Stories from the Field
I hadn’t even noticed her until my friend, Soledad, asked me if I wanted to talk to the woman in the blue. I had joked all morning about how after 2 weeks of not having a person to help me translate, I was READY to go out and share the good news with everyone. So we grabbed Mackenzie and walked over. The conversation came naturally as she was waiting to walk to the bus. She began cheerful, talking about her family and 2 year old grandson, her new marriage, and seeing her kids on the weekends. But, we could see the weight she was carrying. I shared about how the Lord wanted to help her carry all the burdens she was putting on herself. Mackenzie shared a beautiful vision about the table and trusting the Lord with her husband. Tears came to her eyes and Soledad held her arms with both hands. I could see the power in seeing her. We finally prayed for her afterwards when she shared about the intense pain in her stomach. I put my hand on her stomach and prayed for the pain to be healed. Afterwards, she told me all the pain was gone and where there was once burning, it felt like there was water flowing like a river. We were all so encouraged and hugged as she thanked us. She had to leave for the bus but I believe that 10 minute interaction showed her that God sees her not just in the big things, but the small things she’s been carrying on her own.
(Photo by Aderkee Lopez)
Thursdays in Guatemala have always felt like Fridays. One by one, racers would come by the bathtub and share about why they were deciding to be baptized. We all soaked up and listened to every tearful celebration and gratitude for giving our full “yes” to Jesus. No pressure. Just an invitation to dive deeper into the calling God has on their lives. We love the idea of not just being hearers of the Word, but doers of the word. Which is why Thursday is “activation day” and also everyone’s favorite day of the week. This looks different every time, but I always get most excited for baptisms. Time after time, I’m reminded of the honor it is to see people’s lives so closely. Then each team went out into the local towns and shared with others about how God has changed their lives/prayed for people/ just followed where God told them to go. For 3 years I’ve watched the people I’ve led be baptized in this tub, in this field and there’s no better feeling. I couldn’t stop smiling. Gen Z will know Jesus.
(Photo by Grace Harang)
The Lord is restoring vision — last month, Kaili (on the right) asked me to pray over her eyes because she’s struggled with double vision. We prayed and tested it out and though her eye sight wasn’t perfect, there was no more double vision. Then, on Friday, we were put together for house visits (along with a few Guatemalan students who joined for the day). Through meeting a young girl and getting invited into her home, we met her mom (pictured). We helped her with the corn and asked them questions. She mentioned that she hasn’t been able to see anything in the last 6 months. My heart jumped as I realized how special this moment was. I knew Kaili would pray for her, just like we did for Kaili the day before. As we prayed, a little bit of her eyesight came back. But, Chako asked her daughter to continue praying for her mom everyday. It’s not just the missionaries coming into their house who can pray for healing. But the 12 year old daughter who put her hand on her mom’s eyes can see God work too. I have complete faith that Astrid’s vision will be restored in the days to come and she’ll know the love of God deeper because of it. I love that we get to do the same thing as we see Jesus did because we carry the same Spirit.
