Arms of Jesus (AOJ)
Brazos de Jesús (Arms of Jesus) is a Canadian organization with a large presence in Guatemala. In January of 2002, El Centro de Desarrollo y Colegio Cristiano Los Brazos de Jesús (The Arms of Jesus Development Centre and Christian School) was opened in the village of Parramos offering grades 1-3. Already, it has grown to offer classes up to the 6th grade! The students are sponsored and live in the surrounding area. Because basic education carries a finite amount of social currency in a society as ethnically stratified as Guatemala, the school also trains the students with important life skills involving technology and the creative arts. AOJ also provides prefab homes for needy families in the area (both affiliated and unaffiliated with the school).
Margarita
Abused and recently kicked out of her home -- a home built by AOJ volunteers 2 yrs earlier -- by her husband, Margarita and her children had no place to go when we showed up at the AOJ campus for our first full day of work. Though we originally planned to put up a home for a different family, this was an emergency. AOJ had just secured a court order allowing us to go in and disassemble the home. We worked fast, hoping no angry husband would appear. He never did and all went smoothly; it took under 2 hours to get the home apart and in the truck. An entire home in one truck. Wow. We moved it to her family's property where another team will put it back up right away...The only reason we couldn't is because a concrete foundation had not been poured.
Aurelia and her family
Aurelia is a single mom with two adorable children. Until Wednesday, she lived in a tiny shack with her mother and father. Now, she has a two-room home worth $1,200 dollars complete with a bunk bed and a kitchen table with six padded chairs. You can see the joy in Carlos' face as he climbed up on the bed, the first one he's ever had. Pretty incredible. It certainly puts things in perspective, doesn't it?
Edgar and Carmen
They already had six children when God laid it on their hearts to adopt 3 more. Edgar and Carmen took seriously Christ's command to care for "the least of these"...except they are the least of these. Wow. They acted in faith and God has blessed their efforts. By now, with outside support, they impact 200-300 kids each week, providing Bible stories and 2-3 meals each day. Wow! We did some craft projects and a story time related to the story of David and Goliath. This story is especially relevant for these children because of the promise it carries: Faith in God and in His power can and will carry them through any obstacles they face (i.e., poverty, racism, abandonment, and abuse). On a sad note, just recently Carmen and Edgar's van was stolen as it was parked outside of church. The good news is that it shouldn't cost more than 4 or 5 thousand dollars to replace; I pray that God raises up sponsors to provide for this need.
Juan Luis
Abused and neglected by his father, Juan Luis says he was a very angry teenager. He often had thoughts of suicide or indulged in daydreams involving his father's death. When he was 17, he was befriended by some Mormon missionaries. He converted to Mormonism and was only one year away from leaving on their 2-year mission trip when everything changed, for the better. His Mormon church was next door to an evangelical Christian church. He kept hearing the music and seeing the joy on the people's faces as they entered and left the church; this stood in stark contrast to what he saw in the Mormon church. So he hid in the Mormon church and spied on the evangelical church to see what was going on. Long story short, God worked in his heart and he became a Christian.
He's now 21 years old and full of passion to serve God but unsure where to direct it. I can relate, especially when I was his age. For the past 5 weeks he has been volunteering at a malnutrition center. The center's property consists of a large building complex surrounded by 24 acres of fertile land. When we arrived, God laid it on the heart of the pastor leading our group to ask about possible ways to farm the land. When I related this to Juan Luis, his eyes lit up and he said that he'd been wondering what they could do with the land. We walked around the property of the adjoining land and became really excited at the possibilities for the center. So we bought some tools and cleared out a small 24 x 20 piece of land to do some trial terracing and planting. By the next day, the land was ready to go! This last Monday, seeds were planted; good stuff! We're hoping that eventually all 24 acres are farmed such that the center can even grow cash crops. God is good!
The Malnutrition Center
A large center (founded decades ago) is home to 30-40 children between the ages of 0 and 8. Due to severe cuts in funding, there is an overage of space for far more children. Another tragedy befell the center when a logging company came in a few years ago and offered to clear the old-growth trees (worth a lot of money down there) in exchange for a share of some of the profits. The loggers ran off with all of the money -- about $400,000 dollars! Imagine the lives that could have been saved with that money. Justice may be imperfect in this world, but I know that God will judge them and they will be called to account for their heinous crime. Still, the center marches on. In fact, recently some of the employees weren't paid for 6 weeks, yet everyone continued working. Can you imagine what would happen if we didn't get paid for 6 weeks here in the States?
PRAYER REQUESTS
Please pray for ...
- Arms of Jesus, that God would continue to bless their work in the community. Most importantly, pray that God would use AOJ to reach the lost for Him.
- Margarita, for her protection and for her walk with the Lord.
- Aurelia and her family, that her new home would be a constant reminder of God's love for her and His desire to have a personal relationship with her and her children, both now and forever.
- Edgar and Carmen, that God would continue to bless their ministry. Also, that He would provide them with another van so that they can continue their ministry (as it's in two locations).
- Juan Luis, that God would provide him discernment, wisdom and perseverance beyond his years as he embarks on the seminal stages of developing the property at the malnutrition center.
- the Malnutrition Center, that God would put a band of angels around the building to protect against any who would harm or take advantage of the staff or children. Also, please pray that the children would become Christians during their stay at the center. While it is important for them to receive physical nourishment, we know that they cannot be spiritually deprived...Indeed, all the temporal physical nourishment in the world won't provide eternal salvation.
Thanks for reading this far. And thank you for your prayerful and financial support. God is good and He is at work in Guatemala!
No comments:
Post a Comment