My title might be different than this post...but look to the bottom of the pictures and you will see what I mean...
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| Un lugar para Pastores en La Reina...Martes de 30 de Septiembre |
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| Yes....that IS a volcano irrupting a mile and a half away from me... |
Imigdio and his wife have lived in
Izatapa for about a year and a half.
They are church planters. The
church is small, only about ten families.
The invitation to come and visit him came from when both of us were in
Cobán, over 6 hours away. Imigdio said
that I had to come and visit, but I had to bring the family. Hermano Jesus mentioned that he lived close
to the Ocean. So I proceeded to ask if
he could see the Ocean from his village.
His response: “Um…yeah” (in Spanish of course). What he did not say was the village is
literally five blocks away from the Ocean!
When we got to the house, we were
greeted with a snack of over ripe corn.
Yet, we were close to the Ocean…the closest cornfield was miles away! It was the best they had…they bought the corn
just for us. The kitchen had half walls
and a dirt floor. There was no
fridge. The property was maybe a 1/6 of an acre. We then were offered some eggs and beans and
tortillas. They were very delicious and
a typical Guatemalan meal. It was the best
they had….and his wife was not feeling
well, yet they served us.
We (my family and Hermano Jesus and
Pablo and Anya) went across the way to the church. Normally they would have a devotional in the
afternoon, but moved it to the morning so that all of us could be a part of
it. AJ started off by playing a prelude
on the piano. Now, when I say that this
church is simple, I mean it is simple.
The floor is sand, the chairs are plastic lawn chairs, the stage is only
half done with cement, and was maybe fifteen feet wide by fifty feet…but it was
the best they had. I was asked to bring
a greeting and prayer. Then after some
simple singing, praying, and a message, we were then ready for lunch….two and
half hours later. Our kids did not mind
the sand floor as it allowed them to play and build sand castles during church.
Lunch was wonderful. Grilled fish….the whole fish. We had to pick the meat off, but it was
delicious. After eating rice, fish, and
tortillas, we walked to the beach. Now,
the hospitality did not end there.
Imigdio wanted to make sure we went to a good beach so our kids could
swim. So we hopped into a small boat
that took us across the channel and landed at a part of the beach that was a
cove. The water was calm and clean. The kids played, collected shells, and
swam. Imigdio, his 11 year old daughter,
my family, Hermano Jesus, Anya, and Pablo all enjoyed our time together. Our kids latched onto these new friends
quickly. We were just about done and
ready to walk over the hill to look at the Ocean unhindered when a wave knocked
down Hermano Jesus. When he stood up….no
glasses! We quickly went over to him and
began to look. When I say that this man
of God is blind without his glasses, it comes across as mild. We needed
to find these glasses. But where do you
start? The waves kept coming. So, we
prayed. Said our amen and then about 30
seconds later Pablo stepped on the glasses….in the Ocean…..in the waves. THAT is the power of prayer!
After a good day we headed home,
but ran into some problems with the van overheating. As it was raining and waited for the steam to
stop coming out of the overflow area for the radiator, I thought that I had
waited enough time. I was wrong. The lid blew off and I quickly found my left
arm and my left side covered with very hot water. I was very grateful that the burns were there
and not on my face. The blisters are
looking better and I am slowly improving, each day, having less and less
pain. Some spots were indeed 2nd
degree (or whatever they call it now).
But, the hospitality gets better.
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| The Cross is beside us... |
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| The Cross is always before us... |
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| Imigdío |
Today
(Tuesday) I went to a village called La Reina for a gathering of pastors. There were 17 of us in all. Imigdio was one of them there. Today he did not feel good, but he came. When he saw my arm, he asked what
happened. I began to tell him and immediately
he started to pray and ask for healing.
He also said he felt like it was his fault. I asked why.
He said that he had an unusual feeling when we were leaving, but did not
say anything. He says he wished he had
said something. He felt like God was
trying to tell us something and he was not obedient to God. He felt like he needed to give more. Give more?
A man who makes VERY little money, spent a weeks worth of pay to feed us
(and refused to accept anything) and
has a deep heart for the Lord, felt like
he needed to give more? Yes, give
more. When we listen to God and He
speaks and we do not follow through, we miss it. All other things fall short. Yet, I was very grateful for his heart, his
hospitality, and what he gave me: a great insight to the heart of God. A new friend has been made in Guatemala.
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| The Cross is always behind us... |
And yes, we will
visit the Ocean again in Guatemala!
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