The rainy season began this past month, which sometimes slows our construction progress down but also creates dramatic views!
Monthly Archives: May 2012
We have Water!
We finally received permission from the new mayor to connect our house to the town’s water line.
But first we had to dig a 500 feet long ditch down the road in order to connect to their pipe! It took a few days, and fortunately the road is just a dirt road. The above picture is our ditch as it’s passing our neighbor’s house that is also under construction. They have been generous in sharing their water connection these last three months as we were waiting.
Yesterday we reached the main waterline. Water pipes are very different here compared to the USA. We were only allowed to connect to the mainline with a 1/2 inch pipe, which is really skinny, especially for how far it has to go in order to reach our land!
It was also fascinating how the connected our pipe. They just sawed through the mainline with full pressure! It was pretty messy, but they were very quick about adding in our new T connection and reconnecting everything.
Having water available for construction is such a blessing! We’ve been praying for it to be connected before our trip to Texas so that the construction can continue without problem.
Blog Fixed
I think that I’ve fixed the issues that the blog was having because of the move. Let me know in the comments if you see any problems!
Connecting with Carlos
Carlos grew up at Casa Shalom with Elias and Benjamin, but moved away a few years ago to work at a restaurant that also provided him room & board. We found out that he had moved back with his family, so we tracked him down to see how he’s doing. His family lives only about 5 minutes away from us, and it’s great to see him again. We hope to continue to build a relationship with him now that he’s close. He has some learning disabilities, which is why his family left him at the home to grow up. But he’s one of the nicest and most helpful guys you could meet!
April in Guatemala
April was another busy month; sorry that this newsletter is coming out a little late. Our website is a little messed up right now as it’s been moved off of Casa Shalom’s website, so please update your bookmarks to www.PottersHome.org. Hopefully I’ll be able to soon resolve the problems that it’s having.
It’s great having Benjamin and Elias here with us, and we’re growing closer and closer together as a family. There’s certainly a transitional phase for both them as Casa Shalom has been their home since they were both young kids, and they’re accustomed to being surrounded by the other kids. So it’s a big change to be in a much smaller family now. And it’s been a change for Yuliza and I to have them here in our house all the time and to have the larger responsibility of planning and providing for them. But it’s so exciting to be growing together! I have great memories as a child eating dinner together with my family and talking about each of our days. Eating together while we discuss our days, hopes and plans for the future has now become my favorite time that we spend with the guys. We’ve also been studying the book of John together, and it has created many deep discussions. My prayer is that their relationships with our Heavenly Father will continue to mature in knowledge and depth of insight.
The construction on the house continue to steadily advance, and I’ve put a video of the progress on our website.
During my first trip to Guatemala I stayed with the Allan family and helped with their ministry Hearts for the Children. I watched the way this family from Canada interacted with the Guatemalans, and I was impacted by the way they tried to live as close to the Guatemalans as possible. Their example brought to life what the apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23:
Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings. (1 Corinthians 9:19-23 NIV)
My hope and prayer is that we would also model these verses in our own lives and in order break down the cultural and social borders that exist so that Christ may be glorified through us.
Prayer Requests for May:
- Benjamin & Elias: Pray that they continue to grow in their relationship with God as they grow in their professional lives.
- Traveling to Texas: At the end of this month Yuli and I are going to visit our church and friends in Austin. We’re so excited about this opportunity to visit so many people that we dearly miss, and we would appreciate the prayers for our trip, that it would be a great chance to reconnect with many friends and supporters.
- Please pray 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 for us: to the fatherless and motherless, we pray that we may be a father and mother, to win as many as possible.
Thanks so much for your prayers and support for our ministry. We are incredibly grateful! We pray for all of you, so we’d love to hear from each of you about specific things that we can be praying for.
Brent and Yuliza