The Village of Panquix

This morning, at 8:30am, we loaded up for the 1 hour drive to Panquix (Pahn-keesh) - a remote mountain village of 100 people.

As we drove it got hotter and dryer. The people of Panquix were displaced during the civil war, because the government wanted to build a hydro-electric dam right in the valley where they were living.

This was only 20 years ago. Villages that refused to move were masacred (Rio Negro Masacre). Unfortunately, they were not moved to lush, fertile land, like they were used to - the government placed them where no one else wanted to be. The landscape is beautiful, but harsh; the climate dry and hot.

  There is no evangelical work in this community and we had the opportunity to tag along with Cross Commission Ministry - the ministry that Arryn works with - to spend the morning in Panquix. Arryn was in charge of the children's program,, so we planned crafts, stories, songs and games. Hector was the story teller - he is so good at telling stories.

Our verse was Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord!  We talked to kids about how much the Lord loves them.  That He knows all about them and all about Panquix. 

While we kept the kids entertained, the parents were being given water filters and taught how and why to use them. In these rural areas, water born ameabas cause a lot of health issues and a simple water filter can save a life.  These particular filers were provided by a few high school guys from the US.  As their senior project, they raised money and then came down to Guatemala to give out the filters.  Those they didn't give away, they left behind with Cross Commission to give out. 

After, every family received their filter, we fed them a lunch of juice, mangos and tostadas.

  It was so much fun to see the little ones with their eyes so big and wide, eating up their treats for the day!  It was wonderful.  

It was also great to share this with Arryn and Hector.  God has given them a heart for the people and a love for children.  We don't know what the furture holds for them, but we know God has a plan to use the gifts He has deposited in them for His glory.  That is pretty exciting! 

Language School Begins!

For the last few days we have been staying with John and Donna Reynolds, the founders of Cross Commission Ministries in San Cristobal Verapaz where Arryn is working.  They are an amazing family and once again, they opened up their home to us.  The day after we arrived we discovered we were still having clutch issues with the Nissan, so off to the mechanics it went.  Yesterday evening, we got it back with a brand new clutch and it is working great!  Praise the Lord!  The mechanic was a friend of John's and he gave us a great price and got the job done right away.   

Because the car was now working we were able to make a move closer to Coban today.  We found a Hostel online - Guatefriends - and have booked in here for a week while we try out the language school and continue looking for an apartment in Coban.  We are about 20 minutes from the school and the hostel is pretty amazing.  The man who built it is an architect and he obviously built his dream home.  It is in  an out of the way location surrounded by beautiful gardens and wooded hillsides.  The house itself is really cool.  Our room is on the second floor and we have our own private, large

 balcony with lounge chairs, looking out over the

gardens.  We have a king-sized bed and a huge bathroom with, yes, hot water on demand!  That is pretty incredible.  We are the only ones in the hostel right now and so we pretty much have the run of the place. 

 Tonight we enjoyed cooking in the unique circular kitchen and ate our meal out on the front patio watching the sun set.  In Guatemalan terms, this place is pretty expensive, but from a Canadian perspective, not - $150 for 7 nights.  We are feeling pretty blessed!  Tomorrow morning we start our language classes.  We had originally wanted to begin on Wednesday, but with our vehicle trouble, we postponed it until Friday.  We are both feeling a little nervous about it, but are praying that the Lord will open up our minds and enable us to learn well.  We are not so concerned about learning quickly, I don't think, but rather learning well and retaining what we learn.  In the past, it seemed like we learned while we were in class, but as soon as we left, we forgot half of what we learned.  Prayerfully this experience will be

different.   We have continued communicating with both Mano con Mano and CTEN and it looks as though it will be a week or so yet before we can move forward with our CTEN affiliation.  We are waiting on Mano con Mano to complete their interview/screening process before they can send the letter of invitation to CTEN.  CTEN needs this letter before it can move ahead with us.  And so, we wait.  In the meantime, we would sure appreciate your prayers as we continue pressing on.  Blessings!  

We are here!!!!

We arrived in Guatemala at 6am on Saturday morning, after taking the red-eye from Los Angelas. We have never flown through the night before, so that was a first. Can't say I'd choose to do it again, but it worked out well for this trip. Our entire travel day(s) was a real blessing and confirmation to us that we have the favour of the Lord upon our lives.
When we arrived at the Kamloops airport, we had to juggle our luggage a bit to meet the weight restrictions - for those of you who haven't tried to pack for a year in 4 - 50 lb duffels; 2 - 21 lb carry-ons and 2 backpacks, you should give it a try. Anyway, as we were weighing the bags, the man helping us said he'd have to charge us $40 for our two extra bags. We expected we would have to pay, as now airlines only allow you 1 check-in bag for free. So, I shuffled items until we were balanced out weight wise and we were processed. After we got through, we realized we hadn't paid anything for our extra bags - he checked them in free of charge! Bonus #1!
Then when we got to Vancouver and started the check-in process, Rocky and I were not sitting together (the plane was very full). I explained that I had tried to change seats on-line, but I couldn't, so I asked if there were any two seats together. The attendant looked on the computer and said, "Well, if you don't mind sitting in the emergency row, I can put you there." Yes! We expected to pay a fee for this, as they are now charging extra for the emergency row because you have extra leg room, so it is considered a premium seat. She gave us these seats for both legs of the flight free of charge. Bonus #2! Then as we were checking in our bags, expecting to pay $80 for the two additional bags - she took them without charging us anything as well! Bonus #3! Wow! All in all we saved $120 on our luggage and another $150 on our seats for a total of $270! We felt pretty blessed.
When we arrived in Guatemala City (at 6am!) Arryn and Hector were waiting for us. We went out for breakfast together and then made our way to San Cristobal Verapaz. The Nissan handled well and it felt good to be back in Guatemala.
We set out right away to go apartment hunting and looking around for a place to live while we study.
The next morning, when we went to leave for Coban, we, once again, had no clutch! Praise the Lord this didn't happen to the kids when they were coming to pick us up or to us when we were making our way to San Cristobal. The timing was perfect for a breakdown - if there is such a thing. God has been showing himself faithful to us at every turn.
Today is now an enforced day of rest, as the car is at the mechanics. But we are not feeling stressed about it - we feel incredibly blessed!
I am reminded today that God is for us, and because he is for us, who (or what) can be against us? We are in his hands and he is the one who makes the way. He is our provider and he is always faithful. We serve an amazing God!
Blessings,
Karren

So long Canada...at least for a while.

Tomorrow we are leaving for Guatemala.

The past 5 1/2 months have been a time of learning and growing for us. It wasn't easy to say goodbye to Tactic - the people and the ministry - but it was what we had to do. Change isn't always easy, but it is important to maintain the right attitude and keep looking to the future. The Bible tells us that God has good plans for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. We believe that whole heartedly!

We have marvelled at God's faithfulness towards us. He cares about what troubles us and truly desires to give us a peace that passes our understanding and our circumstances.

Throughout our time of transition, we have felt the tangible love of God. He quickened people in their spirit to encourage us right when we needed it most. He provided work for Rocky and me so that we never went without. He spoke to us through the sermons at church, encouraging us to keep pressing on. He really is our loving Father, cheering us on and edifying us as only a father can.

As we move on now, into this new adventure, we are confident in one thing: we are in the hands of the Almighty. This is an incredible assurance.

The next few months hold many unknowns and potential challenges for us, but we are at peace. That alone is a miracle (at least for me!). We know that God has called us and He promises to equip us in everyway to do the work He has called us to do.

So, we say goodbye to family and friends for the next year.

Thank you all for sharing in our lives and being such an amazing encouragement and support! We truly are blessed!

We love you,

Karren & Rocky