Guatemala | January 2023

5 February 2023

A quick jump from Roanoke to DC and the Guatemala trip is officially underway. 1.5 flights away from landing in Guatemala city. The elevation gain of each flight coincides with the excitement level of the team! Some of our team checked off their first-ever flight! We purchased some coffee and snacks at the Dulles airport to fuel the flight to Houston.

We are extremely thankful for the amount of support we have received from parents, friends, prayer partners, and all! This trip has already been drenched in prayer and we are expecting God to do great things in the lives of our missionaries and those who we come in contact with throughout the journey. Here’s to the start of a transformative move of God! We’ll be in touch soon!

6 February 2023

Day 2 (or is it day 1?) has come to a close. We made our way through the bumpy mountains. Manuel was our faithful bus driver for the 3-hour drive from Antigua to San Juan La Laguna. We saw Manuel perform many impressive maneuvers on the roads through San Pedro and San Juan. The high-altitude roads gave the perfect opportunity to see Lake Atitlán in all her glory. 

In San Pedro, the Impacto team had lunch ready for us at their new location. After eating our fill of chicken/cheese quesadillas, salad, and fresh lemonade, we explored the town. We saw a couple of presentations from the local shops. In the first presentation, we listened as the process of making chocolate was explained. After some of the students made purchases from the chocolate shop we continued our venture. In the next shop, we were able to see how many beautiful Guatemalan clothes, bags, blankets, and other textiles are made by hand. A single scarf may take someone fifteen full eight-hour days of work to complete. It was very interesting to see the process from cotton to yarn and even see how they utilize various plants and bugs in order to dye the fabric. Many students bought some cool souvenirs from these stores. 

As we concluded our day of adjustment, rest, and souvenir shopping Pastor Matt reminded us of the real reason we are in Guatemala. Our evening devotions came from Colossians 1 and help us to realign to the will of God for the trip. We want to enjoy our time and have fun, but we want to be careful to remain humbly in God’s hands as we begin working with the ministries tomorrow. God has brought us here as his instrument to show others His great love and grace, we must allow ourselves to be used by God. 

7 February 2023

Another fruitful day in Guatemala! We got picked up from the Promised Land (Impacto’s compound) at 7:15AM and headed to the other compound for breakfast and a morning devotion with Pastor Luis. We split into two teams for the majority of the afternoon. One team left the compound in order to spend time with nearly 60 elementary students at Getsemani, a local Christian school, while the other group worked on a construction project to help Impacto improve their grounds.

The teams combined for lunch and we had some time before the next activity so we walked to a local coffee shop where we saw raw coffee beans drying in the mountain sun. We were able to enjoy some local coffee and smoothies. We finished our coffee and visited one of the Happy Tummies locations where we will serve later in the week. We were able to join the kids for some songs and a quick game of fútbol. We split back into our groups for the evening and one returned to Getsemani for a middle school sports camp while the other continued the construction project. We were able to teach the middle school students how to play Spikeball and thanks to the generous donations from everyone back home we were able to leave Spikeball sets for the school to keep! At the end of the sports camp, Mr. Mack spoke through a translator from Matthew 17. He discussed why it’s important to listen to God and why we occasionally struggle to hear from God.

The late evening consisted of dinner and a return to the Promised Land for our nightly team debrief and devotions. We discussed memories and events from the day and we reflected on the work we did and the conversations in which we were involved. Pastor Matt discussed the importance of team unity as we continue to work and serve.

Mrs. Kist gave us the agenda for the next day and we rehearsed our gospel skit that we will perform for the kids at Happy Tummies. Another great day! We want to continue to praise God for the ease of travel and overall fruitfulness of the trip thus far! Keep the prayers going!

8 February 2023

God’s love abounds through His magnificent creation. Each new day in Guatemala God shares His beauty with us. The sunrise over Lake Atitlán, the warm smiles of the Guatemalan people, and the welcoming arms of a child in need all exemplify the face of God. We have been so blessed by the openness of the Guatemalan people.

God used us as His hands and feet yesterday to deliver food and toiletries to the houses of multiple families in the mountains of Panyebar. The families receive regular blessings through the Happy Tummies ministry. Each of the families has children who attend Happy Tummies daily. This beautiful ministry reaches beyond the classroom and truly impacts the community and families involved. Following the house visits, our team gathered at the Happy Tummies compound awaiting the children with whom we would share the love of God through a gospel presentation, activities, arts, and crafts.

In our evening debrief, we discussed areas of stress, anxiety, and aspects of the trip that expand our comfort zones. The largest consensus has been the difficulty of the language barrier. Other honorable mentions include not flushing the toilet paper (it must go in a trash can near the toilet), the lack of consistent running water, and the ability to be flexible when plans change. Thankfully, God has blessed us with an amazing team that continues to handle the difficulties with grace.

In all that we do, we ask that God be in the midst. No matter the difficulty of the language barrier or the uncomfortable feeling of being stretched beyond what we thought we were capable of, God has given us the strength necessary to conquer each task. We see the fruitfulness of His spirit at work in the Guatemalan people as well as in our own lives even in areas where we fall short. Gloria a Dios!

9 February 2023

A beautiful Thursday morning! We began another day with breakfast at Xejuyú and a walk to the Happy Tummies in San Juan. We served food to the abuelitos and then gave our presentation and a brief gospel message. We shared a song in Spanish, Yo Tengo un amigo que me ama (I have a friend that loves me). The song continues to say, Su nombre es Jesús (His name is Jesus). This nostalgic Latin American song had a few singing along with our team. We brought crafts to complete with the abuelitos. They especially enjoyed the sticker-by-number books!

After saying goodbye to the abuelitos, we got into groups for another day of house visits. Our team brought toiletries, food, and most importantly prayer to houses in the local area. We were met with open arms and much gratefulness. Some of the children at the homes walked back with our team to the Happy Tummies compound for our afternoon activities.

At Happy Tummies, we waited as they all lined up to wash their hands and get their vitamins. Afterward, we served them lunch and joined them in eating delicious Guatemalan lo mein. The children brush their teeth after every meal at Happy Tummies and then returned for us to give our presentation. We introduced ourselves and presented a gospel skit followed by scripture in both Spanish and English.

Our activities today included bracelet making, balloon animals, nail painting for the chicas, and games of Uno. The children loved all of the activities and many went home with arms full of balloon dogs, butterflies, and swords. We were able to send them home with a bag full of toiletries thanks to generous donations from back home. They loved their beautiful bags filled with goodies. I overheard a couple of the girls showing each other their bags and one remarked: “muy bonita” (very beautiful). Another remarkable day filled with beautiful people.

  • Read a little about each student traveling to Guatemala with SMLCA!

  • Ben Abbott | 11th

    I'm looking forward to the Guatemala missions trip because of the ministry being provided. This will be my first mission trip, and I hope to see God impact the people to whom we witness and for Him to bless our ministry so we leave a lasting impression, leading people who may have never heard about Him to follow Him.

  • Addie Bell | Senior

    I am looking forward to our trip to Guatemala so I can help share the gospel and spread my love for God. Especially since I was blessed enough to be adopted from Guatemala. I adore going to new places, and I am excited about this amazing opportunity!

  • Maddox Conley | 9th

    I am looking forward to this mission trip because I want to help share the word of God with people who are not as blessed as I am and get to hear His word every day. This will be my first out-of-country mission trip, and I am very excited.

  • Noah Conley | 11th

    I am very excited about this upcoming trip! I was blessed to go to Frisco, Texas with the SALT team and that opened my eyes to missions around the world.

  • Makayla Constant | 11th

    I’m looking forward to this Guatemala missions trip because I think it is amazing to see how much of a big impact even the smallest gesture can make. I hope to see God use us as vessels to bring more of his creation to find and love Him. This will be my first mission trip! I am excited to travel to Guatemala and very thankful for everyone supporting this!

  • Devlin Cox | 10th

    Although this is only my second year at this school, I have already felt God's presence in my life grow and I am looking forward to seeing what His plans are for us during this year’s mission trip.

  • Gabe Cox | 11th

    I love to be active and help others. I love working hard to be the best at what I do.

  • Rose Duncombe | Senior

    I am super excited to head to Guatemala, as it is my first mission trip. I can’t wait to see all that God does and all the ways that he moves in people’s lives. I’m super thankful to have this opportunity and I can’t wait to see what happens!

  • Jessica Eigenfeld | 11th

    This will be my first mission trip! I am looking forward to this trip because I am blessed with the opportunity to be able to help others who need it and share the gospel with others who may not know anything about Jesus. I can’t wait to see what plans God has in store for us!

  • Jaxon Hill | Senior

    I am looking forward to this Guatemala trip because I will get to share God’s word and experience a new culture I would normally not get to experience. I can’t wait to see the transformation this trip will bring in my life and the life of others.

  • Emma Irvin | 10th

    This will be my first mission trip. I can not wait! I am most excited to see the Guatemalan children and teach them about Jesus. I am super excited to see what God has in store for this group and the people we will come in contact with!

  • Taylor Keep | Senior

    I’m looking forward to this Guatemala missions trip because it will be my first mission trip and I’m excited to share God’s love in this way.

  • Isabella Minter | 10th

    I’m looking forward to the Guatemala missions trip because I enjoy helping others to learn about God and see his love through his followers. I hope to see God do miraculous things through us. I’ve been on many small mission trips, but this will be my second mission trip outside of the states.

  • Parker Nichols | 10th

    I can’t wait to see what God has in store for us on this trip and the way that he will work in the people we are ministering to. This will be my first missions trip and I could not have picked a better group of people to go with.

  • Quintana Peak | 11th

    Hi there! My name’s Q, and this is going to be a trip of many firsts. First time overseas, my first mission trip, and my first flight. I’m prepared for quite the adventure! I’m so excited to show the love of Jesus to everyone to whom we are able to minister. And I hope I don’t die via volcano.

  • Jeremiah St. Clair

    I am looking forward to this mission trip and my personal growth with the Lord and I’m happy to see God use me as an instrument to other people. I also feel blessed with the opportunity to visit another country and see its culture.

  • Alec Terry | 11th

    I enjoy driving, swimming, and spending time with my family. I have been a Christian since I was 10 years old and I am looking forward to sharing God’s word and serving the people of Guatemala.

  • Tim Wagner | 10th

    I am a young student who is very talented in academics and I love teaching people new things.