Guatemala

People have been so sweet to ask about our trip. It is hard to sum up a whole week of life changing experiences in one word..."Great" hardly does it justice. It was beautiful, heartbreaking, overwhelming, hopeful and so many other things. I have taken trips like this before, but never as a mother and wife. I dare not say my perspective is more mature, just different. Perhaps I was just more open to God and the experience? I feel like God taught me a lot about Him, myself and others. Like...

-People, at their core, are not so different. They all have basic needs and really just want to be loved.
-We are spoiled rotten here in America and don't appreciate it!
-I do have a passion for Latin cultures. I can see the tread of it all through my life.
-Guatemala never got the "Don't mix water and electricity" memo!
-God can use you in ways you never expected and it can be so fun! You just have to have an open heart.
-A slight variation on the Spanish word for "cool" means diarreah....Yikes!
-A person can live on the average household trash of an American family. How embarrassing!
-God cares for us! Protects us! I really experienced this on our trip.
-God Is always working pieces of life together to make something beautiful, even if we only see a bit of the work.
-I'm thankful for hot showers and that we can flush our toilet paper in the U.S.
-$1 US dollar can feed a family for a day in Guatemala. A good day's wage is $10 US dollars.
-I'm brown on the inside...or so Dwayne and Phil say.:O)
-There are LOTS of kids that need love!
-Prayer is really powerful! I had sort of forgotten that.
-I have a new respect for our friends serving in our military. We are blessed to live where we do and have people who will fight for our freedoms and to help those who are oppressed.
-A shotgun or automatic weapon doesn't have to appear awkward or threatening. Thanks to different colors and loose handling, it can be carried with the ease and style of a large handbag.
-Guatemalan people must like "good wings" because we saw a Hooter's franchise next to where we ate one night!?
-I'm really thankful to be married to Phil. For lots of reasons, but mostly because of his heart for God, us and helping others. I'm super proud of the work he did in Guatemala!

A few things I didn't expect....
I was so excited to see so many different people in our group working together for one purpose. A microbiologist, students, a coach, an engineer, a landscaper, a counselor, a graphic designer, and electrician, a personal assistant to a millionaire and the list goes on...each person on the trip had a unique and wonderful contribution. It was a true picture of the body of Christ. Phil and I have talked to much about how we are better for knowing each person on the trip and the people we met there in Guatemala. I feel like I learned something and really appreciate some quality from each person. It is just a huge blessing I never expected. We have all missed each other terribly...called and sent emails since we have been home and already have plans to meet as a group for dinner. Phil and I had a hard time adjusting home. We ate Mexican food for two days and spent the whole first day in just a haze, hugging our babies.

We also were so thankful to meet the people living there, in Guatemala...Tita, Ingrid, Edgar, Eulalia, the Castros, Mama Carmen, David, Juan Carlos and many more. They live their faith out each day and make personal sacrifices to do that! Ingrid sharing the gospel with a man while directing/translating a big construction job, Tita writing the plan of salvation on her leg when she didn't have paper. It was so inspiring to see our Guatemalan friends caring for people others have forgotten and giving God all the credit. I learned so much from them!

I'm so glad I was able to have this experience with Phil. It has been a long year with so many things keeping our attention. This trip made us both realize what we love about one another and
gave us a renewed perspective on God, family and life. Since we have been back, we have reevaluated lots about our lives and have tried to apply some of the lessons learned in practical ways. I'll post more about that later.

We were one of 3 groups that went down to that area this summer. They are hoping to put a water purification plant in La Limonada. We are praying this happens. If so, Phil wants to do what he can to help with that project. Either way, we are hoping to go back again. God willing. We really just are praying that our businesses will be profitable and will run well on their own, so we can do this sort of thing a lot. Then, take the kids when they get older.

And thanks friends....the Burghart kids, the Gano boys, Cristie, Colleen and Grams for sending wonderful things with us (for the kids) on the trip. Since Tita has to pay such huge taxes on packages received, taking things down via suitcase is really the only way to get extra supplies from the U.S. to her. We were able to take more than 1000 lbs. of medicine, toys, clothes, personal products, baby items, school supplies, etc...
And thanks to all of you who have prayed for us and our trip. It wasn't the safest place, but I never once felt in danger. We could feel God's protection over us!

Here is the link to pics...

http://picasaweb.google.com/philswope/Guatemala2008JulySwope

*not pictured are all the guns we saw being wielded around by "officials." For some reason, my group would not allow me to photograph these people.:O)