beauty

BEAUTY

This is the one word I would use to describe my time in Guatemala. We are staying in this small town called Santo Domingo Xenacoj with Go Ministries, where a beautiful family of German, Esuzanna and their family are taking care of us.

Our whole squad (29 of us) are staying here and doing ministry together. It has been a sweet blessing to be all together, to share stories, to share our hearts, to share clothes, and chapstick. It’s not always the easiest thing to live with 28 other people, but it is beautiful.

To give you a snapshot of our ministry-we are helping in the mornings with a feeding program that Go Ministries does in two different schools. I love going back on a somewhat consistent basis to see my same little ninos, their bright faces, and beautiful smiles.

We also have been ministering to widows in several villages. We bring them bags of food, we sit with them, we pray with them, we sing with them, we love to hear their beautiful stories. Sometimes it’s hard. It’s hard to see such beautiful women in pain. Some are sick and spend most of their days in bed alone. They don’t really get any visitors. Sometimes, they hardly have a real roof over their heads, at least not a real roof by american standards. It can get pretty cold here, and no one has heat, and I wonder if their blankets are enough. Like I said, it can be hard. And often when I am sitting in the homes of these beautiful Mayan widows my eyes swell with tears. I wonder where God is. Does He really care for all of us? Does He really love us? What about these injustices, God? Because in my human eyes, this doesn’t seem fair. And I wish I could say that I have all the answers. I wish I knew the ways of God. But I don’t and I guess I’m just writing to say that I am on this journey with Him and I hope to gain some understanding in this area.

But I do know this, that some of these women, with the most beautiful smiles on their faces and most beautiful, traditional hand-made Mayan clothing on, will have joy and love exuding from their faces. They tell us that their hope and strength come from the Lord Jesus. If these women can believe in a good God who is loving and just, then I think I can too.

Xenacoj is a beautiful town. The people here are sweet and friendly. They are quick to greet us on the streets. The already soft-hearted children are softening more to us everyday, and they love to play with us in the park. Walking the streets, I hear the slapping of hands of women making the traditional tortillas.

On my off day, I went with most of my group to the beautiful city of Antigua. My words could not do this city justice. It is imply old and beautiful. It is full of Mayan culture. There are cute, antique-like coffee shops on all the street corners. I just want to go sit in each of them, order an americano and coffee cake. There are street vendors selling tamales, necklaces, and Mayan headbands. I love it here. I love this beautiful city.

I’m grateful that the Lord brought me here. I’m grateful for German and his beautiful family that is full of grace and love. I’m grateful that God has called me to be the hands and feet of Jesus and to care for widows and children. Because I think that is His heart amidst pain and heartbreak. He would go, sit with people in their distress and He would comfort and heal. He always has time for the people that society doesn’t have time for. And I think for us to be like Jesus it means showing up with the Spirit and to love and to just be present.

So this is just a small summary of my time in Guatemala. My notebook is littered with more stories of beautiful children who have grasped my heart, and resilient widows who have shown me their smiles, and many beautiful ways that God has come down to show me His love, goodness, healing and joy.

 

Con mucho amor,

Meg