Power at Work - Empowering Guatemalan's

Do you ever walk into a space, place or home, and it feels like well HOME.  The very first time we stepped our feet in the compound of Power at Work, we felt so much peace and you could feel the Holy Spirit just resting and smiling. 

It was a Sunday morning...Waffle Sunday!  The place is packed with kids and families, all waiting for their number to be called for waffles.  It's chaos but relaxed.  It's laughter, it's fun and it's good old-fashioned waffles and coffee!  You had me at waffles!

Here is a 4-minute video on Power At Work:

YouTube Video ⬆️⬆️

Kids make the waffles and serve them (empowering!)

Waffle Sunday

Power At Work is located just a few minutes away from Fe Viva.  It began on the Fe Viva grounds, but as the ministry grew its leaders decided it was time to find a home that was all their own, with the ability to grow, have a shop, and continue to empower the children of Guazacapan, Guatemala, and support over 100 children and their families. 

The Leaders:

Antony Van Engen, who has been here for over 20 years (he came as an 18 year old) is a carpenter, soccer player, one of the great people you will meet in life.  His heart pours out on these kids each day.

Grant Lamb:  Grant is one of those awesome guys who loves kids, works hard, and doesn't know any spanish, but that has never stopped him one bit from building deep relationships with people.  He has been coming here since 2010 after he sold his farm, and now is able to support himself fully.  Grant is a doer and makes stuff happen, its a real treat to be around him!

Carol Lamb: Carol has been coming to Guatemala since 2015.  It seems impossible not to like Carol.  So lovely, caring, kind.  You can feel her warmth, and so do the families and kids.  I feel like she is the glue that holds most things together!  I could hang out with these guys all day long they are awesome!

The local leaders who work F/T at Power at Work are, Nim & Estaphania who do a ton of stuff including outreach, feeding programs, and translating.  Edwin who graduated from the program at power at work now helps run it by empowering and teaching the kids to fix bikes and carpentry skills.

What do they do...well in a word they LOVE.  They love these kids and families, and it's evident...that is their WHY.   How do they do it?  They have created a safe environment for kids to flourish, and feel empowered, all while creating practical tools to do this.

What?   In their custom workshop, they create wooden picnic tables, bunk beds, and other wood items.  All built by the kids.  They fix bikes for the community, again all done by the kids and led by Edwin, who is teaching these kids valuable problem-solving and life skills.  

They help them with their education, by sponsoring them with food and require them to have a certain standard at school to be in the program.  They have nutrition programs.

Each day is a new activity and it feels like there is something fun for everyone.

They have their own soccer field with games 3-4x per week.  They go for a bike ride up the mountain and to a creek 3 days a week where you can bike or hike with the group.  Waffle Sundays!

Generally it's a happening place anytime you walk through the front door with something going on any time of the day.  (Still don't know when they ever rest)!

Ephesians 3:20 gest put on all their tables/bunk beds

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

Anthony

Grant & Anthony

T-Shirts

Parker in the workshop

Bunk BED

Outside of complex - looking at workshop

Grant!

Grant, Carol, Anthony, Estephanie and Nim

along with the Jansens

Check out their website - they are doing some super amazing things here in Guatemala!

 https://power-at-work.ca/

A Family in need - Selena

 In our first few days in Guatemala, we met Selena.   We immediately felt a connection, compassion, empathy and the Holy Spirit leading us to connect with her.  Over the following 7 weeks, we have been building a relationship with her, we have got to know her, and her story and it has been cool to see God working in her family.  Here is Selena and her story:

Erin & Matteo

Erin & Selena

At first glance, you can see she is an overwhelmed working mother ( working at a tortilla shop Monday to Saturday to provide food for her family - which is basically an open flame barrel where they make tortillas on the side of a busy highway)  of 5 kids age ranging 10 months old to 12 years old. But as we continued to learn more of her story the layers of grief, trauma, and sadness we felt the pull even deeper to support her. Every person needs a starting point, a helping hand to help move in a positive direction- God led and with the support of FeViva provided essential items to help Selena & her kids. Alongside FeViva Selena received one of their stoves, also a water purification system ( they were collecting water when they could and having water in buckets on her patio but they were always full of bugs or whatever was blown in by the wind- but it is what they had to drink), beds for all her kids, dressers/ storage FeViva had for clothing & items, a new Pilas ( which is an outdoor sink you clean your clothes in, wash your dishes, and have your shower water from. The Pilas is an essential item for a home in Guatemala which she did not have. She had to clean the family of 6 clothes by hand on a rock by her house!!! Also cleaning dishes in buckets of water that she would collect whenever water was available. The water here in Guatemala is sometimes given for an hour or so in the morning or afternoon but you have to catch it when it is on and fill buckets or your Pilas for your water for the entire day or more.) We were able to clean her house ( scrub as much mould as we could off the walls) and created a runoff with rocks for when the rainy season comes so the water would not come into her house but drain down the mountain. This took multiple days and numerous hands for this all to happen. We are so grateful for every helping hand who helped this family receive all these gifts from God- May he be praised for his work through it all. We are so grateful for the full support and care from Melissa & Nelson ( full-time FeViva missionaries) Melissa was basically with us every visit, translating, installing the stove (Nelson as well), cleaning out her house to start over, etc. None of this could have happened without their time and support- we are so grateful. 

 When I first held Matteo and proceeded to have him nap on me the entire service knew something was not " normal" about him. We asked further, Mom knew he was anaemic but had no funds to care for him. Selena was also suffering so with the help of FeViva they were able to take Mom & baby to the doctor and get them both the medication they so desperately needed. It has been such a joy to see this baby boy grow up before our eyes. He was a limp very lethargic 10 months old when I first held his precious body but now this past Sunday - 5 Sundays later he was dancing and clapping along to the worship service- Praise the Good Lord. We pray over this baby that he may grow and develop; may he get all the nutrients he needs to thrive. 

I think the greatest joy of all has been getting to know these kids every part of their lives is heavy and much responsibility is expected of the kids, especially the 3 older boys. We have spent many hours at their house and had the joy of having them in our house; have them for breakfast & play together. At times Caesar the oldest is to care & provide for all 4 siblings; he is 12. To play basketball with him and allow him to act his age even for an hour was a joy to experience. 

                                    FeViva water purification system being installed & taught how to clean.

                                                      Caesar & Anthony with the new stove!

We brought in rocks for drainage and here we are installing a stove

 

                                New bunk bed so every child & mom has a bed now! *This is her entire home.  Previously they had only 1 bunk bed and somehow all 5 kids and Selena were here.

                 Stephen Johnston & his son Parker were amazing the week they were here serving with FeViva. They built the runoff below and installed multiple stoves, basically doing everything they could to help this precious family. We are so grateful for them to jump aboard this train to love this family. 

Amazing Sonia came to love on the kids and help teach them how to help and support their mom with duties around the house.

Her new sink (in blue) called a PILLA - we got for her and installed as she didn't have a place to do laundry or her dishes.

Dishes we brought back to clean thoroughly; we were also able to do all her laundry to give her a much-needed break and fresh start with laundry!

The house in the middle is her home..1 bedroom for all 6 of them, about 250sq ft.
The property and inside were in very rough shape when we got there.  Dirt floors (this is before our cleanup) Her whole front of her property was full of water because of drainage issues so they would get muddy everytime they walked in or out.

Her house constantly floods so we built a trench and a rock wall for the water to divert.

   We are so grateful for all the support & time that Melissa & Nelson ( FeViva full-time missionaries) have poured into Selena & her family. 

                 FeViva hands out these food/kitchen essential bags to families in need.

                                            Selena received one on stove installation day!

Taking a new bed over to Selenas

Praying over Selena & family at FeViva church

We lift this precious family up to you God; may you be their refuge in times ahead and the father of love they desperately need. 

We took the kids for a morning so Selena could go to the Doctors with Matteo.

                                          I will miss my Matteo & Monserrat snuggles.. 

Faith In Action - Bringing Hope to forgotten Peoples of Guatemala

It is so interesting who God puts in your life at different times and seasons.  Back in 2008 while Erin was on YWAM in Australia, Erin met Kayla.  Kayla who grew up in Guatemala as a Missionary Kid.  After YWAM they stayed somewhat connected, but never dreamed a meeting would actually take place..  Given Kayla & her family split their time between Guatemala & USA it seemed unlikely to reconnect. 

As soon as we felt called to go to Guatemala I reached out to Kayla about our connecting but was unsure how it would all unfold but God knew. Our very first day in Guatemala. they happened to be in Guatemala City so we were able to meet them and spend a morning with them.   After hearing their passion and the work they are doing serving the Lord, we knew right away that we had to find a way to see them.  Logistically we weren't sure given their ministry is in Zacapa around 4-5 hours away from Fe Viva located in the southern region.  But God put his plan into action; all the pieces of the puzzle came together and with the blessings of FeViva we were off to see Faith In action being led By Kayla & Jared Phillips and their 3 kids Harper ( 5) , Judah ( 3) , London ( 4 months old).

 Check out their website here:  https://fiaministries.com/

We left at 5:00 am to beat traffic from Guazacapan up to the mountain regions of Zacapa, where we were driven by our faithful driver HECTOR! 

We arrived around 9:45. We unloaded our stuff, got a quick tour and then headed back into the vehicles to head up into the mountains to visit the mission base where Kayla grew up in the village called Pinalito (Little Pine Tree). It was a 2-hour drive, straight up the mountain, 4x4 incredible trek. 

(Drive up to the Village - Creek crossing, Daniel the cowboy)

3 years ago Kayla & Jared started this journey of rescuing these 7 bonus children ( boys & girls ages 3-12) from this village who were severely neglected & abused. They joined us on this trip up to their village and we got to meet their cousins & aunties and hear their incredible story of healing & redemption, they were an absolute joy to meet and an inspiration. 

The views from this village were breathtaking, from one direction of the mountain range is Honduras and all in between Faith in Action has been ministering to these villages about Jesus and providing help however they can. At their base where we stayed, they built a local school, and a medical clinic where doctors & dental or other medical professionals come in and try to help anyone they can from all the surrounding villages. They also have a heart for churches- so they have built a church in Pinalito but instead of having a pastor from the village they want to empower the people of Guatemala to serve their people as missionaries. The pastor & his family come from a village 4 hours away to serve as missionary pastors to serve the village & area for God. 

This weekend was full of us just listening in awe of all the stories of the people of this village, their tragedies & suffering but also how God showed up in miraculous ways to show his love & faithfulness in their lives. We will cherish these stories and the people we met who remained faithful when it did not make sense yet God proved to be trustworthy and faithful. Sunday morning we headed to church, just so you get a visual understanding the churches are concrete buildings with a roof but no windows. They blast the music so loud that it can be reached to the village to let them know church has begun. Kayla also shared that many have come to Christ by listening to the blasting music & preaching perhaps because their spouses would not allow them to go or were scared to attend. Many men; with machete's in hand ( no man or teen boy did not have a machete in their hands at all times) hung out in a group outside the church, and would not come in but would stay close enough to hear every word. 

Church at Pinalito

You can see the men standing at the door and outside all around without actually coming into the church

It was a blessing to experience the service with the people of Pinalito; we got to meet many families and always many many children. After lunch we went for a hike to the houses of the Aunties & cousins of the 7 bonus kids; it's a treacherous hike straight down the mountainside- I could barely do it in my shoes yet these women do it in rubber sandals every day. It was an honour to gain more understanding of what these 7 bonus kids grew up in and their surroundings. Their auntie showed us how to grind the corn & showed us the process of making the tortillas in their kitchen. I asked the lady how many times a day they do this; thinking once a day or every other day- she responded 3 times a day. Some days this is all they have to eat so it is tortillas  3 times a day. We were able to just spend time with them and pray over them- it was really wonderful for us and the kids. We packed everything up and made our 2-hour trek back down the mountain to Zacapa with hearts full of gratitude for what we had seen, heard, and witnessed. 

Bonus kids village family

Erin praying for a 2 day old baby

Coffee growers

School

Church

Faith in Action's other big ministry in Zacapa is witnessing and loving the families who work at the dump. A lot of the families who end up working at the dump are from the surrounding mountain villages with whom Kayla grew up. One day we bought all the supplies to make bags for 40 families, a variety of essential food items that can carry their family through the next couple of weeks. The next day we got to hand deliver to a couple homes and go to the dump ourselves. As you can imagine the smells, the look, the sadness of the environment yet these families are full of joy. So happy to talk with you and meet you; we were in awe of each one- it was an honour to pray over them and spend time together. We found out the children go to school ( if they can afford to go to school) and once school is completed at 1:00 head to the dump to be with their parents and work alongside them. They even had a football game going on in the middle of the dump.

The Dump in Zacapa

(Left) handing out to the families (Right) Juan, legit beauty had a huge smile the whole time!

This experience and the people we met will forever be a part of our story; we will remember the stories shared and carry them with us as move forward. We lift this ministry ( Faith in Action) and the people of the region of Zacapa up to God; we are thankful for each memory of your faithfulness.

Here are a few videos for your enjoyment: