Busy days

Lots to write about, so settle in for a long one today.  My Friday morning parenting class went pretty well.  The handout I prepared seemed to maybe be a little hard to follow, but everyone really liked the activity, which involved writing a letter to their children, cutting it up like puzzle pieces and putting it in an envelope to give to their kids to open and put the puzzle together with them to read the letter.  It was fun to spend time with the women too, and then Pastor Jorge gave a message and Hermana Lety handed out fabric so they can begin to sew.  It was a good morning.  At the end, Hermana Lety mentioned to Pastor Jorge that one of the young moms, Andrea, who is 17, had broken a rule during the handing out of fabric, so we went across the street to where Andrea lives and asked her to come back.  Pastor Jorge said that she has suffered a lot of abuse and wants me to work closely with her and meet with her on a regular basis.  When Andrea arrived they talked about following the rules, and then it appeared that something deeper was going on.  Andrea began crying and we invited her to talk about it, but she refused.  Pastor Jorge and Hermana Lety talked to her about how much she is loved and how God created her in His image, and they continued to speak His truth and love into her life.  After some time she got up to leave, but then we said one more time that she could talk to us about anything, and she finally said that God had been working on her heart, but she had been fighting Him because she didn't think she could be forgiven for the things she'd done. Pastor Jorge talked with her and led her in prayer, and we prayed with her as she accepted Christ into her life!  It was awesome! 

In addition to working with the women I have also been asked to work with three boys living in the Casa de Refugio next door.  They have not been attending school so I am working with them to get them up to grade level.  The youngest, 10 years old, is the farthest behind, as he doesn't know the alphabet or how to count past 100.  The other 2, 13 and 15, can read and write but have other struggles and are behind in math and grammar and only know the very basics.  They are very sweet kids and always have a hug for me.  I've really enjoyed working with them so far.  The 13 year old just had a birthday and we bought him shoes for a present.  He looooved them.  It was so cute. 

On Saturdays the church has a breakfast for men who struggle with alcoholism and drug abuse.  I had not planned to attend this, as I needed a break from the many church activities that take place, but I was caught standing in the hallway as they were heading out and they said come on, so I went.  It was one of those rough mornings of culture shock and loneliness, frustrated about not being able to understand anything and having to just sit there by myself, watching it all happen around me, which happens to be kind of boring.  So, naturally, in front of all of these drunk men and church people who were helping, I started sobbing.  I ran to the kitchen, where I found a beautiful group of American women!  They were helping serve breakfast that morning and had come into town from San Cristobal, near Guatemala City.  They scooped me up, gave me big hugs, said they knew exactly where I was coming from, and invited me to their English speaking church on Sunday night, to have pizza afterwards(!!) and to spend the night!  What a blessing.  Though I didn't know this before I went with them (sorry mom!)  :)  some of them teach at the Christian school, and others are involved in other missions in the Guatemala City area.  God provided just what I needed this weekend! After the breakfast, I went with Pastor Jorge and Annie (his wife) and Pablito and Flory, one of my roommates, up to Flory's home in Tecpan, about a 2 hour drive.  Flory's grandmother is very sick so we brought Flory there to spend several days with her family during this time.  It was a good trip to see more of the country. 

Sunday morning after church we went to a birthday party for Jorge Jr's wife's brother's daughter.  It was an interesting party, complete with piñatas.  Those piñatas are serious business!  We were all running after the candy, and because I'm a bit sugar deprived here, I was participating whole heartedly.  I kept reaching for candy, and this little boy was stockpiling his and apparently I was getting awfully close because he began wailing on me, literally punching me with all of his might!  All I could do was stare at the little devil, while Jorge Jr laughed his head off and took a picture!  I just let him have the candy because it wasn't any good anyway, but if it had been chocolate, I probably would have hit him right back!  When we sat back down, he kept giving nasty looks to my sister, Sandra, because he had mistaken her for me, and then yelled at her for stealing the candy, and she was like, I don't know what you''re talking about, I wasn't anywhere near you!  It was hilarious.

Right after the party I was picked up by TJ, an American from Iowa who works at the school.  I stayed with him and his wife last night.  We went to church and then to Pizza Hut!  Church was great and I met lots of very cool people.  While I have been to many many church services in the past week, it was very refreshing to attend one that I understood and have fellowship with people that I can communicate with without having to think very very hard about what they're saying. 

So, to end this very long post, a couple prayer requests.  I'm doing laundry today and I hope I don't break anything.  Also, pray for Andrea and her new faith.  Frank, who eats with us and spends his time here and is basically part of the family is having surgery tomorrow to repair a hole in his skull.  It's a very delicate surgery, as you can imagine.  And pray for me as I continue to try to adjust to all of this newness and learn the language. 

Next post will hopefully be all pictures.