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¡Hola, buenas tardes! Hello from Magdalena, Guatemala! Team Guatemala left Fresno around 12:00pm on Monday the 14th and drove to LAX. Our flight was scheduled for 10:10pm, so we gave ourselves plenty of time to get there and check in. When we arrived to the airport, our flight ended up being delayed until 12:30am. It was quite a long wait but we made the most of it by playing games, singing, and drinking lots of coffee! We boarded the plane at the new departure time and headed to Florida (FLL) where we would meet a connecting flight to Guatemala City. We have officially been in Guatemala for 4 days now, and it has been a blast! It is extremely difficult to put into words everything that has happened in less than a week, so here it goes!
We landed in Guatemala City around 12:00pm on Tuesday, and after we made it through customs and found our luggage, we went out to find some wonderful SI staff waiting for us with a bus. We all piled in and hit the road! Something to know about Guatemala is that the most aggressive driver wins and laws aren’t enforced. It was quite nerve-wracking as our fearless bus driver navigated the narrow streets among the hustle and bustle of the city! We stopped for lunch at a popular restaurant called Pollo Campero, which seemed like a cross between KFC and Chik-Fil-A, but we were told it was “very Guatemalan.” We got to try out our Spanish as we ordered our first meal and we definitely drew attention (or maybe it was our smell? This was after around 24 hours of travel…) Then we all climbed back into the bus and travelled another half an hour to Magdalena, Guatemala where we would be staying for nearly the next two weeks.
Upon arrival, our wonderful host families were there to meet us and take us to their homes. Everyone was so welcoming. The country and all of the people are beautiful! We had about an hour to get settled in and talk to our host families before the trek up a hill to the church for our orientation. We learned the ins and outs, the dos and don’ts, and some of the history of SI’s ministry in Guatemala. It all seemed a little scary and shocking at first (like, you can’t flush toilet paper here, sometimes there’s no running water, and DON’T drink the water ever) but we settled into the rhythm just fine. Soon after, we met up with the two other teams that are here as well; one team from Reedley, CA and another from Canada!
Our day starts at 6:30am for breakfast with our host families, worship and devotional time from 7:00-9:00am, and then we all break off into our site teams where we work during the day. We are at various sites including social work, social services, health care, and veterinary. I have loved every minute of being here, but worshipping God in this beautiful place with my friends is a highlight by far. There is no place I’d rather be!
God is at work here and my team and I are so excited to be a part of a continued outreach ministry that has seen amazing results and fruit over the last 15 years. We will be here until July 27th, so here are a few ways you can be praying for us:
Please pray that
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We would all stay focused, fully present, and not be distracted by things at home
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We would honestly see our surroundings and new friends through God’s eyes and be sensitive to that
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Our labor is a blessing and encouraging for those we are serving
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People would see Jesus in our lives and for Gospel conversations
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We would all stay healthy, full of energy, and continuously seeking the Lord and choosing joy
Thank you for your continued prayer, support, and encouragement! We’ll see you soon!