"It is by GRACE you have been saved!"

"But because of His great LOVE for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions - It is by grace you have been saved," -Ephesians 2:4-5 And what a loving God we do have! Throughout my time here God has showed me His love in countless ways. Whether it be a safe trip on the chicken bus, a hug from the students, an understanding ear in my Spanish speaking, or a beautiful sunset from the Chiquito rooftop, God's love never fails to shine through!

Some of the students working hard at drawing fruits!

Used the timer to get a shot of me with the students, luckily the had the patience
to wait for the picture to take in this one :)

I have finally gotten into more of a routine here, spending every morning teaching in the schools and every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoon helping out in El Yahlu. Tuesday and Thursday I am then able to spend time at the house resting, hanging out with the family, and preparing what to teach which is always a blessing! This week the main English lessons I taught were fruits, vegetables, and colors. The students love when I take out my camera, maybe a little too much because it's difficult to get any good pictures! But here are a couple of the students learning, playing, and laughing at me a lot as well!

Playing a game with colors in English

In one class that is especially hyper I had the students run to the end of the field
and back just to get their energy out.

The second graders are learning "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes,"
the flutes have come in handy to make their learning more interesting!

In El Yahlu I am just there as a helping hand, but I love going to just see how God is working there. It's hard to see the children without shoes and with ripped clothes, but their love and joy is overwhelming. They are willing and excited to learn and even more willing and excited when we play them in basketball. Those games have been quite exciting! All of my years of practice and games come in handy and my "perfect" form almost always produces a swish ;) 

Praying before the lesson in El Yahlu

This little boy has captured my heart. He has a difficult time walking, needs help in almost all he does, and has a smile as big as the sun! You know you want to be a special education teacher when you go to a different country and the ones that grab your heart the most are the ones with clear disabilities and beautiful smiles :)

The weekends I have been blessed enough to see more and more of Guatemala each weekend. This past weekend we headed to Guatemala City to see the "White House" of Guatemala, which is actually a green house but is the same concept. I really enjoyed the time there learning and seeing more than I ever thought I would! I even got the opportunity to walk around the beautiful university that Oscar studied at! This weekend we'll go to another part of this beautiful country. 

Making tomales, a food traditionally eaten at Christmas

In front of the "White House" of Guatemala

God has been teaching me a lot through all of these experiences, but the most important is to always rely on His strength and not my own. Whether it be in controlling a class that doesn't understand my Spanish or in looking out of the bus window to a straight down drop or in trying to communicate whether I will be walking in a protest tomorrow or walking in a demonstration of peace (know worries it's just a walk for peace) relying on the God is what I'm learning to do. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight," -Proverbs 3:5-6

The week flew by here in Guatemala! I don't even know where to begin with what has been going on! First off, I started going out to El Yahlu this week with three of the teachers from the church and have absolutely loved that! It's just Monday, Wednesday, and Friday when I get done at the school. I actually ride the "chicken bus" out there which is quite an adventure in itself. For those who don't know "chicken bus" is the name that was given to these buses I think for how fast they go and how the drivers play chicken on the mountain. It sounds worse than it is though, the bus I ride is pretty safe and the teachers have been taking it all year and have been fine :) In El Yahlu the teachers have a Bible lesson on Monday and then split into age groups on Wednesday and Friday to do math, literacy, whatever is being learned in school. I just basically help with whatever help is needed and enjoy listening to the different lessons.

The girls after getting their hair washed (cute pink towels, huh?) 

On Monday we also washed the children's hair which was fun! There is a problem with lice for those children so once a week washing the hair helps. It was amazing to be able to help with that. The children were so patient and never complaining about the cold water or having to stand over a high sink. They silently bore the cold and then said "gracias" as finished. It's crazy how much a simple experience like that can teach you.

Classes are going good at the school. I hear and say "hello" and "goodbye" more than you could imagine! Clearly these are the only two words the students have learned so far in my teaching, but they really enjoy using them. I love teaching and spending time with the students and I can only pray and trust God that they are learning at least a little bit of English from me. I'm also trusting God that through me they see His love and grace and that I can be a witness to them through my teaching. So many things are out of my hands though, so trusting God with everything has become easier and easier :)

Some of the students at the school working on numbers in English

As the next week comes my way I'm preparing more lessons, hoping to meet more people from the church, and praying that the Lord uses me here in Guatemala. He is doing amazing things here in and through these people!

I cannot believe I have been here in Guatemala a week already! It went by so fast! I finished out the school week actually being able to help with the first and second graders which was fun. The children are so loving and kind! Everyday they ask if I will be back the next day. We have been working on phrases the last two days such as "good morning," "good afternoon,"and "goodnight." The real test to see if they are actually learning will be Monday when I ask them what they remember :)

I am still fully trusting God in this teaching thing, I have seven classes that I see with about 20 to 30 students in each class so it's hard to see if all of the students are learning and to get material for every child, so basically it's in God's hands! Each night so far has then been spent preparing for the next school day, eating (which is done a lot), and getting to know the family. I absolutely love getting to know the family and just spending time with everyone, it's such a blessing.

The students that walked me home

Yesterday afternoon I was able to leave school early since one of the teachers was gone and another teacher sent four of her students with me to make sure I got home safely. Kind of funny sending four students along to "protect" the teacher, but it was a fun walk! The students just wanted to know different words in English and then had fun trying to pronounce them. I also got to practice my Spanish more since the children don't judge on how bad it is :) I had a lot of fun talking with them on the short walk back :)

There is so much God has already taught me in this quick week and I can't wait to see what else He has in store! One is that I need to manage my time better, so with that said... I need to prepare for teaching this week!

What an amazing God we have!

"Como se dice __________ en ingles?"

Today was my first day at the school and I loved it! I'm a little tired, I must admit, but I absolutely loved the school! Yesterday was Mothers Day here in Guatemala so there was no school, only a program that was put on for the moms of the students. Then today the teachers that are moms didn't come to school since they were celebrating mothers day. The schools celebrate every holiday, making the amount of time the students learn significantly less, but that is just how it works. To do a quick overview of my last few days here I went with Oscar out to a village about 30 minutes from Sumpango to help out at a program he has partnered with there called "Mano con Mano." God is doing so many great things through the program for the children and the families of the village! It was so awesome to see! Hopefully I will be able to go back and help in the afternoons after I get settled in at the school.

The program feeds malnourished children of the village. 

The children love to have their picture taken and then look at it on the camera :)

Then on Tuesday at the program at the school a woman from the church was able to share the gift of salvation with the mothers which, again, was so amazing to see! God is just doing great things here in Guatemala through Oscar and his family and Los Olivos Church!

Mothers Day program, the seats were filled!

And onto today, the school was so fun! Due to the fact that the mothers stayed home today the schedule was different than I thought and rather than having first and second graders I was with the fourth, fifth and sixth graders. Talk about an opportunity to allow God to take the reigns! I had barely anything prepared, the teachers had no idea what they wanted me to teach and left the room in my hands, and still I am in one piece. In all honestly it was completely God in me, not me at all. The children were so fun though! I heard "como se dice _____ en ingles?" more times than I can count! But it was a fun day. Once again another amazing experience! Then on the way back from the school I rode in one of the buses (not the chicken buses don't worry:)) and did not know how to explain where to go. I ended up riding in the little bus for a while telling the students and driver different words in English. Finally, I just told the driver to drop me off at the market since I knew my way from there. I made it safely back to a lunch of spaghetti! Now just to plan out what my lesson will be tomorrow! Now I know the grade and know that I will be completely in charge for 45 minutes so hopefully I will be a little bit more prepared. Either way God came through today so I'm not too worried. There will be more pictures to come, I just keep forgetting my camera!

P.S. I never knew Lindsey was so hard to say! In each class we spent about five minutes just going over how my name is pronounced! :)

Safely in Guatemala :)

I made it! Safe and sound! With absolutely no problems! But let's be honest, God brought me this far without problems did I really think I wouldn't make it on the plane or through customs? Absolutely not :) Yesterday was spent shopping at what is now Wal-mart in Guatemala city, lunch at McDonalds, getting to know the Chiquito family, and topped off with a delicious dinner of noodles, chicken and vegetables. It was an exhausting, but wonderful day! I have failed to take any pictures so far, but there will be some to come soon!
Today was a bit more relaxing day that consisted of the market, playing with Emily (Oscar and Karla's daughter), being able to help in making a delicious lunch (although I'm not positive what it was called) and church. At church I could understand the majority of what the pastor was talking about which was such a blessing! The sermon was about being close to God and how that consists of being obedient and loving, a sermon that really applies at all times but especially while I'm here in Guatemala. I also loved just being in the church and seeing the strong sense of community within the church and the way Christ's love shines through everyone! I can't say enough how blessed I am to be here! Everyone is now around the house relaxing, preparing for the long week ahead, as I should be doing as well. I can now put to practice the lesson plans I was taught to make in school since I will be teaching in the schools this week! We'll see how that goes! As the week goes on keep my lesson plans in your prayers! :)

"How Great is our God!"

As I sit in Chicago with my mom and my sister eating Giordano's stuffed pizza, I can't believe that tomorrow I am going to be in Guatemala. The only words that I can think to say are, How great is our God? Seriously though! I am going to another country in less than 7 hours and the only logical reason is we have an amazing, gracious God. Today was filled with long car rides, multiple stops for supplies, packing in the hotel parking lot, and a few u-turns along the way. But with all of that behind, I will be arriving at the airport at 3:00 a.m. tomorrow (I have such a loving mom and sister) and from there on out it is all in God's hands. The plane will land in Guatemala at 11 a.m. and so will begin my adventure. Excitement doesn't even begin to explain my feelings! But, unfortunately, I was just informed by my mom that it is time for bed, which is probably a good idea with only 4 hours until we wake up. 12 hours until Guatemala :)