Friday was our day in Antigua. We started off zip lining through the beautiful scenery which consisted of lots of trees and an amazing view of the volcano, smoke and all! We got to experience God's amazing work through his gorgeous creation. Afterwards we took lots of pictures in front of the view of the city below and the 2 volcanos in the distance.
Next Julio and Byron took us to a new spot. We stood on a hill overlooking the city of Antigua and the volcano with a large cross behind us. After enjoying the amazing view we headed to lunch at The Sky Cafe. We were so blessed to have a day committed to relaxing and getting to know Julio and Byron better. Seeing God's creation on such a massive scale reminded me that our God is so great, He is the source of our strength. (Psalms 84:5a "blessed are those whose strength is found in you...") ~Kailey
When we returned to VOH it was already time for dinner. I don't think any of us were ready to eat after such a huge and delicious lunch, but we all managed to eat a bit more because the food at VOH is always delicious too.
We then made preparations for movie night with all of the kids. Jen had some more crafts ready for the children when they arrived. All of us sang the Happy Birthday song to Julio for his 25th birthday, in English and Spanish -- and in the Spanish version we all counted to 25 with great applause.
Byron and Julio set up a screen and projector for the movie, and after a bit of scrambling around, plugging in, unplugging, and reconfiguring the wires every which way we finally got the movie playing. We watched God's Not Dead in Spanish with English subtitles so everyone could enjoy the experience. The movie emphasized that our Living God guides and cares for His people in the midst of a culture that denies Him, and that He calls us to be light in this dark culture. Some of the toddlers and babies dozed to sleep during the film but the elementary children on up watched with rapt attention. We all ate popcorn prepared for us by the young ladies in our team. After the movie came to an end, we had a special time with the VOH young ones and staff. We were able to pray for them and tell them how much we and the Father love them. ~Rafe
After Rafe prayed I shared with the children that Kelsey and I made our first trip to VOH before the buildings were completed or any children were here. I shared how we worked on their homes and prayed for the children that God would bring. Then we met them for the first time in April and they were the answer to our prayers. I told them it was special to see them again and they have a special place in our hearts and that’s why we love them. Lord willing, a team will be back in 6 months to see them again.
After that Julio said that they wanted to tell us something too.
One of the fun-loving house dads, followed by sweet 14-year old Warner, 6-year old Vilma (she completely stole our hearts), and the precious new house mom all shared how thankful they were for our team; how we showed them the love of God, and how they could see Jesus in us as we loved them.
It was an emotional evening as we shared our hearts and realized what a special bond was formed between the team and everyone at VOH. Next came the tearful goodbyes and hugs. There were few dry eyes as we embraced one another and shared sweet sentiments.
There are more stories to tell and I will ask the team (hint, hint) to send me their recollections of our trip so we can continue to share more of the trip with you.
We would love to hear from you, so please leave the team a comment or a question about the trip! I moderate all comments so if you would prefer I don’t post you comment publicly just let me know.
Praising the Lord for a great time in Guatemala and safe return! ~Christine
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