May I Sit With You?

I looked up and could sense a kind of line was starting to form.

I had taken my bible, a notebook and a pen to the park and sat down on a broken wooden bench in the shade. I had completed my list of things to do today and decided to go sit in the park and read my bible. On the way to the park, Don Pedro, the ferreteria (supermini Home Depot) guy, stopped me to tell me that his wife would be bringing his three children to my apartment to learn English on Wednesday at 4. I smiled and we agreed to hold English lessons twice a week for his three kids.
Don Pedro had taken me to his home the other day and introduced me to his family, let me pet his dogs, listened to my tore up Spanish as I tried to explain to him about Mighty, showed me his little lot, and drove me back to my apartment. He said his landlord was trying to sell the lot. (While good land, it is still too small and too expensive). What a sweet guy. He is a Jehova's Witness.

Walking away from the ferreteria and towards the park, I decided I also needed to make a lesson plan for these kids.

After a rather rough night of stressing out, all alone, in my cement cave with only Geoffrey's voice trying desperately to make me feel better, I decided that while the weight of the world is on my shoulders in terms of stuff to get done in a place where I have no idea how to do it, I needed to begin to take a different approach to all this work. This is a one time thing. The beginning of something great. My lifetime dream. I need to enjoy it, to think of it like a game, or a rather difficult puzzle and I am on a mission to solve it. I am speaking of visas, registration of non-profit, purchasing land in a foreign country, wedding planning, wedding-party planning, etc etc. All to be done by Dec 1. I got to lighten up when it comes to this. I guess it's okay if some of it doesn't get done by Dec 1. It's like Soduko, or whatever that horrible game is called. I don't know how people have fun with that, but they do and I need to figure it out.

So there I am, sitting peacefully. Instead of reading my Bible, I decide to write a prayer to the Lord. I pulled out my pen, wrote the date, and wrote 'Dear Lord,'. I begin to hear the whispers of a Mayan man sitting next to me. He is telling his one year old daughter to look at me, I am writing a letter. I smile at them and next thing I know we are knee-deep in Spanish conversation about why I am here, why they are here, etc etc.

I hand them my prayer card.  

This quickly grabs the attention of the teenage boy who had wandered over right next to me to unobtrusively listen to my every word. He comes and sits beside me and takes the card to look at it. I give him one. He talks to me in English for a bit and then leaves. The Mayan man says something to his wife, who apparently doesn't speak Spanish, and then tells me he has a question for me. He has two children, a 7 year old girl and a 2 year old boy living with him. Their parents died and they have no family. They are orphans. He can't afford for the little girl to go to school.  "Can you help them?" He asks me. I explained to him that that is why I am here. Although at this time I do not have a house, only an apartment, if they need help I will be glad to try to help them. He asked me, "How will you afford for her to go to school?"

I told him that there are other people where I am from that care about this little girl and her baby brother too. They care so much that they are willing to give their money to the organization so that precious babies like these can eat, go to school, and most importantly to learn about how much God loves them and that He has a purpose for their lives.

I proceeded to tell him that if I needed to care for them, I have a place they can stay, I can find a way to get her in school, and that I could eat them.

Yes, I told him I would eat them. As soon as I did, thankfully, the man knew what I was trying to say and corrected my Spanish. I felt dumb.

His family stood up to leave with my phone number in hand, and within the same 30 seconds an older man comes up and says, "May I sit with you."

"Sure," I smile and tell him.

We had a long conversation about my blue eyes, land, and the lack of jobs in the United States. This is when I look up and notice other people inching their way closer to my broken, little bench. They weren't being as inconspicuous as they thought they were. There was a kind of line forming. I knew this was going to be a long, friendly day in the park.

I met a park picture-taker, who will return to the park everyday with paper and pen to look for me so he can learn English, a boy who sells rubber to put on doors of cars to keep the rain out, a professor of Spanish and K'iche who I will be meeting again at 1:30 tomorrow to exchange language (I teach him English, he teaches me K'iche), and a professor of English who studied 3 years in Modesto, CA, who I will meet again tomorrow at 2:30 so he can accompany me, as my translator, to the attorney who is going to help me register Mision Vida Nueva in Guatemala. And it just so turns out, the attorney is related to the Mayor of Coban. 

All this will occur following my 12pm lunch with Francis Eachus, the one who alphabetized the K'iche language and translated the bible and wrote a concordance over the past 56 years of her life here in Coban.

Building relationships in Guatemala: just go sit in the park with a pen and paper, you'll have all the relationships you will ever need before you get up to go.

The park where it all happens. The bench with the couple, that's where I sat.

One thing that everyone got excited about, when I told them I was getting married on December 1. Their first question, "IN GUATEMALA??!". No, I tell them. In the United States, but then we will come back together and continue working on Casa Gloria to help the orphans here in Coban.

Maybe you'd like to know the plans?

Well, we pretty much knew that we were going to get married before we left for Guatemala. I had told Geoffrey a long time ago though that I did not want to get engaged though until I was living in Guatemala. That way, when he proposed, he knew he would be commiting to not just me, but to this mission that the Lord has given us. He, by faith, knew it was what God wanted for his life, and as it turns out, true believers have a tough time saying "No" to God.

So I come back to the States November 14. I will have two weeks to get ready for our wedding which will be Thursday evening at 6pm in Warm Springs, GA on top of a mountain in Pine Mountain.

Because of the lack of time to plan and the fact that we are wanting to build a Children's Home in Guatemala (which costs quite a bit of money), we are having a very small, family-only wedding. This literally will be family only, even the preacher. I am excited though. We have one lady who is coordinating absolutely everything from the videoing to the bubbles, and she charges such a reasonable price. Thankfully that leaves me with no planning to do except find a dress, which I will do in a week Lord-willing, when I get back.

Then we are going on a 7 day honeymoon to Jamaica (wow, what a blessing) and then back to Guatemala, haha. Talk about some culture shock.

Our number one prayer request, which is HUGE on my heart and on Geoffrey's, is that he will sell his house in Alexander City, AL by Dec 1. It is ready to sell and should be on the market in the next couple of days. It is a beautiful three-bedroom house, perfect for a small family or an older couple. Brand-new, just built within the last two years, a garden home in a gated community with a pond in front and a creek that runs behind it.

http://www.facebook.com/kurmytdafrawg?ref=ffl#!/media/set/?set=a.768636045315.2409853.27402775
Click the link to see the album of the finished house.

The yard is now fully landscaped and the back has a very large covered porch with a nice hot-tub and ceiling fans and wiring to put a television. It is a dream house and I can not believe he is willing to give it all up to come join me in my third-world cement home with this beautiful porch:

It's obvious he loves me. And even more obvious He loves the Lord. Just wait til he wraps his arms around that first little orphan boy....I am so thankful to the Lord, for His gifts are nothing short of

perfect. Nothing easy is truly worth it.

Prayer Requests:

•  Geoffrey's house will sell before Dec 1.
• The trustworthy attorney said our visas are going to cost $562 (possibly per person) if we are able to get the cheapest visas offered. Pray for the Lord's continuing provision.
• I meet tomorrow with an attorney to register Mision Vida Nueva in Guatemala. I don't know how much that will cost yet.
• The Lord will direct me to the perfect piece of land for Casa Gloria to be built.
• Continue to pray for the Lord to open doors for me to build relationships and bless and serve the people here.
Love,
            Jenna

"So there could be nothing but peaceful acceptance. And when one accepts, then ALL that is included in the thing accepted is accepted too- in my case, the helplessness, the limitations, the disappointments of hope deferred, the suffering. I now know this is important in keeping our own spiritual 'atmosphere' clear. For if we let even the fugitive wisp of a cloud float across our sky (in the form of a wish-- that is, a wish that things were different!), then the whole sweet blue of our spirit is swiftly overcast. But if we refuse that wisp of cloud....If we look up and meet the love of the Lord that shines down on us and say to Him about that particular detail of the trial, "Dear Lord, Yes...." then in one bright moment, our sky is blue again.

My Father, I will say-- no matter what shadows of circumstance blow across my way-- you are my Father of Lights. Coming down from heaven are good and perfect gifts to me....All the promises of your love and goodness are still...YES! and AMEN!"

-Amy Carmichael, missionary to India, started a children's home that served over 1,000 orphans.

God chose you and you chose me.

"But I have to ask you a question, and I don't know how to say in English."
I looked curiously at Victor as he sat beside me on my tiny couch which is covered with a blanket to keep whatever bugs may have wandered into it's holes from coming out while you're sitting on it.
"What's the question?"
"How do you say the word 'escoger'?" He asked.
"Choose," I replied.
"Why you 'choose' me Yenna? Why choose me? No person in Guatemala trusts other person. No person asks other person for help. There are so many bad people here. Why you choose me?" 
He was already late to work. He got here at 10:20am and had to be at work at 11:00. He just wanted to help me with every little thing I needed help with.

"I did not choose you Victor. God chose you and you chose me. Don't you remember in the restaurant you asked me in English if I needed help? We had our family and our friends praying very hard for God to send someone to us who could help us. Victor, God chose you and you chose me. I didn't chose you. God has a purpose for this." I explained slowly and clearly so he could understand.

He just shook his head and said, "Thank you."

On his only break at 4pm, I met him at his work and he took me to a man who owned land and wanted to sell. We looked at two pieces of land. One was very small, 15x25 meters, and on the slope of a hill. Looked like this:

Too small with no room to grow. And the unbelievable thing was the price he asked - $49,000! Yes USD. I realized quickly that it was going to be tough for an American to purchase land in a country where the people have so little. The man looking to get rich quick, said he had another piece a little larger. So we went there.
This is what it looked like:

I think when we showed up, the people who currently live there got a little worried. This land was more sufficient as far as size, but he wants $89,000. The size was 30x35x45 meters or something. That was crazy. This land should not cost more than $4,000 and that is only because it is near the outskirts of the city. I asked why the price was so high and he said because he had other foreigners interested in buying it. (yeah right) Victor assurred me the price was so high because I was an American.

He told me not to worry. He will come at 8am the next morning and we will first go to a judge that he knows who can not only help me with Visa stuff, but also with registering my non-profit in Guatemala.
This is Victor (my helper, the one you prayed for God to bring me):

8:15 am this morning I met Victor at the corner of my avenue. He took me to see one more piece of land, too small still but a LOT better quality. He called the guy and asked the price without telling him he was with a foreigner. The man said $26,000. Still too high, but way more fair than yesterday. Here is this land 15x35:

Next Victor took me to meet the judge. The judge looked over my paperwork and explained to Victor everything I would need. When we went back to my apartment, I fed Victor and he explained to me everything the judge said. You are probably wondering why we were in Guat City a few days before and working on Visa stuff still...well apparently ALL the information you get off the immigration website is completely wrong from the very first step. We did find out what we do need and we got the appropriate forms. After today though, I realize God is going to have to provide a sponsor that has an active bank account. Guatemalan. So please start praying.

I sent an email out to Intermissions (group exclusively for native English-speaking evangelical missionaries living and working in Guatemala) asking for recommendations of a Christian attorney in this area that I can trust. Pray someone will respond with an answer. There is so much to do, and I have to be soo so careful doing it.

For every encouraging moment, there has been ten discouraging ones. For every right turn I make, ten wrong ones have been made. Let the discouraging moments be fuel to my fire and the wrong turns be a blessing to every soul I encounter on my way back to the right turn. Give me eyes to see past the temporary and into the eternal, and a heart that is driven by the worthiness of Christ.

"Do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while, 'He who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him.' But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved."

-A persevering disciple of Jesus Christ

Hebrews 10:35-39

prayer requests ~

• God will provide a Christian attorney who can help me with:
• visas, registration of the non-profit in Guatemala, the purchase of land
• God will provide His desired piece of land for Casa Gloria and we will pay a fair price.
• God will continue to bring encouraging supporters alongside us who will pray and help make Casa Gloria truly a house of Glory.
• Three cases of bibles being shipped to me from the US will arrive and it will not be difficult or expensive to get them to Coban.
• That this Scripture will be put into the hands of the people who need it the most.
• And lastly, for the mormons that we shared the gospel and our testimonies with last week. Pray their hearts would be opened.

Over looking the city of Coban.

The next blog will be about wedding stuff :)

Love, Jenna

www.misionvidanueva.info

Okay, I finished this blog about 30 mins ago but didn't publish it. I refreshed my email first and before I had a chance to publish  this blog for you to read, I had two emails, two encouraging answers to prayers. God knows what we need before we even ask. The first was an email from a ministry referring me to two good attorneys to help with visas and registration. The second was an invitation from Francis Eachus to have lunch with Francis Eachus on Tuesday, next week. I didn't know who Francis Eachus was, but when she told me she had been living in Coban for 56 years doing ministry, I decided to google her name.

This is what I found:

"A Cup of Good Water
Enduring trials, discouragements, civil war and violence in Guatemala, Francis Eachus spent 50 years teaching Kekchi Indians to read and write, translated the Bible, wrote a Pedigogical Grammar and a Bible Concordance."

Mom will you please buy me this book off Amazon for my birthday or something? I can't believe who I will be eating with and gaining wisdom from on Tuesday. For every ten discouragements, there is one encouragement. And that makes the ten worth it.

I don't even know where to begin. I will tell it backwards, in segments.



Tuesday 12:00pm:
We have explained to Jimmy what happened, we got our money back, and we walked to my apartment.


Tuesday (today) 11:30am:
"Who the h*ll are you?!?!" echoes over and over again in my head as I jump off the colectivo and begin walking quickly towards the hostel we bought the tour from. The voice won't go away. It brings tears to my eyes everytime I let my mind take it further than the voice. We get to the hostel, filthy, no makeup, wet, haven't slept since 3:00am, and I ask for Jimmy.
I wait and remember the scripture in Psalm 91 that I memorized right before I came to Guatemala on Sept 1. "You will not fear the terror that flies by night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness..."


Tuesday 10:00am:
The tires on the van are squealing against the wet rocks on the steep incline and our van begins to roll backwards. There is too much weight in it. The driver hits the brakes, but the van rolls backwards and down and the back tires start slipping. We are in the backseat, in the clouds, on the unpaved muddy, wet, rock road which is about 15ft wide. There is no guard rail, and the only thing I can see is the top of the banana trees in the valley and the side of the mountain across from us.

Tuesday 9:00am: (bus 2- from Lanquin to Coban)
We breath a sigh of relief as we think we are finally on our way back from a nightmare. We are the only ones in the colectivo and are headed back to Coban. Two american lesbians hop in the seat right in front of us, and they kiss. Next thing we know, the van is filled tightly, with barely enough room to sit, foreigners from all over the world talking about how drunk they were the night before and how they shouldn't have smoked as much as they did. I thought to myself, "It can't possibly get worse than this."

Tuesday 8:15am: (bus 1- from Semuc to Lanquin)
The driver driving us from Semuc Champey keeps looking at me in the rearveiw mirror. I'm sitting next to two girls from France and in the front is a really nice lady and her young son (maybe 10 years old) from California that we ended up spending quite a bit of time with in Semuc. The driver finally turns and asks me in Spanish if I am scared. The two girls turn to look at me as I respond in Spanish, "I was scared earlier, but not now." This sparks the very discouraging conversation between myself and the two girls which ended with one of the girls cursing and saying, "I hate Guatemala, this is the most dangerous, crime-filled country in the world, and Guatemala City is the number one most dangerous city ever." I just sat silently and tried to remind myself of Psalm 91, "If you make the MOST HIGH your dwelling-- even the Lord, who is my refuge, then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent..." Geoffrey stood in the back of the pickup, getting tossed around and soaking wet from the rain and the rocky mountain ride.

Tuesday 7:00am:
The hostel manager softly and gently tells me not to worry about anything, he will call Jimmy and arrange our transportation out of here. He can tell I am trying hard not to cry. I walk over to where we are waiting for our ride out of the hole and I realize I am still in my pajama shirt. I shift through the bag and get a shirt and manuever myself into it and out of my pajama shirt right there in the restaurant. I didn't care. I wasn't going to go into the bathroom away from everyone. The poor lady from California is trying so hard to explain herself to the man. They feel so bad for her. They give her a pair of shoes she can take with her so she doesn't have to wear mine anymore.

Tuesday 6:00am:
I finally turn my flashlight off because the sun is coming up. After 10pm at night the hostel has no electricity and it is pitch black and raining in the valley of those mountains where we are. My flashlight had been on for hours, I wasn't fixing to turn my only weapon off until the sun was fully up and the flashlight served no purpose. We listened intently for a cell phone alarm to go off. We heard nothing. Meanwhile the woman and her boy walked up to the office part to see if they could hear anything, nothing. We had been sitting outside since 5:30.

Tuesday 5:00am:
We stood dripping wet in the rain with all our stuff, and tears were running down my face. We were not getting out of here. The 5am bus left and we weren't on it. It was dark and we couldn't see a thing.

Tuesday 4:45am:
It is pitch black, it is raining. Someone shines a flashlight into our open-air bungalow and asks if we are taking the 5:00am bus out of here. I shined my light back at him and said with desperation, "No, but we want to!!" He told us to come now. Geoffrey and I packed up our stuff and ran out in our pajamas as fast as we possibly could in the black night with only a small flashlight. Meanwhile, the young man shined the light in the bedroom next to ours where the woman and her young son stayed. The bungalow is the roof of a two room habitation. The roof is made completely of thatched, dried banana leaves and has a thin wooden divider-wall that turns the attic-like habitation into two sleepable rooms. Each room has a ladder going up into it with a heavy sliding door that you reach up and slide open when going in and you bend over and slide the other way to shut it when your up inside. The woman yells furiously at the young man shining his flashlight in, "GIVE ME MY STUFF!!!" even louder she screaches, "YOU FREAKING IDIOT, I WANT MY STUFF!!!" It was rage. We found out later that the guy went back to the place where the employees sleep and he was crying. As we hurried to throw our things into the backpack, I could barely breath. Everywhere I shined the flashlight there was a roach, or two roaches. I set the back pack on the bed and a huge cockroach scurried across the comforter. I grabbed my purse and a roach fluttered off it and landed on the covers. They were everywhere. How could I have slept in that bed? The roaches were all over the blankets on the bed and our stuff!!

Tuesday 4:15am:
I lay there shaking, clinging tightly to my little flashlight, crying and crying. Geoffrey laid beside me and put his arm around me trying to calm me. I couldn't sleep, there is no way I could sleep. How could I live here? I will never survive. I knew it was dangerous...what was I thinking? Geoffrey leaves next Tuesday and I will be all alone. I can't do it, I will not make it. I will be too terrified to leave my apartment in the day and too terrified to move at night. I could not stop crying. All I felt was terror.

(We will skip to Monday night now, the night before)

Monday 5:00pm
We walk to the office/restaurant part of this pretty cool hostel in the bottom of the jungle. We were in the most beautiful hole in the world, surrounded by hidden treasures that other people don't even know exist. How could God put something so awesome and incredible in such a poor, desperate, raunch place? These people have nothing, but they have something so amazing in their land that nowhere else in the world has. I came here two years ago with Emily and stayed in this same hostel. Unfortuneately, a hurricane came through and hundreds of people died so we were not able to enter the park to see the beauty of this place. But I was excited as Geoffrey and I walked to dinner because I remembered how good the food was here and how friendly the people are. We placed our orders and were instructed to wait until 7:00 to get our food.

Monday 5:30pm:
The nice California lady and her son that we met at lunch earlier came to sit with us. We were all smiles to listen to their stories and talk to them and share ours. They had been staying in Semuc for the past 4 days and had plans to leave Tuesday morning at 7:00am. We told them we were going to leave at 3:00pm Tuesday to go to the caves in Lanquin and explore. We wanted to spend the morning going back to the natural water pools to swim in the crystal clear, bright blue water surrounded by waterfalls and rapids.

Monday 7:15pm:
We put our deck of cards to the side and the four of us began to eat our delicious dinners. We hung out and talked for about an hour more.

Monday 8:30pm:
I ran to our bungalow, up the ladder, slid the door open and went up inside to grab my camera and flashlight. I couldn't wait to see the tarantula that the boy was going to show us. They found it in a hole in the ground right near our bungalow and if you poke it with grass, it will come out. We could only see its hairy black legs because it refused to come out in the rain. Geoffrey hates spiders. He did not know what to think knowing a tarantula lives only steps away from our room. We also discovered that a huge tarantula lives in the shared showers that we had attempted to bathe in earlier. The water was cold in the men's and the women's so we did not take our time and thankfully did not see the tarantula.

Monday 9:00pm:
We give up on the tarantula and tell our new friends goodnight only to discover that we were in the same bungalow only separated by a thin wood wall. They climbed their ladder and we ours. Geoffrey slid our door shut. There is no lighting so we searched for our toothbrushes and stuff with the flashlight only to discover there were roaches all over the table where our stuff was.

Upon further observance, we noticed roaches all in the wall cracks. So we thouroughly inspected every sheet and comforter before we were to go to sleep. I didn't know how I was going to fall asleep thinking about all the roaches around me.

Monday 10:00pm:
All the lighting outside the complex went out, it was raining, and pitch black. I put all my scary bug thoughts in the back of my head trying hard to fall asleep.

Tuesday 2:59am:
I woke up a little hot and tried to turn my pillow to get to a cool spot. I was surprised I had fallen asleep and laid my head back down on my pillow to return to my dreams.

Tuesday 3:00am:
My cheek touched the cool spot of the pillow and not even a second later I heard the shrill sound of the voice of the woman next to us shout, "Who are you??? WHO THE H*LL ARE YOU??!" Something made a thump, and then she screamed loud enough to wake every jungle animal within miles up, "GET OUT, GET OUT OF HERE!!!!!!" I realized what was going on and chills shot down my spine. I shook Geoffrey and tried to hide under his arm. I told him that someone was in their room!! I reached down for my flashlight and grabbed it.

Tuesday 3:02am:
Geoffrey frantically scrambles up and to our sliding door and he realizes that it was opened slightly. I shine the light over there. The woman is running barefoot on the grass screaming, "Give me my stuff!! Give me my stuff! Who are you?" We couldn't see a thing. She is frantic. She comes to our ladder and looks up as we hand the flashlight down to her. She keeps saying, "He was in my room. I just woke up and he tried to hide behind the curtain!! He was in my room." The little boy, about 10 years old, began screaming for his mommy to come back. They were sharing a bed.

Tuesday 3:15am:
She is still hollering. I am crying and absolutely frightened out of my mind. She said he only took her phone, which was laying by her head and he took her shoes. He had gone through her backpack and was going through her daypack looking for money or passports or whatever when she felt the movement of the wood floor. She opened her eyes and saw a man standing there next to her bed. He noticed her movement and went to hide behind the curtains, but she could still see his silhouette. That's when she started screaming and he dropped her daypack and went down the open sliding door and took off running into the jungle.

Tuesday 4:00am:
We get the flashlight back and search our room, my camera is still there, my purse, our clothes, my bible, everything. I can't quit crying. Why was our door open? How could he open her door without her hearing? How could he just be in her room not afraid she would wake up? What if he had had a machette or a knife? What if stealing her stuff was not his only agenda? What about her 10-11 year old boy sleeping next to her? What if I had woken up and saw a man hiding behind our curtains? What will I do when I am living in Guatemala by myself? What if someone comes into my apartment and I am alone?

Geoffrey wasn't that scared, but he didn't want to be there either. It was so comforting to have him there. We wanted to get out of there as fast as possible. We sat outside until the sun came up with the woman and her boy. I gave her my shoes to wear, we happened to wear the same size, for as long as she needed until we could get somewhere where she could get new ones. She kept telling the story over and over and everytime my eyes would fill up with tears. Thoughts would come into my mind like what if no one really stole her stuff? What if this was all staged just to get me and Geoffrey alone with them? What if her and her little boy were the real bad guys and now they were going to get us? I was frozen in fear and all I could do was listen while she described the guy's shadow and silhouette over and over again.

The hostel staff were very "concerned". We feel pretty sure it was an inside job. At first, we thought that maybe they targeted the woman and her child because there was no grown male in the room. We thought they knew that this was their last night and they had been there long enough that the staff knew what they had brought. The sliding door had a stick used to "lock" or stop the door from sliding open to someone on the outside. How did the person know how to open the door? And do it so quietly?

The discouraging conversation on the colectivo was when I realized that maybe it wasn't the staff at the hostel we stayed at. The french girl who was there with her boyfriend had spent the first night at the other hostel. They woke up to find their window open and all their money gone the next morning. Someone came in their room too while they were sleeping.
They left that hostel after the staff yelled at them and accused them of lying and came to our hostel. Two days earlier a girl's camera went missing out of her purse. She had had it when she went to her room for the night. The next morning it was gone.

Apparently these are professionals, fearless ones. It upsets me to even write this. Tuesday was a terrible day. A nightmare in every aspect.

BUT MONDAY-
But Monday was an incredible day. After hiking up a steep incline for about 45 minutes and thinking we were going to die, we arrived at a breath-taking veiw of the pools.

Then we climbed down and saw that biggest fall of rushing waters I have ever ever seen in real life.

It was crazy. Five tourists have fallen to their death because of their curiosity. It was absolutely stunning. Then we swam from one blue pool to the next. All natural waters.

Then we went into a cave, pitch black, ice-cold, just me, Geoffrey, and our guide. We had one small wax candle and it was such a crazy experience.

(That's not us, but that's what we did.)

I've never gone splunking quite like that in all my life. It was so dangerous, but it was very cool. I will never do it again though!

And finally, Geoffrey took me back to the bluest pools on top of the rushing river. He knelt down on one knee, in the water, and he said, "Jenna, will you officially marry me?" He held open a little blue box and inside was the prettiest ring ever! A simple band full of sparkling diamonds. I said yes!

For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him; I will protect him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation." - Psalm 91

As He has done this for us, we pray He will do it for you, and for the people of Guatemala. Amen.

Me: "Pero Senor, no hay agua...."
Him: "Si, yo se, blahblahblahblahblahblah...."
Jesus: "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

Me: "Pero Senor, si no hay gas, no podemos comer..."
Him: "blahblahblahblahblahblah...."
Jesus: "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry...it is written, Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God."

Me: "But Lord, everything is so dirty. How can I live like this? I am filthy, my home is filthy, it will not stay clean..."
Jesus: "Listen to me, Jenna, and understand this. Nothing outside a man can make him 'unclean' by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him 'unclean'."

Me: "But Lord, I can barely even understand these people and who knows if they can understand me? How will I ever survive?"
Jesus: "Dear child, don't you love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth...and make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourself. For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict."

Me: "Are you sure Lord that this is what you want me to do?"
Jesus: "People do not  light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.... In the same way, let your light shine before men...Afterall, how can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?...Go...I am with you."


The "blahblahblahs" are all I hear when my landlord (Senor) tries to talk to me. He talks so fast I'd be impressed if a Guatemalan could understand. The answer always has something to with "later". The city is out of water, like no running water at all, and we have no means of heat. No microwave or gas for the stove. This city is in the clouds, literally. Glad it rains every night, we caught about 2 gallons to flush our toilet with:

Good thing the voice of the Lord is louder than any other voice and I can understand it clearly. I am thankful for His word. As I dove into it this morning, the troubles of this new and scary world began to fade away. As I checked the email for the Mision, I was even more encouraged. I am not alone, and when Geoffrey is gone, I won't be alone. People there, where you are, are being moved by God's goodness to work with me a world away. People I don't even know that well. It is your prayers, and your giving, and your encouraging comments that let me know I can walk out of this ugly old door and make a difference. While we were dealing with no water, no heat to cook food with last night, and all the bugs flying around, a brother in Christ was purchasing three cases of Spanish bibles for me to give to the people here who can't afford a copy of God's word.
That is exciting and that lets me know that we, as a body, work together to get the gospel to people who have yet to get it.

The most joyous moment happened yesterday afternoon as we were trying to beat the rain back to the apartment. We had been searching all day for the homeless, shoeless man that walks the streets with blistered and dirty feet all day, every day. Sure enough, as we were only moments away from the gate to our apartment, there he was. We took the brand new pair of sandals to him and I told him they were for him. We kept walking. I expected he might throw them on the ground or try to sell them on the street, but as we stopped and turned to look back and see his reaction, we saw as he pulled the new rubber sandals all the way to his face. He was examining their cleanliness, and catching the scent of the rubber. He dropped one to the ground and tried hard to wiggle his wide, brown foot into it. A shop owner across the street came out to watch as he dropped the second to the ground. Once both feet were in, we walked back to him and I asked him how he liked them. He grunted with satisfaction and I said God bless you. As we turned to go, I noticed he had put them on the wrong feet...but he was so happy and so was I.

We priced some lumber and other building materials today to gain knowledge and see what it will take to build Casa Gloria. We will see a tourist helping lady tomorrow who is gathering information on realtors and existing orphan ministries in the area for us.

Tonight we have a whole new opportunity. We invited some Elders from the mormon church to have dinner with us. They are very nice guys and also just arrived in Coban last week.

Pray that the Lord will send me a Titus. A Titus is someone who will come as a source of comfort and encouragement in the name of Jesus. The Titus will be like-minded as far as our mission goes and I pray that this person will speak Spanish and maybe even English. Geoffrey leaves September 20 and for 55 days following I will be here on my own. There are many simple things that I will need help with, even communicating at times. 

"The prayer of a righteous man availeth much."

My apartment after we cleaned it the best we could:

The laundry room:

The guest room for any guests who want to come after Sep 20, before Nov 14 :)

My room:

The pictures make this already furnished apartment look livable and nice. Being here is quite a different story. But doesn't relying on the Lord and loving Him more than cleanliness and nice things help us to find contentment in any and every situation? He is. I am so thankful to have this place, even when there is no source of heat or water other than the sun and the rain. And all utilities included it is only about $240 a month. A prayer answered. The Lord will supply.

Because He is worthy,

Manos Heridas

With one wounded hand upon my chest and the other wounded hand upon the world, He gently pushes us apart.

The wounds are from the nails that attached Christ to the cross, but the nails are not what kept Him there.

I wish I had some nails in my hands to attach me to this place, because my will in itself, and my love for these people are not as strong as His. I have found that I am going to have to rely on Christ and Christ alone for absolutely every little thing. Life's simple little details have become hurdles that seem overwhelming and impossible.

It is becoming clearer by the day how much I have relied on myself, in my world. I built a world that was consistent and comfortable, peaceful and full of things that I enjoy. That world is over and now the Lord is my only constant and my comfort, He is my only peace and my delight.

The only consistencies that Guatemala offers is it's ever-changing everything, it's never-quite-comfortable anything, and it's non-stop noise.

"Let go of your world and follow me with all your heart. Do not look back with wishful thoughts on things that fade the fastest. I am faithful and I have called you, I will do it", He whispers in my ear.

He is faithful and He is doing it. Because of your prayers, we arrived "safely" on Thursday and "on time" according to Guatemalan standards. For a couple of dollars we found a comfortable hostal to stay in with helpful people. By Saturday, I had secured an "apartment" (I put that in quotes for a reason you will understand after I move in) and I can move in "Tuesday" (in Guatemala, Tuesday means Wednesday, Thursday, or Saturday). Today, Sunday, we found a church. This is an evangelical church where the women keep their heads covered in reverence, but they jump, dance, and shout out at any given moment. It's a rather large church with a terribly long service. It's not my usual baptist church. But hey, everything else here requires being as far out of my comfort zone as possible, so why not? We will see. Tomorrow, Monday, we will head out to discover what we will need to live here long-term and there is no telling what we will find.

My wonderful boyfriend and companion, Geoffrey, is so much of a blessing I wouldn't be able to put it into words if I tried. He didn't do so hot during the traveling due to the fact that he has never had to ride in a shoddy bus on the side of a very high mountain, going around a blindingly sharp curve, in the wrong lane (multiple times) because the right lane didn't exsist because only a day earlier it fell down the side of the mountain to it's death into the deep of the jungle.

But once he got on his feet and we started our journey through Coban, he became our fearless and knowledgable leader.

Geoffrey thinking, "That hole in the road is shaped strangely like a bus."

Not sure if he is praying or closing his out of fear or trying not to vomit...

Alta Verapaz's capital city, Coban, is quite a place. I will let the pictures provide the description:

Be sure to click follow on the left hand side of the page so you will know when I post an update. To see more photos, check facebook. And if you haven't already, like us at www.facebook.com/misionvidanueva

We have an official website that is up and running, but it is still under construction: www.misionvidanueva.info

We love you and we are indebited to you for your prayers on our behalf and to the Lord for His faithfulness,

Little by litte, day by day, we are working hard to bring Him glory and to bring them Him.

Empowering God's children to change the world.