Ministry update

One of the new ministries we have been conducting is meeting with the moms in the neighborhood. We invite them to the base and then teach them a skill such as crochet, cooking,sewing, making a craft etc. The moms also give us suggestions of things they would like to learn to do. Our staff provide a time of devotion for them and then provide a snack for them. The moms have enjoyed coming and more keep coming as the word get out. Many of them send their children to the Kids Club that meets every week at the base.
We will be showing a film for the neighborhood this Friday and in the past we have had from 40-100 people come to watch a Christian film. We always give and invitation to receive Christ at the end of the film.
Next week will be hosting a team from near Toronto, Canada who will be coming to do ministry alongside of us. This will be there 3rd year coming and we look forward to working with them as they always come well prepared and have a great impact on the people they minister to during their time here.
We are offering an Evangelism Bootcamp in June which will be a great time of learning and practicing the material Mark Annand will be teaching on Evangelism. For more information go to our website: ywamantigua.org
We are accepting applications for our next DTS which will begin July 29. We are excited about the teachers who will be coming to be a part of this life changing experience. If you are interested or want more information please go to our website and click on the DTS link.

January Update

After the DTS ended in December we immediately hosted a CDTS group from Chico, California. They kept busy with local ministry and were a blessing to have at the base. We really enjoy hosting other YWAM teams as they come prepared for ministry and are flexible as things change without notice. If you have a group interested in coming to Guatemala please contact us, we would love to work with you to provide a great experience for you.
Our base has been working with Iglesia Vida Real in San Pablo La Laguna for several years. The church began 6 years ago and met in a small cornstalk siding building with just a few people. Over the years we have ministered there with our DTS groups as well as visiting teams and have seen the church grow to over 200 people. On January 7, the new church was completed and a dedication service was conducted with over 400 people attending. Many groups have been a part of the success of the church to enable it to raise over $150,000 to buy land and build the facility. In this community of very poor people it is a testimony of God's faithfulness and His desire to reach the people of the community. Pastor Antonio has stated that many people in the community do not believe a church is for real unless they have a building. We can argue the theology of that viewpoint but nonetheless it is a factor in how the people receive the church and want to be a part of it.
We are still offering the Motorcycle Discipleship Training School starting February 26,2012. If you want to be a part of it please send in your application immediately. This will be a unique DTS with the classroom phase conducted in Guatemala and the outreach in the USA. The outreach will focus on evangelism and mercy ministries as we ride to several locations to partner with churches, ministries and YWAM bases.
We have a new staff person joining us at the end of January. Carissa will be a great help to us and we thank God for sending her to us.
We will be hosting a seminar on "Hearing God's Voice" for pastors in the Lake Atitlan area January 27 & 28.
Several teams will be coming in February and March to minister in our area. We will involve them in our ministries we conduct each week which include: Monday Worship Service in English, Kids Club, Street Church, Feeding program and Soul Patrol Evangelism.
Our next Compassion DTS will start July 29, 2012. We are praying for the students who are registered and asking God to send us the ones He wants to be a part of the class. We are looking at going to India for our outreach and will continue to pray that God will direct us to the right place.

DTS Graduation!

December 9th was the date of our graduation for the Discipleship Training School. We concluded our outreach to Haiti and Guatemala and had a fantastic experience. Each of the students were touched by the Lord and did a great job preaching the gospel in a variety of ways. We returned from Haiti and rode a bus and 4 wheel drive pickup for 13 hours to reach a village in NW Guatemala called Yulmacap. There are about 400 families living in the area and very few white people get out there. When we first arrived the children ran away from us but by the end of the week they were crying when we left. We lived in rustic conditions for the 5 days of ministry but it was worth it to have the opportunity to share the love of Christ with the community. We visited 5 families that have children with a rare form of skin cancer caused by ultraviolet light. These children must stay out of the sun all the time to reduce the spread of cancer. It is very difficult for them as there is not much for them to do.
We also conducted ministry in Quetzatenango, Guatemala, working with a local church. It was a time of encouraging the believers in their walk and work for the Lord.
Our final week was spent in San Pablo La Laguna working with two pastors who are doing a great work in their community. One family we visited has lost both parents to AIDS and the 4 children are now living with their grandparents who have very limited resources but plenty of love for their grandkids. We hope to build a home for the children as the home of the grandparents is too small to accommodate them.
Our graduation service was a special time for all us and it is always hard to see the students leave. We have been blessed to work with a very special and talented group this past year and pray God's best for each of them as they pursue their individual calling from the Lord.
Our next DTS will begin in February, Motorcyclist DTS will be an outstanding adventure for those who have a passion for motorcycling and sharing the gospel.

Outreach to Haiti

W
we are in the 3rd week of outreach in Haiti and it has been a great experience. We worked with Pastor Beau a Ywamer who is pastoring a church in a very poor area. He took us around the area to do evangelism and we has opportnities to share the gospel with hundreds of people. In order to get to his church we had to take 4 wheel drive vehicles as the road was partially under water and was muddy. Then we had to cross a small river and walk the rest of the way to his village. We showed the Jesus film and during the film the people clapped whenever they saw Jesus do miracles. The children were deeply moved by the death of Jesus and some cried.

On Saturday we hiked up to a fortress that overlooks St. Marc to worship and pray for the city. It was a beauty vista and even though took some effort to reach the top was well worth it.

Please continue to pray for protection and health for all of us.

DTS Outreach to Haiti

We arrived in Haiti last Sunday and have spent the first week conducting evangelistic outreaches with the YWAM Haiti base. We have shared the gospel through dramas, testimonies and preaching to over 1000 people during our first week. One of the most memorable sites was the local jail in St. Marc. The cells are designed to hold 4-5 people but each one has 30+ in them!!! There are no beds and the prisoners have to sleep on the floor that is not big enough for all of them to lay down on at one time. They listened attentively to our presentation from behind their cell doors as no one is allowed outside except for 10 minutes per day to shower. It is a place you would never want to return to as a prisoner.
We have also shared in several public schools and parks. We have drawn crowds at each location and have seen a few people accept the Lord. One lady was from another town over the hills that surround St. Marc and she just happened to be in the area we were at sharing the gospel. She gave her heart to Christ and I was reminded of the 1 lost sheep that was found while the 99 remained.
We will be in Haiti until November 17 and we will be working with YWAM Haiti and a church.
Next week we will be visiting 8 villages near St. Marc. These areas are very poor and are heavily influenced by voodoo. The pastor we are working with was threatened by witch doctors and told at gun point to not share the gospel or he would be killed. He told them his life was in God's hands and they could not control him. He has remained faithful to share the gospel and has seen many people come to Christ.
Please pray for our DTS students as we continue to share the gospel and bear fruit for the Kingdom.

DTS Update Week 9

We are currently in our 9th week of the classroom phase. Our topic this week is Spiritual Warfare and our teacher is Terry Keith the Base Director of YWAM Heredia Costa Rica. Terry has been a YWAMERS for 26 years and has vast experience in the ministry. We are blessed to have such highly qualified and experienced teachers in our DTS this year.

We have made a decision to do our outreach in Haiti and Guatemala this year. We will be leaving for Haiti to work with YWAM Haiti on October 16 and return November 17. Our last 3 weeks of outreach will be spent in Guatemala in 3 different locations: Yulmacap in NW Guatemala; Quetzaltenango and San Pablo La Laguna.

DTS 2011

We have just completed the 4th week of the classroom phase of the DTS. We have 12 students attending this year from the USA, Canada and Curacao. Through the generosity of a local church we are able to use their classroom for our daily classes which helps the student focus on the studies and eliminates distractions at the base. We have been blessed to be able to secure excellent teachers from the USA, Guatemala and El Salvador.
Each day the students are involved in work duty and this year we are partnering with a hospital for disabled children and adults, an orphanage and a ministry that makes wheel chairs.
The students are also involved in the weekly ministries of the base which include the English Worship service, Kids club, feeding the poor and conducting a worship service for homeless people.
We are tentatively making plans to do our outreach in Haiti and Guatemala. Please pray for the students finances that they will each be able to raise the support needed ($2000).