The Simple Things

The “simple things” of Guatemalan life!

-Two Sundays ago we were headed to church (very simple). We picked up the vehicle we are borrowing and headed out of town. Wait – the main exit out of town is blocked off because of alfombras (see my other blog post for description) in the streets. So we had to exit town via the entrance. We get to the top of the hill and there is another alfombra in the middle of the street that we could just fit by on one side. We asked a guy if we could pass and he said yes. So we head to church thinking ‘the procession should be finished in three or so hours’ (usually a procession walks over the alfombras). After church we stop by to pick up pizza for the group home that they get every Sunday for lunch and head home. We decide to take a dirt road to see if we can enter town that way because it is less time to try that way first and the police said “No puede pasar” (you cannot pass). So we go around the long back way into town to try that way (as per what the police suggested). After 15 minutes of driving we get to the back way and realize that both of those ways are blocked with people, tents, vendors, and parked cars. Great! It’s hot, we have pizza in the car, and we really don’t know what to do. So the only other option we had (because it was too far to park our vehicle and walk with the pizza) was to go back to Antigua where we were for church and spend the afternoon there. According to the police the procession wasn’t going to be finished until 4:00. So we were able to find a shady spot and enjoy some pizza for lunch after feeling frustrated for over an hour trying to get back into our town. The ‘simple’ task of driving to and from church J Side note: There are never signs warning you when roads will be closed or events taking place. You have to find out everything by word of mouth.

-A few days ago we arrived home after running some errands. We wanted to do some ‘simple’ chores like washing dishes, planting some vines at our back fence, getting a shower, and flushing the toilet. You know what all these items have in common? Water! Guess what? Our water was shut off for the afternoon (without notice of course). So we accomplished some other things that afternoon, but the ‘simple’ thing of having water changed our plans.

-Last week was Daryl’s (my father-in-law) birthday. So his day started by his daughters, that are living in close proximity, taking him out for breakfast. They did the ‘simple’ thing of parking the vehicle and going to Dunkin Donuts. After eating they came back out and realized their car had been stolen. It didn’t ruin the day, thankfully, and everyone was in a great mood, but another ‘simple’ thing turned into something not so ‘simple’.

These ‘simple’ things were frustrating and annoying at the time, but as we look back we can, thankfully, laugh about them and know that God has placed us here in Guatemala for a reason. Even though there are inconveniences and different ways of life, we have become used to these ‘simple’ things here that change plans and schedules. It’s part of the cultural and people adjust – which is why generally people here seem to value relationships and spending time with others rather than worrying about their schedule and being on time. It’s definitely something to think about and take into consideration. How many ‘simple’ things in your lives make you feel annoyed and upset? How can you change your attitude?  Instead of thinking ‘my day is ruined’ can you turn that ‘simple’ thing into a positive?

Here are some photos of a very colorful little town on the side of the mountain!

  

Life updates:

We have some big news coming up regarding ministry, and will let you know when it’s completely official!

We have been borrowing a vehicle from a family who is moving down here in August which has been a huge blessing to us. We can see God’s hand in all of this because we also found a vehicle to purchase in August when another family is leaving Guatemala. This vehicle is exactly what we have been looking for as well. A 4x4, diesel, Mazda B6 pickup truck with extended cab for an amazing price! We are trusting that the Lord will provide the funds to complete the purchase by August. If you could be praying with us about that we would really appreciate it!

I will be ending official Spanish lessons because of coming back to PA in two weeks, and after I return I will just be meeting with my teacher for a few hours a week just to have more conversational times.

We are looking forward on seeing many of you when we are back in PA in ten days and if you are interested in getting together with us just send us an email (andi@hopeforhome.org or Krishauna@hopeforhome.org) and we would love to talk about what God is doing here in Guatemala and how our plans and visions are progressing.

Thank you so much for all of your prayers and support,

Andi and Krishauna

Interested in receiving some items from Guatemala?

Many of you have been asking for more information about different things we can bring from Guatemala as we come back to the U.S. this June. Thanks for all of your interest! We thought it would be best to just put the information and photos here in a blog post so it is accessible for anyone.

So here are the things we are able to bring and all prices listed are suggested donations:

Fresh Guatemalan Coffee: We buy from another ministry who packages the fresh coffee. You can choose whole bean or ground in 1 pound bags. $12/bag.

Chocolate covered Coffee Beans:  Aprox. 20 beans a bag. $3.50/bag.

Bracelets: Coconut style ($5 each).

Scarves: in pretty much any color you can imagine, but the styles are represented in the pictures below. The scarves with the longer strings at the end are shorter in length, and have a looser weave. $15 each. The other scarves have different designs, are still light weight, but are longer in length. $20 each.

 $20

$15

Wallets: There a variety of different styles. Bi-fold or tri-fold wallets for putting in your pocket or tri-fold wallets for inside of a purse. You can see the examples below. Depending on style the suggested donation ranges from $10-20. Again there are a variety of colors to choose from, but the pictures just show the different styles.

There are both bi-fold and tri-fold on these stacks.

Inside of a bi-fold

Another style of a bi-fold.

This is the inside of the one in picture #5. It has slots for cards right
below the clear area (it can be hard to see from the picture).

Picture #5

Belts: In the pictures are the three main styles. The majority of the belts come in brown or black. Suggested donation for belts are $15. If you are interested in a belt please let us know what length of belt you will need.  Measure one of your own belts from where the buckle is mounted/attached (do not measure from the end of the buckle because buckles vary in sizes) to the other end.

               

Let us know what you are interested in and how many of each item by e-mailing us at andi@hopeforhome.org or krishauna@hopeforhome.org.

Regarding donation the easiest way is by cash or check when we are in Pennsylvania from early June to mid July. We will be in the Dillsburg, PA area for the majority of our trip. If you will not be in the area and still would like to receive some items you can also give through hopeforhome.org/donate and make sure to designate it to Brubaker ministry. All the money we earn will be used to pay airfare expenses.

Thank you so much for you continued prayers and support and we are looking forward to seeing many of you in about a month!

Andi and Krishauna

Semana Santa

Semana Santa (Holy Week) in Guatemala is the largest celebrated holiday here in this country. Throughout the week celebrations take place in the form of processions, alfombras (decorative carpets), gatherings, dramas, and church services. As the week goes on certain towns shut down, roads close (due to processions and alfombras), business close all leading up to Good Friday and Saturday, the day before Easter. Guatemala is a mainly Catholic country and so their largest day of  recognition is Friday - the Death of Jesus. All throughout the night on Thursday into Friday morning the roads in the city of Antigua are shut down so that people can create and design these amazing alfombras. Then in the wee hours of the morning processions come through carrying floats depicting the virgin Mary, the crucifixion of Jesus, and other traditional images. They walk over these alfombras (which is kind of sad after seeing all the work put into them) and usually end up at a Catholic church or central park area where many people can gather. We spent all night last night (Thu) from 10 p.m. - 5:30a.m. walking around Antigua seeing the beautiful alfombras and eating some traditional Guatemala 'street' food. Vendors come and set up booths simliar to a fair or festival so that people can buy food while they walk around. 

The first section below are some photos from alfombras and the procession in San Andres where Hogar de Ezperanza is located (about a mile or so from our house). This happened on Tuesday morning.

As you can see the alfombras have a wide variety and are made from a range of materials and objects. The majority use colored sawdust (depending on the style depends how fine/how small the pieces of sawdust are), but many also use vegetables, fruits, flowers and flower pedals, grasses, and small wooden objects,

 

                 

                      

The rest of the pictures show alfombras in Antigua as well as people creating and making them using stencils and shaking the sawdust using strainers, spoons, and their hands.                  

                           

                
                
                    

                                   
               
               

Another interesting tradition here is that once the big processions are over on Friday and Saturday, the majority of people take a vacation (many go to the beach) on Easter Sunday. It seems strange because we as Evangelical Christians celebrate the resurrection on Sunday which is the monumental day of our faith. In some ways it is hard to think about the meaning of Easter here because of all the other activities and processions that take place. The whole week is a time that tests your patience because of roads that are closed, change of schedule, traffic, parking issues, and just overall the amount of people increases. It's a different way of celebrating Easter then I have every experienced, but through it all Sunday is coming. The true meaning of Life, the Giver of Life, and Love Himself rose again to give us life. I hope we all take time this weekend to think about that. We hope you have a wonderful Easter.

Another quick note if anybody is interested in purchasing coffee, chocolate-covered coffee beans, or any other Guatemalan product you can think of let us know and we will gladly bring it with us on our visit to PA in June.

From 80 degree Guatemala,

Andi and Shauna

The past 14 days.

Whew the past fourteen days have been a blur. There have been blessings, attacks from Satan, unexpected tragedies, God’s provisions, time in the hospital, time to be still, and through it all God is doing great things (even though at points it has been hard to see).

Two weeks ago on Wednesday evening we received a call from Wanda (Krishauna’s mom) saying that she had bad news. She told us that Manuel (the operations manager of Hope for Home here in Guatemala) was shot and killed. Both of us sat in shock and silence for about five minutes not really sure what to do. As schedule changes for the rest of the week were made and we attended the viewing and others went to the funeral, we knew we had to spend time looking toward God. So that weekend on Sunday evening we had a time of worship/devotion/fellowship with all the employees and families of the ministry to spend time focusing on our Heavenly Father. It was an amazing time of worship, tears, passion, words of encouragement, and love between the body of Christ.

             

                           

Thursday, the day following Manuel’s death news started circulating of an orphanage in Guatemala City that had been set on fire in the middle of rioting and 700 kids were in need of a home. 40 children had died and others were sent to hospitals to be treated for burns. So along with the crisis of Manuel’s death, this news caused more grief and feeling the need to help in some way.

You can check out Daryl’s blog post to read a more detailed post about these two situations. http://hopeforhome.blogspot.com/2017/03/murder-fires-and-hope.html

Just this past week the government contacted Hope for Home and asked if they could take in 10 more kids, and through help of other ministries, Hope for Home is now in the process of opening up another group home for ten more kids with disabilities from this orphanage that was destroyed. They found a home to rent just a block down the street (God’s provision is amazing) and have received many donations and help in order to get this home up and running. Pray with us that these 10 kids that come may feel at peace and the love of Christ through all who are involved in helping in this new home.

Through all of this we had a doctor’s appointment this past Saturday because to our knowledge Krishauna was eight weeks pregnant. At the appointment the doctor told us she was indeed pregnant, but not with a baby. She was experiencing what we now know is a molar pregnancy. This is when the egg and sperm join, but there is no genetic material present. The baby is not able to develop because of a chromosomal imbalance. It often shows itself just like a normal pregnancy with normal pregnancy symptoms because it is a pregnancy, but instead of a live baby growing, there is a mass of grape like clusters growing at a much faster rate. The doctor felt positive about the timing of finding this problem, but recommended having surgery to remove the mass as soon as possible. We scheduled the surgery and spent most of the day Tuesday at the hospital. The surgery went well and the doctor was able to remove the whole mass without any complications which was a huge answer to prayer as well. Treatment will involve multiple blood tests and doctor appointments in the coming weeks to monitor hormone levels. It also includes other tests and appointments for at least 6 months (maybe more) before she is cleared. We ask for your continued prayers as we walk through this emotional time of loss and look forward to the day where we can have kids.

We are continuing to process the more permanent location of where God wants us to be in Guatemala so we ask that you be praying for Him to continue open or close doors and that we would be able to follow His guidance.

We also continue to keep our eyes open for a vehicle and if you feel led to help us as we continue to raise funds for that purchase, we would be extremely grateful.

Thank you to all who have reached out to us during this time via e-mail or facebook with encouraging notes and for all your prayers. We are so thankful to know that there are people constantly in prayer for us! As I was in the hospital on Tuesday while Krishauna was in surgery I was able to spend a good portion of time in God’s word. For about five minutes of that time I flipped through the pages of my Bible and read notes I wrote or parts I underlined and wrote phrases or words from these thoughts or verses in my journal. Here is what it turned out to be.

 

“He has died for me. He is faithful. Faith is growing. Stand firm. Pray. There is one God. Lift up holy hands in prayer. He is the pillar of truth. Put what you believe into practice. To Him be the honor. Flee evil desires. Preach the Word. All scripture is God-breathed. Lord gives me strength. Be active in sharing your faith. Fix your thoughts on Jesus. He will appear a second time. Persevere.”

God is good and He is doing greater things!

-Andi and Krishauna

Intermissions conference and our trip to Xela

Last weekend we had the opportunity to spend a weekend with other missionaries from all around Guatemala at a conference right beside Lake Atlitlan. The conference rented out the entire hotel and we used the facility to meet for seminars, general sessions, meals, and relaxation. The event was such a great experience in making connections and meeting other missionaries, hearing sermons based on Psalm 23, seeing the beautiful views, listening to the Johnson Strings (if you want to hear a super talented family playing string instruments visit thejohnsonstrings.com or find them on youtube – it will be worth your time), and worshiping our Creator.

The theme for the conference was “He Restores.” A pastor from Texas came and spoke four sermons throughout the weekend all based in Psalm 23. It was such an encouragement and challenge to dig deeply into this one chapter. Here are a few of our notes from the sessions that hopefully have an impact on you as well.

1 The Lord is my Shepherd.
          He Provides, He protects, He Directs (to point/to show), He guides
               (to go with).
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet
     waters
          -God makes us lie down – sometimes He needs to use forcible
               action.
          -Our hearts are prone to wander – prone to leave the God I love so
               He forces us to Rest
          -We need God to make us lie down because we are exhausted –
               physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally.
          -He will set the pace – Keep in step with the Spirit – perhaps we
               need to slow down or maybe we are lagging behind His pace.
3 He Restores my soul
          God restores us from:
               -Our Guilt – it weighs us down. God doesn’t remind us of our
                    sins that is Satan. Jesus triumphed overall all sin by
                    carrying all of our guilt on Him on the cross.
               -Our sorrow- Will yourself to worship God. Focus on what is to
                    come not on what was lost. I encourage you to read 2
                    Samuel 12:18-23 about the story of David and how he
                    dealt with sorrow. It teaches us a lot about how to deal
                    with sorrow.
               -Our Bitterness – Bitterness is a root and we need God to
                    SHUB us. SHUB is the Hebrew word for restore and
                    it means to turn over or to turn around. God restores us
                    like a Shepherd toward his sheep.
4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear
     no evil for you are with me.
          -Valleys symbolize darkness, difficulty and struggle, but they are
               passable.
          -In valleys we tend to hear God the clearest and sense Him the
               closest.
          -When you are in the valley refuse to fear because God is with
               you.
          -Shadows can’t hurt you, and they aren’t possible without light,
               which shows yet again that THE LIGHT is with you.

We also were able two seminars about “Leading Change” and “Storm Season.” The leader of “Storm Season” is a certified professional counselor and talked about the biology of what happens inside your brain as you go through storms and struggles in life. He referenced Acts 27 and the struggles and storms Paul went through as a missionary and follower of Christ. You have to be able to find what your anchors are in the midst of a ‘storm’ as well as staying on the ‘ship’ of faith – “Don’t abandon ship.” The other seminar about “Leading Change” the leader talked about how to find the root of the problem to change. We need to look for measurable and specific goals. He talked about how many missionaries come to a country looking to teach the value of education when the source of the problem may be malnutrition. For example: Kids are not learning in school because they their body cannot function without nutrients and food so in response their parents pull them out of school because the kids say they didn’t learn anything. Parents decide if their kids aren’t learning anything what’s the point of sending them to school when they can work and earn money for the family. So the root of the problem is not valuing education but instead is malnutrition. So the key to leading change is finding the crucial moment and root of the problem.

The entire conference was a blessing and encouragement to both of us. We also made quite a few connections with other missionaries here in Guatemala.

You have probably heard that we are living close to Antigua for right now while Andi takes Spanish lessons, but we are planning to move to a different area of Guatemala later on. We have taken some trips with Hope for Home Ministries to see some different places and to see if and how our ministries would fit in those areas, but other places weren't standing out to us and we were both feeling drawn to the city of Quetzaltenango, also known as Xela (pronounced shayla) even though we had never visited. We contacted a missionary family who lives up in that area and asked if it would be possible for us to visit them to see their ministry (Foundations of Hope) and the area. So after the intermissions conference ended, we picked up a shuttle to Xela to stay for a few days.

Quetzaltenango means "the place of the quetzal bird" (the Guatemala national bird) and the Maya name for the city is Xela so either name is acceptable. It is the second largest city in Guatemala although it doesn't feel like a large city like you would expect to see in the United States. The city is at about 7,700 feet altitude.

The first day we were in Xela, we got to go out and explore. We walked all over the city. We saw central park, a couple different market areas, many small parks, banks, tiendas, restaurants, coffee shops, schools, and more. It was a really good way for us to get a feel of what was available and what it could be like to live there, but we forgot to take into account the elevation difference from where we live (about 2,700 feet difference) so we both got some sunburn after a few hours of walking around. In the afternoon, we went to a soccer ministry that Foundations of Hope is involved with three days a week. Andi was able to get a lot of advice about sports ministry and see how this specific soccer ministry works. At the beginning of each practice, a Bible lesson is presented along with some discussion and prayer because this is the main point of the soccer ministry. They use soccer to draw kids in which gives an opportunity to share about Jesus.

The second day, we got to join Foundations of Hope at their after school program that they do two days a week. There are 12 kids that regularly attend the program. They feed the kids lunch, give them homework help and re-teach things that the kids didn't understand in school, help them to practice reading, music time, Bible lessons and activity, English lesson, and some fun at the end doing games or soccer. It is a great opportunity to show the kids in the community that they care about them and pour into their 

lives. That evening, we drove around so we could see some communities outside the city, but close enough to still do ministry there.

At intermissions, we met another family who has a ministry in Xela so on our last day, we got to visit their ministry in the morning. Ensenanza de Agua Viva (Living Water Teaching) has a Bible university, a school for children K-12, an orphanage, a church, and a lot of space for hosting teams and other christian groups. Then, in the afternoon, we went with Foundations of Hope to the soccer program again and got to see some more communities right outside the city.

The whole trip was a great opportunity for us! While we still don't have an answer as to if we are going to move to Xela or not, it is giving us a lot to think and pray about. Please pray with us that God will show us if Xela is where He wants us to settle long-term.

Andi and Krishauna