Not Returning With Impact

Well, most of you already know, but I thought I should write something in our blog, in case you aren't on our mailing list.
Rocky, Hope and I will not be returning to work with Impact Ministries this January. The ministry is transitioning from working with one or two long term field workers, like us, to working with a variety of couples, all on a shorter term basis. We know that God has called us to full time ministry and as a result, we no longer fit the ministry's needs. We are sad about this, as we really enjoyed the work we had the honour of doing over the past two years and really love the people of Tactic.
We are also excited, although, about what the future may hold. We believe that God has a plan and He will direct us as we seek other opportunities to invest our lives through foreign missions. We are looking at a variety of ministries and praying that we will find a good fit. Please pray for us as we move through this time of change.
Blessings,
Karren
PS - if you do not receive our newsletters and would like to, simply send us an email (karrenchupa@hotmail.ca) or comment to this post. Thanks!

Christmas Time Again!

Sunday, December 4th we went out on our annual trek into the woods to find a Christmas tree. Every year we have fewer and fewer children along and this year we were down to one...Hope! Hunting for the tree is a bit of an art, because most of the trees growing wild grow in clusters which means they are not very well formed. You have look for one that is standing alone, off by itself so that the branches will have grown evenly all the way around.

Hope spotted our tree after we had been walking for only a few minutes and she cut it down for us. We dragged it back to the truck, took it home and decorated it that night.

There are so many things that I love about Christmas. I love the way we go out together and look for the perfect tree. I love the smell of the pine as the tree is cut. I love taking out the decorations and looking at all the decorations the kids made when they were little.

For me, Christmas is about slowing down and taking time to be with family and friends, and reflecting on what is really important in life. Our circumstances are not always as we would choose, but we are called to live above our circumstances. Rocky remembered an old hymn the other night that included the following thought: we may not know what the future holds, but we know who holds the future. How true!

This Christmas Season, take heart and lift your gaze. Join us as we remember that the reason we celebrate isn't just because a baby was born. We celebrate because that baby grew up and became the ultimate sacrifice that enabled us to be restored into the Kingdom. We are sons and daughters of the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Now we can twinkle and shine, just like the lights on our tree, and honour Him with our lives.

Blessings,

Karren

Thankful for Good Care

A week ago I had surgery. Although the operation was not super serious, I was a little nervous about "going under the knife." But from the moment I arrived in the hospital, I have to say I was so blessed by the care I received. Everyone that played a part in my operation treated me with such kindness and at no point did I ever feel insecure or concerned about the quality of care I was receiving. In fact, I felt certain I was in good hands and all would go well.
I started to think about those in the hospital in Coban, Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, and what it would have been like to have surgery there.
Let me describe the scene...When you walk into the hospital in Coban, the smell assaults your senses. It is dirty and chaotic. As you look around, you see people sitting around on the floor everywhere and there is a general sense of disorganization. In the main hall are a few of the mentally challenged patients who live in the hospital begging. They are unkempt, dirty, and clearly not receiving the level of care they need. In admitting, there is only one nurse working - one! - and people have to wait hours to be simply admitted. Once you've filled out the paper work and are admitted, you wait on a gurney without sheets, blankets or pillows. As you wait, you wonder wether or not they are going to have everything you need for your operation, but there isn't anyone there attending to you, so you have noone to ask. Following the surgery, you are placed into a ward with no separate rooms - all 36 patients in one large room. Family members are expected to stay at the hospital with you to attend to your care because there are not enough hospital staff to administer the necessary medicine let alone attend to the other needs a patient may have. And, speaking of medicine, often the hospital is out of appropriate pain medication and antibiotics so essential to recovery and proper healing. As a result of a lack of good follow-up care, your hospital stay is, on average, 1 week.
Talk about a contrast...I walked out of the hospital 24 hours after my surgery feeling confident that I would heal well and my problem was solved. Yes, I had to wait for the surgery and it was rebooked/postponed once, but I received excellent care. I am so thankful that I have access to this kind of care. I know our health care system in Canada is facing a lot of problems and it is far from perfect, but it is miles ahead of so many other countries around the world.
40% of Guatemalans have no access to healthcare - none! 90% of infant deaths are caused by preventable illnesses, dehydration and malnutrition being the most common.
I have nothing to complain about!

It's Cold Outside!

Well, it happened yesterday...snow! I was with my sister and we were out running errands and she suddenly looked outside and exclaimed, "Look, it's snowing! Oh, it's so beautiful!" I can't say that I was quite there ...snow being beautiful. It means it is really cold and that is about as far as my mind could go at that moment.
As I was trying to prepare myself for winter, I started to think about how our attitude really affects how we think about something. My sister's attitude was one of awe and wonder and she was excited to see the seasons change. My attitude was one of grumbling and complaining and as a result I was not able to see the beauty right in front of me. Our situation was exactly the same, but our response reflected our attitude.
I don't think anything happens in our life that does not contain a lesson for us. The snow reminded me of God's promise to me. If I root myself in His Word, beginning each day by meditating on God's truthes and spending some time just talking with my King, my attitude is affected. My circumstances may or may not change, but how I respond will definitely be affected.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Galatians 5:22,23
Thank you, Lord, for loving me enough to continue to teach me Your ways!

On Our Way Home

Well, I finished the last of the cleaning and packing to be ready to go back to Canada. I was so thankful for 3 days of warm, sunny weather, so that I could get all the laundry done! I also cooked and baked enough to fill the freezer so that Rocky will have some good food when we are gone.

This year we had the opportunity to work with some pretty amazing people. Heber, the young man third from the left in the photo, is someone I work quite closely with. I have come to really appreciate him. He has a real way with people and I admire the way he works with both the teams and the Guatemalans. Things don't always go as planned in our work here, but he rarely gets frustrated. I forget sometimes that he is only 20 years old.

We have also worked with numerous Guest House hosts, the last of which are on the far left in the photo - Al and Judy Willms. They were such a huge blessing to us the way they not only served the teams, but also really embraced Hope, allowing her to stay with them while we were in the capital picking up or dropping off teams.

Les and Rita Peters, of course, are in the center, and we continue to marvel at how the Lord is expanding this ministry under their leadership. We know it is not always easy work, especially as the ministry grows, but they are committed to the vision the Lord has given them and are here for the long haul.

As you know, Rocky will be staying back for 2 additional weeks, hoping to really focus on the work projects now that there are no teams here. He has worked so hard this year, taking on not only his team responsibilities, but also trying to supervise the many work projects. I know he has been a big blessing to the ministry and they are thankful for his input.

For me, I just love being able to serve the Lord here. I know I am not perfect - far from it - but I also know that the Lord is using me to advance His Kingdom both with the teams that we serve as well as with the Guatemalans we are so privileged to know and work along side. This little girl in the photo with me is Darlin and she attends our Chicoy school. A few months ago I was visiting Chicoy with a team and noticed she was not playing with the other kids the way she usually does. I picked her up and she snuggled right into me and I could feel she had a fever. I held her and rocked her and quickly discovered she had an ear infection. We just happened to have a doctor along with that group and so in a matter of minutes we were able to check her out, give her some Tylenol for the pain and some antibiotics for the infection. What could have gone on and on and perhaps even damaged her eardrum permanently, was corrected, just like that!

This last week when I was back at Chicoy, she saw me and came to me. I picked her up and she wrapped her arms around my neck. I felt so blessed to have been able to be a part of helping Darlin in her time of need.

Before we came here, people said to us that we were sure selfless for giving so much up to go to Guatemala. I don't think we have given anything up at all. What material things we sold or left behind are nothing compared to the honour of serving the Lord here. I keep thinking, that if just one person is impacted for the Kingdom because of our presence here and the Holy Spirit working through us, then whatever we have had to "give up" is so worth it.

We may not see the harvest, this side of heaven, but we know that our time here is of eternal value and we are so privileged to do what the Lord has called us to do.

Blessings to you and your families!

Karren, Rocky and Hope!

Our Last Group for 2011!

At 5:30am, on Friday, October 14th, we said goodbye to the Kamloops Alliance Church team and at 7:30pm that evening we received our last team for this season. It is hard to believe that we have worked with 22 different groups this year! Our teams have come from across Canada, from BC to Prince Edward Island and now, our last group is from Davenport, Iowa.

Impact Ministries is establishing itself in the US, with the help of some wonderful people who have been here in the past (Tim and Candy Weaver, Debra Cole, Phil and Beth Claussen, and many others). As we move into 2012, the ministry hopes to be able to host more American teams. That means we will be needing some help on this end!

Our last group leaves on October 24th, which will give me a week to clean up around here and pack things up so that when we return in January, all will be dry and bug free! That is a bit of a job, so I am thankful that I have a little bit of time to do it. Hope and I fly out on the 31st of October and Rocky will join us on the 12th of November. He is staying on in order to spend a bit more time on the worksite, building the new guest housing complex.

We will be having a sharing night at St. Andrew's on the Square on Saturday, December 3rd, and look forward to seeing some of you there!

Bless you, Karren

Sunday Morning

Well, it is Sunday morning. If we were in Canada, we'd get up, get ready and head out the door for church. Maybe we'd join friends for lunch out at a restaurant and then spend the remainder of the day relaxing or sharing time with family.

Here, Sundays are very different for us. It is the biggest market day in Tactic and we don't meet for church until 4pm. When groups are here, they do a "market activity" in the morning, which essentially consists of them doing some of our team grocery shopping and trying to complete a variety of tasks. The idea is to give the team a feel for what it would be like trying to function in a foreign environment. We turn it into a bit of a competition and it is a lot of fun.

After lunch, we take the group to a coffee plantation that is about a 1/2 hour drive from town. When we finish there, we come back home and get ready for church. Church ususally goes from 4pm - 6:30pm, so when church is done, we have supper. Following supper we spend time with the team, leading a debrief. Our day usually ends around 9:30pm.

The reason I am able to write this blog right now is because we have a couple living in the guest house - Al and Judy Wilms from Calgary - and they are taking care of the market activity so we don't have to. If they weren't here, we'd be "on" from 8:30 am to 9:30 pm - a 13 hour day! Not exactly like home!

Now, don't get me wrong, I am not complaining. This has actually become very normal for us and we really enjoy it. When our days are not filled with activities with the teams, we have other duties that we perform. Rocky, of course, is constantly going between the various work

projects making sure everything is progressing as planned. I do some administrative work for the ministry and have also started doing translating for the sponsorship office. Our days are full and we feel so blessed to be able to serve in the way that we do.
We are looking forward to a rest, although, and returning to Canada to see family and friends. Hope and I will be arriving in Canada on November 1st and Rocky 2 weeks later. We hope to be able to connect with you sometime during our time at home.

Bless you, Karren