Friday June 13
Randy Stauner
Today was one of much activity centered around the mission. We began
with a service of singing and praying with the group from Indiana and
the mission staff. It is customary on Friday to bless the mission
building. This is done by going from floor to floor and saying a
prayer at each level. This is something we all can appreciate because
this building is so important for doing God's work.
After blessing the building the men and ladies separated to do a bible
study. We again used the story of Ruth to convey the message of God's
Grace. The women of Guatemala sang hymns and we exchanged thoughts
about Ruth and her experience by trying to relate it to our own lives.
When the bible study was over we spent time learning about the lives
of our interpreters, Coca, Adriano, Edgar, Pablo and Luis. The lives
they led before joining the mission,
in some cases, clearly were going in the wrong direction. It has been
an awesome experience and a privilege to get to know these young men
who have become such an important part of the mission despite their
history. In Guatemala you can be a teacher upon graduating from high
school so the teachers at the mission are very young. The mission has
given these young adults a purpose in life and in turn it benefits the
children who come after school. Importantly they are bringing these
children to God.
Following the bible study we had lunch and then walked a couple blocks
to a workshop.
This workshop is a program that was started by a man named George who
was a past leader of the Servants Heart Ministry. George created this
workshop for the benefit of the young men of Guatemala that were
without education and who were on the street in peril. George houses
18 young men in a home that he owns and at the workshop they make
beautiful wooden boxes that they sell for their support. All these
young men are now going to school and have set goals for their future
including lawyer, teacher, mechanic and working with wood to name a
few. What a blessing George is to have established this program to
save souls.
We returned to the mission and distributed about 80 soccer balls to
the children, giving one ball per family. We then walked to a nearby
playground were everyone joined in playing with the children. There
were slides, teeter totters and climbing apparatus. The team from
Indiana brought frisbees and sidewalk chalk for their enjoyment. The
final activity at the mission was a devotion and singing hymns in
Spanish .
The day ended with each of us reflecting on the weeks events, singing
hymns and talking about how it has changed our lives. This was a very
touching moment for each and every one of us. Ginny, the mission
Director advised us to be aware of how this experience may affect our
lives upon returning home. She also encouraged us to not forget what
we have seen and how God has a plan for us. She asked that we take
what we have learned here about the grace of God and that we use this
in how we conduct ourselves in the future.