There are so many stories to be told about our trip. God had an amazing presence every day and it was so evident! In the afternoon prior to the day we left one of the boys, Melvin, and his family came to visit us in Antigua. They wanted to tell us thank you and goodbye in person. We were able to give each of the boys that helped us over the week $100 each - which to them is a lot of money. We found out that his Mom has not been able to work because of health issues so unfortunately Melvin had to drop out of school to help support his family (which includes his Mom, Dad, two sisters, and two brothers). In addition, Melvin broke a tooth in a recent biking accident so they told us that when he was around us he was embarrassed to smile because his smile wasn't quite the same. With the money we gave them and the money he earned from Pastor Julio over the week they said they were going to be able to get his tooth fixed and it would help feed the family for a long time. As I reflected on that, it is easy for us to go and spend $100 on something without a second thought....but to this family that amount of money was so important - it was like we were giving them a million dollars. One of the most difficult moments for me was after we visited for a short time with the family I was hugging Melvin good bye and he started to cry and say "I love you", "Thank you", "God Bless You". We hugged and cried for what seemed like forever. I wanted so much to comfort him just as a mother would do for a child. My heart was so full of love for him and his family. They believed we were angels sent from God, while all along, we were the ones really blessed by them.

We were sent on this mission trip to serve God. We thought our main purpose was to serve in the orphanages in Guatemala and in a few villages. Although we did serve there and our hearts were blessed greatly by those experiences, it appeared that God had another plan for our trip. All along, I believe God's real mission for this trip was to put us in contact with Pastor Julio, his church, the village he lives in, and the 5 amazing young gentleman (Dennis, Orlando, Otto, Melvin, and Louis) that touched our lives forever. Now it is time to take that to prayer to determine what God wants us to do to help them in the future. Our willingness to listen to God and not our own agendas really made this an amazing trip! God blessed us because we were able to serve him in the ways we were asked. Incredible!!

And I have to share....as Barry and I left for the airport at 3:30 a..m. on Wednesday, we were riding in the taxi and continued to see God's presence around us the entire day. We saw the most amazing view as we went over the mountain - the lights of Guatemala City were so bright and then while waiting in the airport there was an amazing sunrise! And...this is God...there were two other missionary groups waiting to board our plane to Houston. One of the teams had a guitar and were singing praise and worship songs for all to hear which touched me and made me smile! I knew God was right there beside us at that very moment! And then while in the plan to Omaha the gentleman sitting right behind Barry and I was testifying to the passenger beside him praising Jesus and then asking the individual to pray for God to come into his life! WOW! What an amazing way to end a trip where God was everywhere!

When I am here in Omaha I often get busy and don't take time to notice those moments that God is right there beside me. It was wonderful being in a place that I was completely focused on the work God was doing and the fact that it is not just coincidence things happen - it is God!! So that is one thing I take with me from the trip. Taking time to notice all of the wonders that are God!!

Thank you to everyone for your prayers during our trip! It was incredible to know that we had so many people praying for us and supporting us while we were gone!

In His Holy Name....
Sheila