*names are not disclosed for personal privacy.
My team has now been two weeks into our ministry with our hosts – Reindom – in the city of Sumpango and nearby mountain village, Santa Marta. Reindom is a ministry that was started in the middle of the pandemic. It is led and run by a group of young adults, from some as young as 17 years old to 29 years old. They are called Reindom because they want to bring the kingdom of God to their community. This is their vision:
“There is a fire in our hearts when we see a move of the generation that God is raising up on earth. Our mission is to connect hearts, create spaces, create resources and also opportunities for growth, of service, to this generation of children, adolescents, and young ambassadors of the Unshakable Kingdom.”
Reindom have their hands in many different types of ministries. Several times a week Reindom does kids ministry in a nearby rural village called Santa Marta. They provide food to 60 kids (many of whom don’t have consistent daily food), teach the children Bible stories, help the children to learn to read and write and to learn English, and run a sports ministry (aka futbol!). Once a week, the ministry goes to the central park in Sumpango to host the “King’s Table” (La Mesa del Rey), where they invite the homeless and those struggling with alcohol and drug addictions to come and eat with them; they lay out a nice spread, lead the group in worship, and share a gospel message while taking time developing relationships with each person. They also run an online ministry that has taken off in Covid-19 and now has people who join from all over Guatemala and other central American countries; they do worship, a message (last week my teammate, Banks, shared part of his testimony), and a time of prayer.
Earlier this week, several of us got to do house visits in the village. It was an opportunity to get to know the women more, and bring along needed goods (food and toiletries). I got to spend several hours visiting three families. The first mom* opened up quite a bit and shared that her husband, who worked in the fields and sometimes wouldn’t be paid by his boss, but he was worried about leaving his job in case he wouldn’t be able to get another one. And when these situations happened, their family would hardly have anything to eat – just tortillas with salt. She also shared that her mother had been sick; the doctor had said she only would have days to live, but she’s been bedridden for months. Her brother also recently was in a motorcycle accident and has memory loss and partial facial paralysis. We prayed for her during our visit, and a few days later for her brother and mother. We are hoping to be able to go back to visit and continue to pray. Even in all of her difficulty, and when her own heart was heavy, it was so powerful and encouraging to see her faith in the Lord, and to see how much she selflessly cared for everyone around her.
The kid’s ministry has been so sweet. One girl,* when asked what she wanted to be when she grew up, said that she wanted to help give people food and houses and clothing who don’t have anything. She’s nine years old, and she beautifully displays the heart of God! At another point, I got into a conversation with a young teen; she mentioned that her church didn’t have a Sunday school, and she also didn’t get an opportunity to read the bible. I asked if she would want to study the bible together, and we got to sit down today for a little bit after ministry and read through John 1, switching between the Spanish and English versions. She reminds me a lot of myself, because she’s quieter, and just hangs back and observes what others are doing. So, I’ve really appreciated the connection the Lord has been able to give us. One of the sweetest moments, after a gospel presentation, was getting to wash the children’s feet. I recently read through John 13, and was moved by the story of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet.
“Jesus knew that the Father had given Him authority over everything and that he had come from God and would return to God. So He got up from the table, took off His robe, wrapped a towel around His waist, and poured water into a basin. Then He began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel He had around Him” (John 13:3-4).
When Jesus had received all authority from God the Father, the first thing that He did was to humbly serve His disciples by washing their feet. It was a powerful and humbling experience to follow in His footsteps with these children. As I washed their feet and prayed over each child, I felt the presence of the Spirit so strongly in guiding me to pray specifically for each child. I know that God is already working in their hearts, and I know that He is raising up mighty believers who will continue to shine His love brightly throughout Guatemala and into the world.
As the Beauty for Ashes Coordinator, I worked with Loyda (one of the Reindom leaders) to get women from Santa Marta to come for a women’s event at the AIM Base Guatemala, where they got to hear testimonies and share some of their stories with each other. They were asked questions like: how do you view God? and what were some times you felt heartbroken? The women were then given time to draw out their thoughts (this would keep women who don’t know how to write from feeling less than or unable to participate) and share. The second day, they got to receive facials, get their hair and makeup done, and have their nails painted. It was so nice seeing these women get a chance to be treated because they often spend all their time caring for everyone else in their family that they have little time to do self-care. They really seemed to appreciate it! The next step will then be for Loyda and I to sit down and discuss logistics for hosting the program within the village. This would allow more women to attend, and also provide them with a more comfortable setting among familiar faces.
Please pray for each of the people mentioned above, for our ministry partners, and for God to continue to work in the hearts of the people of Guatemala.
To check out more information on our ministry partner, Reindom, visit their website: https://www.reindomcomunidad.com/ and follow them on Instagram: @reindomcomunidad
