Thank the Lord we are finally writing from Antigua, Guatemala. We arrived safe and have completed our
first full day. After Howie said he
would meet us at the gate, we were not so sure how the check in would go, but
the Pompano Ladies, made it through. We
did have 2 pieces of luggage over weight by 1 lb., but we just moved some baby
cream around, with no problem. We met
our first team member Cathy from, Florida and Howie at the gate. As we
drove from the airport, it did not take long as we saw cars speeding by, for
Carmen to say, she felt right at home.” We met the rest of the team, at the
Hotel. The other team members include,
Judy from Oregon, her two daughters, Julia and Jeanette, and Jennifer from
Georgia. So many of our new friends
have been back 4- 6 times. They tell us
that their heart stays here with the kids so they have to come back. They
are a wonderful part of the team with all their experience and joy they have in
being here.
Breakfast included typical
foods of frijoles, tortillas and sour cream, plantains, and fruit juices. The day’s schedule was jam packed. First, we worshiped
at a local church, “Iglesia Del Camino”.
The congregation is both American and Guatemalan, so all the songs and
the message were translated to English. We all commented how we felt “right at home.” After the service we headed to Filadelfia
Coffee Plantation.
Some of the team enjoyed coffee siestas while the others set
off to where they could step out of their comfort zone and take a big “leap of
faith”. And leap they did… at about
6,000 ft. elevation! There were many
“shouts of joy” as some of the ladies got “stuck” on the zip line and had to be
rescued. You will have to just imagine
who shouted the loudest and, and exclaimed “I’m Stuck, I’m stuck, Help me!” Driving, hiking, and zip lining, through
God’s creation really allowed us to appreciate the moment, and the answer to
prayer as we continue this journey that God has before us.
The evening ended with a special time to share in the 33rd
Anniversary of Antigua’s being selected a historical city of international peace
and love. The celebration consisted of releasing
into the sky many beautiful, flame lit, multicolor and white balloons… all at
the same time. You can imagine how
beautiful it was as those balloons drifted into the sky in front of the Cathedral
in central park. The crowds shouted and cheered as the many balloons were
released. The tradition is to make a
wish as the air balloons fly off into the moonlight sky. We had great aspirations as we started our
first balloon, the crowd cheered as the Americans joined in with much effort,
holding the tissue balloon kite, lighting the torch, and lots of fanning. It
was neat to see so many working together to send it up. But at the last minute as we let go, our air
balloon turned into a bonfire! We
continued with our second, and then our third balloon, all working hard, lighting
the torch and having the crowd cheering us again, but our balloons still did
not take off! We were determined not to
quit. We finally bought another balloon
and finally we could all celebrate that the Orphan’s Heart team did not give up
until the job was done! Lift-Off!
We trust that we will have the same determination this week
as we work together. We are looking
forward to being with the kids tomorrow!
P.S. Please pray for Freddy, he is one of the vendors at the
market who we will be sharing the Gospel with tomorrow!
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