Sunday, May 24, 2015

Outreach 2.0

   First off, let me show off some of the amazing work our students have been doing... I'm really proud of them.
Brayan explaining the gospel to these kids who were all accepting Christ in front of 200 of their classmates!  

Brayan and Dave went on a "treasure hunt" and found these guys swimming.  Five of them accepted Christ.  

Courtney and Francesca sharing the Good News with some children at a daycare.

Brayan and Franny teaching about identity in Christ to another group of school children.
      In the past two weeks, our Discipleship Training School students have seen close to 50 people accept Christ through their ministry and evangelism.  So far, every time they preach, at least two to eighteen people become Christians.  God is moving and active in the hearts of the people at Lake Atitlan!  The students are working well together, and all taking leadership initiative to plan children’s programs, worship times, and preach and share their testimonies in churches.  They have all kept up good attitudes and worked willingly for the Lord.    

      Z and I tagged along for these past weeks as a way to minimize our time away from Dave, and also to get to know the lake towns a little better, since very soon we will be living up there!  We participated in a few of the planned outreach activities, but mostly spent our time doing our own thing.  We explored different towns, went swimming at the lake and at a public pool we found (score!), and spent time chatting with a lot of people from all different walks of life.  The lake is going to be a completely new challenge for our family, but also seems to be a good place to raise a family in many ways.  

      Dave is one of the main leaders for the DTS and so he was very busy with the team.  We went house-hunting on his days off, but were unsuccessful.  We looked at eight houses, and each of them had something seriously wrong.  The most promising of the batch was a large two-story house with a yard and a roof kitchen which had windows opening to a gorgeous lake-view.  I would have signed the rental agreement right then and there, but then we noticed the ceiling of the upstairs bedrooms- covered in black mold and water damage.  Ooh,  maybe not. 

      The second week we stayed with a pastor named Antonio and his wife, Kata.  We stayed with them during our DTS Outreach in January, 2014, so it was comforting for me to go to a place I knew.  (I’m not much for travelling and staying in people’s homes, so the past two weeks have been exhausting for me in that way.)  They welcomed us with open arms, and made us all feel at home.  Dave and Pastor Antonio really connected, and every day Dave came back from ministry with some new plan he and Antonio had cooked up together for our future at the lake.  It was encouraging to see Dave so excited, and confirmed to me that we are on the right track. 
      
    Pastor Antonio was nine years old when the Lord called him into service.  A light literally shone from heaven onto him, and Antonio’s father said, “I think you are going to be a pastor.”  His father believed that this was from God, and so he started hiking into the mountains around the lake with his son to show him all the villages that had yet to receive Christ.  Antonio’s father could not read or write, but he had Antonio read the Bible out-loud and then he would explain it to his son.  Over the past 40 years Pastor Antonio has planted a few churches, including the one in San Pablo where our DTS was helping him. 
   
     He has also founded a small Christian school, where the teachers work for a small donation at the end of the year, and he works for free.  He also has a radio program twice a week where he teaches the Bible.  Our team had the opportunity to go on the radio and sing, preach, and do some promoting of YWAM Antigua’s next DTS in August.  Pastor Antonio is a very hard working pastor, but I was touched when I even saw him taking the time to teach our students after mealtimes back at his house.  His wife was very kind to me personally as well, and encouraged me in my mothering and faith. 
     
    Their family blessed our team, and I know they will continue to be a part of our life when we move up to the lake.  We have plans to work with them in their many ministries, and may even live with them for a few months when we first move up there. 

        Yesterday morning the team took a boat across the lake to a small city called Panajachel.  They will be there for the week, staying at a Christian seminary.  Z and I grabbed a shuttle and came back home for a week of rest.  As I said, I’m not a traveler, so the past two weeks have been hard on me.  I am excited though that the next time I go to Lake Atitlan, it will be to make a new home for ourselves!   Please join with us in praying for the DTS students, they are doing a great job and God is blessing their work!  

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