Tour, Orphanage, God's timing!

On our first full day, my morning started around 5:30 am as did most other days since I had to make sure the rest of our team was up. J  Breakfast was always around 7:30 am. After breakfast, our team, along with a few other teams had the opportunity to go on a tour with Sean, who is currently volunteering, at Hope of Life. I have previously described the Hope of Life ministry from the first time I was there, so I won’t go much into details. But we toured the warehouses, Elders home, Special needs home, St. Luke’s (hospital- where the baby rescue center is currently), and the orphanage. It was refreshing to be back and to witness what has been renovated since I was there last. For instance, the hospital was still under complete construction back in March, however now the first and second floors are open. They are still working to finish the rest of the hospital, and they are hoping to have it all completed soon.

After we finished the tour, we headed over to the Rancho for lunch. After lunch, we got to spend time up at the orphanage! Many of us brought things to do with the kids so we all kept busy! I brought some beads to make bracelets and necklaces. Others brought coloring books, uno cards, stickers, nail polish, etc. The children sure appreciated all the activities we had for them! After I finished making necklaces and bracelets with the children, I went over to the playground to play with a few of the children, solely to spend time with them. It was so nice getting to know more of the orphans during this trip, since last time we didn’t get too much time with them. Then something occurred which brings a smile to my face, I finally found where the younger children were set! I found Emilio, Diego, and Christina, all whom I met back in March when they were still recovering at the Baby Rescue center!  They are doing so well and I miss them every day!

After some time there, we headed back to clean up before dinner. Since we still had some time, some of our team went to visit the various ministry areas or down to the Rancho area before dinner.  Dinner was great as always! After dinner, we had some Spanish lessons from Hugo! Unfortunately, I had to miss some as I had a interview during it.

That evening, as I reflected back on what God was doing, I was simply amazed at how perfect God’s timing is for every aspect of our lives! In the short time I spent in Guatemala, God sent people my way that I had the privilege to met and connect with, instantly.  Deep down, I saw this as God-given relationships that were created.

Regarding what I had already explained in the previous paragraph, I wanted to share an excerpt from my journal for that particular evening:

“God is amazing and His timing is perfect for everything. All things work together for the greater good for His glory, even when things seem messed up at times, He still shows me that He is there through everything. I am so thankful for it! He continually gives grace and shows us mercy, as we should to others.  It hurts me so much when things are out of control, but how much more it hurts Jesus when we act the same to Him...”

There were numerous things going through my head, and I am so thankful God was able to show me what He was doing through that day and every day! That evening ended with an entire-team prayer.

Stay tuned for our time in a village! Until next time… God bless and always feel free to ask questions, or comments! J