Lost in the Big City

We have been living in Magdelana for 4 days now and we have been driving around to different places to find different things we need for the new house. (Go here for pics)  We are trying to be frugal and find the best deals which takes us to many different places.  Often times they are unfamiliar places since we don't know the area very well yet other than the places we frequent.  Some of the places are fairly close and others not as close like Guatemala City which is not too far but still about 45 minutes away.

Yesterday was one of those days when I began to wonder if it was worth all our running around. We began by going to a sale at a seminary that was about 45 minutes away.  We got there and they didn't have a whole lot of anything.  So then we decided to go to a store in the city which was about a half hour from where we were.  Then we remembered about an email we saw from an email group we are part of for missionaries here in Guatemala.  We remembered that they were selling a bunch of stuff that we were interested in seeing and it wasn't too far from the store where we were going. So we decided to give them a call and try to find their house.  This is when the fun began...

We got some vague directions and began heading that way.  We got most of the way there and we were a bit confused about a certain road and so we gave them a call and they gave us some more directions but apparently we were in a different place then where they thought so we got some wrong directions and then we ended up city in traffic here for about 30 minutes which seemed like hours with 5 kids in the car and everyone honking their horns :)

 

After getting out of the traffic we were forced to go back south away from where we needed to be I later found out.  We called the people again and they were not able to help us much since we had made some wrong turns and not very many streets here have signs we could not even tell them where we were.  I tried to turn around but the streets here make it impossible to turn around!  Then I ended up in a buss lane and got stopped by the police who were gracious to me prolly cause I looked like a dumb greengo :) 

 

We ended up getting turned around finally but by this point I was getting pretty nervous since we were in a city of about 2.3 million people scrolling across many square miles, they speak a language I don't yet know very well and it is not very safe in certain places!  I did not know who to call because I didn't even know where we were.  By this time we were praying and asking the Lord to get us home.  We were not even concerned about going to this home or to the store we just wanted to get home safely.

 

I began to try and work my way back to where I thought we should be and we ended up on a road that the people we were trying to find gave us so I gave them a call and we were literally one block from there home.  How that happened? God!  It is awesome to be reminded that no matter what situation we find our selves in the Lord is in control and regardless of how scared and nervous we are he is not worried about the situation we are in.  He is God of all and over all!

 

So we called them and found our way to their house and then they gave us good directions to get home.  Thank You Jesus for your protection, guidance and provision for us!  Thanks to each of you who pray and support us in our work here in Guatemala!  As indicated in this blog the Lord does answer your prayers!

 

Check out one more beautiful picture of the city and the 3 volcanoes close to us, Fuego (the one you have heard about in the news that has been erupting), Pacaya, and Agua:

 

 

New House in Magdelana

We are so grateful for the new home the Lord has provided for us very close to where we are ministering.  In fact several of the homes and families that have been ministered to over the years through Love Guatemala and Indy Metro Church our now our neighbors. We are starting to get settled and as you can see from the pictures we still need some things so pray the Lord will provide those things and lead us to the best deals.  This transition has brought many problems and challenges but we are excited to be here. Check out a few pics of our new home in Magdelana:

This is the view from our balcony.

 A view from the roof towards Antigua.

 The front wall

 Another view from the roof.

 The kitchen/dining room.

 Kitchen

 More of the kitchen

 The stairs and front door.

 Loft area.

 More of the loft.

Our Bedroom.

 

 

Thanks to all who gave and prayed to make this possible!  We are very excited to be here and be right in the middle of those whom he has called us to reach.  

Ministry in Guatemala

As I have mentioned in the past one of the primary ways we are able to minister here in Guatemala is through making visits to all the families connected with the schools we work with at Love Guatemala Ministeries.

Today we visited a family of a young man named George who attends the Art School.  George has a story that is somewhat similar to a lot of the families here.  He has many problems.  Those problems and struggles that are very difficult for anyone let alone a young boy. These problems came to a head one day for George.  It breaks your heart to see young boys having to bear these kinds of burdens here.  This day about 2 months ago.  At the time we had a couple of men here from Piedmont Church here and they we were all able to share with him and pray over him.  He shared that he had many problems at home.  He was a bit hesitant to share what the problems were but he finally shared that his Dad was in jail and they didn't have much money and that it was very hard.

Today was a bit better of a time with him and his family.  But his mother shared with us that her husband was still in jail from a debt he could not pay back.  So needless to say they are struggling with this.  We were able to pray with them and encourage them from the scriptures again today.

Please pray for this family that George would be released from jail and this issue with the debt would be resolved and that we would have wisdom in ministering to them.

Babe in a Manger

We have been living in Guatemala for about 2 1/2 months now and one of the things we are striving to do is learn as much about the culture here as possible.  I know it is important to love and minister to people here on their terms and in the best way possible according to the culture here not the culture I have lived in for all my life.

Obviously, the culture here is a lot different here than in the United States.  If you visit for a week or two you may not notice many differences other than the language difference.  But living here you begin to pick up on some of the differences.  One being that Guatemalans are not as concered about time and keeping a schedule.  It is more important to enjoy events and relationships then be on time.  It is what we called an event oriented culture.  Most of us from the US are time oriented in that we have a schedule and live busy lives and can't spend 2 or 3 hours over a meal when we have a tight schedule to keep.  This is a bit difficult for me because I like to be on time and it is difficult for me to wait, so to say the least the Lord is teaching me some patience.

I was reading John 20:21 last night and it says ..."As the Father has sent me so I am sending you." And I began to meditate on this passage and how it relates to us here in this culture and really to everyone in every culture.  Jesus has sent us and is sending us to the people of Guatemala.  He wants us to be sent and go out as He came to this world.  Here is how he came into this world:

Luke 2:7 "She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them."

He was born as a babe in a manger.  A helpless, dependent baby.  He could have come in anyway but instead he came as a baby.  So he has sent us the same way to the people of Guatemala.  As a baby.  As a baby in the sense of I am helpless and dependent.  I don't yet know the language very well, I don't know the culture and have to recognize that I need others to learn the things I need to learn.  I can't come pretending to have all the answers and pretending I am the savior rather be dependent on others and especially on Jesus and instead pointing them to the real Savior, Jesus Christ.

Jesus came as a babe and he became like them and put on flesh and dwelt among us. (John 1:14) He did not just dwell among us just to die and rise again but he came as a babe and lived and grew up in this world.  He learned about the culture and learned to love the Jews and Gentiles on their terms.  He took the time needed to do this.  One thing that has been difficult for me is being patient.  I want to know the language and culture right now.  But it is a long process.  It will take years for us to learn the language and culture well and really we will never be integrated into the culture and language as well as the natives, but we have to be patient and put in the hard work of learning. 

We are all called whether we live in Guatemala, United States or anywhere else to live missionally to live as missionaries learning the culture we are sent to and learning to love them on their terms.  We are sent as Jesus was sent.

Update on our Home in Magdalena, Guatemala! Almost Done. I Think :)

I wanted to post a quick update of the progress on our new home being built in Magdalena.  So enjoy some photos.  We are excited to be moving closer to all our friends in Magdalena very soon.  It is difficult being were we are currently at because of the distance even though it is only about 4-5 miles away it is a different world.  Living in Magdalena will bring about many more oppurtunities for us to be the hands and feet of Jesus.  It will also be nice to have a lot more space.  So please pray with us for our home to be done soon.

The color of the exterior.

 

The main living area downstairs.

The view from the roof.

 

This picture was taken from the roof. Jennifer and the boys are trying to look up at me but the sun was pretty bright!  They are standing on the patio off the second floor, what I think will be my favorite part of the house.

This is the upstairs loft area and of course Levi trying to block my photo.

 

Our home will have 5 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms so we will have plenty of space for everybody to come visit :)

 

Thanks everyone for your continue prayers and support! Much love from the Kunkel Family.

 

 

Cooking School Graduation

We have been here for almost 2 months and we are continuing to learn a lot and enjoy building relationships with many new friends here.  A lot of the friends we're making are connected to the Cooking School.  Jennifer has been attending the cooking school at least once per week and teaching them different dishes and mainly building relationships with them.  We have also been visiting many of the homes of these ladies.

One of the homes we visit lately was a lady named Iris.  Iris had a mother who was very sick with cancer.  Her arm was nearly 4 times the normal size.  We were able to visit and pray with her.  And just a couple days later unfortunately her mother passed away. 

Many of these ladies have similar difficult stories where they have mothers, kids or husbands that are sick and they are responsible to take care of them.  They have many needs and many stuggles they face every day.

This opportunity they have been given to attend the Cooking School is a huge opportunity for them to learn a skill and trade to help provide for their families.  They not only have been attending cooking school but also are using what they know already to make and sell food to provide for their families. 

There are 6 ladies that will be graduating from this 2 year cooking school program this fall.  Our church, Indy Metro Church, will be here in September to help them celebrate this huge accomplishment.  We want to help them celebrate in a big way. 

We have rented out the main building here in town and we are throwing them a big party!  We not only want to throw them a big party but we also want to be able to provide them with a small start up loan to help them launch their own businesses.

We need your help to make this happen.  Would you be willing to help support these ladies who are starting businesses and make a difference in their families and for generations to come.  Click here to help and under Giving Reason select Love Guatemala - General Support and mark for Cooking School Graduation.

Here is an update on all the ways God is using the cooking school and how it is making an impact.  Thank you for all your support!

New Adventures in Guatemala...

We are enjoying life here in Guatemala!  We are adjusting each day and it seems like we are learning more and more about the culture and the language here.  We are hard at work learning Spanish which some days seems like we are making progress and other days is somewhat frustrating J  This is a picture of our Spanish Teacher Julio.  He is a very good teacher and we are getting to know him and share our lives with him.

We had a wonderful time with our friends Jerry and Ben from Piedmont Church in Georgia.  Jerry was the pastor of our church in Texas where we lived when we first married.  We introduced them to the kids and ladies from the art and cooking schools, visited some families, delivered food baskets, and led a precious lady to Christ!  It was a packed couple of days.  We are looking forward to our partnership with Piedmont Church and how God will use them to further His kingdom here in Guatemala.

The boys are enjoying making new friends and playing outside.  Levi is doing well learning Spanish.  Luke’s vocabulary still consists of “no bueno” and “gracias”.  Our good friend Carl Bunso has been trying to teach him useful things like “lo que sea” – whatever!  Luke hasn’t caught on yet.  The other boys are enjoying making new friends and playing with each other (most of the time J).

Jennifer is adjusting to everything well and learning to cook different recipes that work with the available ingredients here and with the higher altitude.  Ben is busying studying Spanish and building relationships with some of the men and families here.

Jennifer is attending the cooking school on Wednesdays and teaching every other week.  They made sugar cookies yesterday and had a lot of fun!  The ladies were excited to try a new recipe and are looking forward to selling this type of cookie at Christmas-time to help meet their families’ needs.  We are getting to know them a little more each time we are together, but we are looking forward to the day that we are fluent in Spanish and can have more in-depth conversations with them!

One of the main things we are doing and will continue to do more is visit families and build relationships and meet their physical needs as we are able.  It can be very overwhelming at times as the needs are great.  This was the case in a home we visited yesterday.  It was a typical situation here in Magdalena.  There were many needs. The family we visited was a young widow who has three children, ages 8, 10, and 12.  They are currently living with her brother in a corner of the house.  There are about 8 people living in this home. She and her 3 kids live in the small space of what would amount to most peoples closet. The smoke in this home was horrible, it was filling the home making it hard to breathe!  They had no food in their home and we were able to provide some food for them.  This is only a temporary living situation.  She desperately needs an affordable place for her and her precious children!   Her husband passed away five years ago when he was hit by a bus on his way to work.  She is working selling vegetables in Magdalena but is barely making enough to cover school and food for them.  Her children have offered to work, but she really wants them to stay in school and get an education.  She has no idea where they will live come August.  Please pray with us for wisdom and direction on how we can encourage her and help with their physical needs. 

The Lord continues to remind us why we are here.  In our devotions together as a family tonight we were reminded why God has brought us to Guatemala.  Romans 10:14 – 15 “But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent?  That is why the Scriptures say, how beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news.”  It is easy to get consumed with all we have going on whether that be in Guatemala or the United States or wherever we are and forget why we are here.  We are not here to have fun, but rather as carriers and messengers of the greatest news ever told!  The good news that Jesus offers is salvation through His death, burial and resurrection!  I Corinthians 15:3-4

Thank you so much for your continued prayers and support for us to be here!  We are honored to serve the Lord here and we are very excited to be able to be more involved here as we learn the language and culture better.