Merry Christmas, God Bless us everyone!

My 21 month old nephew Huck is a talker. I have obeyed his every command too! It's been interesting to watch him communicate. He narrates everything after it happens. Huck also remembers things that happened along time ago and he throws in serious detail. His mommy taught him how to say Merry Christmas and God Bless us everyone. He also knows his seasons, colors, shapes, number to five and tons of other things... but I will quit bragging.

I was reminded in Church, after Jesus was born his family spent some time in Bethlehem. It wasn't until later Herod called for a slaining of any child 2 years old and under. I was caught off guard to think someone could have this much jealousy to harm a young precious gift from God.

Huck is the best gift I could have asked for this Christmas. He is my sweet baby boy. Later, I was talking to some of my cousins and I heard this sweet precious little voice scream... "Tina, Tina, Tina." I looked around and there was my nephew with his tiny arms open wide excited to spend time with me among a crowded family gathering. Thanks God for sending such a sweet little child into this world to be apart of my life and remind me of what the season is about.. Happy Birthday Jesus!!!

Seek ye First the Kingdom / Be ready to enjoy

1 peter 1:6 In this you greatly rejoice though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trails. These have come so that your faith - of greater worth than gold which perishes even though refined by fire- may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

I don't know if you all know what it's like to hang out with your best friend all day. Well, it's exhausting because you laugh until your cheeks hurt and talk non-stop because you have so many things to share. Spending some time with Scott has been so awesome. We searched out mullets at the mall and only found two at Town East. It's hard to find special little items like mullets. By the time we left Dillards Scott had about ten different colognes on trying to find something that fit him and did you know bowling is an expensive outing now a days (I had no idea 16.95 for one game each). Christmas shoppers are in all sorts of getups. We saw some interesting creatures at the mall. One guy wore his Russian snow hat around, while another young man wore a fur coat with a huge cowboy belt buckle. Singing Christams cards are the new rage.. or at least we enjoyed playing them and turning on everything in the store that sang.
Praise God for openness and for someone who you can laugh with about anything. Sometimes you just need to know God brings special people in your life for a reason and to give Him the praise. Thanks God for your unfailing Love.

Living in a life of Whatever!

Whatever is true, whatever is worthy of reverence and is honorable and seemly, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely and lovable, whatever is kind and winsome and gracious, if there is any virtue and excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think on weigh and take account of these things. Practice what you have learned.. and model your way of living on it, and the God of peace will be with you. Phil 4:8-9

Every girlfriend in this picture has one or more of these characters and it helps me know God hears my cry. He loves me enough to send people in my life who hold my heart with value and concern. They pray for me and uplift me. I am thankful for my friendships and I am thankful when in doubt I can can think on these things. For the God of Peace is who I am seeking as I bring forth my thoughts into check.

Teaching Little Children

Tonight, I shared with the Awana group at our Church. I was a little nervous because I didn't know what to talk about with the kids. God gave me a vision to talk with them on something they have in common with Guatemalan kids; Sports and Birthday's. I talked about how I grew up with Awana and how I went to the Awana Olympics as a fifth grader. Now God has me teaching sports to Guatemalan kids. God also showed me how giving the Guatemalan culture is on Birthdays. Now when your child has a birthday you serve a huge feast for around 30 people or more. When people get there and are all seated the birthday family serves their guest. When the guest leaves they get a huge bag of candy to take home. I shared that with the kids and they thought that was a pretty good deal. Not only do you get candy from the pinata but you also go home with more candy. Then I talked about how someone very speical is having a birthday coming up soon. They all guessed it was Jesus. I shared with them how God gave his son on that special day and every year it's to remind us that Jesus was a gift and God served us at his birthday party. He gave us a gift we could take home and cherish. I then explained it's better to give then to receive. At the end, I gave them their choice of candy to take with them from the pinata. Two little girls shocked me as they passed by taking candy from my hand. One little girl already had candy and gave me what she had and another little girl gave me a quarter. I was in awe... I told the little girl who gave me the quarter .. "sweetie you don't have to pay for the candy it's free" and she said..."it's for you!" Wow! What kids can learn and learn quickly took me 34 years...:)

Living in Absolutes is not Living

I have been reflecting a lot on missions and life. Being shocked by God in his sending and keeping. I am reminded we serve a God who has a perfect will. I don't think like him 99% of the time. I am like a young child who thinks; well with this behaviour I will recieve this reward. Time and time again I am wrong. I seek His perfect Will and I know I am living in it. Why oh why do I need to know all the absolutes. I have been shocked to no end of what I thought was a standard way of living as a missionary just wasn't the case. God sends who he wants to send and who will listen to that call. No matter what the circumstances. People will sell everything they own and still not get it if their eyes are shut. God can send for a specific time and others for a lifetime. One day at a time, I am reminded to live and be open to what God has for those he loves. He knows the desires of our heart. He knows what we need before we even ask for it. One thought of; oh it would be nice and if God chooses; he can grant it. God is faithful to his promises. I am reminded of verses in the bible tells of his character. I am reminded of His absolute Truth. I am convinence even when I have plans, God's way is the only way I want to Go! I am a blessed blessed servant. I can't count the blessings he has given me in my lifetime. I can't describe his mercy but I can tell you He is faithful to me. I have fallen in Love with my Savior. Holy Holy Holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come.

Holidays mean "Time with Family"

I just want to say... I am thankful for my family and God's faithfulness for many prayers being answered. What a great time to see their smiles again.
I love you family!

Visiting with Others

It's been amazing to sit down with people and talk with them about what is going on in their lives. I have been overwhelmed with what God is doing in each of our lives. As I talk with friends about what God is doing in my life, I find it much more interesting to see why God has me in theirs. I have been encouraged by God to be a listener. I have found many friends in need of a listening ear and Lord knows I have been in training to listen. I have listened to singles, married, married with children, grandparents, divorced, seperated, just married, dealing with depression, suicide, health issues, surgery and loneliness. Wow, what an awesome God that he cares for us. I mean he truly meets us where we are at in every area of our lives. I can't tell you how many times God has allowed me to help someone by being aware of what that person needs. Most of the time, it was someone to listen. I think about the woman at the well, Jonah, Mary and other stories in the bible of people being heard and their lives changing. I pray I have been a blessing to those around me. Not very often do you get a chance to really listen to others. I have been blessed by others struggles, defeats, victories, mountain tops and times of loneliness. It is when I hear of others struggling but relying on God, I am reminded we live in a hard world but God is good. To not lean on our own understanding but trust in Him that he knows what is best for us at this certain time. I guess I encourage you all to make time to listen to others it's a wonderful experience even though it's pretty tiring. God Bless you all.

"Marriage" (Princess Bride)

Okay, What can I say; four great people found the one they will love for the rest of their lives. I was able to attend two weddings. It was amazing to see the joy and love in their eyes. Being able to witness their joy and happiness was a thrill. Weddings bring you back to what God had planned for man and wife. They will become one... pretty cool! I am so very happy for my friends and wish them well. This world makes it hard to keep a strong commitment to one another. I pray for these new marriages and for some of my friends who after five or six years are struggling to keep their love alive. Be with these couples as they take a journey that is exciting and new. I pray you will bless them and help them stay focused on you Lord.
Amen

Moments

I have had lonely moments, great moments, terrifying moments and God Moments. Now that I have had a little time to reflect on what has happened in the last 10 months it's been overwhelming to really see all God has taught me in a ten month period. I have been giving presentations and explaining what God is doing in Guatemala. It's amazing what he teaches me as I allow Him to speak through me. He has shown me how He has done amazing rescues in my life, caused me to lean towards a holy attraction of a healthier life, having been met by unearned blessings, shown undeniable truths and grasped the value of adversity. When our faith grows, our confidence grows about the future. I am reminded of my companions (Sorrow and Suffering)who God has chosen for me to walk with and it's difficult to find Joy if I look only at what they can give me through the worlds eyes. But I am confident when I know God has His best for me. He has changed my name (Miss Tino) and brought me a new life with Him. Amen.......

Saints Day/Halloween

Mom and I grabbed a pumkin and some popcorn and had a great time passing out little bags of popcorn to the trick or treaters. We made a jack-o-lantern and took lots of pictures celebrating time together. We didn't dress up in costumes but we did were orange and black. The kids were so cute and it was so fun to watch them run through the neighborhood. Halloween used to be one of my favorite holidays because we got to go around our trailer park and collect candy. Sometime we got scared but it was very fun to go from house to house and show off our costumes. Now, so many things have been said about Halloween and the danger of the night. I sometimes wish things wouldn't have changed at least for the joy of the kids. We ended up having around 20 kids come by. Lots of princesses and a superman. Halloween used to be a Christian Holiday called Saints Day. It was a day they celebrated the Saints and remembered what they had done to further the Kingdom of God. Now we don't even do this anymore. Interesting? I wonder 100 years from now if we will be celebrating anything at all on this day.

NO Place like HOME!

Well, I have returned to the US and it's been so wonderful to be surrounded by people who love and adore me. I came off the plane quickly awaiting the familar smiles of friendly faces. It was such a joyous time to be welcomed with signs and hugs from all of my loving friends. I was thrilled to know so many missed me. We sat and talked about what I had encountered and they wanted to be the first to hear. I am thankful for this time of rest and just a time to share with my family. The past few days have been wonderful and I will cherish them in my heart forever. PTL for not just one vehicle but two. One to use this week and another the rest of the time. I am so blessed. Brad gave me his Acura to drive around this week visiting family and close friends. I can't tell you how blessed I am to have a phone, a car and appointments with people who care about the ministry. Please continue to pray for several of my friends who have had serious situations occur recently. Pray I will be an encouragement to them. Thanks for all your support. I am so blessed.

Campers are having a Blast with our Water games!

Three days of drills and continuing to correct the campers, makes for campers needing a lift. So on the third day of camp we play a water game and that involves the two sports we have been practicing. Today's water game was a fun time of kick ball but you have to slide at every base, plus we had a giant basketball to kick. It was a blast. We just finished basketball and softball/baseball with the kids. These three days went the quickest but it was also very tiring. Many kids got sick or just didn't come because they were tired. We still had around 30 kids but it seemed a lot smaller. I was very thankful for just the excitement about the games and what they have been learning. The spirit stick has been a hot topic. I pray we can keep them focused on what it means in the future for them in relating it in the actual spiritual sense.

God makes my job easy!

We have been doing sports camp for four days now and I am very tired. The good thing is... there is energy spilling out of me when I see the look on the kids faces wanting to learning. It's been amazing to know God knows where everything is and how everything goes. He is such a great caretaker to all our kids. One thing I have gained is a better relationship with my kids and my coaches. It's been awesome to have such great help at this camp. Scott is a youth pastor from the States and he has done a great job with the boys side of camp. He came to Guatemala with his wife who works for Food for the Hungry. It's been great getting to know him better and watch him motivate the kids. Karin and Alisa have been amazing help and have kept me on track with getting money, food and other behind the scene things done. Jonathan and Pedro have been so much better during this camp and I think it has to do with more motivation and being in charge. Brad is a guy from Louisana who just came about a month ago. He has been a huge help in getting things set up. We have had a blast so far and it's because I have great help. Thanks God for providing the right people and their williness to help. It makes my job so much easier. Pray for our kids they have bad sunburns and burned lips. I do too but I am used to it from so many years of softball coaching. Please also keep kids who have gotten sick from too much sun in your prayers as well. Thanks.

Sports Spirit at Camp

First Day no big glitches. Everything went well and the Spirit was in the Air. They have quite a bit of spirit and have colors for their teams. We decided to add a Spirit Stick to the event of Sports Camp to add a domention of getting somthing for your team and obtaining points. It was a success the first day after being exchanged three times and was sent home with a 5th grader to take care of it for the night. We are praying for another beautiful day at Sports Camp. We worked them pretty hard so we shall see how things good the rest of the week. God definately helped keep things rolling smoothly. I am tired and I am ready to sleep.

Graduating from 6th Grade is a Big Deal

My sixth grade English Class was one of my tougher classes. Some kids understood English very well and others didn't have a clue. The sixth grade teacher is one of my closest friends(Kimmy). Last night was very exciting for them because it was their graduation night. Which happens to be the most important grade to graduate from here in Guatemala. In this country, 70% of the population never graduate from sixth grade. Big Night ah??? Well, try having a big night with no electricity! PTL for a generator to at least get a little light on the subject.
It was a sweet night with lots of memories of their time in school here. We pray all of them return for the rest of their schooling. Our Kinder kids got all dressed up to deliver the sixth graders their diplomas. It was a fun night.

Girls Tasted Victory, While Boys Tasted Defeat

What an awesome day we had yesterday. The teachers played the kids in softball/baseball. The girls played first and it was so awesome to see them interact and work really hard to beat the female teachers. We had all of the female teachers out playing and they had a blast. Many of them had never held a bat before. Our Director of the school Profe. Carols helped tremendously with giving them a five minute lesson on batting, hitting and throwing. They actucally gave us a good run for our money. The final score was 12-10 and the girls sports club were victories. Even the teachers were upset we didn't play another inning.
Now the boys game was much the same way, in the sense, many of the guys had never played baseball. They were so cute. But somehow the teachers musceled a victory with great pitching and a bunch of errors on our boys parts. Pedro from our sport club pitched outstanding but some of the teachers were able to smack it out of the park with their eyes closed. The boys fell 2-12 when Juan (our math teacher) came in throwing easily 70 miles an hour even though he had never thrown a baseball before. Juan is an amazing athlete/teacher. It was still a great time with lots of action. I was very happy to see so many out playing and having a great time. God is so good to give us excellent weather for our games. Thanks God for a wonderful day and games.

Our volleyball team won but even more; WE all won!

I conducted two volleyball leagues this year and both were a great success. We played the first league in May-July and the second August-Oct. This really brought families together and worked on dealing with each other on the court. Our first league was mainly friends and families were seperated for the most part on different teams. The second league we had more family teams and it was very interesting to watch them fight, yell, laugh, scream, learn, teach, embrace and give thanks for better understanding. I loved watching the families interact on the court and see the fight and honor for not only their team but their families. I even taught several of our Sports Club kids how to officate volleyball. It was awesome to see them take charge of situations and they did an awesome job in taking some of the load off of me and our school director. We had great cheering sections for the championship games. Serveral moms brought food in the stands to pass out and for everyone to enjoy. It was a great time of fellowship and just becoming more of a family body. I am sad it's over until next year but it was definately a great adventure to help everyone see the importance of encouragement, belief in self and others, taking time to communicate and understand. Also, it helped remind us it's just a game and what matters is making sure God and family come first. You might be saying to yourself.... right? You get all of that out of a volleyball league and I reply, "Everything and Anything is possible with God." He can take every situation and teach us something new about ourselves and others. Amen!

Escuela de Deportes (Sports Camp)

We are gearing up for the sports camp and right now we have 18 boys and 16 girls signed up for 9 days of total sports fun. I am super excited about the volunteers who have stepped up to help with the bible studies we are going to have during the camp. It's set up for two hours of sports then a snack break and bible time. Then two more hours of sports specifics and finally a crazy fun game with everyone. I have nine different speakers willing to share the importance of sports and the bible. I brought with me a FCA bible (fellowship of Christian Athletes) and it had in it several different bible studies. Praise the Lord of language tool on google. I was able to translate all of the studies with this tool. Please pray we have direction on those kids who want to come but don't have the money. We are sending a bus around to pick up kids please pray we have enough money for this in our budget and our camp will go well. I have had four guys volunteer to help out with the guys part just need a little more help with the girls side of it. So pray for the 16-25th as we teach the kids sports, play fun games and of course have water fights. Pray for saftey for our kids and also they learn more about what it means to use the talents God has given them. We are teaching seven sports; Volleyball, Soccer, Basketball, Baseball, Ping Pong, Tennis, and American Football. I am pumped God has blessed me with the knowledge of the games so I can teach these kids and give God the opportunity to speak to them.

Baseball and Softball Are Over

We ended the last two practices playing boys against girls. It was fun and the boys were victories both games. I think they learned a lot and had a blast. Thanks God for such a great experience in working with the kids on a game I adore. Please continue to pray for our sports club as we try to raise more funs and continue to have it grow into a bigger outreach.

Children's Day

Friday all the kids got to just play! It was Children's Day and we had games, pinatas and lots of food. The teachers were suppose to dress like kids. So I did my best and borrowed a very tall sixth graders uniform and put my pigtails in. It was very fun to see the kids reaction to me dressed like them. They cheered for me to win the prize for best dressed kid but I am sad to report I got beat. It was so much fun parading down the streets and passing out candy to people on the streets. The kids were still going strong after five hours of games. I guess it just goes to show you they never run out of energy. There was a homeless man sitting on the sidewalk and kids keep just loading him up with candy. It was very touching. If only we could parade and give them a gift of Jesus. If it was only that easy life wouldn't be so complicated, right.