Hola from Guatemala! Week Two

"MI TESORO, MI TESORO, MI TESORO, MI TESORO ESTAN AQUI, MI TESURO......."

Team Guatemala has had an amazing first week in Guatemala! We have continually been in awe of our indescribable God. The team of interns has bonded so well. It's like we've known each other forever. Each of us have many different strengths. It's so encouraging to be surrounded by so many Godly people each day.

This week, we spent the mornings visiting different community homes in Guatemala City. Most of the children were between the ages of 3 and 6. We sang songs, shared a Bible story, and played with the kids.

In the afternoon, we went to San Gabriel Boys' Orphanage. The second day through the last day at San Gabriel, we were greeted with one of the guys shouting, "MI TESORO, MI TESORO, MI TESORO, MI TESORO ESTAN AQUI, MI TESORO......." In English, "my treasue, my treasure, my treasure, my treasure is here, my treasure!"

Our Bible School theme this week was "Bible Heroes." We studied Noah, Daniel, and Joshua. We played with the boys for a little bit and then started our program. We sang songs and shared a Bible story. Then, the boys started rotations (prayer/snacks, soccer, arts & crafts, and basketball). We shared our personal testimonies with them and shared some of our favorite Bible verses. We have prayed so hard for the boys this week and have seen God work in so many ways. We built many relationships with these guys. Many of the guys are still very broken-hearted, angry, and sad.

However, by the end of the week, several of the guys opened up and shared stories with us. Several of the boys were very interested in learning English. One of the boys asked Denise how to say "Dios con nosotros" in English. Denise told him "God with us." She taught him many more phrases in English, however, his favorite was "God with us." He went around the orphanage and told all of the Americans, "God with us." Even at the end of the week, he still remembered and constantly repeated "God with us." On Tuesday, some of the boys really started opening up and sharing with our small group. They started telling us their background and their stories.
We listened to Elmer tell about how his dad choose his stepmom over him.

Elmer's dad told him that his stepmom could give him a normal child (as opposed to one who has epilepsy). Elmer told us how he was called worthless trash. He told us stories about being physically abused by his dad. We listened to Tedy tell about how he formerly looked to drugs to satisfy the void in his life. Tedy told us numerous abuse stories. It was so hard to hold back the tears and be strong. All of a sudden, life as an orphan seemed so real to me. My heart broke in two for these kids. Then, they started telling us how they pray every night and the things they pray for. The next thing we knew, Tedy and Elmer were telling us how they've been praying for us and how grateful they are for us visiting them. They told us they pray for our safety, our relationships with God, and they thank God for us every night. Tedy told us that when he grows up, he wants to be a pastor to spread the word of God (see picture below...Tedy is holding a picture that he drew of Jesus). Wow! It's like we were speechless listening to the boys' past stories, then blown away by their prayers for us, and finally in complete awe of God's sovereignty. Later in the week, Denise was talking to Samuel and asked him who was his best friend. Without hesitation, he pointed up and said Jesus.

Ahh, and our big surprise.....Thursday we had a surprise birthday party for all of the boys at San Gabriel. It was EVERYONE'S birthday!!! While the boys and the team from Bellcroft sang songs and acted out the Bible story, the interns decorated the cafeteria. We had posters with encouraging words and balloons. We had pizza for the boys and a huge birthday cake. After the food, we had a huge water balloon fight. We ended the party with birthday gifts for all of the boys! What a day! Best of all, we will be returning to San Gabriel the last two weeks that we are in Guatemala. Please continue praying for all of the boys at San Gabriel. Pray that God would soften their hearts and that all of the boys would seek God with all of their heart. Pray that they would be overwhelmed by the love of their Heavenly Father even though an earthly father isn't part of their lives.

Pray that God would work miracles through us when we're at San Gabriel.

Feliz cumpleanos!!!
~For His Kids, Sheena