A New Adventure [[Saturday, November 19, 2011]]

"Be wise in the way you act...; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone." -Col. 4:5-6

The day finally arrived! I was ready for my adventure to Guatemala. The air was crisp when I left Orange City, the wind blowing through the barren trees; winter was on its way. I was smiling, because I knew that I was going back to the place I had fallen in love with two years ago. This time, however, I would be working at a camp for children with disabilities. It's so exciting to see God at work in my life and to see his purpose unfolding in my life. Today, I am ready for this adventure and to follow God into the homes of the broken. My fellow NWC students and I set out for Omaha at 9:00am. Our flight was supposed to leave at 2:05pm that day, and it was a two hour drive to Omaha where we would fly out of. The roads were ice rinks, and we were sliding around curves. It was a good thing we left earlier. We had to pick up a suitcase in Sioux City from a Dordt girl who could no longer go. It took us a long time to find her, which put us back some. We arrived at the interstate where there was an accident and a line up of cars. great. We waited in this line of cars for an hour, and we didn't move once. I watched as the clock ticked by. 11:00am. We were supposed to be at the airport in an hour and we weren't even half way to Omaha. We found out that the Dordt girls who were coming with us, were two cars behind. That was God watching over us. One of the Dordt girl's called a friend who lived in Omaha to get directions. We all were ready to call our families and tell them we would be coming home for Thanksgiving. All I did was pray. God's will would be done no matter what, but if we are going out to do the Lord's work, He will be faithful in getting us there. We pulled into the airport 20 minutes before our flight took off. Thankfully, a Northwestern students parents came along to the airport so they parked our vehicles while we got ready to hop on our flight. We made it....barely. God is good! We boarded that plane that would take us to Guatemala. And....the story only gets better. We were in a small three seat plane. And me and a Dordt girl ended up sitting next to a drunk guy. He wasn't very old, but he kept asking us where we were going and why. He kept telling us to make a difference, one starfish at a time. And then telling us jokes in an Irish accent that ended with "F-ing sheep" He ended up passing out due to the 3 additional beers he ordered on our flight. All I could do was pray for him, and that's how I could make a difference one starfish at a time.

By 10pm we were descending into Guatemala City. It was too dark to see anything, but the city lights sparkled like a sea of diamonds. This is the place I had fallen in love with, and I was back. :) Everything was filled with, "Bienvenidos!" Welcome to the land of color, the heart of the Mayan culture. I couldn't believe I was actually here!

So many things were going through my mind: what if I didn’t know how to act or be myself around these children? How bad were their disabilities? I thought that I would be inadequate for this week, but I quickly learned that God used my inadequacies and fears for His glory and He equipped me to do the work for His Kingdom. The week spent in Guatemala was one of the most rewarding experiences for me.

Guatemala was just as I had remembered it: the sounds of cars weaving in and out of lanes, the sound of whistles, the strong scent of gasoline, horns, the sound of the beautiful Spanish language. I prayed that God would give me the heart of Jesus for these people and that I would have the hands and feet of Jesus. What does the Lord require of me, but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with my God? (Mi. 6:8). We were on our way, piled in a van (that was not made for as many people as we fit into it), to Chimaltanago where the camp would take place. It was too dark to know exactly what it looked like, but we entered a courtyard through a gate that had to be unlocked. The NWC girls stayed in a room on the bottom floor (very similar to dorm rooms). I fell asleep to the sounds of people shouting in Spanish, engines revving, wild dogs barking, and occasionally roosters crowing. I am excited for what this week holds.

I pray that the Lord makes Himself more beautiful to me, that my heart would be steadfast in
his word, that it would penetrate my being so that I am the imitation of Christ. [[Josh. 1:8]]

<3 kaycia