Back In The City Now

I have added lots of new pictures from Antigua here. There is some awesome news! One of the people we have all been praying for has officially come to know Christ! It all started when I was sitting on the bench by myself in the park last Saturday night "people watching" (with you in mind, Grandma.) As I sat there, Regula (from Switzerland) randomly showed up and sat next to me. We were just making small talk when I mentioned I was looking for a church to go to. She told me that she didn't really know about all that stuff. She said she had gone to church in the past, but it was so boring and she said that it wasn't for her. I was able to share my testimony with her and she said that that Thursday she had attended a church service in English and a guy named Juan had told her about Christ and lead her through the "believers prayer" but she still didn't know about what "all that stuff" was all about. So naturally I invited her to go to church with me and she gladly accepted the invitation.

As we were still talking, a guy came up to us and Regula lit up as she got up to give him a hug. It was Juan. She said it was so weird that as I was talking to her about all this "God stuff," suddenly Juan shows up. She said that there have been many weird signs. I told her that it wasn't a coincidence that so much "weird stuff" was happening. I mentioned the verse in the Bible that says, "Draw closer to God and He will draw closer to you." I said that since she was seeking God, He was drawing her closer to Him.

When we met for church the next morning, we first went to a cathedral (Antigua is the Catholic capital of the world I think.) It didn't feel right so I said, "Let's look for a protestant church." As we were walking, Regula started thinking. She said that she thought it might be better if she did some searching on her own to see what was going on in her heart. So I gave her my Bible and book marked a few key places like John and Romans and left her at a cafe to do some personal searching. She read for three hours just soaking up scripture. I let her keep it for several days while she continued to read. After several days, it clicked and now everything has become clear for her. She said she used to be mad at God for making the world so bad, and then she realized that it's not God that's screwed up, it's us humans. She is now so incredibly on fire for Christ that she frequently jumps up and down with excitement. It's awesome.

Now for the sad story about the other one we have been praying for. Every Thursday night there is an English service and Regula said it was an awesome service. So I got everyone at the school excited about going to the church that night and then doing something else after the service. I so was surprised that so many people showed up. There were about 8 people that came and not one was a Christian. As the service began with worship, I was a little nervous about how everyone was going to accept this service. After worship a British man got up as a guest speaker since the normal speaker was gone on vacation or something. As he began, I started getting really nervous as I could tell he automatically assumed that everyone in the room was already a Christian. My heart sank when we started "acting crazy" when he talked. He said "Every second someone dies, and most of them are GOING TO HELL because they are not a Christian," and "I have seen a dead man COME BACK TO LIFE, I have seen miracles done all the time. The gospel of Jesus is NEVER presented without a miracle." And but this time I am sinking down into my chair a little. Then he looks right into one of the girls eyes that came, and his beady eyes nearly popped out of his European head as he screamed, "You have LIFE coming right out of HERE," as he pointed to his belly, "CAN YOU FEEL THAT RIVER OF LIFE!? PRASIE JESUS!" So after he said they we all going to hell, he acted like a psycho screaming and jumping around.

Now, I am all about getting excited about Jesus, but when you turn people off to God's great gift, then you are in the wrong. After the service, the one we had been praying for came to me and said, "Well, I am sold, there is no way I am going to believe in this. This is crazy." It was as if someone stuck a knife in my heart and twisted it around. I forced a smile on my face and nodded my head while trying to hold back the tears. Furious, I went to the man who was speaking and gracefully challenged him on the crap he was saying. I asked him why is he saying all this while Paul said that miracles like speaking in tongues would turn an unbeliever off to Christ if they are visiting the church. Also, about the miracles, is that when the Jews asked for a miracle, Jesus refused because they had no faith. His response was basically, "you shouldn't bring unbelievers into the church."

I went outside completely discouraged with defeat. I was leaning against a wall as everyone circled around me. They could tell I was extremely bothered by something. I couldn't hold back the tears any longer. Through tear-filled eyes, I told them that I felt like bringing them all there was a mistake. They were all assuring me that they believed in "my God" but not "his God." I was trying to show them that Christianity is not about going to church and going through rituals or doing right and wrong, but it's about an intimate relationship with God through Christ Jesus. Most all of them were very receptive to this, but there was something still holding back the one we were praying for.

In all, God allowed me to share my testimony with about 13 different people in two weeks and one came to Christ, not because of me, but because of God. We always have to realized that like Paul said, we plant the seeds, but God makes them grow. Although we always like to see immediate results, I know God will use all the seeds that were planted the past two weeks. That was the good advice from Memaw.

For those of you who have been to Guatemala and know Renee, you know that he his a mentally retarded Guatemalan who is absolutely cut and could break your face, but he is so sweet, he wouldn't hurt a fly. Well, I met the "Renee of Antigua" in the park. This "crazy guy" comes up to me and starts to talk really loud and excitedly in spanish, "Hola! Where are you from!?" and extends his hand for a hand shake. As I reluctantly extend my hand to complete the handshake, I thought to myself, "Oh, boy, another crazy who wants money from me." After a little small talk in Spanish (hey I can do small talk in Spanish now WHOHO!) he said in English, "Welcome to Antigua my friend." I said thank you and he walked off.

The next day I was sitting on a bench in the park and this shoe-shine guys makes eye-contact with me and I nod and say, "Hola." He stands in front of me and asks me if I would like a shoe shine. As I looked down at my white-new-ballence tennis shoes, I politely declined. Usually, if you say, "No, gracias" they leave, but this guy just stood there. I soon realized that he too was mentally retarded. After several minutes of me trying to ignore him and hoping that he would go away, he turned his head and called to one of his friends to come over. It was the "crazy guy" from yesterday and he had a guitar with him.

He got all excited when he saw me and started shouting in slurred Spanish about how good it was to see me again. After we shook hands again, we put his foot up on the bench I was sitting on and propped his guitar up on his leg. He began to sing really loud in a "crackly voice" as he played unfamiliar songs to me. People were looking at me and laughing at the nuthouse that surrounded me. I thought to myself, "Why are all the crazy people always attracted to me?" And God said to me, "I love them just as much as I love you." That hit me like a ton of bricks. I know how much God loves me, and to think that I slapped a label on these people as "non-valuable crazies." That immediately changed my whole perspective. Despite the distant laughter, I really started to listen to his playing and complemented him after every song. I got to know his name, Leanel, a "crazy guy" with a big, loving heart despite the constant torment from others who are afraid of his high-energy craziness.

God has been teaching many new things to me the past few weeks as every aspect of my "comfort zone" has been stripped away - even the language I speak. I can't wait to see what more awesome things He will do in the days to come. I go to Shalom tomorrow to set up the computer lab for Thursday. We desperately need 30 new computers and 2 new projectors. Please pray that God will provide these things and He will provide them. I love you guys and thank you so much for your prayers; please keep it up, God is answering them. I hope my next update will be sooner so that the entries won't be so long. :)

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