After being in Guatemala for less than 24 hours I believe I experienced a round of culture shock. It was only re-enforced within the next 24 hours I was in Guatemala. Saturday night we stepped off the plane into a humid sticky air and we stood and breathed it in. Travelling to Guatemala Bible Seminary (Chimaltenango), we found our rooms and very soon hit our 2 piece foam beds. We discovered that North Americans in general are large people as the showers only come up to our shoulders. Everything seems smaller.
Sunday morning we experienced our first meal that came as a bit of shock to my tastes. I love milk. White. Chocolate. Love milk. However, I now know that I am not a fan of warm powdered milk. : ) We were blessed with our first church service, all in El Española. Without understanding it, our communication class was put to the test as we read non-verbal gestures and followed cues. The dynamic passionate speaker was amazing, despite not understanding a single word he said, we could tell he incorporated stories into his sermon and he spoke with such zeal you could just tell he loved the Lord. One verse we managed to get out of it with the help of interns translating :
Joshua 1:9 ‘Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do
not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.’
This was a powerful verse as the most of us where feeling exhausted from travelling, anxiousness about the upcoming weeks and the dangers that Guatemala withholds. It strongly reassured me that God is at Camp Bighorn (Montana), he is at Prairie (Three Hills), and he is in Guatemala (Antigua, Chimaltenango, Chichicostengo). He is with me while I walk the streets or eat strange foods. He is with me while I am engrossed in learning or missing people. He is.
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