Meeting with Students
Our first meeting with the students occured on Tuesday evening
to get an update from each of the business owners. We heard from
4 of the owners about how they are progressing with their business.
Maria has used half of her money to purchase invetory for her store,
which included socks and underwear. She shared with us her challenge
of needing protection from the rain for her products. Edson has
procured a new computer and camera that is being used to produce
banners. Edsons wife is expecting their first child in January.
He is being challenged with competitors having lower prices, but
not offering the same quality. Doris has been very successful starting
her hair salon. She was profitable in her first month. She is holding
beatification clinics to draw more customers. Finally, Luis is
hard at work completing his camera modifications that are needed
to start filming. We spent the evening listening to their progress
and taking notes. We also learned of the kingdom impact that these
companies are having already. We heard about two professions of
faith, both from a customer and employee. We are encouraged with
their progress. Wednesday night we will be meeting with them to
start asking questions and encouraging them. Wednesday will be
spent in the medical missions with a group that is in from Northpoint
Church (14 people). More details to follow.....
Please be praying for our consultations with the owners and for ministry
plans for 2008 as they are being developed. Also pray for continued kingdom
impact.
Medical Missions on Wednesday
Sorry
for being one day late on updates. We finally have some
time and a good internet connection to update everyone
on what occured on Wednesday. As we mentioned, we particpited
on a medical mission trip with a group from Northpoint Community
Church, who is also staying at the same mission center. Our
day started out with a powerful devotional led by Dr. Herman
Alb. He encouraged us to be intentional in reaching out to
people and witnessing to others about the glory of God. The
town we visited was Cuilapa, which turns out to be the exact
central location of the Amercias (North & South). We
saw 98 patients over the course of the day. It was a blessing
to see this aspect of ministry and the impact that it has
on a church. The actual medical clinic is only one small
part of the overall ministry that occurs. The ministry actually
starts working with the village and pastor of the church
months before the visit preparing hearts and praying for
seekers who may benefit from the gospel sharing that occurs
during the clinic. The importance is placed on the support
that is required for new believers within the village and
from the church after the clinic day. It was a blessing to
be a small part in God's plan to reach the people in this
village. After the clinic was over, we drove back to Guatemala
City in preparation for our evening sessions with the business
owners.
Thursday, November 08, 2007
One on One consultations
On Wednesday night we had our first one-on-one discussions
with Edson and Luis. We were privileged to have Edmundo
Madrid, the senior pastor for Showers of Grace and the
founder of the church over 30 years ago. We spoke with
Edson first and found out about his design and marketing
business. His passion for the business was very evident.
The funding for all of the students was presented less
than 6 weeks ago, so, Edson only had information on his
first month's success. We have happy to see that he is
already profitable and has recently won a design job related
to Guatemala's intention for an Olympic bid. He is also
had success on renting billboards, which gives him some
monthly recurring revenue. We encouraged Edson to consider
a commissioned sales person to help his efforts. We also
met with Luis, who is the final stages of completing his
video hardware that will allow him to film events with
multiple angels and good lighting. He is very innovative
and has a great design to accomplish this task. He also
shared some marketing materials that looked very professional.
We are excited about his revenue potential when his equipment
is completed and ready to be used.
Today, Thursday, we will be going to meet Maria and Doris at their place of business. It will be exciting to see their locations and discuss in more detail their progress. We will post pictures soon.
Today, Thursday, we will be going to meet Maria and Doris at their place of business. It will be exciting to see their locations and discuss in more detail their progress. We will post pictures soon.
Friday, November 09, 2007
Thursday's Activities
Our activities for
Thursday started with a devotional time in the morning
and reflection and prayer for others and our mission.
We were met by Estuardo the
ministry leader to have lunch and to meet with Fernando
who has been involved in the business ministry. We spent
the afternoon with Estuardo the ministry team leader
discussing challenges he is facing in his business. This
was truly a rich and very emotional time of sharing,
confession, dependence and pray . Seeking understanding
about the trials entrepreneurs face
and how their lives are affected. The holy spirit revealed
its self in a very powerful way
during this time . Please pray the Lord will protect Estuardo's business
and pour out His favor in the lives of his employees.
Please pray his inventory will turn more quickly and
the customers he has extended credit to will have the ability to
pay the company back soon . Please pay for protection
as Estuardo serves
the Lord in the business ministry as he is a warfare
target.
Afterwards we climbed down the mountain only to walk
back up it again when we arrived at Doris's salon. Her
story of vision and dedication to God's calling to open
a Kingdom Business salon is a true testament to the Lord's
work in Guatemala. She shared a story that 18 months
ago when she started the Micro Enterprise Kingdom Business
Program, she had a plan of her dream and how the salon
would look. It has turned out the shop she found is an
exact match and looks exactly like her paper drawing
she created from God's revelation in the beginning. We
celebrated God's faithfullness , prayed for her, her
business success and, most importantly, for the Lord's
kingdom to be impacted and advanced in significant ways.
The Lord has allowed Doris to lead one customer to a
profession of faith so far in her salon .
She proudly told us of her first expense ... a tithed
to the Lord on the first months profit. It was a blessing to
see the first fruit of this program .
(Grant and Terry a special thank
you for your faithfulness
and to all those who gave funds to start these business.
You will get your reward in heaven .)
Later we climbed back down the mountain and spent
the remainder of the evening in a rich time with Estuardo and
his family. Dinner at Pizza Hut and conversations about
our church groups and cultures.
Thank you Lord for the awesome work
you doing and allowing us to co labor with you.
Verse of the Day.
This day is about truth .. John 14 : 6
I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes
to the father except through me......
Friday & Saturday
After a morning devotional, debrief and prayer at the
mission center, we met with Edmundo and Berline Perez for
lunch. Edmundo is the lead pastor for Lluvias de Gracia (Showers
of Grace) church. Edmundo shared with us his vision for the
church and his heart for the Guatemala people. His vision
has three main elements:
- To share the true gospel of Jesus to all people in Guatemala
- That the people would want to learn and education is available to all who want to learn
- Establishment of commerce opportunities to allow the families to provide for themselves and be lifted out of poverty.
Unfortunately, it is common in the culture for Guatemalans to see poverty as a virtue (it is confused with humility) and, therefore, the people do not feel compelled to better their lives. Edmundo’s heart and vision is to transform the culture by introducing these three elements in an intentional way. David shared with Edmundo Perimeter’s vision of life-on-life discipleship and how the materials related to his vision. We also discussed the 2008 plan, journey dates and Micro Enterprise Development (MED) Training Plan. During 2008, MED will not only teach a new class of students but also Guatemalan teachers for year 3. We prayed at the close of our 2 hour meal and praised God for the work He is doing through His church.
Afterwards, we drove to Maria’s street side business. We arrived to see a smiling Kingdom Business owner. Her pride in her work did not need to be translated into English for us. Maria is a very special woman with a true heart for the Lord. Her zeal came through loud and clear in her Spanish prayers! We purchased some items from her and prayed over her business. That evening we met one-on-one with Maria and Doris to give them ideas and listen to their questions. Our team left that night at 10:30 PM with a strong confidence that the graduates were well grounded in their business approach and will be successful.
Saturday:
Saturday Morning was our last time to meet with the business owners at Showers of Grace. David shared a message on the importance of a prayer-covered plan for their Kingdom Business. He explained that we spent the week talking about sales, marketing, and other business concepts, but it was important to have everything built on the proper foundation of faith for the business. He encouraged the graduates to be intentional about praying for each other’s business also. Edmundo Madrid translated the lesson for the students. We ended the teaching time with the students praying for each other’s businesses. The passion in the voices of the students did not need translation. It was obvious that Jesus is in the hearts of them all. We then spent the rest of the day with Estuardo and his family in Antigua taking in the culture and purchasing gifts for our supporters.
- To share the true gospel of Jesus to all people in Guatemala
- That the people would want to learn and education is available to all who want to learn
- Establishment of commerce opportunities to allow the families to provide for themselves and be lifted out of poverty.
Unfortunately, it is common in the culture for Guatemalans to see poverty as a virtue (it is confused with humility) and, therefore, the people do not feel compelled to better their lives. Edmundo’s heart and vision is to transform the culture by introducing these three elements in an intentional way. David shared with Edmundo Perimeter’s vision of life-on-life discipleship and how the materials related to his vision. We also discussed the 2008 plan, journey dates and Micro Enterprise Development (MED) Training Plan. During 2008, MED will not only teach a new class of students but also Guatemalan teachers for year 3. We prayed at the close of our 2 hour meal and praised God for the work He is doing through His church.
Afterwards, we drove to Maria’s street side business. We arrived to see a smiling Kingdom Business owner. Her pride in her work did not need to be translated into English for us. Maria is a very special woman with a true heart for the Lord. Her zeal came through loud and clear in her Spanish prayers! We purchased some items from her and prayed over her business. That evening we met one-on-one with Maria and Doris to give them ideas and listen to their questions. Our team left that night at 10:30 PM with a strong confidence that the graduates were well grounded in their business approach and will be successful.
Saturday:
Saturday Morning was our last time to meet with the business owners at Showers of Grace. David shared a message on the importance of a prayer-covered plan for their Kingdom Business. He explained that we spent the week talking about sales, marketing, and other business concepts, but it was important to have everything built on the proper foundation of faith for the business. He encouraged the graduates to be intentional about praying for each other’s business also. Edmundo Madrid translated the lesson for the students. We ended the teaching time with the students praying for each other’s businesses. The passion in the voices of the students did not need translation. It was obvious that Jesus is in the hearts of them all. We then spent the rest of the day with Estuardo and his family in Antigua taking in the culture and purchasing gifts for our supporters.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Final Posting
Sunday:
Jonathan was still not felling well so we prayed over him and let him rest.
Worship at Showers Of Grace and a message on: “Let your light shine before men so they may see your good deeds and praises your father in heaven.” Matt. 5 : 16
We had an opportunity to go on the stage in front of a 1,000 plus people and share about our mission work and asked the congregation to pray for these Kingdom Start-ups. We praised the vision of the church and how God was working through it in the market place in Guatemala City.
After church we met briefly with William to see how his Kingdom business start up was was doing and then off to pick up Jonathan and then to the airport.
As we close out this trip blog, our team wants to especially thank Estuardo Perez and his family for their love and special care they extended to our team while in Guatemala . We saw the love and devotion of Jesus in their actions and praise God for their faithfulness. Javier, Estuardo’s 12-yr-old son, has the potential one day to be a president of Guatemala (We have heard prophecy to support this thought and will pray for God’s will to be done!).
Our next round of training in Guatemala City is planned for Feb 5 – 11th 2008, which will be Juholdas Phase 1 training.
Those who are interested in finding out more, please contact David Pritchard 404 644 8899.
May God bless the wonderful people of Guatemala and shine His light on them brightly. His hand is clearly touching them in many ways.
Dios les bendiga,
David Pritchard, Matt Perry, Jonathan Redding
Jonathan was still not felling well so we prayed over him and let him rest.
Worship at Showers Of Grace and a message on: “Let your light shine before men so they may see your good deeds and praises your father in heaven.” Matt. 5 : 16
We had an opportunity to go on the stage in front of a 1,000 plus people and share about our mission work and asked the congregation to pray for these Kingdom Start-ups. We praised the vision of the church and how God was working through it in the market place in Guatemala City.
After church we met briefly with William to see how his Kingdom business start up was was doing and then off to pick up Jonathan and then to the airport.
As we close out this trip blog, our team wants to especially thank Estuardo Perez and his family for their love and special care they extended to our team while in Guatemala . We saw the love and devotion of Jesus in their actions and praise God for their faithfulness. Javier, Estuardo’s 12-yr-old son, has the potential one day to be a president of Guatemala (We have heard prophecy to support this thought and will pray for God’s will to be done!).
Our next round of training in Guatemala City is planned for Feb 5 – 11th 2008, which will be Juholdas Phase 1 training.
Those who are interested in finding out more, please contact David Pritchard 404 644 8899.
May God bless the wonderful people of Guatemala and shine His light on them brightly. His hand is clearly touching them in many ways.
Dios les bendiga,
David Pritchard, Matt Perry, Jonathan Redding
