Volleyball and Soccer Nights vs. Mamas and Papas

It was a great night of youth vs. parents. The kids had a ball and it was a blast to watch. Our 5th-8th grade girls played the mom's and they almost won the second game. I enjoyed watching my players coach the other kids. I can not tell you the impact it has on these kids to see them play so well after knowing they are the ones who taught them. I am blessed to see the fruits of what was given to me and I was able to plant into others lives. The mom's won both games but the games were very close. Dad's took the soccer game away from the youth but the youth had some amazing goals. The crowd went wild for the kids and we had about 50-60 people there to watch. It was very exciting. I was very happy our kids had a good turn out for this event. My boss was very pleased with what is happening with sports. It made my night to know it was a great event and everyone was blessed.

Have you ever prayed for $20,000

Well, I guess I would have to say I haven't until now. I have been working on getting our sports court ready for leagues and trying to figure out how to get people here. It's been a interesting to see other sports courts grow in size and stature. Where are they getting the money? A sports court in town just got a roof. Which we have been talking about for the past five to ten years. I was in awe they were able to get such a nice roof in this town. The reason we want a roof is because in June-September it rains a lot. Even though I haven't seen a drop of rain in about a week or two. We are working hard at trying to get ourselves making our own money. Getting the sports leagues going here. Soccer is huge and we are just not able to put on a good soccer league with out a roof because it we get artificial turf, it will rot in about two years. Please pray along side me something will come up for the sports program. In so many ways our sports kids have given of them selves, it would be nice to see them reap a reward for all their time spent helping others. We need a Roof and we need big money. Our God is a Big God so I know it can happen. Thanks for your continued prayers for what we are trying to accomplish in so many ways. As of May we are hoping to reach every age group to come closer to the Lord and walk with Him in Peace.

My Brother's Birthday

April has gone by so fast. From Easter break, community outreaches, three friends birthdays, my sister-laws birthday and my brothers birthday. It's been fun and fully packed.
I am excited to express to you my joy of watching my brother get older. As we all know, it's not easy to have an older brother. Him getting to experience things first and having the joys of being allowed to do things you were too young to do. But now that we are older it's kinda changed. He gets to experience first the grey hair, wrinkles, getting things taken out because they don't work anymore and not being able to stay up as late anymore. Even though I like to say he's getting older and that's a bad thing there are some great things he has gotten to enjoy first, now that he is older. A wonderful marriage, a awesome little boy (Huck) and getting another award for being one of the best actors around (not that I am planning on becoming an actor). This past week my brother accepted the Stargazer Award, which simply means, he is one of the best actors in the seven movies up for the award. I am very proud of him for the job he has done in the movie "Chalk". The movie is about teachers and it's a wonderful film. If you would like to check out the site and see when it's playing, go to www.chalkthefilm.com This is Troy and Janelle's first film together and I hope they have more in the near future. Happy Birthday to the both of you. I love you very much.

Community Outreach to Escepolas (a public school)

The plan was to take one Saturday a month and go visit with one of the three schools we work with during the week and just play soccer or volleyball. This week we headed to the school my group works with (Escepolas)and it was a huge success. The kids loved it so much and we had a wonderful time. I was so proud of my club kids because they knew we had a plan. They worked so well with the kids and it was awesome to share what I knew they could do. We loved on those kids and two of our high school students gave their testimonies. God is so good to provide our t-shirts for our coaches the day before we worked with the kids. The t-shirts came out great and looked awesome! We are selling them and our first day appearance with them, I already sold seven shirts to a guy who has a volleyball team of his own and loved the way they looked while my kids were coaching. After we got done at the school, I took them for ice cream and they were so thankful. It really encouraged me to know they do appreciate things more. I almost cried two or three times watching my kids work with the public school kids. It was so awesome! My heart is amazed at all God has done with me and despite me. I am reminded, God works all things for the good for those who love him. I am so in love with Him, I could burst.

Monkey in a Bag?

So while in Flores, we met a friend from Hungry who was living on an island near Flores. He told us he would like to take us to his little village and we were excited to go across the water and see what he has experienced. But of course the boat never came after an hour and a half so we had to tell our new friend goodbye. But before we left we had some great conversations with him and met a few monkeys. This woman was holding a monkey of a friend of hers. We were so excited to see a monkey up close being held by a human. So we walked over and talked with it.. touched it's head and of course stood in ah.... five minutes later the monkey poops right between her legs. She just smiles as if it was nothing. Then she tells us she has another monkey not realizing it was in a little bag off her shoulder. There he was with a banana and Juanita (my friend who traveled with us) reached in to get him out and he screamed at her.. it was very funny.
While in Tikal, we saw about twenty five or more monkey's it was awesome. In the trees, some were sleeping while others were on the move. Jumping from tree to tree. It was quite the show. Just as we were leaving the park, nine of them swung across the entrance trees and off into the jungle. It was so amazing. I love monkey's and so I was very excited. Scott wanted to see the temples in Tikal while I was searching out monkey's, pumas, birds and other creatures we had no idea what they were. Fun Trip. So remember to look in people's bags in Flores.. you might find a monkey.

Easter Blessings

Scott came with some surprises when he arrived. I got a kite from my sweet friend Amy and my favorite Starbucks tea from Stephanie. He also brought with him $385.00 towards our Sports Club for shoes from others in the group. Thank you so much everyone who pitched in to help. I am very happy to know the money that was put forth has been covered now. It's been a blessing to see God move in such big ways through Sports. Now that we have exciting new basketball goals and lines painted. Everyone has been out on the court playing with their friends, family and neighbors. I am anxious to receive the tennis shoes any day now. Please be in prayer for the shoes, as we have paid for them but just haven't received them yet. God is doing great things and it's up to us to follow through with plans to make His work happen. The last surprise is Scott was very excited about being here and loved being with me in Guat. Last time he was sick the entire time and didn't have that great of a trip. This time was amazing and he felt great the entire time. We are looking at a future here in Guat so please pray for us as we make plans to follow his will for us as a couple in a foreign country. I am blessed beyond measure.

Semana Santa (Saints Week) or Easter Week or Spring Break

My boyfriend Scott came for the week and we have had a great time. Always on the go and wanting to spend as much time together as possible makes for no time to blog. But I thought for you anxious blog readers who like to know what is going on in my life, I might give you a little bit of what has been going on.
We planned a trip from Monday to Thursday heading north in Guatemala to see the Lagoon Lachua. After a small camping night we headed up to Flores and Santa Elena. After staying in Santa Elena we headed up to El Remate and Tikal. Needless to say the adventure was nothing like any of us had ever taken. It was quite the thrilling adventure. There are so many stories but I will just give you a small one today because this is my last day with Scott.
While after traveling seven hours on a bus that stopped every five minutes we finally were let off in Coban in the middle of a street off the main road. We were all drugged on Dramamine and grabbed a taxi to San Cristobal. We threw are things in the small truck and off we went. When we arrived the taxi man of course wanted more money and I walked away from him telling him no. Scott not able to speak Spanish well enough to tell him anything just grabbed his one of two bags and followed me into the gate. Not even two minutes later Scott screamed out of sher horror that he had left his carry bag in the taxi. I jumped on my moto and of course with it being four days since I drove it I couldn't get it started. I finally got it started and raced down the hill to try to see if the taxi driver might have gone into town to pick up more people. When I got to the bottom of the hill I realized my bike was acting funny and started to swerve crazily. I looked back at my rear tire and sure enough it was flat. Right then, a taxi drove by from down town and I followed it to the gas station. Upon arriving, there were some friends of mine in another taxi getting gas. I told them the situation and they went to town to help look for the anonymous taxi driver because I couldn't remember the color of the taxi or his number. As I get my tire aired up I was planning on heading into town as well. The gas station guys were very sweet and asked if they could help. I gave them the information and they said they would ask if any stopped by there. After talking with them for two minutes, the air in my tire became flat again, as I drove off I realized my tire was really messed up. I stopped and called Brad who was with Scott to tell them the situation about my bike and the taxi. Suddenly, a family from the Church shows up and they want to help. So I put my bike in a man's gate in front of his house and head off with the family to town. I get to the town square and my friends said there weren't any taxi's hardly and they asked the ones who were there and they weren't the one. (Now, you are probably asking yourself, why is Tina running around crazily for this little carry bag. Well, Scott remember it was Brad's bag and it had Scott's camera and his passport. Now if we don't find the bag we have to go to the city the next day "four hour drive and back" to try and figure out how to get him back to the States.) Fun times! Okay where was I...... oh yeah, so I head back to my moto which is unable to be driven and say a little prayer, Brad calls and says Scott is on his way down to help with the getting my bike back up the hill. As I get my bike out of the gate, down the same hill Scott is walking comes a taxi. I look and sure enough it was our taxi guy. I scream and get his attention and he stops. I ask him to open his truck because we left a bag in there and he does. In amazement,I stand there looking at the bag. Instantly, one minute later, Scott comes around the corner and I am holding up his bag. Both of us in sheer joy of knowing God was giving us a miracle. We embraced and walked back with a huge load off of our shoulders. He smiles at me and thanked me over and over again. I was just excited it worked out the way it did. I felt like Kimpossible running around all over on my moto and ended up helping God save the day. It was way cool. We have had an awesome time. So please pray for Scott's safe return. There are so many stories, I will get back to you on those I promise.

Trying to make the time go by Quicker

This past weekend was pretty busy and my Spanish Teacher decided to help me explore a little more then last year. So we went to Tektik, a town about 20 minutes from here and it's amazingly beautiful. I am excited because I would love to show my boyfriend the land and have him enjoy the country side. Semana Santa is coming and there are many festivals going on. It's not a great time to be on the road but we plan on taking in as much of Guatemala as we can once Scott gets here on Thursday. Please continue to pray for the water situation as it's not been fun to not shower or do laundry for days on in. I hope we come up with a solution soon.
I am super excited for Scott to be here and have him experience what the Ministry is all about. Please pray for us as their rules are very strict when it comes to couples. Scott plans on getting me a head garb so he won't be tempted. lol
Brad Fields got here safely but I haven't seen him all day. I wonder if he is even here sometimes. Please pray for his transition in to working here.

Sports Club at the Public Schools

We were still able to meet with two public schools today. The school I usually go to was closed due to a teachers meeting in town. But because the other two school were out of the town they were still open and we were able to work with those kids. My team joined another teams school. Venicia had more pocumchi kids at the school and their cancha (playground) is one big dirt fest. It was raining but thankfully not too hard. The school was open but the director was not there. We met two Dutch girls who were working there with the kids. They were very nice and spoke a little English. They allowed us to come in and work with the kids. Our coaches did an awesome job. I was very pleased and how soon they had built strong relationships with these kids. Please pray for our time with these kids and that we will be able to keep going back. Pray the school doors won't close due to kids having to pay for their education.
Profe. Salo, Kimmy and Pedro did an awesome job with the them and they seemed to really enjoy it. It's amazing how they took off half the mountain so they could have a play ground. One of the little girls broke her shoe she kicked it so hard. These kids love this game.

Answered Prayer for Teachers/ Wait Maybe Not

Recently the President of Guatemala decided to change policies which would cause families of public schools to pay for their child's education. I know this sounds foreign to you but Guatemala is so poor most people wouldn't have any education if they had to pay for it themselves. Many teachers headed to the capital yesterday in protest and in the evening the President retracted his wishes and our public schools will stay open. This was a concern to our schools we work with in our Sports Club and how much we are up against by reaching this large population of uneducated people. Most of the public school kids finish their schooling by 6th grade. Tomorrow we will be allowed to enter the public school doors with kids to work with and this was an answered prayer.
Just tonight I had to change this blog because the President changed his mind again and said they need to pay for their education. One of my friends here said it really will be better overall for everyone if they do pay, even if it's very little. Please pray for the situation. Thanks.

While the Men are away the Women will play

Our men in the church had a all guy camping outing this weekend. It was for fathers and sons but many boys who didn't have fathers were taken by some dads who didn't have any sons. It is always a huge success. This year one of our leaders in ministry, Paul, was able to take two of his clan of kids who he teaches on Saturdays, with him. Several of my sports club coaches who don't go to our church went as well. We had to cancel a day with our public school kids but I know God was in complete control of the need. They took off Friday so we had a girls sleep over and enjoyed time together too. Ate Latonya's awesome cooking and watched movies. The next morning we were going to go swimming but it rained.
There are a lot of changes happening in the ministry and it's important you please pray for positions to be filled in areas we need them. Brad Fields is coming to join our ministry and it is a true blessing to have him. He will be coming March 26th to fill several positions for us. We are also getting ready to have a group of 22 come from Las Vegas. They raised some funds to help with building more office space and more classrooms. Please continue to pray for our ministry as we grow and reach new goals.
Scott is coming to visit me at the end of the month and I am very excited for him to see what all has changed since he was here last. I think he will be very impressed with how God has moved. Please pray for his safety in getting here.

Physical Education Conference

Well, only a days notice I was invited to a conference in Coban (which is about 40 minutes away). It was very exciting to be apart of this conference because there is an organization called DIGEF which basically stands for General Direction for Physical Education and they were excited to hear what we had going in San Cristobal with our Sports Program. They were very intent on hearing what we have been doing and wanted to help us with getting us supplies. It was a very exciting trip for that reason alone. We learned at the conference there are many things that are not proper for a Mayan to do as a young girl. One in which is play soccer. It's a mans sport and woman are taught it's not lady like to be playing it, therefore there might be some resistance. So far our girls in Sports club have gotten right in there. There was only two young ladies who thought it was uncool to play basketball. I asked her if I bought them shoes would they play and they both looked up at me in shock. God has been so good. Even while I am sick everything was taking care of at school and I was well enough to go to this conference. Please pray this organization will help us with getting us more supplies to all the schools. I know as I walk in these days where things are so uncertain. There is one thing that I know is True and that is His Faithfulness in completing what He has started.

Footlocker

Now I have been able to do a lot of occupations here without a degree in them but I assure you I didn't decided to work at footlocker in Guat City. This year I have been put in charge of the Sports Program for the entire Ministry. With this responsibility we had to put together a booth for our ministry on Sunday Night. I had a vision in my head and somehow it worked. All my sports kids brought their lap tops and we have six slide shows going on and it was very eye catching. What impressed me the most was they were so excited about our booth and helped me put everything away. I have been impressed with these kids as they are learning what it takes to be leaders and to follow God's desire for them. I am reminded everyday how with encouraging words we can accomplish more then we even imagined.

Please continue to pray for my back and now a head cold. I know this is probably do to the water conditions. For the past week we have had hit and miss water conditions. Please pray for health and recovery. Our well should be finished soon so there is hope for fresh clean water.

I am wacked in the back!

Hi! I have iced, massaged, slept, gotten a shot in the behind and have taken muscle relaxers. All because my back is hurting with every move. Before intermissions my back was hurting from my little incident with the dog and my moto. I thought a good back massage would be the cure all. After praying throughout the massage the nice lady told me it wasn't loosening up at all. I took it easy and wasn't playing around. Then during volleyball practice a volleyball went into the ditch. I followed it in there and tried to rescue it from a wet cement flow of lava from the men who are working on our well. My feet seemed secure on the banks and then without notice, I begin to slip uncontrollably down the edge into the cement. Just as my backside is getting ready to hit the cement and the girls are all going to scream in hysterics, I twist my back to prevent the embarrassing moment. As my body twist, only one foot hit the evil fate of the wet cement below but the glory came with my backside being clear of embarrassment. Just when all embarrassment seemed clear, pain shot up my spine with electric force. I was trapped in a ditch and couldn't move. I needed three girls to help me out of the ditch of humility. They came to my rescue and needless to say were very concerned and extremely sweet. It wasn't until later that night when I was coaching them, I tried to show something on the side line and in telling them I did a twisting motion and about fell down in pain. They laughed and asked to see it again. Needless to say, I might have had more fun with falling in the wet cement ditch then having to take 36 hours to heal from a silly back injury.

I guess you take the good with the bad

This past week there has been some super happy times. My nephew had his second birthday and my gifts arrived on time. But I wasn't there to celebrate it with him. My coaches for sports club are truly enjoying coaching the public school kids. We still have one school who eats twenty minutes into the scheduled sports time. Our pastor (Mike) did several exams and they didn't find anything wrong which is wonderful but we don't know if his symptoms will be gone with just rest. Our girls volleyball team won again last night to a young girls team and even came from behind to win it. But I chased a ball in the ditch and slipped and lost functional movement in my back. Please pray I will recover quickly because this is not a good time to be laid up in bed. I guess I have time to work on the slide show for our big event on Saturday but with a lot of pain I might add.

Intermissions/ Relax / Making Friends

Well, we went to a missions conference in Antigua and it was very relaxing and interesting. For the first time they had a singles group and it was quite a range of people. From 60+ to 21 years old. Our leaders worked really hard trying to figure out how to make it all work. I enjoyed meeting some girls who worked in schools with sports as well. We shared info and it was pretty awesome to make some connections. The rest of the time I just laid in the sun and relaxed. Trying not to think about all the things I have going on right now. I am glad I went and got refreshed. The speaker talked in 2 Corinthians 3 and 4. It was enjoyable to understand we are living in a glorious time. We are participating in Christ's call to the church and there is such glory and honor in actually allowing Him to do his work through us! Amen?? No funny stories this time.. Just tired from the seven hour ride back home. Please pray for our Pastor as he has had health problems and is finally taking serious action to find out what is wrong. He stayed in Guatemala City to figure out what might be wrong. Please keep him in your prayers. Thanks.

First Day for Everything

It was the first day for everything dealing with Sports here at the Inn. We had everything going full steam. First day to wear our new uniforms and play a competitive game. First win for the season beating the older ladies at the Inn in volleyball. First time Soccer Boys practiced and volleyball girls as well. First time we were able to enter the public schools and share our faith to the kids. First time for some of our kids to feel like All Stars with all the kids asking them for their autograph. Very cute! It was a great day thanks to time in prayer and giving Him all the Glory! We served 136 kids in four schools today and shared with them the story of creation. It was an exciting time. Many of them didn't have shoe, please pray we can reconcile the situation and get them shoes for their feet on the hot cement. Gracias!