February 21-27
Family and Friends:
First, and foremost, thank you for your support and prayers for our mission trip and team members! Each of our amazing experiences, the impact made on the lives of the people in and around Zacapa, Guatemala, and the numerous ways in which the Lord worked in our hearts can be attributed to your generosity and obedience to commit your prayers and money to the Lord’s work.
My life (as well as others) has been forever changed through this mission experience.
While our feet are back here in the states, our hearts and prayers are still in Guatemala. Their smiles and kindness are forever etched in our memories. We ask that you continue to lift up in prayer the people and missionaries in Guatemala.
This experience would not have been possible without your amazing support through prayers and donations. I pray that God blesses you and your family for being part of this mission trip.
In Christ,
Leslie
Our Trip:
Words really can't explain the experiences we had. God opened many doors for our team. During the week, over 60 people prayed to receive Jesus into their hearts.
On Saturday, February 21, we arrived in Guatemala City around noon where we were greeted by our missionaries, Allen and Lorelle Stoudenmire, along with our translators and drivers. We spent one night at the Arkansas House in Guatemala City.
On Sunday, February 22, we traveled from Guatemala City to Zacapa (three hour drive), where we attended the morning worship service at Shalom Baptist Mission. After the worship service, we traveled to our hotel, Hotel el Atlantico. Pastor Rorlando Cruz and members of the Shalom Baptist Mission worked with us throughout the week in the villages.
On Monday morning our mission work began. We prayer walked in the morning and began door-to-door evangelism in the afternoon in the village of Andalucia. The Lord answered our prayers with 10 people praying to receive Jesus and many other homes expressing interest in the home Bible study being held in the village.
On Tuesday morning, we were given the opportunity to share with the children at a school in the village of Conevisa. At the school, our team did two gospel presentations for students in grades 1-6. We provided five evangelism soccer balls and gave out over 200 witnessing bracelets. Approximately 35 students and teachers prayed to receive Jesus. Before leaving the school, God opened a huge door for our team. The superintendent of the school requested that our team return on Wednesday morning to share with over 200 teachers from area schools that would be at the school attending a meeting. After working in the school, we went out into the village of Conevisa to encourage believers and share the gospel with unbelievers. At the end of the day, 10 additional people had prayed to receive Jesus.
On Wednesday morning, we returned to the school in Conevisa to share with the teachers. Several ladies shared their testimonies and the gospel message was presented to the group. God gave us the opportunity to plant seeds and we have no way of knowing what He has planned in the lives of this group of people. We have committed to pray that God will send someone to come behind us and harvest the seeds that were planted. What an opportunity! After sharing with the teachers we returned to the village for door-to-door evangelism. At the end of the day, 9 people had prayed to receive Jesus and many others were encourage to attend a home Bible study in the village.
On Thursday morning, our mission team led a praise and worship service at Shalom Baptist Mission. We sang songs and prayed together. Our favorite song of the week was “Alleluia”. The word alleluia is a word that has the same meaning and pronunciation in both English and Spanish. After singing, several members of our team, as well as members from the mission shared testimonies about the week. Following the service, we said good-bye and returned to the missionary house, the Arkansas House, in Guatemala City.
On Friday morning we departed for the airport from the Arkansas House. We hope to return to this area next year to build a church in Conevisa and continue sharing the gospel.
The Great Commission – Matthew 28:19-20 – “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you, always, even to the end of the age.”
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