Each Monday Manuel, Gerber (pronounced
'hairbear'), and our mission teams, if they are with us, travel through the mountains of Guatemala to our second ministry site, Amatitlan. Amatitlan is a city of about 61,000 that was hit very hard by Hurricane Mitch almost ten years ago, in 1999. Since then, there are thousands of people living in poverty. Manuel tells us that it is very difficult for them to find work. As a result, many of the families there can't afford to send their children to school because of the fees that even public schools have, the lack of school supplies, and the need for older children to help care for their younger siblings. The Servant's Heart has been privileged to bring help in the form of school supplies and hygiene kits to many of the children in Amatitlan, and hope in the form of Jesus Christ, their Savior. As we are in our third day of constant rain from Alma and Arthur, I can't even imagine how cold and wet the people who live in the shanties in Amatitlan and here in the city must be. The streets turn to mud, along with the floors in most of their homes. And the shanties are anything but airtight. We feel as though we are living in a mansion here in our one bedroom apartment with Randy's bed in the kitchen, and we thank the Lord for the shelter with which He has blessed us. So every Monday afternoon, after our leader's Bible study, the ladies and their little kidlets begin to stream in through the black metal door at the end of the long cement block corridor.
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There are so many babies, with moms as young as 14 or 15. The kids, 60-70 usually, find their way to the little building at the far end and sit on the floor to hear about Jesus, sing songs and do crafts. While they're singin' at one end, the ladies are singin' at the other!! Not the same song, of course... but that's what "make a joyful noise" is all about, isn't it? There's singing and praying and listening to God's Word. Sounds like church to me! And what are our pews? Pink and blue and tan plastic chairs! And the roof? Big blue tarps that Manuel and Gerber put up in the morning and take down in the afternoon when we're finished! During this rainy season, it's not unusual for some of the ladies sitting in the gaps
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between the tarps to get wet, but they usually just laugh about it and move their chair a little bit! Isn't it amazing how, when you're hungry for God's Word, hungry for fellowship, hungry to sing praises... that it simply doesn't matter how cold or hot or wet you are? Nothing else is more important than being with your Savior. He is all that matters.
Each Monday Manuel, Gerber (pronounced 'hairbear'), and our mission teams, if they are with us, travel through the mountains of Guatemala to our second ministry site, Amatitlan. Amatitlan is a city of about 61,000 that was hit very hard by Hurricane Mitch almost ten years ago, in 1999. Since then, there are thousands of people living in poverty. Manuel tells us that it is very difficult for them to find work. As a result, many of the families there can't afford to send their children to school because of the fees that even public schools have, the lack of school supplies, and the need for older children to help care for their younger siblings. The Servant's Heart has been privileged to bring help in the form of school supplies and hygiene kits to many of the children in Amatitlan, and hope in the form of Jesus Christ, their Savior. As we are in our third day of constant rain from Alma and Arthur, I can't even imagine how cold and wet the people who live in the shanties in Amatitlan and here in the city must be. The streets turn to mud, along with the floors in most of their homes. And the shanties are anything but airtight. We feel as though we are living in a mansion here in our one bedroom apartment with Randy's bed in the kitchen, and we thank the Lord for the shelter with which He has blessed us. So every Monday afternoon, after our leader's Bible study, the ladies and their little kidlets begin to stream in through the black metal door at the end of the long cement block corridor. .JPG)
There are so many babies, with moms as young as 14 or 15. The kids, 60-70 usually, find their way to the little building at the far end and sit on the floor to hear about Jesus, sing songs and do crafts. While they're singin' at one end, the ladies are singin' at the other!! Not the same song, of course... but that's what "make a joyful noise" is all about, isn't it? There's singing and praying and listening to God's Word. Sounds like church to me! And what are our pews? Pink and blue and tan plastic chairs! And the roof? Big blue tarps that Manuel and Gerber put up in the morning and take down in the afternoon when we're finished! During this rainy season, it's not unusual for some of the ladies sitting in the gaps .JPG)
between the tarps to get wet, but they usually just laugh about it and move their chair a little bit! Isn't it amazing how, when you're hungry for God's Word, hungry for fellowship, hungry to sing praises... that it simply doesn't matter how cold or hot or wet you are? Nothing else is more important than being with your Savior. He is all that matters.
