SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY: probar (pro-BAHR): to try
Buenas noches, hermanos! (Greeting from anyone who takes the stage in the Guatemalan churches.) These past few days, I've gotten to delve deeper into the Guatemalan culture. We've learned most of the traditional phrases... Dios le bendiga=God bless you; for greetings and farewells. Gloria sea a Dios=Glory be to God; said after every song service/special music. Buen provecho=Bon appetit; said after each person gets up from the table after a meal. I've gotten a taste of the traditional dress... The lady who always picks us up, Ericka, had a traditional Guatemalan outfit, and she let me borrow the whole kit and caboodle: skirt, blouse, shawl, sandals. I wore it to preach one night. Sweated like pig, but it was worth it for the experience. And I've sampled a whole ton of food, sometimes with my eyes closed and nose plugged... From tamales (delicious!!) to nance (small fruit that is 60% seed, 40% yuck) to homemade platanos fritos (AMAZING!!!) to a small, strange green "fruit" that tastes like sour cardboard (found in bunches in trees; I forced a grin when they picked me a whole branch). I even drank hot chocolate. Only because of a miracle. I didn't want to refuse it, so I prayed really really hard to God that it wouldn't taste bad. Took one sip...and it actually tasted good! Watered down chocolate! Mmm! Gloria sea a Dios!
Also, I'm finding more time to hang out with church members during the week. On Sunday my adopted family took me on a "aventura secreta" (secret adventure). They said we were going underground. I thought they were joking. We always joke around. They weren't. We visited a nice park, and there it was! The gaping hole into the earth. We spent the next hour and a half exploring mind-numbing, jaw-dropping caves that ranged from cathedral-sized to half-an-Asian-sized. I didn't have enough Spanish adjectives in my vocabulary to describe the awe I felt, so I probably said "Que lindo!" at least 50 times. Then we had a picnic in the park and played futbol (our team won 10-5 and I scored five goals..I think they let me). On Wednesday I'm going to the "beach" with another family. Looking forward to developing more relationships.
As expected, there've been lots of tics here and there that I've had to get used to, but I just keep telling myself, "C'mon, Intercultural Comm major, suck it up!" And even when it's uncomfortable, I love it. There's nothing quite so beautiful as getting to know another culture. Well, I'm exhausted and I have the hiccups. Gotta go. Good night! Dios le bendiga!
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Lo más importante es amor
SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY: vencer (vehn-SEHR): to overcome/defeat
Hello everyone! Thank you for your prayers and wonderful words; they encourage me every day :) May God continue to bless you all!!
So...it's a roller coaster every day. It really is. My spiritual mood usually goes something like this: I get really excited in the morning when I'm preparing for the sermon, because the message is amazing and I'm thinking of creative ways to present it. Then after the sermon in the evening I feel like I'm on a spiritual low, because I feel like it might have been boring or hard to understand. But as many people have said, that's just the devil working, trying to make me feel like my efforts are in vain. We've all kind of felt like that every so often during this trip, but we keep having worships about persevering and just doing God's work, then letting Him handle the rest.
A couple of the guys made their first baptismal calls in their respective churches last night :) They called quite a few times, and no one stood up. So Danny started on the closing prayer, and when he finished, there was a man standing up in the back. Praise God! At the other church, Wally went through the calls and the prayer without any commitments. Then after the service, two young people came up to him and told him they wanted to be baptized. Double praise God! It's just another testament to the fact that we can never give up. The Holy Spirit is working in ways that we can't see.
I also take comfort in the fact that even if they don't understand my sermons, I can show them one thing that transcends all language barriers: love. If they don't quite grasp the 2300 day prophecy, I know they will at least understand a warm handshake and a hearty "Buenas noches!" If they get bored during a sermon about Revelation, I know they will at least enjoy a small gift of cookies. And they've shown me so much love. Today a church member offered to do my laundry. Another wants to take me around Flores. They may not have much, but they have love. So actually, they do have a lot.
Hello everyone! Thank you for your prayers and wonderful words; they encourage me every day :) May God continue to bless you all!!
So...it's a roller coaster every day. It really is. My spiritual mood usually goes something like this: I get really excited in the morning when I'm preparing for the sermon, because the message is amazing and I'm thinking of creative ways to present it. Then after the sermon in the evening I feel like I'm on a spiritual low, because I feel like it might have been boring or hard to understand. But as many people have said, that's just the devil working, trying to make me feel like my efforts are in vain. We've all kind of felt like that every so often during this trip, but we keep having worships about persevering and just doing God's work, then letting Him handle the rest.
A couple of the guys made their first baptismal calls in their respective churches last night :) They called quite a few times, and no one stood up. So Danny started on the closing prayer, and when he finished, there was a man standing up in the back. Praise God! At the other church, Wally went through the calls and the prayer without any commitments. Then after the service, two young people came up to him and told him they wanted to be baptized. Double praise God! It's just another testament to the fact that we can never give up. The Holy Spirit is working in ways that we can't see.
I also take comfort in the fact that even if they don't understand my sermons, I can show them one thing that transcends all language barriers: love. If they don't quite grasp the 2300 day prophecy, I know they will at least understand a warm handshake and a hearty "Buenas noches!" If they get bored during a sermon about Revelation, I know they will at least enjoy a small gift of cookies. And they've shown me so much love. Today a church member offered to do my laundry. Another wants to take me around Flores. They may not have much, but they have love. So actually, they do have a lot.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Dios es bueno, todo el tiempo :)
SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY: canica (kah-nee-kuh): marble
Wow. I don't even know where to start. I'm so in awe of God right now. So it's Sunday night now, and we've preached four sermons in the past three days. (My friend actually preached five!) We're constantly editing and studying, at least when we're not eating beans haha.
So anyway, after these first few nights, I had been getting discouraged. My crowd seemed sparse and emotionless. Other people in my group were talking about how their churches were packed and how some people cried after their sermons. I was also having trouble with my translator. So today I begged God to help me stay strong and keep on preaching. Noah went on for 120 years without fail. Then I grabbed my Bible and read Philippians 4, and it seemed like the answers to all of my prayers were in that passage: Paul says in the very first verse(!) to continue to stand for the Lord. WOW!! I felt a lot better, and my mood just improved with every verse. Rejoice in the Lord! (4:4) Don't worry; ask God for anything! (4:6-7) Be happy in every situation! (4:12) I can do anything through Christ! (4:13) God will supply your needs! (4:19) At the end I thanked God profusely and continued to practice my sermon.
Tonight, everything clicked. I went up to the stage, started to preach, and I just felt it. I felt a fire of passion and emotion boiling in my heart! I don't think fire can boil, but hey, it did in my heart today! (See Phil. 4:13) Tonight's topic was the gospel, the heart of Christianity. I felt the power of Christ's sacrifice and I wanted so badly to shout it to them! I know it wasn't just me up there but also Christ who strengthens me. My translator and I even worked better together! Some people still fell asleep, but I like to pretend they're meditating. I felt like I had done all I could and now I could just let the Holy Spirit work.
Afterward, I had fun talking to people in my broken Spanish. Developing relationships with the church members is the most important part to me. The kids are the easiest to interact with. The pastor's kids gave me Japanese peanuts because they I told them I'm Japanese (too hard to explain Okinawan to them; sorry, Dad!) and they gave me one of their prized marbles, hence the word of the day. They're soooo nice here. :) Today I also found out, sometimes humor does translate. :D The best part is, I know God has even better days in store for all of us this trip. I can't wait :) Todo el tiempo, Dios es bueno.
Wow. I don't even know where to start. I'm so in awe of God right now. So it's Sunday night now, and we've preached four sermons in the past three days. (My friend actually preached five!) We're constantly editing and studying, at least when we're not eating beans haha.
So anyway, after these first few nights, I had been getting discouraged. My crowd seemed sparse and emotionless. Other people in my group were talking about how their churches were packed and how some people cried after their sermons. I was also having trouble with my translator. So today I begged God to help me stay strong and keep on preaching. Noah went on for 120 years without fail. Then I grabbed my Bible and read Philippians 4, and it seemed like the answers to all of my prayers were in that passage: Paul says in the very first verse(!) to continue to stand for the Lord. WOW!! I felt a lot better, and my mood just improved with every verse. Rejoice in the Lord! (4:4) Don't worry; ask God for anything! (4:6-7) Be happy in every situation! (4:12) I can do anything through Christ! (4:13) God will supply your needs! (4:19) At the end I thanked God profusely and continued to practice my sermon.
Tonight, everything clicked. I went up to the stage, started to preach, and I just felt it. I felt a fire of passion and emotion boiling in my heart! I don't think fire can boil, but hey, it did in my heart today! (See Phil. 4:13) Tonight's topic was the gospel, the heart of Christianity. I felt the power of Christ's sacrifice and I wanted so badly to shout it to them! I know it wasn't just me up there but also Christ who strengthens me. My translator and I even worked better together! Some people still fell asleep, but I like to pretend they're meditating. I felt like I had done all I could and now I could just let the Holy Spirit work.
Afterward, I had fun talking to people in my broken Spanish. Developing relationships with the church members is the most important part to me. The kids are the easiest to interact with. The pastor's kids gave me Japanese peanuts because they I told them I'm Japanese (too hard to explain Okinawan to them; sorry, Dad!) and they gave me one of their prized marbles, hence the word of the day. They're soooo nice here. :) Today I also found out, sometimes humor does translate. :D The best part is, I know God has even better days in store for all of us this trip. I can't wait :) Todo el tiempo, Dios es bueno.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Hola amigos!!
SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY... predicar (preh-dee-kahr): to preach
Tomorrow is Game Day!! First sermon. So today we had orientation at the SDA conference, Misión Norte de Guatemala. Even though there were obvious language barriers, we felt the Adventist connection, you know what I'm saying? Everyone was really nice, taking time to shake the hands of every single one of us and calling us hermanos (brothers) and hermanas (sisters). We had a short worship with song service and a devotional, with translation. I'm getting to use my Spanish alot, rough though it is. I get excited when I see a Spanish billboard in California, so imagine how I feel when all the billboards in the country are in Spanish!! I love it here!!!
After worship they instructed us on sermon prep, working with translators, assigned us churches, and lots of other stuff. Our coordinator said the churches are going to view us as pastors during the campaign. Oy. Pressure. I was assigned to a church called Vista Hermosa (that means "beautiful view;" I like it already!), and my main contact was a sweet smiling lady named Guadalupe. Afterward we had lunch, and I attempted to converse with Guadalupe and her familia. I'm pretty sure a couple of them were laughing at me, but hey, gotta have no shame when you learn a language. I did have one thing going for me though: being from Hawaii. Oooh, they loved that, haha. We got to see the Adventist school, which was in the same complex and consisted of a couple of worn cement buildings, a basketball court with no hoops, and an overgrown soccer field. The kids were out to recess and they kept looking at us curiously. Ahaha, uh hola, sí, somos gringos!
Hmm, closing thoughts? Well, since we've been here, I think we've been given enough rice, beans, and tortillas to establish a whole 'nother Latin American country. My skin feels weird because of the layers of sunscreen and mosquito repellent. (Yes mom, I'm using both!) And they play soccer everywhere we go. Well, gotta go practice sermons more. Until next time!! :)
Tomorrow is Game Day!! First sermon. So today we had orientation at the SDA conference, Misión Norte de Guatemala. Even though there were obvious language barriers, we felt the Adventist connection, you know what I'm saying? Everyone was really nice, taking time to shake the hands of every single one of us and calling us hermanos (brothers) and hermanas (sisters). We had a short worship with song service and a devotional, with translation. I'm getting to use my Spanish alot, rough though it is. I get excited when I see a Spanish billboard in California, so imagine how I feel when all the billboards in the country are in Spanish!! I love it here!!!
After worship they instructed us on sermon prep, working with translators, assigned us churches, and lots of other stuff. Our coordinator said the churches are going to view us as pastors during the campaign. Oy. Pressure. I was assigned to a church called Vista Hermosa (that means "beautiful view;" I like it already!), and my main contact was a sweet smiling lady named Guadalupe. Afterward we had lunch, and I attempted to converse with Guadalupe and her familia. I'm pretty sure a couple of them were laughing at me, but hey, gotta have no shame when you learn a language. I did have one thing going for me though: being from Hawaii. Oooh, they loved that, haha. We got to see the Adventist school, which was in the same complex and consisted of a couple of worn cement buildings, a basketball court with no hoops, and an overgrown soccer field. The kids were out to recess and they kept looking at us curiously. Ahaha, uh hola, sí, somos gringos!
Hmm, closing thoughts? Well, since we've been here, I think we've been given enough rice, beans, and tortillas to establish a whole 'nother Latin American country. My skin feels weird because of the layers of sunscreen and mosquito repellent. (Yes mom, I'm using both!) And they play soccer everywhere we go. Well, gotta go practice sermons more. Until next time!! :)
Bienvenidos!
Hey there family and friends and whoever is reading this! This is going to be the official blog of my travels, be it Guatemala or Spain or wherever God takes me. Right now I'm on a mission trip with some PUC peeps in the beautiful and exotic country of Guatemala. We're going to be leading evangelistic campaigns in various churches for the next few weeks. Our group consists of seven boys and three girls, including our leader Profesora Charo Caballero-Chambers, my Spanish professor from PUC.
We arrived in the little island town of Flores (in the department of El Petén in northern Guatemala) late Wednesday night, after about seven hours of flying and one LOOOONNNNNGGGGG nine hour bus ride through a torrential downpour. But it was all worth it for the tour through the country and the small hotel room view of Lago Flores. We've been alternating exploring the town with preparing for our sermons.
A bit of country info: it's right below Mexico, about the size of Tennessee, population about 13.5 million, really really humid, the mode of currency is a quetzal (Q8.00 = $1.00!) and we're four hours ahead of Hawaii.
Well, thanks for checking in! This is just an intro, so I'll write more later. I've set it so anyone can comment even if you don't have a blogspot account. Oh, and about the name: Faith and a Suitcase ("fe y una maleta" in Spanish). I picked that because I figured those two things are pretty much all I need to travel. Thus the web address is feyunamaleta.blogspot.com. Well, hope you're all doing well, keep us in your prayers, and God bless!!
We arrived in the little island town of Flores (in the department of El Petén in northern Guatemala) late Wednesday night, after about seven hours of flying and one LOOOONNNNNGGGGG nine hour bus ride through a torrential downpour. But it was all worth it for the tour through the country and the small hotel room view of Lago Flores. We've been alternating exploring the town with preparing for our sermons.
A bit of country info: it's right below Mexico, about the size of Tennessee, population about 13.5 million, really really humid, the mode of currency is a quetzal (Q8.00 = $1.00!) and we're four hours ahead of Hawaii.
Well, thanks for checking in! This is just an intro, so I'll write more later. I've set it so anyone can comment even if you don't have a blogspot account. Oh, and about the name: Faith and a Suitcase ("fe y una maleta" in Spanish). I picked that because I figured those two things are pretty much all I need to travel. Thus the web address is feyunamaleta.blogspot.com. Well, hope you're all doing well, keep us in your prayers, and God bless!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)