Peru Day 1

As the bus turned on the familiar block of the church, the whole teams Excitement was electric. Each one of us excited to say hello to old friends and excited to meet new ones; eager to see how the Lord would use each of us this week.  The bus came to a full stop in front of the church and the crowd inside and outside the bus erupted in elation! 

We were greeted with hugs and blessings from Sponsor families, church volunteers, and all the children of PE140.  As the service began one could feel God’s presences fill the church.  His love and compassion shined brightly throughout the day as team members reconnected with sponsor children and a few of the team members met their sponsor children for the first time. It was a true blessing to see how God continued to work in the community and had answered prayers...One prayer in particular that made a huge impact was the fact that not only were the children present but the entire family including both parents!  

The Holy Spirit filled all of us today, helping us spread and show God‘s, everlasting love.  A few team members favorite moment of the day included meeting and seeing sponsor children, watching our team members connect with all of Gods children through him even when no words were spoken, watching The dedication of the children to their faith as they perform two songs and dances, recited scripture, and spoke from the heart during the church service.  

 One moment that impacted the whole team was when a young man who was 12 years old took to the pulpit.  He recited Matthew 13 from memory and spoke from the heart.  He spoke about the seeds God has sown and the impact this mission group has had.  All of us took a moment to thank God for working through us as we have done and continue to do his work. 

After church, we had the privilege of working with the dedicated women in the kitchen to serve all the children and all the families lunch. The team members worked hard to gain smiles, giggles and connect as we serve the children.  After all the children PE 140 begin to eat we humbly and happily begin to serve on the families.  

It was a day that everyone could see and feel God's work in Peru. 

Guatemala Mission Trip Day 6

For our final day in Guatemala, HopeChest emerged us into the Guatemalan culture to learn about the historical background and beautiful aspects of the country. 

Our day began by departing Tecpan and heading to Antigua. Antigua is a small city surrounded by volcanoes in southern Guatemala, renowned for its Spanish colonial buildings. Many of the buildings have been restored, but some have been left in ruins following a 1773 earthquake that ended Antigua’s 200-year reign as Guatemala’s colonial capital. 

Our first historical piece of architecture that we visited was “The Hill of the Cross,” or “Cerro de la Cruz.” It’s a large concrete cross that was built in the 1930s mounted on a hill overlooking the city, with a view of “Volcan Agua,” or the “Water Volcano.” Each of the 37 volcanoes in Guatemala has a specific name and a specific purpose for the country’s agriculture. 

One of the uses is for harvesting coffee, utilizing the rich volcanic soil. 

Our second stop was at the historic Antigua coffee plantation. We learned the ways that God has used these erupting mountains to create a moist, special soil to create a unique blend of coffee. 

While there are many struggles in Guatemala, it is impressive to see the ways that God has provided a mean of finance through many coffee plantations and opportunity for agriculture. Our guide was filled with passion and gratefulness for the soil and coffee plants the plantation has been able to grow and produce over the years. 

But the perhaps main reason we headed to Antigua was to experience the city’s historic shops and meals that were offered around the ruins that still stand. We had the opportunity to emerge ourselves with the members of the community and learn more about God’s children here. 

It was a great end to our trip as we had the opportunity to explore more of God’s creation. Another day and experience that put our lives in perspective. 

As we head home tomorrow from this wonderful week, we have reflected on all that God has done to open our eyes and work in our hearts. This was a trip that happened to work out because of the Lord’s will in a very last minute manner. We are extremely grateful that the timing, resources, and partnership with HopeChest came together and worked out accordingly to God’s will for us to visit this beautiful country. 

These children will forever be printed on our hearts and we are so excited that our churches will have the opportunity to partner with these care points for the next five years. We feel so blessed that God has called our churches to be the footprint in these communities. 

We ask for continuous prayer for these people once we return. But before we go, we would like to share some of our thoughts from this week.

Highlights of our trip:

• “I’m thankful that God provided me the opportunity to share Jesus with the children of Ambi.” - Bill Muehlman 
• “My highlight was seeing the relief and thankfulness from the directors of AMBI in knowing that our churches have partnered with them. Hearing their hearts for the children and vision to change the community around them was truly inspiring.“ - Brandon Boos
• “I’m thankful for the opportunity to show the love of Christ through relationships with the kids. Their joy in our presence was a gift from God to me. I’m thankful that God provided me the opportunity to share Jesus with the children of Ambi.” - Jason Reitz 
• “The home visits were incredible. The families were so grateful and humble. Their love for Jesus was overwhelmingly evident! They were generous and showed such happiness that we came to their homes!” - Stacy Diekmann
• “My highlight was being able to see life from a different perspective. I believe that we often don’t have any perspective of our own trials and hardships because we are so wrapped up in ourselves. Being able to pour into others, learn about others’ lives, and encourage the leaders to persevere through their extreme circumstances was life-changing. I’m grateful and humbled that God would provide me with the opportunity to serve him in this way!” - Shelby Boos
• “This week will forever change my life, my perspective on life, and my faith in the Lord. Visiting the homes of the families in Tecpan will forever be an image in my mind. Seeing families with so little, be so grateful and gracious towards us and God is something that I could never have imagined. It has made me grateful for so many things that I’ve taken for granted. I am so humbled by every child and adult I’ve met, and I am encouraged by the strong women and leaders who have been called to sacrifice their lives to carry out the Lord’s mission in these communities. Before I came on this trip I thought I would be serving to help others, but it turned out that God’s plan for me was to learn and be humbled as these children of God poured into my heart. I will forever be thankful for the lessons I’ve learned.” - Hanna Yates 

• “It’s impossible for me to pick one highlight. But some of my most memorable moments happened when I played with the kids. We broke through the language barriers and just had fun, especially jumping rope!” -Julie Sostak

Thank you so much to all who have prayed for us this week. Your prayers and support have poured out into the children and families in this community as God continues to work and change hearts.