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Thursday, September 29, 2016

Flight to Mexico

I don't believe in coincidences, I believe in GODincidences.

I'm currently on a flight to California, but prior to this flight I was flying to Mexico from Guatemala. On my flight I met the sweetest lady. We talked the full 3 hours and we waited for the next flight together though we we were going our separate ways. 

We talked about love, finances, health and Jesus. We laughed about life, talked about deep rooted issues and the scriptures. She was on her way to New York to meet up with the love of her life. Her story blew my mind. It reminded me that God has a perfect love story for each one of us. His word is a love letter to us filled with sacrifice, compassion and reminders of how much he loves us. 

Forgiveness was one of our topics. She asked me if there was anything that I was holding on to. She made this association with my health. Sometimes our bodies react to our emotional state of being. It got me thinking of so many things and circumstances. I do hold on to things and allow them to hinder me. I've been feeling guilty which is a feeling that has followed me since I was a little girl. I need to ask God for healing, reconciliation and peace. 

I really needed someone like that today. I needed to be reminded of my perfect love story with my Lord. I need to get back on track and allow the Spirit who lives in my to flourish and allow it to do its work in me. 

I can't wait for December because that's when my new friend will be back in Guatemala and we can continue our deep conversations. We will be meeting in two months for coffee. I am looking forward to it. God is good all of the time and sends us people right when we need it. 

“Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it!”
Hebrews 13:2 NLT


                                         

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Hogar

Last week I started going to an Hogar that's about a mile from my house. I had been praying about it before I came back to Guatemala because I was told that one of the little boys needed me. 


My little guy, Pedro, has delays in his speech and language. He is 5 years old and I probably can understand 15% of what he says. 

The first time I went, he looked at me and started to cry. Not what I was expecting. I took that opportunity to mingle with the other children in the home. Before I left, he sat next to me for a few minutes to play with a little car. 

I encouraged the staff to talk about me everyday in hopes to spark something in him and not be in shock when I arrive a few days later. 

Our next encounter was perfection. As soon as I entered the home I saw him on the other side of the house, waving at me, asking me to go join him. There was something special that happened in me at that moment. 

This was when I was able to notice his delays as we played and looked at a book together. All of the other children were surrounding us, participating in our story time. 

This week I was able to go again and spent a little time together with Pedro. We played and looked at a few books. 

Later we joined the rest of the kids where we took a few selfies. 

God always knows what we need and what is best for us. I enjoy visiting this home and I pray that God will bless it. 








Special Guest: Ashley Harris

"36 He took a little child whom he placed among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, 37 “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”  Mark 9:36-37

The school year has started and there are a handful of new teachers at CAS. On the first day of orientation I met Ashley who was sitting very quietly between some of the teachers. I noticed her quiet and gentle spirit imidiately because she sat around others who were a bit more talkative. I soon found out that she had arrived the day before. By the end I introduced myself and offered my help since I had a vehicle and I too needed to buy some groceries. 

I have been reading some of her blog posts and it's evident of her love for the Lord. I wanted to host her here so you can meet her and follow her journey as she love the little first graders. She is very insightful and deep in her blog



This is her story: 


1. Background information
Born in Warner Robins Georgia to Michael and Jada Harris on February 14. My Mother, Jada Harris has worked in Christian Education for 30 years now and has made me her assistant practically since I could talk. A love and passion for international travel and work was instilled by my father who was in the Air Force and constantly bringing home fragrant gifts and exquisite stories and photos from abroad. I grew up with an older brother, a younger sister and two more younger brothers, so the more people I can have around the better. When I was in kindergarten the Gospel was presented in an Easter chapel at my school, during which I broke down and after talking with my teacher, prayed and asked God to be the Lord and Savior of my life, thanking Him for His love and payment for our sins on the cross and believing in the power of His love. Since then I have been seeking to follow Him with my life, praying that He use me to be His hands and feet bringing the love and hope of the Gospel to the world.

2. What brought you to Guatemala?
Technically who brought me to Guatemala, God absolutely. And a woman who was an administrator with my mom at Grace Brethren Christian School who has become like an adopted grandmother to me over the years. She learned of my passion for international missions and felt a call on my life like I did to serve internationally one day. Her church has been going to Guatemala since the early 1990's so in 2011, she asked if I would prayerfully consider going. Which I did and within a few months ended up on a plane to Guatemala for the first time. Looking back I'm not sure what I was expecting, though definitely not that it would change my life and my heart. That the sparkling eyes of the people of Guatemala would forever be etched on my heart and soul and that God would bring me back over and over again and now to live and serve in this country for His Glory to reach the brokenhearted with the love and hope of the Gospel.

3. Why did you decide to become a teacher?
One of my favorite quotes is "Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope." by Maya Angelou. Growing up watching my mom in Christian Education and being thrust into the circle at an early age I saw the truth in a quote by J.C. Maxwell, "A teacher is one who know the way, goes the way, and shows the way." Especially in Christian education where a teacher does not just light the way for academic pursuits but stands as a light for The Way, The Truth and The Light, the way to hope and love and eternal life. An opportunity to used of God to stand as a light for children all over the world is a beautiful blessing to me.

4. Any goals for this school year? 

 I would love to see each child blossom this year, in school and in their lives. I pray that they see the love of Christ and the hope of the Gospel through their teachers and in everything we do this year. This year I pray my students think, question, design, create, struggle, collaborate, try, solve, invent, reflect, and learn. I pray to inspire my kids and I can't wait to see how they will inspire me.

5. What do you expect to get out of this school year?

 I look forward to collaborating with other teachers at the school both in and out of work. For it has been said by Robert John Meehan, "The most valuable resource that all teachers have is each other. Without collaboration our growth is limited to our own perspectives." I pray to grow in the Grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. I am learning to trust Him more and more and step out in fearlessness when He asks me to walk on the waters. My verse for this year, prayed about and adopted in January is "Be Strong and Courageous. Do not be afraid, Do not be discouraged, For the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9 Getting a call to move to and teach in Guatemala with one week preparation time definitely was a call for me to grow in my trust of Him but I still have a ways to go and I look forward to how He works this year.

6. Favorite moment so far these past 2 weeks of school?
 About half my class ended up sick by Wednesday of this week, out with fevers and stomach bugs. It was pretty bad. The first one to get sick was a little girl who ended up being out for the last two days of the first week, which we only had three days to start so it was interesting. But she came back on Monday with a picture for me, drawn on this little slip of paper in all primary colored markers of her and I which she handed to me with a big hug and exclaimed, "Oh I Love You Miss!" Then sat down and began quietly reading.

7. Final Thoughts? 

 "Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much" Helen Keller
"Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know." Jeremiah 33:3

Here are some pictures she sent me from her volunteer work here in Guatemala. 





Thursday, September 15, 2016

Rain

"...give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." 
1 Thessalonians 5:18

As I sit here in the dinning room, which is also my living room, I can't help but be thankful. It has been raining a lot the past couple of days and I truly enjoy the sound of rain, but the best part is when it stops and I can hear the birds chirping.

On Monday I went to an Hogar near where I live to play with little kids. My purpose is to be with one little boy and help him with his developmental delays. I feel super honored and I pray that I can help him the best that I can.

Being back to Guatemala has been great and I pray that God can continue to use me as His tool to help those in need. The funny thing is that I believe that at the end of the day I am the one helped. Isn't this sometimes the case when we give?

School started a week ago and I absolutely love it! The kids I have this year are amazing and I know that there will be a lot of growth this year. The children know how to brighten my morning and I honestly look forward every morning to get up and get ready to go to work. Please be praying for me and the children in my class. I want to show them a little glimpse of the love of Christ. 

Gracias! Here are some pictures of my classroom.





Sunday, September 4, 2016

Renewed

In their hearts humans plan their course,
    but the Lord establishes their steps.
Proverbs 16:9

I have sited this scripture in a previous post and here I am sharing it again with you. I find it quite funny that many times I plan things out and they flourish in my mind and yet it does not turn out the way I had imagined. 

The past couple of months have been quite tough for me. I went through some changes in my personal life and I just could not keep a good grip on things. I relied so much on myself and didn't want to fail. Yet I was failing myself. 

I made the decision to go back to California to be with friends and family. I looked at my bank account and I only had enough money for the next meal. I remembered I had a credit card and when I finally found it, it expired the previous month. I cried. 

A dear friend messaged me and I expressed how I felt and how I desperately needed to get myself back to California. She wanted to help me. Soon after, I created a gofundme account and I had the money to buy my ticket in a bout 3 days. I cried. 

I left at the end of June and came back at the end of August. I worked at my previous employment and spent a lot of time with family and friends. 

It was a time that I needed to think things through. Why was I still in Guatemala? I had a handful of great talks with friends that lead to me digging deeper and come up with some solutions. 

I was praying for something very specific; to close doors of things that where not helping me in my relationship with God. As I continued to pray one thing that I had analyzed was the amount of time I am working versus doing things that fill me up as a person and as a christian. After a lot of prayer, I felt that it was time to not work on weekends. This was a tough decision since this meant that I would have a significant pay cut and possibly disappoint people. 

When I came back to Guatemala, I was able to meet with two of my bosses and before I was able to say anything they expressed that it would be better to have someone else teach the course since I am gone a lot. I knew, as they were talking, that this was from God and was answering my prayers. I apologized for leaving for so long (I honestly felt truly sorry that I had left the program half way), then I let them know what happened that lead to me leaving. It was not easy being vulnerable.

So here I am, back to my little house, with my cat (I went to pick her up today), looking forward to sharing with all of you the great things God is going to do this year. I already have a local orphanage who needs someone to help a little guy who is 5. He has several delays in his development. I can't wait to meet him! This is what fills my soul!

I leave you with some pictures from my visit in California.




Huntington Beach...Prayer spot
Huntington Beack...Prayer spot
My cousin's wedding. He is sooooo tall!




Some of my aunt's uncle's and cousin's


Celebrating my birthday with my niece and nephews


4th of July