Thursday, June 14, 2012

June Update

What’s happening with YWAM Antigua?
Changing Hearts,...Changing Nations
“God is bringing more people to help with the ministry at the base and we are grateful for all He is doing. We have had two volunteers serving with us doing a variety of things with the ministries that we conduct. We also had a YWAMER, Stacy come and she volunteered to paint our rooms with flags of other countries and a she painted a huge map of the world with the flags of the countries on each nation in our living room. We appreciate all the helpers God has sent us. We also had had the help of Jason and Tim, from Spring Arbor University in Michigan helping with the Kids Club. He is doing his internship and will be graduated in May and asked if he could do some of his internship requirements with us which we were more than happy to oblige. We currently have another volunteer here for a couple of months.
Also we will add another staff person in June, Hope Nguyen, who is from Minnesota. She has served at the YWAM Chico base as well as the YWAM base in Fiji. She will be helping to staff our next Compassion DTS that starts July 29. We look forward to working with her and drawing on her experiences working with other DTS classes.
We have a few students enrolled in the next DTS and are praying that God will send us 12 students or more. We have a great line up of teachers coming to teach at the DTS and I know it will be an awesome experience for all the students. We have a couple of Haitians who we met on our outreach there in 2011 who are applying to attend the DTS. They need a lot of financial assistance to attend. If you would like to contribute to the Student Scholarship Fund I know it will be a great help for the students who are in need of support. Donations can be given through YWAM Chico. If you want to give please contact me and I will get you the information you need. Please continue to pray for YWAM Antigua and the ministries we are involved in each week as well as the DTS coming up in July. We are blessed that you have been a part of what we do and ask for your prayers that God will continue to send us short-term teams, volunteers, DTS students and full-time staff to help us in the ministry as well as help us grow into new ministry areas.”
-Bruce-
“Ye have the poor always with you”
Jesus came to seek and save lost people. So that’s what our base is doing with the weekly soup run and street church service. A little over two years ago we started taking a pot of soup to the streets to search for homeless and poor people. We basically give them a snack- not a meal. It’s our way of building relationship and showing the love of Jesus. We might feed 40 people on average each week. We also do kids ministry, give them tracts, help with medical needs and spend time talking with the people we meet. The street church service started soon after the soup run when we showed up to a homeless camp and found one of the people dead. We held a memorial service, and that turned into a weekly meeting. Sometimes we’d have a worship time and one of the homeless ladies would grab a microphone and sing. Visiting teams have joined us and shared testimonies or helped us play a game with our folks. We added the game (it’s sort of like horseshoes) to the end of the meetings and the people there love it! Sometimes it seems like there are as many dogs running around the dump area, where we currently meet, as there are people who attend. It’s not your typical church service! We’ve had great times of prayer for people, and some have responded to the gospel. As this year began one of the homeless guys we had been helping was looking close to death. I felt an urgency to share the gospel with him, and he prayed right there to receive Christ. We had an ambulance come over, but he refused to go to the hospital. He died early the next morning. We’ve realized that this is a long-haul-type ministry. We don’t see a lot of visible results right away. Sometimes we’ll bring a guy to rehab and he’ll be doing great, but then he’ll leave prematurely only to come back to the streets. But like Jesus with His disciples who didn’t seem to “get it” the whole time He worked with them, God sees their potential. For now, we have the honor of showing these precious adults and kids His love.
-Mark and Dayle-
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8
This is just as true and powerful today as when these words were first spoken! We have been given the privilege to be Christ’s witnesses not only in our homes, but to the very end of the earth (look out Antarctica here we come). I believe God gives us the chance to be a part of what He is doing all over the world so that while we may live in one place we can still change countries through our prayers and support of the work that is happening in areas we may never go in person.
Over the last few months YWAM Antigua has been changing its look to better represent our heart for the nations. We are decorating each room to reflect a country that we want to build awareness of. Our hope is that those who partner with YWAM Antigua can also be praying for areas outside our Guatemala. It has been a big undertaking and we could definitely use that help of any artist or creative decorator that would like to be involved!
-Kalissa-
5 months in…
Usually missions’ trips come to an end, not this time! As the newest staff member here at YWAM Antigua, I am learning a lot about the blessings and challenges of being a full-time missionary. When I first arrived in February, I was welcomed with open arms, and pleased to find a clean room, and freshly made bed. From the moment my head hit the pillow, I knew God was taking care of me.
It has already been quite a journey. I stepped off the plane knowing only a few Spanish phrases. For the past few months I have been intensively studying the language in order to better communicate the love of our Father to the Guatemalan community. I have come a long way by Gods grace and mercy! Please pray for endurance and strength as I press forward in deeper language study. I am excited for the future, DTS is gearing up, and there is a plethora of ministries to be involved in!
Acts 20:24
-Ana-
We are all anticipating a new addition to our YWAM family! Eder and Carolina are expecting their first child in the first few weeks of September.
By the power of God they continue to do amazing work with the kids in the community. Week after week kids wait excitedly for the doors to open and songs, Bible stories, and crafts commence!
Eder and Carolina are keeping up with a busy schedule; all are looking forward to being a part of a precious new life. We are planning a baby shower for late July. Get in contact with someone from the YWAM team if you would like to gift baby clothing or toys!
Contact us!
Phone/Fax: 011-(502)-7834-0390
E-mail: Ywamantigua@gmail.com
Blog: http://ywamantiguanews.blogspot.com/
http://ywamantigua.org/