My Week in Haiti

   God is moving in the devastated country of Haiti!  I just returned from a week-long trip there to assist our YWAM Discipleship Training School (DTS) as they were finishing their 2 month outreach in that country.  I didn’t visit the areas that were most affected by the earthquake nearly a year ago.  Instead, while I was there our team focused our attention on the souls of the people who have been kept in darkness by the lack of truth, Catholicism and voodoo.  We were located just to the east of Port au Prince. 
   On my first night there we did an open-air service to the light of one florescent bulb.  Our DTS students did a couple of dramas and then we projected an abbreviated version of the Jesus film, about an hour long, onto a white sheet while the Haitians stood and watched the life of the Savior unfold in their own Creole language.  We worked with a local pastor named Jacques, who translated for our team.  Before I arrived our group helped him to start a new church that met outdoors next to an above-ground tomb.  I preached there on a Sunday Morning and at a different church in the evening.  The message in my heart was about identity and telling the Haitian believers that they can do great things for God.  At Jacques’ new church they strung up some tarps to block the sun and put some boards across some cement blocks for seats. 
   We were hosted by a ministry called Reach Haiti.  The leaders, Mike & Andrea Brewer have an orphanage where we spent time playing with the kids who climbed on me like I was jungle gym!  One little girl named Lovely made me a bracelet of yarn and beads.  Another little girl had just been rescued a year ago from nearly starving to death.  We also did some kids ministry outside of the orphanage, a kids program with music and a Bible story acted out by our students and some Haitian kids. 
   On one evening we decided to do a program in what looked like a garbage dump!  We started with some dramas and then I preached about how God’s Light overpowers the darkness.  A group of people prayed afterwards to receive the gift of eternal life.  Then we showed the Jesus film again.  We had no problem attracting a crowd wherever we set up to do our program.  It was good to see our students preaching and sharing the gospel in different situations.  They did a great job. 
   One morning Mike asked our base leader Bruce and I if we wanted to teach at a Bible school that morning.  So maybe an hour later I was scrambling through my notes looking for a message to share.  I ended up teaching on the need for evangelism.  I shared about how, like Jonah, if we run from the call of God to preach the gospel we will be swallowed by a “fish”.  If we don’t become fishers of men, then  the culture we were supposed to reach will swallow us up and digest us until we become part of that culture- dead and religious. 
   The DTS team returned to Guatemala a day or so before I did.  When I was at the airport waiting for my flight back to Guatemala I got to share the gospel with a man.  Then I gave him gospel tract, not intending to ask him then and there to make a decision for Christ.  But a few minutes later he brought up the fact that he was ready to give his life to Jesus!  So we prayed together.  I may never see him again in this life, but I’m thankful for the privilege of pointing him to the Lord.  And I’m also grateful for the short time I had in Haiti. 
   When I got home I hit the ground running as our YWAM base just received a team from Montana that is doing their 2 month outreach here in Guatemala.  And the story goes on…



  
  

Hitting the Streets--an update

We have been privileged for the past year (one year this week) to do a ministry called "Soup Run".  Basically, I (Dayle) make a huge pot of some kind of soup (usually chicken and rice) and we put it into the back of our car with some cups, hot tortillas, and water and drive around Antigua.  When we find someone sleeping on the street, in the dump, or under some kind of shelter we stop and offer them soup and food.  We pray with them, offer them a jacket if we happen to have some that night (it does get pretty cold when you're over 5,000 ft. up), and sometimes just listen to their story.  They all have one.

Many times we are asked why we don't have pictures of our soup run people.  It's understandable that people would want to see what we are doing and how this all works.  But, we don't take pictures of this ministry.  Why?

We live in a tourist area.  Many thousands of foreigners (some here on short-term missions trips) come down here and photograph literally everything.  We are used to seeing it.  We also are used to seeing them take pictures of what they are doing here (which is good) so they can show it to people back home and keep as memories.  All good things!

We don't want our street friends to feel like a "project".  They are already ashamed of their situation.  They are already as low as a human being can be--sleeping and eating in a dump is lower than low for sure.  We don't want to make them feel as though they are being used for some greater gain on our part.  I wouldn't want to be photographed in that situation, I don't think you would either.  Even though they aren't always aware of what is going on around them (sniffing glue and drinking rubbing alcohol will do that to you) they are sensitive.  I have had women apologize to me for the way they smell.  They know it's not normal to not bathe regularly.  We never want them to feel as though they are on display.

Mark and I are working on a way to maybe start some kind of a sponsorship program and then, with their permission, we will take their photo so you know who you are sponsoring and who you are praying for.  We are wanting to be sensitive to their situation.  I know you all understand!

We are excited about some great news!  Charlie is a man we met early on in soup run.  He was adopted to the US when he was a baby and grew up there but returned several years ago to Guatemala.  He wound up on the streets of Antigua.  The first time I remember meeting Charlie, Mark and Christopher were trying to move him from the street to the homeless shelter and he was so drunk that he couldn't do it without a lot of help!

2 weeks ago we ran into him in the market where Mark and I were buying jackets for the street people.  He looked at us and said that he was ready to change his life.  He knew he couldn't do it on his own and needed help.  He was addicted to alcohol (at that time he was drinking 3-4 bottles of rubbing alcohol about 6 times a day) and needed help.

Mark and I took him into the City the next day where he willingly entered "Hogar de la Roca" Youth Challenge.  When we left  him, we weren't sure what was going to happen, but, we prayed that God would be with him.  The next morning Mark received a phone call from the center saying to pray for Charlie because he was really having a hard time coming off of the alcohol.  They had never seen worse.  He was hallucinating and had 2 seizures.  This was on a Friday.  By Monday they were thinking he needed to go to the hospital because they weren't sure if it was just the alcohol or also a mental issue because he was so bad.  They were going to give him one more night.  We prayed.  We had a lot of people pray.

The next morning, Mark called and was told that he had a relatively peaceful night and that he was doing considerably better.  The following Sunday, we attended the service at the center and saw Charlie.  We couldn't believe it!  We almost didn't recognize him, he looked so good.  So peaceful and at rest within himself.

He's doing so well, but, he has a long road ahead.  Please pray for Charlie.  He has a whole year ahead of him.  We are excited to see what God has for him!

Here's Charlie's story:  http://guatemalaresponse.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2010-11-01T00%3A00%3A00-06%3A00&updated-max=2010-12-01T00%3A00%3A00-06%3A00&max-results=5

Thanksgiving

Where do I begin?  What am I thankful for?  Here's a little list of what I praise God for in my life!

1.  Grace and mercy

2.  My wonderful family and friends

3.  The fact that God knows what's best for us and brought us to Guatemala.

4.  The privilege of serving the street people that we meet.


There they are.  Generic, but, simple and to the point.

--Dayle

Anniversary!

5 years ago today we arrived, bag and baggage, at the Guatemala City airport intending to stay for one year.  It was the first time the kids had been on an airplane.  It was the first time I seriously questioned whether or not God really knew what He was doing.  I remember feeling so overwhelmed it was like I was in a daze.  All I kept thinking was, "One year, Dayle, you can do it for one year."  And that made me feel so comforted.

I didn't expect to ever feel like I was at home here in Guatemala.  I kept thinking of Minnesota as home.  I kept holding on to the fact that I was only here for one year so I didn't need to get attached.  I didn't need to really learn the language.  I didn't need to figure out the open air market.  It was all too much, so I didn't think about it. 

Until God showed us that we were here until He moved us.  Whenever that would be.

So I started looking at places to live and found the home we have been in for 4 1/2 years.  I started making an effort to learn Spanish.  I started to make a big effort to learn how to shop the open air market for my family.  I started to not get so nervous about my kids when they would get sick (we live here, parasites are sometimes part of the fun!).  And I found myself slowly loving what I had been given. 

I'm so thankful that God knows so much better than I what exactly I need for my life.  I'm so thankful that He sees my desires before I even know them myself!  How could I know that in just 5 short years Guatemala would feel so much like home that the thought of leaving, even for a short time, makes me just stressed out!  The thought of not doing soup run or seeing my friends at church or the kids at the base or the DTS students who come and go would make me so sad?  The thought of waking up and not seeing the beautiful valley we live in surrounded by the gorgeous and majestic volcanoes is unthinkable to me now. 

How could I know that I would compare the market with the grocery stores back in MN and the market would win?!  I never guessed that throwing the toilet paper in the garbage next to the toilet instead of flushing it would become so second nature to me and normal that on the few occasions that we do visit the US and can flush, we forget!  And, I love driving here in a passive-agressive sort of way!  I love my street Spanish!  And the thought of not kicking off the Christmas season with the burning of the devil and then walking to Central Park to see all the Christmas lights is unthinkable.

At this point, Christopher has lived most of his growing up years here.  Bailey's memories of MN are good, but, her memories of Guatemala are shaping her.  Alicia wants to make this her home.  What kind of people will this experience make them?  I can't wait to find out.

I love Minnesota and it will always be "home".  But, I'm grateful that there is place in our hearts for more than one "home".  I'm thankful that Guatemala has become home to us and the people here are like family.

Who knew?

--Dayle

Updates on all our Stuff!

It has been one crazy time in Casa de Annand!  We have enjoyed the DTS (discipleship training school) students being here since the end of July.  4 of those students were from the Lake Atitlan area of Guatemala.  Spanish was actually their second language since their families are indigenous.  They were awesome!  We also had 3 students from the USA who were a blessing to us and our kids--our kids miss them now that they are all in Haiti on outreach!  It was a lot of fun to have them over for dinners, game nights, movies, whatever.  We are so grateful for the opportunity to work with people like that.  Truly a blessing for our family.

There have also been some changes as far as our home schooling journey goes.  As many of you know, it's been a lot of years of praying for friends for our kids.  We had some friends, many who lived far enough away that we couldn't get there on a regular basis for one reason or another.  It's been a lonely time sometimes!  But, this past spring several new families moved into our area with kids our kids' ages!  So awesome!  Since they are all homeschoolers as well, we decided to start a learning co-op.  So now, on Thursdays, we do art, music, and science at our co-op in our church building here in Antigua.  We have 12 families and about 23 kids!  It's just a huge amount of fun and a great ministry to missionary kids and their families. 

Since then, we've had movie nights, dinners, parties for the kids in the co-op to get together outside of Thursdays.  Also, our church now has a youth group and we are so thankful!  So many opportunities opened up in the past few months for our kids to have friends and activities that are so important!

We are so thankful to be living in Antigua doing what we do.  Even though there are a lot of daily challenges, we wouldn't want to be anywhere else!

New things that are coming up is Mark's potential trip to Haiti to meet up with our students while they are on outreach.  We are hoping to raise another $1300 to help pay for the trip.  Please pray!  We need to have the money raised in the next few weeks as he is hoping to be gone by Thanksgiving for 2 weeks of ministry and outreach into Port-au-Prince, Haiti.  It's not a cheap trip!

We also are still plugging away at raising money for our car.  We want to get it completely paid off by the end of December.  We don't know what we'd do without our vehicle, it's become really important because of soup run, and so many other ministries that we do.  It's also going to hopefully allow Mark and a team of other guys to do more outreaches into outlying communities coming up next year.  More on that later!

Soup run is going well.  We continue to go out once a week and hand out food to between 30-40 people on the streets of Antigua.  During that time, we can also pray with them and minister to them.  Through this ministry we met Jason, a 16-year-old boy who lives on the street and is addicted to glue.  We have found a place that is willing to take him despite is addiction and help to rehabilitate him--Teen Challenge in Guatemala City.  Jason and Mark visited last week and after filling out all the paper work and touring the facility, Jason got scared and decided not to go in.  Mark had to bring him back to Antigua and drop him off on the streets again.  Please pray that Jason stays safe until he gets the help he needs.

Thank you all so much for your prayers and support.  We couldn't continue to do what we do in Guatemala if it wasn't for the faithfulness of all who believe in what we are doing and support us!  You are a blessing to us!

Rescue Mission

It was one of the most inspiring news stories I’ve ever seen: 33 miners from Chile were recently rescued after being buried alive for over 2 months nearly ½ mile underground!  During the first 17 days of their nightmare they had no communication with the outside world and they had almost nothing to eat.  A team of people finally discovered them and then worked to get them supplies and drill a hole to rescue them.  Rescue workers were sent down to the miners and all 33 were pulled up one-by-one in an escape pod barely big enough for them to stand in.  The rescued miners were embraced by friends and family and surrounded by a crowd of cheering people.  Finally, the rescue workers were brought up as well.  There are some things about this story that parallel our experience as Christians:

1) We were also rescued from a dark pit.
We were lost in our darkness until the light of the Gospel came to us.

2) Now we are the first-responders sent to rescue those who are still in the darkness.
We are the only preachers God has.
Romans 10:14  “How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and
how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear
without a preacher?”

3) There was only one way for the miners to be rescued- through a very narrow passage.  For us there is only one narrow way to salvation also, through Jesus Christ.
Mat 7:14  “…strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few
there be that find it.”
Joh 14:6  “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

4) Those being rescued couldn’t do anything to save themselves.  All they could do was get into the pod and trust it to carry them to the surface.  All we can do is trust Jesus to raise us up from darkness to light.  We can’t do any work to contribute to our own salvation.

5) The rescuers worked as a team, each having their part to play.  Each of us in the
church have a part to play in the rescue of lost souls.  Some preach, some provide
support to the preachers, but all need to consciously work toward the same goal.  Ultimately it’s
only Jesus who saves people.  But he chooses to use us to preach the good news to others so that
they can accept or reject His salvation.  We don’t save anyone.  We “rescue” people by pointing
them to the only way of being rescued.

6) Each saved miner was celebrated.
Luk 15:10  “Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God
over one sinner that repenteth.”

7) The rescuers needed to be rescued too.  As a believer, we too face dark times.  Sometimes it’s because of disobedience (like Jonah running from the call of God to preach).  Sometimes the darkness comes as a test while we are actually obeying the Lord.  Either way, we need to trust our lives to the same Jesus Christ that the sinner does.  Maybe God gives us dark times to help us remember the hopelessness of people without Jesus.

We’re here on a rescue mission!
Luke 19:10  “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
It only makes sense that we would have the same mission as our Master.  Have you been
seeking those who need to be rescued from the darkness?   There are MORE than 33
trapped people waiting for you this time!



-Mark

Family Stuff!

Here we are in September and all I can say is, "Where did the summer go?"  All those wonderful plans we had--what happened to those!

Here are some things that happened this summer:

Hurricane Agatha














We have a lot of things on here about our ministry after the hurricane.  This has been a bad rainy season!  The worst in years.  The result has been mudslides, washed out roads and bridges, injuries, and even death.  Please pray for Guatemala as they dig out of it all.


Alicia turned 16!  We had an '80s birthday party for her and it was so much fun!

Alicia's party













I just doesn't seem possible!  But, she's 16 and in about a year and a half, she'll be graduating from high school and heading out on her own.  Pray for her parents!!!!!  Pray for God's direction for Alicia and that she would clearly hear His voice.


Then there was the usual--Alicia had surgery, Christopher broke his arm, immigration stuff--God was faithful in every situation and we are so blessed!

Now, something new!  Anyone who knows me, knows how passionate I am about our kids!  I love our kids!  I love teaching them and watching them grow and learn.  They have been blessed recently with great missionary friends who are the same ages as them and are also being homeschooled.  So great and a huge answer to prayer for us!  In response to this, we've started a learning co-op at our church here in Antigua where they learn science, music, art, and mayan weaving.  They also get to hang out with friends and build relationships.  So important!  Here are some pictures of our first day of ministry to missionary kids and moms!

Such a great opportunity!  Our kids are blessed and so is our family! 

God Wins Again- satan Loses. Ha Ha

On June 18th and 19th some friends and I went to a small town in Guatemala where I was scheduled to teach an evangelism seminar at a church. Unfortunately, the day we arrived someone from the church died. But the seminar wasn’t cancelled, so we moved forward even though things were a little awkward. The distractions that followed made things even more interesting: A bunch of kids showed up for a kids club before the seminar, and we were asked at the last minute to provide the program- so we came up with something. I expected more teens at the seminar, but it turned out to be a mixed crowd that included kids. Those who showed up didn’t seem very excited about the teaching, but it was hard to tell what they were thinking- were they mourning the one who had just died, was it a cultural shyness, were they bored? To make matters more difficult we had to translate a lot of the seminar into 2 different languages which made the teaching a lot longer than usual- I had to abbreviate things quite a bit. Then the power went out briefly during the teaching and we couldn’t get the sound to work for one of the videos I wanted to show. Because of the funeral and the cultural thing of not starting on time the next days classes were shortened from 5 hours to 3 hours. It was a little discouraging.
But, you see, God always has a winning strategy even though it may include some hardships and setbacks. A group of kids at the kids club prayed to receive Jesus into their hearts. Maybe that was the main reason we were there! A girl at the seminar prayed to get right with God too. Yep- it was worth it all. Also, the pastor’s son seemed excited about the teaching, and I have a feeling that he’s going to really use what he received to do some great things where he’s at. So, sorry satan, you lose. God wins. Again.

Photos of the disaster

Disaster

There aren't words to describe the amount of destruction that is in Guatemala right now. Many bridges linking remote areas to the rest of Guatemala have been washed out and destroyed making it difficult to get help to people. Many roads have been washed out. There is a giant sinkhole in Guatemala City that swallowed a 3-story building and you can even see the building anywhere in the picture of that hole. There is mud in the village nearby where our base is from the top of the village and covering the highway below--maybe 1/2 mile or so?

Our village is in a lot of need. Boulders, trees, and mud washed through it like a river taking out houses and businesses in it's path. It's an incredible sight. Reports are that there are over 170 people dead, 175,000 people homeless, and many still missing in Guatemala (average numbers since the papers all differ a little).

Mark and I have been busy since Sunday helping where we can. The first big need was water so our base was able to provide 55 gallons of water. There was a need for food for the church that has been made into a shelter for those who have been affected by the storm and our church here provided pounds of rice and beans for them to cook. Mark dug for 2 mornings trying to help get mud out of some of the houses. Mark and I were able to buy food for some families who are in need of it and get it to them. We saw a need for something for the kids to do who are in the shelter, so we've been doing a kid's club in the afternoons for about 70 kids. Then there's just networking other ministries here who can meet the needs with the people in San Miguel who have the needs.

It's been a big week. A few people have asked, "What can we do to help?" I know the first thing people want to do is send stuff down, that's not a good idea! Really, it might not get to us and if it does, we have to pay to get it from the post office--counter productive. What is needed right now is money to buy the things that are needed and to start helping with the rebuilding that is going to be happening.

Please continue to pray for us and for those affected by the storm. We will update as we are able.

Whirlwind Weeks!

It's been a crazy whirlwind in our house lately. I don't know how else to describe it! Not only have we been wrapping up the school year, but, we have had teams and ministry commitments that have kept us hopping. Sometimes it amazes me how hard it is to keep things from spinning out of control! But, it's been a good time in our house lately for many reasons: 1) Looking forward to a little break from the school routine, which we all need. 2) The ministry is really stepping up and doing well. 3) The kids are growing and we're trying to keep the social calendar to a dull roar!

But, one of the biggest changes we had during these 2 weeks was a temporary addition to our family in the form of a little boy named Clinton who was placed with us from the emergency courts here in Antigua from the streets. We met Clinton through our soup ministry around Easter time here. He was living with a group of homeless people in an area of Antigua called "La Polvera" (basically the vacant lot). He did have parents or anyone with him, he was by himself, working when he could in the market selling toothbrushes and toothpaste.

We were concerned about him, understandably, and spent a few weeks trying to find out his story. What concerned us the most was when we found him starting to sniff glue. Glue is a huge issue here in Guatemala (it's a cheap drug), and few people understand the danger. It really is more dangerous than a lot of street drugs. Mark and I knew we had to act quickly. We had a lawyer who attends our church find out about the system for getting a child off the street and started that process.

After sitting with Clinton at the courthouse for 4 hours, we were told by the judge that they had made at least 15-20 phone calls to orphanages in the area and none of them would take him. The choice at that point was to return him to the street until they could find something or taking him home with us. It was a clear choice. At about 1:30 am, we were sitting in the back of a police truck driving back to our house with Clinton.

Now began 2 weeks of total change for a little guy who had been on the street for a while. Taking a hot shower was something fun for him and we couldn't get him out! He just loved the clean feeling. Brushing his teeth regularly was also something he liked. Waking up and knowing he'll have 3 meals and play time with kids was new. Watching kids do school work was interesting to him--he'd never been to school. Just family life in general was a lot of fun for him to experience.

We had just watched the movie "The Blind Side" and I remember the scene where they are having Thanksgiving dinner and they all take their plates into the family room to watch TV and Michael Oher takes his into the dining room and sits there and starts to eat. That happened with us! I remember all of us dishing up our dinner and heading into the living room (we were used to this since we hadn't had a dining room table for a while) and Clinton sat at the dining room table and started eating. We all gathered up our stuff and sat with him and enjoyed sitting around a table together.

So many things we take for granted.

Clinton is now in Casa Shalom, happily living with 5 other boys in a house with his house dad. He's in school, attending church and chapel, getting 3 meals a day, sleeping out of the rain, playing soccer and basketball, working with chickens and having fun. He's happy! We're so blessed to see him be able to make something of himself and have opportunities to grow and learn. God is good!

Odds and Ends

It's been a while since I felt like I had much to say that would require an actual blog. I say a lot, but, it isn't always life-changing, earth-rattling, or even important! But, I have a few things on my mind and heart that I would love to share!

When we first moved to Antigua, I had a lot of difficulties with a few different things. I missed my family and friends, I missed cleanliness (you can't imagine), I missed the orderly way that things are usually done back home, I missed being completely understood when I talked, I missed so much! I wondered if I would ever feel like this was home. God is so good, because He has made this feel as though I'm home. We have a wonderful life here. I love my family, my church, my friends, my home, our ministry, my routine, and learning Spanish and laughing at the mistakes I make. I still miss some things, but, I don't LONG for them as I used to.

I enjoy the market. When I go to the US, it's fun to shop in a big superstore with everything clearly marked (so everyone pays the same!) and organized. It's fun to get around with my big shopping cart in spacious aisles that are free from debris and stacks of boxes. It's fun to find bargains and marvel at how cheap butter, milk, cheese, bread, and meat is compared to Guatemala. It's fun to find ice cream in our favorite flavors and candy we can't get here. But, after a week or two, I find myself longing to bite into a piece of fruit that is actually ripe and ready to eat when I buy it, or buy the freshest of fresh veggies to prepare for my family. I miss the taste of the beef and chicken here (it is different!). I long for "home".

This past week, our family lost someone irrepalceable in our lives, my Unlce Rod. He was someone who poured out his life for others, including us. He mentored my husband and worked with us as we were just starting out into ministry. He performed our wedding. He was there when Alicia was born and didn't at all mind when she threw up in his hair just before he had to do Bible Study on a Wednesday night! He was a wonderful man of God and an example to so many. I'm so grateful that I had him in my life.

It was tough being here when I wanted to be home with my family and comfort my dad and see everyone and celebrate his life. But, then I realized, the best way I could celebrate his life is by staying here and doing what he did. Pouring my life into others. So, in honor of him, that's what I will vow to do. I think about how he's looking down on Guatemala and seeing us right now and I wonder what he thinks? I hope he's blessed to see the fruit of what he poured into us. I hope we are worthy of not only his time, but, the time of so many others who have given so much for us to do what God has called us to do.

You all are special to us. We couldn't do what we do unless you were faithful to pray and give so that we could be here. It's a wonderful thing to be so blessed with so many incredible people. I hope we are always mindful of that and strive to make it count.

How?

“…how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?” Romans 10:14
It’s still good ol’ fashioned preaching that God uses to save souls, so since the beginning of October we have done some evangelistic programs in the streets and in a homeless shelter. A group of friends helped us out as we did dramas to draw crowds and then the preaching. Alicia and Bailey were a part of the outreach dramas and Christopher helped by translating the preaching.
On February 13th a couple of people responded to the altar call at the homeless shelter. Then that evening when we did a program in the street in Antigua about 8 people responded to the altar call. A week later we did a program in the street in San Miguel Escobar. A small group of youth responded to the call for salvation that night. Then a week after that we did a program near the market in Antigua. I talked to the crowd about how Jesus said that we need to eat His flesh and drink His blood. No one responded to that altar call that day, but when Jesus Himself preached that same message in John 6 there seemed to be a negative response as well, so I didn’t feel so bad.
During holy week a group of us went to the streets to preach. About 8 people prayed for salvation that night. My friend Dave got to street preach in Spanish for the first time. He and I got some big crowds with a light-show illusion, and then we would share the gospel.
God has provided opportunities “in season” and “out of season” to preach. On March 5th our family was in Mexico to renew our visas and I had shown an optical illusion to a group from a soccer team who was staying at the hotel we were at. Well, about 12 of them showed up at our door to ask to see another trick. So I showed them one and then preached to them, and some of them prayed there to receive Christ also!

The Whole Man

Over the last few months we feel that God has been leading us to minister to not only the spiritual needs of people (with evangelism and kids ministry, etc.) but also to their physical needs. The spiritual needs are by far the most critical because they are eternal, but meeting physical needs can open even more doors in people’s hearts to accept the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ. We’ve been going out once a week to give soup or sandwiches to homeless and/or poor people in Antigua. In one night we can give away 40 sandwiches or more! One of our favorite spots to give food is behind the market where a group of people sleep out in the open, surrounded by garbage and a bunch of dogs.
Another “whole-man” ministry we were a part of was an evangelistic medical clinic in the community of Pastores on March 8th-12th. Dayle helped to cook meals for the medical workers and the kids and I were part of a drama team that shared the gospel with the people at and around the clinic. During the week of the clinic Alicia and Bailey and Christopher helped with language translation- the girls for the medical team and Christopher for the preaching. The team saw over 1100 patients and we figure that about 100 people prayed to receive Jesus as their savior!
On the first day of the clinic about 300 youth came to the clinic as one big group. They came walking toward the clinic wearing their white shirts- their school uniforms. I told our team that the fields were white to harvest, like Jesus had said in John 4:35. Because the clinic couldn’t handle such a huge crowd they had nothing better to do than to come and see our dramas (if they had come an our or two earlier we wouldn’t have been ready for them). So they watched our program, listened to the preaching and a group of them prayed to ask the Lord for salvation! If you would like to see a video of the clinic outreach go to iglesiadelcaminogt.com and look at the video posted under “Recent Activities”.

The team saw over 1,100 people in seven different locations during the week-long outreach. About 100 people prayed with the evangelistic team. And many lives were touched and changed. Thanks for all the prayers!

Medical Outreach

It's been a crazy week! Our church here, Iglesia del Camino, is hosting a team of nursing students from Sacred Heart University to do a medical outreach into a neighboring community--Pastores. We've been helping out as a family to provide evangelism, helping with the kids, translation, cooking, and just helping where we can! It's been a lot of work, but, we are loving it. Here's some photos from the week we're having!

Market ministry

Another Saturday, another outreach!

We took the team out to the market here in Anitgua during an afternoon on market day. After getting permission from the police there to do a drama and for Mark to share the gospel, they did the drama "King of Hearts" and then Mark preached while Christopher translated. Mark doesn't necessarily need a translator, but, he wants Christopher to be comfortable with translating. Christopher does a great job!

One of my favorite things to do!

Those who know me best know that I love to cook and spend time in my kitchen. It's a relaxing thing to me and experimenting with food is a blast! I love living in a country where I can get beautiful, fresh, and even unusual herbs, fruits, and veggies for my family and can cook with wonderful ingredients. It makes life good! Here's the result of one of my Saturday morning market trips--minus the meat!

What now?!

So we've been going to the streets now since the end of November to hand out food to the homeless people in Anitgua and it's been a huge blessing! I make a big pot of soup (whatever kind I want and have ingredients for that day) and we buy some bread and drive around and give out a cup of soup and a piece of bread when we see someone sleeping on the street. We've been praying with these guys (mostly guys) and ministering the gospel to them regularly. We know them now. We've become a part of their lives and they ours. God is good.

Last week we decided to see about going behind the market area here in Antigua and feeding the group of people that sleep there too. We've avoided that spot before because it's really dark there and we aren't sure who's there and what's happening. We've driven by many times, saw silouhettes of people in the dark, but, didn't stop. Last week a police officer helped us out by staying with us while we handed food. We also parked the car so that the headlights shone on the spot where they are sleeping so that we can see better. There were about 13 people there. It was sad. They sleep on old dirty mattresses and under really dirty blankets. Right now it's nice because it's dry season--I don't want to think about rainy season for these people.

Last night we went behind there again and then to the dump area directly attatched to the market. I couldn't believe it. We left with soup enough for about 25 people and packets of roasted vegetables for 18 people and banana cake for about 30 people. By the time we were done at those two locations we only had enough food to feed some of our regular guys on Santa Lucia (about 7) and we had to totally skip going to the recollecion area where we usually can feed up to about 15 guys.

Now What??????

Mark and I are praying about going out on 2 nights a week. One night for the people behind the market and the dump area and one night for our regular street guys. This is going to be a lot more work as well as a lot more food! It's going to take some faith to feed these people. Please pray with us!

Malnutrition Center Report from Bailey

There are about sixty to seventy kids there in all. Around 25 babies, and the rest are little kids. There are only three people working with the babies, and four or five working with the little kids. Some of the babies there look younger than they really are. Me and Alicia and two of our friends thought that one of the babies was six months old, but she was really two years old. All four of us were there when a little girl named Maria got there. Her mom stayed for a long time to see what they would do with her. She was about four years old, and was tall and skinny. She kept her little blanket around her all the time, and didn’t give any sort of facial expression, but every once in a while, she would look up at her mom and would cry a little. Her hands and feet were blown up like tennis balls, and she could barley move her fingers, and couldn’t walk. Because she couldn’t walk, she went in with the babies. When we went there again, about two weeks later, her hand and feet had gone down to a normal size, and she was able to walk a little! Alicia worked with her on that, and whenever she walked for a little ways, she would look up at Alicia and smile like she was proud of herself! She is now in the older girls and is almost ready to leave!

Mission Trip Report from Alicia

A year ago, I went to San Andres (a place in northern Guatemala, up by Mexico) with a team from Minnesota to be their translator. The team was going there to build a church for a pastor and his family who lives there. While we were there, we were able to do a small vbs for some of the kids who live in the area, and I was the translator for that. We got quite a bit of the church built while we were there, but it was finished after we went back home.
In November, the woman (Dot Schmidt) who led the team last year came to our house to drop off some things from my grandparents. She had come back to Guatemala for the dedication of the church that was now finished. When she came to our house, she asked me if I would go with her to San Andres again to be her translator. I said yes, packed my bags, and left 15 minutes later! This time, it was just us. She didn’t bring a team down.
While we were there, we went to the dedication and did a lot of prayer walking. We were going to do another small vbs, but that didn’t work out. Also, Dot asked me to co-lead a team to San Andres next year to do a vbs and I said I would. I`m pretty excited about that!

Soup Run

Our family has started a weekly ministry of bringing food to people who sleep on the street in Antigua. We’ve also given away blankets and clothing from time to time.
One night I was talking to a guy named Charlie who we found lying on the ground like a dog. I offered him some soup and told him about the church we attend here and he started telling me about a drummer there named Mark, not realizing that it was me! He had met me there before. Then, out-of-the-blue, he asked about Christopher by name. Christopher came over and Charlie asked him to pray for him.
Another time I was talking with a guy named Roger. He was so full of anger and bitterness that he wouldn’t even tell me his name at first or let me pray for him. But after talking to him for a while I saw him visibly begin to soften to the point where he was crying and praying to receive Christ! It was one of the most dramatic changes I’ve ever seen! He never even took our soup! He got a taste of the Bread of Life instead!
Last night we went behind the market area of Antigua and to the dump area behind that to hand out food to people we've seen sleeping there. We took police with us so that it would be safer since it's completely dark there and there are quite a few people living there. We had enough bread for 24 people and by the time we were done there giving each person a cup of soup, a piece of bread, and some cookies made by our friends the Srocks, we had only enough bread and soup for 3 more people! We are getting a bigger pot and thinking about maybe going out 2 nights a week so that we can cover different areas at different nights.
Eventually, we may have pictures of the friends we are making, but we want to be sensitive to their situation and not make them feel like we are there for any other reason but to show them the love of Jesus.