We are in the middle of Semana Santa, Holy Week in Antigua. It is a big celebration in the country and Antigua will have thousands of visitors coming to participate in the events. It is a colorful time as people decorate the streets with alfombras which are like rugs made of colored sawdust, flower petals and fruit. Some are very elaborate and take hours to make while others are pretty simple. The processional will walk over them and completely destroy them in a matter of seconds and then the city cleanup crew follows behind to dispose of all the material. It seems like an awful lot of work to have it destroyed so quickly. Higher Grounds Coffee House will be open all night Thursday as this is the big night of the week. At 3 a.m. Roman soldiers will come riding on horseback and the proclamation of Jesus being sentenced to death will be read in various places in town. The entire week places most of its focus on the suffering and death of Christ and in the past the day of the resurrection there is very little celebration and the town returns to a silent state. YWAM Antigua will be conducting a sunrise service at Cero de la Cruz which is on the side of a hill overlooking Antigua. It is a beautiful setting and a great way to begin the most important day of believers in Christ. Without the resurrection our life is being lived in vain. But thanks be to God who raised Christ from the dead and through him we have the promise and assurance that we too will one day rise from the grave and be clothed with immortality!
We are presently hosting a Crossroads DTS group from Chico, California until June 4. They will be doing a variety of mercy ministries and some ministry to children, youth and adults. We are blessed to have them with us and look forward to all that God will do in each member of the team. Please pray for them and pray for the activities we will be involved in during Semana Santa. We want Jesus to be glorified and for people to embrace the resurrection life that is only available through a personal relationship with him.
