Serving Others In Sumpango: Construction, Home Visits, and VBS in Guatemala

Buenas Tardes!

I am writing this to you late Sunday afternoon, nearly one week to the hour that we first arrived at our hotel here in Sumpango, and what a week it has been!

Sharing The Gospel With Confidence and Enthusiasm

Every day, we leave our hotel around 9:30 am and return at 4:30 pm, just before supper. Our ministry has been exhausting, but fruitful. The two groups not involved in the home construction spent each morning last week walking through villages and doing home visits. These groups were accompanied each time by one of our Breaking Cycles translators as well as a local pastor. On Thursday and Friday, I joined these groups in ministry and was really impressed with how boldly they shared their faith. I got to witness Myra share her story more than once of how God rescued her from a life of legalism and religion, and how he completely transformed her faith in Jesus.

students on a mission trip helping with a building project

These two ministry groups spent their afternoons co-leading a VBS ministry in the same village where they did home visits. VBS looks very different now than it would have in previous years (all participants were masked, distanced, and not allowed to touch), and yet the joy it brought to those kids was visible. Each VBS is only two days long and runs for about 2 to 3 hours each day, yet our teams were still deeply disappointed to say goodbye to these children they had grown to know and love. Also, the energy required to perform many dances each day in front of the kids definitely contributed to our overall exhaustion at the end of the week. However, I’ve got to give a major shoutout to Bergen, Domonique, Grace, Ben, and Ella S., who basically jumped/ran for fifteen minutes straight. Their commitment was certainly never in question!

group picture of a mission team in guatemala after vbs

Weekly Rhythms

Our schedule each week breaks down nicely. Mon-Fri will be our ministry days, Saturday will be our Culture & Heritage Day where we can explore and have a bit of fun, and Sunday is our day to attend a church service and then rest. 

Visiting Iximche

Yesterday, we explored a bit of Iximche, which are Mayan ruins dating back to the 1520s. Though beautiful, scenic, and fun to explore, these ruins have a dark history. Iximche was the capital of the Kaqchikel Mayan kingdom, and human sacrifice to the Mayan “gods” was a common occurrence and coveted honor. Though this practice no longer takes place at Iximche, many local Maya visit this site to offer worship and ritual to their ancestors, and we saw a couple of families doing just that during our time there. Mayan spiritualism is very common in Guatemala. We are praying that God will break through centuries of tradition and ritual practice; we are praying and working so that Christ might become known here.

group of students on a mission trip to guatemala

Pray For Our Team

Well, it’s hard to believe Week 1 is in the books (I consider Training Camp more of a prologue). We look forward to our next two weeks of ministry here in Sumpango before we even think of heading to Panajachel for debriefing. So, how can you pray for us this week? Well, our team has not yet had a day where we could send a full squadron into ministry. We’ve been riddled with small colds, meaning we’ve had to hold those who were sick and a leader out of ministry each day. Will you pray for our team’s health? And that God would also keep exhaustion at bay after long days of work?

Jack Becker

Guatemala Trip Leader