickson... I'll be sure to put that on the highlight video for the June 23 celebration. Ha!
After we got done at the church we went right next door to have some dinner. There was cooked vegetables, mashed potatoes, and chicken with a great sauce served to us!
Then we waited for our home stays to come pick us up at 7 PM, then we headed out!
Tomorrow will be a great day - We are doing a service day in the morning/early afternoon, then a church service that evening. Mike Lindsay will also be joining us tomorrow night, so we are excited about seeing him and him seeing Guatemala!
Here are some pictures from when I was with Med team the other day! Thanks for reading!
We have made it to San Marcos! Hooray!
We left Tejutla this morning around 9 AM. We were so sad to leave, but feeling so loved by the community there! Many of the students such as Kiernan McKee and the guys at his home stay, as well as Grace Teal and the gals at her home stay received gifts from their host parents. Kiernan and the guys got mugs, and Grace and the gals got napkin holders. Super thoughtful!
We drove for about 2 hours then arrived at the surprise spot for the students... The hot springs! We pulled up and were told that "we're here!" ... But it looked like it was in the middle of nowhere. We for sure deemed it a hidden gem because it was immaculate!
We stayed there from 11 AM to 2 PM and the students got to swim in any of the 3 hot spring pools they had there, we had a lunch of burgers and chips, and some of us such as Rebecca Madsen, Bailey Pearson, and Suzy Smith bought some ice cream! It was the perfect way to finish our time there.
We drove about an hour or so after that to San Marcos. We got there about an hour before the church was ready for us, so we were able to explore together in groups! Some of us stayed and played basketball or soccer at the park nearby, while others walked around and explored the city! Girls such as Ellicia Woolf, Katie Schmid, Grace Witherspoon, Jamie Stites, Elayna Sitzman, and more walked to a beautiful area with a fountain and sat down. Missy Beck pulled out her Bible to talk to us about a verse she came across last night, James 2:14-18. It was really powerful and relevant to our time here in Guatemala!
Then some Guatemalans came up to us and introduced themselves. It was a man with two girls probably close to the students' age! They mentioned how they wanted to connect with us again while we were in the town. Lisa Schmid and Missy Beck told them about our medical clinic so hopefully we will be able to see them again!
After that we went back to the park and played some basketball with other team members. Baldy, a Guatemalan traveling with us with the Children's team used to play professional basketball for El Salvador! And Joshua, an American who now lives in Guatemala, who's super tall (probably about 6'4"!) played, too! Not sure what the score was in the end, but I think everyone had a great time whether they were watching or playing!
Then at 4:00 we went over to the church where they set off some LOUD firecrackers and had music playing for us when we arrived! It was so nice! We then brought in all the bags, then had a welcome from the pastor here, and his two sons did some standup comedy and singing and rapping with Chris Erickson... I'll be sure to put that on the highlight video for the June 23 celebration. Ha!
After we got done at the church we went right next door to have some dinner. There was cooked vegetables, mashed potatoes, and chicken with a great sauce served to us!
Then we waited for our home stays to come pick us up at 7 PM, then we headed out!
Tomorrow will be a great day - We are doing a service day in the morning/early afternoon, then a church service that evening. Mike Lindsay will also be joining us tomorrow night, so we are excited about seeing him and him seeing Guatemala!
Here are some pictures from when I was with Med team the other day! Thanks for reading!
Friday, June 15, 2018
Guatemala - Day 6
Hello everyone!
Another wonderful day here in Guatemala. :)
I was able to get Jenny Meyer to write a little blurb about her time so far - Here it is below!
"¡Hola mis amigos! I have been having such a great time in Guatemala! I’m on the medical team so we have been setting up free clinics for poor villages and cities. It is so amazing to see all the people come together, everyone here is so loving and nice! Even nicer than us Minnesotans! I am surprised with how much I am able to communicate with the people here, it’s really inspiring to hear everyone’s stories and all they’ve been through. The craziest thing I’ve done so far is eaten some ants (about the size of a dime) that are a traditional food in Guatemala. I can’t say I would be eager to eat them again considering the texture of legs isn’t my favorite, but I want to experience all I can while I have the chance. I can already tell that this trip is doing amazing things in my life, but more importantly, the lives of others."
Today it was beautiful weather and all our teams were able to do some awesome work! The med team saw about 150 patients today! And more people came to know Christ. Praise God! We packed up all the meds tonight so we'll be ready to go in San Marcos.
The service team was able to go get the walls up and roof on the woman's house they worked on yesterday, then prayed with her afterwards.
Children's team headed off to a school about 1.5 hours away to do their program, then had their program at a school close by, as well. They came back with "tattoos" made of gel pens that children had drawn on them, and that team members had drawn on each other! Ha!
And mime team was able to perform for two schools. They were able to teach some kids to do the mime run, and now we all want want lessons, too!
Tomorrow we are heading to stop number 3 - San Marcos! We will be spending the day at a HOT SPRINGS! But it'll be a surprise for the students. They only know to bring their swim suits!
I'm excited to see what the city of San Marcos has for us. Please pray for health - Some of our team members are beginning to feel ill. And continued energy for students. Heading into week two coming up may have them feeling fatigued, but with some fun things we have planned and a new community to experience, it will be a great way to end our time here in Guatemala!
Blessings!
Another wonderful day here in Guatemala. :)
I was able to get Jenny Meyer to write a little blurb about her time so far - Here it is below!
"¡Hola mis amigos! I have been having such a great time in Guatemala! I’m on the medical team so we have been setting up free clinics for poor villages and cities. It is so amazing to see all the people come together, everyone here is so loving and nice! Even nicer than us Minnesotans! I am surprised with how much I am able to communicate with the people here, it’s really inspiring to hear everyone’s stories and all they’ve been through. The craziest thing I’ve done so far is eaten some ants (about the size of a dime) that are a traditional food in Guatemala. I can’t say I would be eager to eat them again considering the texture of legs isn’t my favorite, but I want to experience all I can while I have the chance. I can already tell that this trip is doing amazing things in my life, but more importantly, the lives of others."
Today it was beautiful weather and all our teams were able to do some awesome work! The med team saw about 150 patients today! And more people came to know Christ. Praise God! We packed up all the meds tonight so we'll be ready to go in San Marcos.
The service team was able to go get the walls up and roof on the woman's house they worked on yesterday, then prayed with her afterwards.
Children's team headed off to a school about 1.5 hours away to do their program, then had their program at a school close by, as well. They came back with "tattoos" made of gel pens that children had drawn on them, and that team members had drawn on each other! Ha!
And mime team was able to perform for two schools. They were able to teach some kids to do the mime run, and now we all want want lessons, too!
Tomorrow we are heading to stop number 3 - San Marcos! We will be spending the day at a HOT SPRINGS! But it'll be a surprise for the students. They only know to bring their swim suits!
I'm excited to see what the city of San Marcos has for us. Please pray for health - Some of our team members are beginning to feel ill. And continued energy for students. Heading into week two coming up may have them feeling fatigued, but with some fun things we have planned and a new community to experience, it will be a great way to end our time here in Guatemala!
Blessings!
Thursday, June 14, 2018
Guatemala - Day 5
Hello everyone!
Our first full day in Tejutla was incredible! The weather here is much cooler than Guatemala City... Even cooler than Minnesota this time of year! The high today was 64 and when it started raining this afternoon, it went down to about 55 degrees!
All teams got to the church we're staying at, Bethesda, at 8:00 this morning. Many teams stuck around for awhile before heading out! Mime team performed at a park AND got their shoes shined on the way!
The service team was able to go help a woman whose house was affected by the aftermath of an earthquake a long time ago, they scooped up dirt from inside her home, picked up garbage outside, and even got to help with setting support beams.
The Children's team was at Bethesda church in the morning, putting on games and activities and their program for the children who attend school there, then headed to another school about 20 minutes away in the afternoon.
Today I had the privilege of being with the medical team. They do an OUTSTANDING job! Wow! As Lisa Schmid said, they truly are a "well-oiled machine."
The clinic was able to see over 100 patients today and TWO people gave their lives to Christ at the prayer and teaching station! Amazing!
After all the teams returned we had a dinner of chicken, rice, steamed carrots, and homemade tortillas.
The highlight of the day was most definitely the worship night after dinner. The band was amazing, and all the students went to the center of the room and jumped around and danced and laughed all night! Even the Guatemalan children joined in.
The mime team performed for us all, then Chris Erickson shared a message about justification, sanctification, and glorification.
It was a wonderful day and we can't wait to serve Tejutla again tomorrow! Check out our Instagram post @wooddalesh to see a video of our worship night!
Our first full day in Tejutla was incredible! The weather here is much cooler than Guatemala City... Even cooler than Minnesota this time of year! The high today was 64 and when it started raining this afternoon, it went down to about 55 degrees!
All teams got to the church we're staying at, Bethesda, at 8:00 this morning. Many teams stuck around for awhile before heading out! Mime team performed at a park AND got their shoes shined on the way!
The service team was able to go help a woman whose house was affected by the aftermath of an earthquake a long time ago, they scooped up dirt from inside her home, picked up garbage outside, and even got to help with setting support beams.
The Children's team was at Bethesda church in the morning, putting on games and activities and their program for the children who attend school there, then headed to another school about 20 minutes away in the afternoon.
Today I had the privilege of being with the medical team. They do an OUTSTANDING job! Wow! As Lisa Schmid said, they truly are a "well-oiled machine."
The clinic was able to see over 100 patients today and TWO people gave their lives to Christ at the prayer and teaching station! Amazing!
After all the teams returned we had a dinner of chicken, rice, steamed carrots, and homemade tortillas.
The highlight of the day was most definitely the worship night after dinner. The band was amazing, and all the students went to the center of the room and jumped around and danced and laughed all night! Even the Guatemalan children joined in.
The mime team performed for us all, then Chris Erickson shared a message about justification, sanctification, and glorification.
It was a wonderful day and we can't wait to serve Tejutla again tomorrow! Check out our Instagram post @wooddalesh to see a video of our worship night!
Wednesday, June 13, 2018
Guatemala - Day 4
Hi Guatemala blog fans! This is Emily Erickson, "guest-writing" today :) I'm a leader on the med team, which has been so awesome! There was such a big difference in confidence and organization in our clinic from Monday to Tuesday, and I'm excited for our third service day tomorrow here in Tejutla (pronounced Tay-HOOT-lah).
We were sad to leave our sweet host families and say goodbye at Renuevo (Renewal) church in Guatemala City this morning, but excited for the next adventure and to see a new part of this beautiful country. We traveled in a small caravan of two chicken buses, two vans (that the mime and service teams use to travel to their sites) and our mission partner Jaime's pickup truck. We headed west along the InterAmerican Highway and stopped for lunch at a shopping mall with a foodcourt, like one you would find in the States. Back on the bus, we continued up into the mountains on some windy roads with beautiful mountain vistas. At some points, we were literally in the clouds! I was fascinated by the farms I saw (#plantnerd), as all the agriculture is done by hand. There were lots of corn plants, some wild bananas, and other crops planted in the hillsides.
We spent a total of about 9 hours traveling, but passed the time sleeping, chatting, enjoying the scenery, and playing games, summer-camp style. (There was also the occasional exclamation of surprise when the chicken bus went over a bump.) But the highlight of the day was definitely our arrival at the church here in Tejutla! We were greeted by host families who had made welcome posters with the names of the students they are hosting written on them as well as an amazing marching band made up of the students at the church! They had an incredible drumline and horn section, and we all enjoyed dancing along to the upbeat music. We shared a spaghetti dinner in the cafeteria (the church complex also houses a school), unloaded our bags, then went home with the host families to prepare for our first service day here in the highlands tomorrow!
We so so so appreciate your prayers-we had safe travel today and have been blessed with an incredible team of Guatemalan and Salvadoran volunteers who are serving and interpreting with us, as well as kind and hospitable host families and churches. Your prayers and support mean so much, and it's crazy how fast the trip is going.
Enjoy the photos from the past few days!
As our Guatemalan friends say, ¡Que Dios les bendiga! (May God bless you!) y hasta la próxima (and until next time),
Emily
We were sad to leave our sweet host families and say goodbye at Renuevo (Renewal) church in Guatemala City this morning, but excited for the next adventure and to see a new part of this beautiful country. We traveled in a small caravan of two chicken buses, two vans (that the mime and service teams use to travel to their sites) and our mission partner Jaime's pickup truck. We headed west along the InterAmerican Highway and stopped for lunch at a shopping mall with a foodcourt, like one you would find in the States. Back on the bus, we continued up into the mountains on some windy roads with beautiful mountain vistas. At some points, we were literally in the clouds! I was fascinated by the farms I saw (#plantnerd), as all the agriculture is done by hand. There were lots of corn plants, some wild bananas, and other crops planted in the hillsides.
We spent a total of about 9 hours traveling, but passed the time sleeping, chatting, enjoying the scenery, and playing games, summer-camp style. (There was also the occasional exclamation of surprise when the chicken bus went over a bump.) But the highlight of the day was definitely our arrival at the church here in Tejutla! We were greeted by host families who had made welcome posters with the names of the students they are hosting written on them as well as an amazing marching band made up of the students at the church! They had an incredible drumline and horn section, and we all enjoyed dancing along to the upbeat music. We shared a spaghetti dinner in the cafeteria (the church complex also houses a school), unloaded our bags, then went home with the host families to prepare for our first service day here in the highlands tomorrow!
We so so so appreciate your prayers-we had safe travel today and have been blessed with an incredible team of Guatemalan and Salvadoran volunteers who are serving and interpreting with us, as well as kind and hospitable host families and churches. Your prayers and support mean so much, and it's crazy how fast the trip is going.
Enjoy the photos from the past few days!
As our Guatemalan friends say, ¡Que Dios les bendiga! (May God bless you!) y hasta la próxima (and until next time),
Emily
Tuesday, June 12, 2018
Guatemala - Day 3
Hola from Guatemala!
Today was another great day and we are feeling SO blessed by Guatemala City.
Today I was with the Mime team and WOW! They are incredible. We went to a school this morning and it ended up being the school that the Children's Team was at yesterday morning. However, today the Mimes performed for a much older group, probably mostly high school aged kids.
It was so awesome to see all the team members working together to put the stage together, put together the sound system, and more.
What was the best part, though, was seeing how much the team was praying. On the bus ride there, Chris Erickson led the mime team in a devotion on Revelation 5, then about 3-4 times throughout the morning the team prayed together for their performance.
The performance itself always takes my breath away. The message these students are able to portray through music and movement is amazing and even after seeing it three times, I'm still in awe.
Noah Johnson shared his testimony after the performance and did an incredible job!
After the morning performance we went to McDonald's for lunch! Always a fun experience to have McDonald's in another country... But the nuggets were a huge hit with me!
We got our lunch to go then headed off on a 2-hour bus ride into a more rural area of Guatemala for the team to perform again at a school. When we arrived it looked like rain was going to start, and sure enough, it did.
This was an outside performance so many of us prayed for God to stop the rain. Although it still sprinkled a little bit, God most definitely came through because the team was able to perform the ENTIRE skit AND they did it in the rain! It brought me to tears to see so many students sitting there in the rain and cold weather to hear about the love that Jesus has for us, and to see the Mime team perform.
At this school, over 80 students gave their life to Christ for the first time, and 60 rededicated their lives to him! PRAISES! It was an indescribable day. God is so good.
After the team got back to the church, everyone ate Sloppy Joes for dinner and prepared for the church service.
The worship team started us off with four songs, half in English, half in Spanish. The Mime team performed their longer skit after that and Chris Erickson went up on stage to talk about the team. And I was able to share a message from Matthew 14 with the students and members of the church who attended the service. It was the perfect end to our time in Guatemala City!
After the service many students took pictures with their home stay families, then headed home. A group of about 20 students with their host families shared an authentic Guatemalan meal at the church that the families made for us after! It. Was. AMAZING! Steak, rice, beans, guacamole, and tostadas were made for us and we were filled to the brim with the amazing food.
Tomorrow we will be traveling to Tejutla, so please keep us in your prayers! We will be driving from about 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM.
I also PROMISE to update the blog tomorrow with some photos of the trip so far. :)
Thank you all for reading! Continue to pray for good health and for God to work through these amazing teams!
Today was another great day and we are feeling SO blessed by Guatemala City.
Today I was with the Mime team and WOW! They are incredible. We went to a school this morning and it ended up being the school that the Children's Team was at yesterday morning. However, today the Mimes performed for a much older group, probably mostly high school aged kids.
It was so awesome to see all the team members working together to put the stage together, put together the sound system, and more.
What was the best part, though, was seeing how much the team was praying. On the bus ride there, Chris Erickson led the mime team in a devotion on Revelation 5, then about 3-4 times throughout the morning the team prayed together for their performance.
The performance itself always takes my breath away. The message these students are able to portray through music and movement is amazing and even after seeing it three times, I'm still in awe.
Noah Johnson shared his testimony after the performance and did an incredible job!
After the morning performance we went to McDonald's for lunch! Always a fun experience to have McDonald's in another country... But the nuggets were a huge hit with me!
We got our lunch to go then headed off on a 2-hour bus ride into a more rural area of Guatemala for the team to perform again at a school. When we arrived it looked like rain was going to start, and sure enough, it did.
This was an outside performance so many of us prayed for God to stop the rain. Although it still sprinkled a little bit, God most definitely came through because the team was able to perform the ENTIRE skit AND they did it in the rain! It brought me to tears to see so many students sitting there in the rain and cold weather to hear about the love that Jesus has for us, and to see the Mime team perform.
At this school, over 80 students gave their life to Christ for the first time, and 60 rededicated their lives to him! PRAISES! It was an indescribable day. God is so good.
After the team got back to the church, everyone ate Sloppy Joes for dinner and prepared for the church service.
The worship team started us off with four songs, half in English, half in Spanish. The Mime team performed their longer skit after that and Chris Erickson went up on stage to talk about the team. And I was able to share a message from Matthew 14 with the students and members of the church who attended the service. It was the perfect end to our time in Guatemala City!
After the service many students took pictures with their home stay families, then headed home. A group of about 20 students with their host families shared an authentic Guatemalan meal at the church that the families made for us after! It. Was. AMAZING! Steak, rice, beans, guacamole, and tostadas were made for us and we were filled to the brim with the amazing food.
Tomorrow we will be traveling to Tejutla, so please keep us in your prayers! We will be driving from about 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM.
I also PROMISE to update the blog tomorrow with some photos of the trip so far. :)
Thank you all for reading! Continue to pray for good health and for God to work through these amazing teams!
Monday, June 11, 2018
Guatemala - Day 2
Hi everyone!
Another wonderful day here in Guatemala!
Everyone got to the church this morning around 8-8:30 AM and couldn't stop talking about how wonderful their experience was last night with their home stay!
Greta Beck and Hayley Anderson said they went to a burrito place with HUGE burritos and ate the whole thing. Their host parents looked at them with huge eyes and asked, "Do you want another one?"
Julia Maring and Grace Hailey's host family took them GO-KARTING in the mall!
Lisa Erickson, Emma Sicliano, Jenny Meyer, and Rebecca Madsen were taken to a wood-fired pizza place with meter-long pizza!!
And after the soccer game, Jackson Pope, Quinn Schrepel, Oliver Forst, Cal McNabb, JT Bogle, Noah Johnson, Trent Kopp, Chris Erickson, David Bragg, Timmy Frederiksen, Daniel Hage, and Aidan St. George were treated to Little Ceasar's pizza, too!
Those are just a few examples of the awesome times this group had last night.
Today I was able to spend time with the Children's team and it was just amazing! We went to a school in the morning where we played parachute games and jump rope with the kids, then presented our puppet show to over 300 kids!!
After that we headed to the local mall to have lunch. Some people had Subway, others had Taco Bell, Quinn Schrepel and Jackson Pope had some chicken that they craved for the rest of the day it was so good!
After that Lena Kurtz, Aja Arachikavitz, Grace Teal, and I went to "Pops," the ice cream store in the mall and each got an ice cream cone!
We were able to spend an hour and a half at the mall so after ice cream the entire team sat at a table and played cards for awhile as we listened to an intense rain storm.
After we got done we went to the bus and thankfully it stopped raining!
We went to a second school where we found out that the mime team had been earlier that day! We were able to play frisbee and jump rope with the kids, but since it rained we couldn't bring out the parachute because it would get too wet and we wouldn't be able to use it for a couple days since it would need to dry.
We danced and sang songs with the children and handed out note cards with the Gospel message on them (same as we did in the morning) as well as salvation bracelets with different colored beads that represent different aspects of the Gospel message. That was ANOTHER 300+ kids! So today the Children's team shared the Gospel with over 600 kids!
We came back and all of the teams had a dinner of mac and cheese and hot dogs, then the med team spent about an hour debriefing after their first day of the clinic! The other teams played games with soccer balls, a beach ball, and even used a whiteboard upstairs in the church to play hangman.
That's all for today! Please be praying for our students - Some are feeling upset that their Spanish isn't as good as they would like and it's hard to communicate with the Guatemalans at times. Also pray for continued health amongst team members and that everyone remembers to keep drinking their water!
Excited to see more of God's work here in Guatemala City tomorrow!
Another wonderful day here in Guatemala!
Everyone got to the church this morning around 8-8:30 AM and couldn't stop talking about how wonderful their experience was last night with their home stay!
Greta Beck and Hayley Anderson said they went to a burrito place with HUGE burritos and ate the whole thing. Their host parents looked at them with huge eyes and asked, "Do you want another one?"
Julia Maring and Grace Hailey's host family took them GO-KARTING in the mall!
Lisa Erickson, Emma Sicliano, Jenny Meyer, and Rebecca Madsen were taken to a wood-fired pizza place with meter-long pizza!!
And after the soccer game, Jackson Pope, Quinn Schrepel, Oliver Forst, Cal McNabb, JT Bogle, Noah Johnson, Trent Kopp, Chris Erickson, David Bragg, Timmy Frederiksen, Daniel Hage, and Aidan St. George were treated to Little Ceasar's pizza, too!
Those are just a few examples of the awesome times this group had last night.
Today I was able to spend time with the Children's team and it was just amazing! We went to a school in the morning where we played parachute games and jump rope with the kids, then presented our puppet show to over 300 kids!!
After that we headed to the local mall to have lunch. Some people had Subway, others had Taco Bell, Quinn Schrepel and Jackson Pope had some chicken that they craved for the rest of the day it was so good!
After that Lena Kurtz, Aja Arachikavitz, Grace Teal, and I went to "Pops," the ice cream store in the mall and each got an ice cream cone!
We were able to spend an hour and a half at the mall so after ice cream the entire team sat at a table and played cards for awhile as we listened to an intense rain storm.
After we got done we went to the bus and thankfully it stopped raining!
We went to a second school where we found out that the mime team had been earlier that day! We were able to play frisbee and jump rope with the kids, but since it rained we couldn't bring out the parachute because it would get too wet and we wouldn't be able to use it for a couple days since it would need to dry.
We danced and sang songs with the children and handed out note cards with the Gospel message on them (same as we did in the morning) as well as salvation bracelets with different colored beads that represent different aspects of the Gospel message. That was ANOTHER 300+ kids! So today the Children's team shared the Gospel with over 600 kids!
We came back and all of the teams had a dinner of mac and cheese and hot dogs, then the med team spent about an hour debriefing after their first day of the clinic! The other teams played games with soccer balls, a beach ball, and even used a whiteboard upstairs in the church to play hangman.
That's all for today! Please be praying for our students - Some are feeling upset that their Spanish isn't as good as they would like and it's hard to communicate with the Guatemalans at times. Also pray for continued health amongst team members and that everyone remembers to keep drinking their water!
Excited to see more of God's work here in Guatemala City tomorrow!
Sunday, June 10, 2018
Guatemala 2018 - Day 1
Hi everyone!
Emma here, writing from Guatemala City!
We had a fantastic first day of travel to Guatemala.
Flying was a breeze, absolutely no issues at all! Praise God! One of our Med Team leaders, Kathy, was stopped by a flight attendant on our Atlanta to Guatemala City flight and told her that our group was wonderful. I'm feeling truly blessed by this group already!
Jaime, our global partner here in Guatemala, picked us up from the airport with TWO chicken buses, (just colorful buses, not ones with actual chickens in them!), and brought us to the church right here in Guatemala City.
On one of he buses the students had so much energy that they threw their arms up in the air and yelled as we went up and down the windy, hilly roads in the city! Hilarious!! I loved it, they loved it, the bus drivers loved it!
Once we arrived at the church we shared a lunch of hamburgers, some yummy chips, cookies, and Guatemalan sodas all together, while many of us rested our heads on the table since we were so tired.
After lunch we unloaded our bags from the buses and went inside to play a get-to-know you game with some young women from the church. It involved throwing a soccer ball around in a circle and if you dropped it, you'd go to the middle of the group and share your name, age, hobbies, and what you're excited about for Guatemala!
After that the worship team from the church led us in worship! They sang in English for us, too! The songs they sang were "This is Amazing Grace" and "Our God." The way that they led worship so passionately inspired many of our students and leaders and it was beautiful singing all together to one God!
Following that the host homes came and picked us up for the rest of the night! Many students went to a local soccer field and played some games of soccer with other Guatemalans from the church. Although we have some work to do to up our soccer skills, everyone of all skill levels had an absolute BALL! Pun intended. :)
We left around 7 PM to our respective host homes, so we'll update you on how those went tomorrow! I'm currently with Jamie Stites, Grace Witherspoon, and Sammi Martin and have a wonderful host family! Roberto and America are taking great care of us. We went to the local Walmart food court and had... Little Cesar's Pizza! Who knew! Roberto and America have such kind hearts and we are so thankful for them taking such good care of us.
That's all I've got for today, folks!
Thanks for checking in - Please pray for our first day of ministry tomorrow! God is going to move in big ways here and we can't wait to see it.
Emma here, writing from Guatemala City!
We had a fantastic first day of travel to Guatemala.
Flying was a breeze, absolutely no issues at all! Praise God! One of our Med Team leaders, Kathy, was stopped by a flight attendant on our Atlanta to Guatemala City flight and told her that our group was wonderful. I'm feeling truly blessed by this group already!
Jaime, our global partner here in Guatemala, picked us up from the airport with TWO chicken buses, (just colorful buses, not ones with actual chickens in them!), and brought us to the church right here in Guatemala City.
On one of he buses the students had so much energy that they threw their arms up in the air and yelled as we went up and down the windy, hilly roads in the city! Hilarious!! I loved it, they loved it, the bus drivers loved it!
Once we arrived at the church we shared a lunch of hamburgers, some yummy chips, cookies, and Guatemalan sodas all together, while many of us rested our heads on the table since we were so tired.
After lunch we unloaded our bags from the buses and went inside to play a get-to-know you game with some young women from the church. It involved throwing a soccer ball around in a circle and if you dropped it, you'd go to the middle of the group and share your name, age, hobbies, and what you're excited about for Guatemala!
After that the worship team from the church led us in worship! They sang in English for us, too! The songs they sang were "This is Amazing Grace" and "Our God." The way that they led worship so passionately inspired many of our students and leaders and it was beautiful singing all together to one God!
Following that the host homes came and picked us up for the rest of the night! Many students went to a local soccer field and played some games of soccer with other Guatemalans from the church. Although we have some work to do to up our soccer skills, everyone of all skill levels had an absolute BALL! Pun intended. :)
We left around 7 PM to our respective host homes, so we'll update you on how those went tomorrow! I'm currently with Jamie Stites, Grace Witherspoon, and Sammi Martin and have a wonderful host family! Roberto and America are taking great care of us. We went to the local Walmart food court and had... Little Cesar's Pizza! Who knew! Roberto and America have such kind hearts and we are so thankful for them taking such good care of us.
That's all I've got for today, folks!
Thanks for checking in - Please pray for our first day of ministry tomorrow! God is going to move in big ways here and we can't wait to see it.
Monday, June 4, 2018
Guatemala 2018, here we come!
Hello everyone!
This is the blog where we will be sharing our daily updates from our Senior High trip to Guatemala in 2018. Check here for updates!
Here is the link to sign up for prayer: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/154erTuXwOwIl1SjdqNDsyCZgGUvsKfwrAxC0EVNSD2o/edit?usp=sharing
Send this link and the blog to friends and family as this will be the best way to keep updated on what's going on with the Senior High trip to Guatemala.
Also a reminder to attend our Guatemala Prayer Service on Saturday, June 9 at 7 PM in the Great Room.
This is the blog where we will be sharing our daily updates from our Senior High trip to Guatemala in 2018. Check here for updates!
Here is the link to sign up for prayer: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/154erTuXwOwIl1SjdqNDsyCZgGUvsKfwrAxC0EVNSD2o/edit?usp=sharing
Send this link and the blog to friends and family as this will be the best way to keep updated on what's going on with the Senior High trip to Guatemala.
Also a reminder to attend our Guatemala Prayer Service on Saturday, June 9 at 7 PM in the Great Room.
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