Katie...Her Journey to Canada, Guatemala, and Home Again!
Ready or Not
It was the night before departure and Katie was madly packing for her week-long stay in Canada and then her three week-long stay in Guatemala. Her mind was fuzzy with tiredness and kept going back to her office at the school, wondering if she had forgotten anything. She had been busy preparing for a pastors seminar that would start three days before she returned.....yes, she had everything done.....except for her packing......“focus Katie,” she thought. Finally, not nearly finished, house not nearly cleaned up and straightened, a deliriously tired Katie fell into bed and slept, only to wake up tired in the morning, but ready to embark on a new adventure that would first take her North and then South to Guatemala! So ready or not, she was driven to the airport and flew out, heading to Kelowna, B.C.
Orchestrated Meetings
Now the average person will talk a bit to the person next to them on the flight, do the “where are you from, and where are you going?” thing, but Katie this October 21st met and talked with people ALL DAY! Her first flight, from Hermosillo (MX) to Phoenix (USA), she met an interesting gentleman who worked for Ford as a consultant, he was very nice and was heading back to Chicago to his family. The second flight Katie took, from Phoenix to Seattle, she sat beside a woman who works for Microsoft and a young man who is in the Army and is a parachutist is a special unit that goes around training men in other countries military building foreign relations. The four hour flight was quickly taken up with stories or places and adventures, ALL three talking equally and enjoying each others company. And lastly, on the lay over in Seattle Katie ran into a business woman twice and sat down to talk to her. She had recently gone back to church with her husband after not attending for 20-some years and she was very excited to hear about the ministry going on in Mexico! As Katie reflected later on all the people she had talked to and met, she knew that God had orchestrated each meeting and that the tapestry we call life, had somehow been added to. What a trip!
Oh Canada!
Upon her arrival in Canada, Katie was greeted by the mission's trip leaders. They were very down to earth and the three of them hit it off right away! (To all their relief!) So though the visit short, Katie's time in Canada was very good. She was able to catch up and visit with her beloved grandparents, visit with friends, enjoy some good Canadian food, and prepare for her time in Guatemala!
Guatemala
As Katie arrived to the meeting place, Anchor Academy, others too started to trickle in.....the team that would be spending three weeks together in a foreign country were meeting face-to-face for the first time! All were excited, nervous, and ready to head out on a new adventure, a rented bus took them to the Vancouver airport. After two long flights, an already long and then delayed layover, Katie and the team arrived in Guatemala City at 9am the following morning! Katie's thoughts upon arrival were something to this affect, “I am getting too old for these kinds of flights!” The exhausted team was met by missionaries who would be their leaders and guides. They went for breakfast and then made their way to the mission base which was about a 2 hour drive. (Longer because the main highway had a washed-out bridge) Katie realized the humidity was a little higher than Mexico had been when she left, and the heat was up there as well, but compared to the cold Canada they had just left....it felt good! 
Drive. Eat. Orientation. Rest. After an early bedtime, the next morning most were feeling refreshed and ready to begin! So begin they did with planning a children's outreach. The team went out on visitation in the neighborhood inviting children to come later that afternoon for a Bible story, songs, games, memory verse, and crafts. And thus closed their first “actual” day in Guatemala. Casa de Esperanza
FeViva (the mission organization) has a home for children taken from their own homes by the government. Most of their situations are extremely sad, but they have a good Christian home now at FeViva where they learn how to behave, obey, love and be loved, and most importantly they learn about Jesus and what He did for them on the cross. The children are happy and LOVE to sing and hang out with people who come to visit them! They also enjoy soccer, riding their bikes, and swimming. As Katie and the team worked in the home, called Casa de Esperanza (House of Hope), they were able to get to know some of the children and love on them a bit as well. While at FeViva Katie and the team were able to paint 5 rooms, sand the rust and paint off 3 metal doors to be re-painted, and remove the paint from cement walls and flower beds in order too re-paint. They quickly found out that Guatemalans are always needing to re-paint because it is so humid there and mold grows abundantly and paint chips quickly! One could have spent days painting and there would still be more to do! Thus the team became quite capable with paintbrushes, rollers, ladders, and grinders!
Friends of Jesus
The women/girls on the team were invited to a breakfast called, “Friends of Jesus”. This breakfast was put on by a couple who do ministry with people who are alcoholics, street people, and prostitutes. The breakfast that Katie attended was for women who have been caught in the horrid work of prostitution and who can't escape. As Katie sat at a table with two of these women, visiting with them and translating for another woman at the table, she couldn't help but be grateful for the life she was leading, and the path she had not only taken, but been born into. Her heart broke for these women as they shared their stories of coming from other countries to work and make a living in order to feed their families.....NEVER expecting to get into prostitution. The women were trapped into contracts, sleeping in the back of bars not allowed to leave freely, and made to feel like there was no hope for them to ever leave or get their lives back again. The service and breakfast shared together was beautiful. There were two testimonies, Katie and the women from her team sang two songs, and there was a message from the Bibles that was powerful. A heart full of love and brokenness for these women is what Katie left with....that and the thought that, “they never chose this, these women as little girls didn't dream of becoming this.” As Katie left them standing on the side of the road, after hugging them and saying her goodbyes, she realized all the times she had unconsciously judged, and God opened her eyes to see that we're all equal in His sight.....He loves those woman as much and He loves everyone else......may we never forget that.
Go Deeper
During the three-week stay in Guatemala there were many outreaches, youth events, and visitations done. Katie felt a real burden not only for the Guatemalan people they were ministering to, but also for the youth on the team. The Lord opened her eyes to different needs the young women had and gave her the burden of not only praying for them, but mentoring them. She came to realize that she also needed to change. God began to give her a desire to go deeper, to learn more, love more, feel more, and do more! She prayed for wisdom, patience, and love for the girls she was mentoring and God did a work in and through her for which she saw some fruits but is praying that seeds will continue to grow, and that God will bring other people to continue the work HE started.
Don't Get Comfortable
As Katie sat alone, waiting for her plane to leave in the Guatemala after she'd seen the rest of the team off who were heading back to Canada, she thought of the trip. She thought on how she had gone into this trip with experience, the knowledge on missions, the Spanish expertise, and how her goal had been to help others along as much as she could. Oh how God has a sense of humor and oh how much Katie had learned in return! God used this experience in her life to show her how much more He had in store for her, how much deeper she could go with Him. He didn't want her to be content in her experience or knowledge, but to seek and ask for more. May that be a motivation for us all...don't get comfortable....go deeper!