In Panajachel another group of young people came to also serve Mi-Reto and we came alongside them. So we are just unknowingly sitting listening to Louis (our team leader) welcoming the new group and he says “Ok, please open your Bibles up to Luke 10” and thats when we knew!! Luke 10 challenge!!!
The challenge is to go out, preach the gospel and heal the sick and take nothing with you! So our instructions were to leave Panajachel, find our man of peace and come back in 3 days. We got 20Q (which is equal to R20) and that we are to use to bless someone else with. (we are also not allowed to use any of our own personal money for anything)
Before just packing up and leaving (there wasn’t much packing to be done anyway since we were only instructed to take the clothes on our back, a rainjacket, our Bibles, 1 change of clothes – thank you Hanalie! and a toothbrush) we prayed and asked God where we should go. So we felt him saying Guatemala City and then San Tiago.
Now, Guatemala City is 6hours away and we have no money to get there. So we just went to the busses and ended up riding on 3 different busses for free. On the way we spoke with everyone we met, prayed for them and told them about Jesus dying on the cross for them. People just gave us money without us asking for anything! So we saved it to get to San Tiago the next day.
Here’s a picture of where we slept that night – bear in mind that my last word to Louis and Hanalie were “tonight we are sleeping in a 5star hotel!” I said that in faith, but I guess God had another plan in mind and he definitely has a sense of humour. So our bus driver became our man of peace. He bought us supper – which ended up being cake! Yesss! And gave us some cardboard to sleep on. Shoh, but we had such amazing fellowship. God broke down walls and gave us a new openness in the blue team, where we can share anything. Ag blue team, I love you!
The next morning (after having cake for breakfast and second breakfast!) we headed for San Tiago by bus – yes that we paid for, by God’s grace! We learnt to pray more specifically and ask God for absolutely every little thing we need. So I often ask for coffee and buffet breakfast. But anyway, we met a German couple that took us under their wing, they took us out for supper and gave us nice beds to sleep in and I even got to shower! And it was such a blessing to see San Tiago, its so beautiful! It was market day and the streets were just packed and the buildings were all magical and old and pretty and colourful (those are all very architectural terms, I know).
Other parts of our challenge included drawing a picture and selling it to someone and then buying shoes for a child with the money, taking a picture with 10 kids, learning a Myan song, seeing the hieroglyphs etc. But the coolest thing that I enjoyed the most was speaking to so many different people and testifying of God’s goodness in my own life and having the privilege to pray for them and fully knowing that God loves each of them so much and he has such a desire for them to know that and come to him so that they can have peace and live victoriously.
As a cherry on the cake we took an all-expenses paidboat-trip(expenses include Gerhard’s watch) back to Pana across the lake. And we had a Euro style buffet breakfast (Nutella included) with our German friends J.
Needless to say our challenge ended at our favourite coffee shop, Crossroads where we met up with our other teams and leaders and the awesome Crossroads family. And blue won the race to the finish line!
Now I just want to Luke 10 every day. After seeing God’s amazing provision, I don’t know why I ever doubt! He really gives us everything we need, and in most cases its not a 5star hotel or good food, but spiritual food and spriritual wine (I think that the food refers to revelations and the wine to blessings) We had such good times – nothing in the world feels better that doing what God asks of you - praying and sharing with everyone we met. Try it!!