Monthly Archives: March 2012

Guatemala

In the beginning was the Word,

and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1)
This month we’ve started a Bible study on my favorite book of the Bible, John. Of the four accounts of Jesus’s life, called the gospels, this book feels like the most personal. It goes into great detail to explain why Jesus did what He did, and it includes lots of His conversations with the people around Him. It also has some of the most memorable verses like John 3:16 and John 14:6.

I love how this book focuses on many of Jesus’s explainations about the spiritual side of life, something completely new to the people. For example, in John 3 Jesus talks to a Jewish leader, Nicodemus, about the need to be born again; not a physical birth like the first time, but a spiritual birth. In John 4 He talks with a samaritan woman about being the source of of living water of eternal life. In John 6 He explained to a crowd that we must eat His flesh and drink His blood in order to have life. In John 8 Jesus explains that everyone who sins in a slave to sin, and that we are either the children of the devil or the children of God. In John 9 He gives sight to a blind man and explains spiritual blindness. His teachings are both fascinating and incredibly rich with lessons for our own lives. It’s so easy for us to be so focused on our physical lives that we forget about our spiritual lives.

Guatemala

Benjamin’s with us

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Elias’s brother Benjamin has now moved in with us! He has been busy in January and February with a final internship required for his degree in accounting, and he was working for a company that prints food packaging labels. Some examples are the labels on two liter bottles of soda and the plastic wrappers for hotdogs. After his internship ended the company offered him a full-time position at the company to help keep track of their inventory.

He is very excited for this opportunity to start working in his field. The new job offer did mean that he wouldn’t be able to take care of the house of boys at Casa Shalom anymore, and so he decided that it was time to move out of them home. We’re excited to have him here with us now. We had a great time together during the Christmas break, and now we get to be together all the time!

We would appreciate your prayers for both Benjamin and Elias as they live with us. Please pray that God would use us to continue to form and mature these two young men as they transition into adulthood.

Guatemala, Month Review

February in Guatemala

February has been a very exciting and busy month because the land title has been finally approved! It took 5 months for the whole process to complete which is a lot longer than we were anticipating, but we’re so grateful for the land and excited to now begin building.

We had a picnic party to celebrate the start of construction the final weekend in February. We invited all the teenage boys from Casa Shalom over to the land along with our pastor and our family and friends. It was a great time of giving thanks to God for His provision.

We also used it to talk to the boys about their hopes for the future. Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish”, and other translations say that the people “cast off restraint”. A common problem with orphans is that they have no vision for their lives. When you grow up with no parents or your parents die and you’re left alone, your hopes and dreams for the future can easily die too. Our message to the guys was that in Christ we can have a hope and a future. Like a pot in the hands of a potter, He is forming us for His purpose.

Prayer Requests for March:

  • Elias: Elias is continuing his final year of high school. Please keep him in your prayers as he plans for the future.
  • Benjamin: Elias’s brother Benjamin has finished his required internship in order to graduate from high school, and is now looking for a job. He is also moving out of Casa Shalom and moving in with us. Please pray for him as he transitions into this new phase of life. We’re excited to have him here with us!
  • House Construction: There are a lot of details that go into building a house! I’m learning a lot as we get the project started. One issue that we’re waiting for is that we don’t have any water yet, and the new mayor hasn’t decided how much he wants to charge us to hook it up. Without water we can’t make concrete. Also pray that God provides all the finances needed to build the house.
  • Us: Please pray that Yuliza and I continue to have enough time together as a couple amidst the busyness of teaching, construction and our guys.
  • Please pray Colossians 4:5-6 for us: Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Our website and blog have moved! Our name change is now complete, so our website can now be found at www.PottersHome.org. Please update your bookmarks! My email address Brent@CasaShalom.net will continue to work.

Thanks so much for all of your prayers and support for us in Guatemala! God has given us an incredible responsibility to do, and we feel honored with all the support that we receive.

Brent & Yuliza