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Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Love for the mission

I will admit that it has been such an emotional roller coaster being here in Guatemala. I have been told story after story of different cases of kids here in the Hogar as well as other children and teens. It's heartbreaking hearing the stories and even in the news of children being killed by their parents/ stepparent. I will share a story that was told by a nurse.

A father and mother brought in a 40 day old baby girl to the hospital because the baby was he hemorrhaging. The mom told the doctors that she left the house and when she came back the baby was bleeding. The social worker at the hospital brought in a police officer and said that if she would not tell the truth then the police would take her to jail. In the meantime the little baby needed reconstructive surgery of the uterus, intestines and other vital organs. 
The mother finally confessed. She mentioned that her husband had asked to be given the baby or else he would go to a home where there are prostitutes. The mother decided to give her child to her husband. The mother did not think that the man would actually rape the baby, but rather possibly  do something different. As soon as it was brought to light what happened someone went directly to the surgery room to inform the doctor what happened and at that moment the baby died and there was nothing else that could have been done. The doctor stormed out if the surgery room went directly to the parents and he started to beat both of them out of anger and frustration. The police had to separate them and the parents were both taken to jail. 

My heart broke. I wanted to cry, but I had to keep my composure, which was so difficult. I look at these beautiful little angels who are here at the Hogar and don't understand why someone would ever hurt these little babies. 

The scripture that comes to mind:

People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them. (Mark 10:13-16 NIV)

If this is how Christ sees children, then how does He feel about it when they are injured? 


Monday, August 26, 2013

New baby!

A few days ago a little angel was dropped off at the orphanage. Her name is Abigail Sophia and she is 2 weeks old. Looking at her made my heart leap. She is beautiful, tiny and so innocent. I don't know her story, but I'm sure it wasn't a good one. She came with a severe diaper rash, but her life right now is sleep, eat an poop. 


I only have a few more days until I go back home. It's such a bitter sweet moment. I know I will be back, but I need to go back home and work hard to pay everything off so I can later make the move to Guatemala permanent. There are so many places to volunteer and be able to serve. The organization Hope Worldwide Guatemala has a school and they do many activities throughout the year. God has a bigger purpose than I can ever imagine and I cannot wait to live in the center of His will for my life. 

Monday, August 19, 2013

Medical Brigade, Guatemala

It was such a great weekend being able to serve at the medical brigade. It all started with a meeting on Thursday evening to welcome all of the volunteers. There were general doctors, OB-GYN, pediatricians, dentists and nurses. It was so great being able to see the group as well as Daniel Roditi who is one of the ministers where I live. Friday we seviced the children at a nearby school. There are about 200 students from kindergarden to sixth grade. The school was opened by the same organization as the medical brigade, Hope WorldWide. The Guatemala chapter. It was so great being able to see the faces of some of these kids. Saturday is when I invite the children from the orphanage who are sick to come so they could be seen by the doctor. I woke up a little sad to think that Diego would not be there. I had to pray and journal regarding my emeotions and allow God to transform them to joy. My heart felt heavy, but once I got there and started to serve, I felt more at ease. Sunday was our last day and we saw mostly members from the church.
I don't have the stats of how many people we saw this past weekend, but I'm sure it was probably 200+ a day. 
One of the moments that impacted me the most was on Sunday. A grandfather came with his two grandchildren. He seemed very down and when it was his turn to give us his symptoms it was very evident that he was very worried and depressed. I asked him what was it that was worrying him and he replied that six of his siblings had died and his 91-year-old mother is now deaf and blind and does not get out of bed. This man obviously has had a tough life. As he was getting up to leave to get vitamins and Abendizol for anti-parasite I went to him and told him to go to God in prayer so that he can get strength from God. I also told him to have courage because God is with him through this tough times. I gave him a hug and I felt a warmth inside of me and it was as if God's love was in the center of our hug. It was a beautiful a moment. 

Here are some pictures of the past 3 days 












Thursday, August 15, 2013

Goodbye to Diego

Our last dinner together
Yesterday was a very emotional day yet it was such a blessing to be able to spend time with little Diego before he left. I was able to play with him and he actually played with me longer than he normally does. We had such a blast playing with a pink balloon, of all things! He kept throwing it to me and I kept throwing it back to him.  He thought it was the funniest thing every time I would knock it off of his hands. I took him inside the kitchen for dinner and he was pretending to feed me. He later gave me the spoon so I can feed him and it was such a special time between him and I. It was so difficult for me to hold back tears so I just let myself be in the moment. Prior to all of this I was helping one of the nannies gather clothes and shoes for him to take with him. I felt so heartbroken. All I wanted to do was crawl up in bed and cry but I decided to just enjoy him while I had the opportunity.
Diego. Top right was when we first met


His family had to leave a day early to the city to be able to be at court at 8 o'clock this morning. Diego is not the most social kid and it takes him a very long time to build that trust. All I could think about was him seeing these strangers taking him. I could picture him screaming and frightened. I had a very difficult night but this morning I decided to rejoice and have joy in my heart. I know that he will be missed and prayerfully I will see him again. It was love at first sight, he was not even 2 months old and I thank God for him because this little soul has inspired many things in my heart; to live in the path that God has planned for me. 



Saturday, August 10, 2013

My journey...His journey

"My Journey" This makes me laugh a little because is it really my Journey? I feel as if God is saying, "This is my journey for you." He has definitely showed Himself to me through many people I have met and served along with as well in the hearts of these little kids.

Along this path I have encountered so many beautiful people and have witnessed their distressed. There are so many people who have suffered so much and yet give so much of themselves to serve and give love. Last week one of the workers from the Hogar, Rosa, her father died. I think he fell and had severe injuries. Today we found out that one of the other nannies, Liliana (Lesbia), her mother died. Three days ago she had asked for us to pray for her mother because she was ill. My heart felt so sad thinking, "what if that was my mother?" My prayer is that I am able to love her the way Christ loved the sister's of Lazarus.

We leave the Hogar on Saturdays to stay in the city and go to church Sunday morning. Last Saturday I was talking to one of the weekend nannies and she expressed her heart to me and shared some deep rooted things regarding her life. I was taken back at her trust to share with me the depth of her heart and I had just met her. I gave her "homework" First I asked her to pray for the situations that she had shared with me and make a list of things that are positive and blessings in her life. I saw her again today and she shared with me that as soon as she went back home that Monday, situations started to change. I got so excited for her and told her that God has heard our pleas. I told her to continue with her list :)

Please keep these ladies in your prayers so that God, who is a God of all comfort will comfort them during this time (1 Corinthians 1).

Liliana
Rosa 




Monday, August 5, 2013

New child at the orphanage; the journey continues


The journey so far has been incredible. Today I witnessed how a child was dropped off almost at 9pm We had just sat down to have some dinner when we heard a knock at the front gate. They brought a little guy in their arms as he had fallen asleep on the way to the Hogar. The people who brought them mentioned that the little guy had fallen asleep after he had been crying, wanting to go home with his parents. His clothes were changed into comfortable pj's then taken to a bed. He is only 4 or 5 years old and he is so beautiful! One thing that I appreciate about Lilly, the director, is that she makes sure that there's always coffee. The people who brought the boy usually work only until 4pm and they said that they sometimes will work till 1-2 am depending if there's a rescue and a little boy needs a home. They were given their cup of coffee and some bread. They love this Hogar because it's clean and the kids are well taken care of. I told them that it's because of the nannies and the great guidance of Lilly. I am looking forward to getting to know the little guy and show him love. I'm pretty sure he will be scared, but there's nothing better than to love him and show him the love of Christ. We had the opportunity to pray for him after the social workers left the hogar. It was so neat to have all of the nannies there around the table and pray for this beautiful soul. That was such a special moment.

Today Lorena and I went to the market to have some breakfast. We had a good time walking by ourselves, taking pictures of the beautiful town of San Lucas. We went a different way thinking it was closer, but we were...wrong. I think God wanted us to go that way because He wanted to show us something. As we were walking we saw a man laying on the side of the road. My heart started to beat a little faster and all that kept running in my head was "compassion". What happened next will be a something that will stay in my heart.

 Tonight I was finally able to connect with my parents. It felt so good to see them and show them around the Hogar. The kids were having dinner so they were really busy filling up they tummies. There was something with the sound, so I was not able to hear them talk. This made me a little sad because I really wanted to hear their voices. Towards the end I was able to read my dad's lips saying "I love you." This is one thing that I would have to put on my list of things to consider if I decide to move to Guatemala to help with different organizations. 


Diego:
 

Here is a video I was able to put together for little Diego. I hope you enjoy it

To learn more about Diego:
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