Report from Guatemala

For the past three days I’ve been in Guatemala City along with six others from Christ Church spending time with Lemonade International. It’s been an incredible three days – full of extreme poverty and brokenness, yet, at the same time, full of passionate, powerful hope. I’ve asked each of our team members to share a sentence or two describing a memorable moment.

For me, I was overwhelmed by God’s presence as we prayed with a former gang member who had a profound encounter with Christ, and now runs a small business making purses and backpacks, employing others, offering them not only meaningful work, but also mentoring.

FRANK: I was profoundly moved when we visited the home of a severely deformed and ill child who was born to an unmarried mother who didn’t even want her. The mother had four other children and another one was on the way. We felt God working through us as we tried to help her circumstances and move her heart.

TIM: I’ve always loved how The Message renders John 1:14: “The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood.” This week, as we walked the narrow streets of La Limonada, visiting resilient, hope-filled image-bearers living behind shotgun-scarred walls, I was reminded that Christ is here in the barrio and that he is making all things new.

WENDY: This has been a week of “close encounters” – with the marginalized and overlooked, with the tangible presence of the Holy Spirit, with the witness of those freed from darkness, with the flood of the light of Christ, and with demonstrations of people living their faith out loud. I’ll not forget the words of a man salvaged from the grips of evil by the power of the Holy Spirit saying, “I am a trophy of God’s grace.” It was a powerful image.

OWEN: This week I have experienced more than I have ever really encountered in a long time, if ever. One thing that really stood out to me was Tita. She had this one line in the movie Reparando – “God used my ignorance as a gift” – talking about herself going into La Limonada. When we were praying for a leukemia cancer victim, Billy, I could feel God moving in the room. It has been a confusing, emotional, entertaining, and fun week.

KATIE: Visiting La Limonada is a constant paradox between the overwhelming suffering and intense pain, and feeling energized by the tangible presence of an active God. I have attempted to find words throughout the week for the beautiful moments we were ushered into by the team in Guatemala. During a spiritual reflection on the culture of Guatemala, and God’s heart for the outcast and poor, I heard the questions that were stirring in my heart and mind: “What is it like to be hurt and alone? What is it like to be abandoned? What is it like to watch your children suffer? What is it like to be powerless to stop it? What is it like to think you matter to no one?” You can’t touch or see trust, but the people of La Limonada have invited Tita and her team into their pain. It was a privilege to be trusted with their stories and faith.

MEGAN: For me, one of the most powerful moments this week was walking up out of La Limonada with Tita our first day here and talking about faith. “It’s not ever something we can say we are finally holding, once and for all,” she said, “but a constant setting out in trust of God, each day, each moment, one step at a time. But I love how tangible He is here, in these streets, His presence in the midst of such contrasts, the heartache, yet the hope.” She was radiant.

God is clearly at work in and through the ministry of Lemonade International, and it has been a privilege to walk alongside of their team this week. We all look forward to sharing more about our experience as we seek to grow closer to God’s heart, and that heart is open wide in La Limonada, and we trust that the same is true even in Phoenix.