A Word of Encouragement, Life is to short

As I am preparing to leave I have spent a lot of time thinking about a comment that I frequently hear. I do not hear this comment occasionally or even regularly. It seems like I hear it several times a day. What is this comment you may ask. "I wish I could do what you are doing but..................".  For Christians, I believe the desire to go is wired into our DNA. When we receive Jesus as our Lord, He puts His desire in us and part of that desire is to advance His Kingdom. For 3 1/2 years on this Earth, Jesus promoted the Kingdom continually and in John 17 when He prayed for His disciples He prayed that they and all that come after would be united with Him and the Father in this purpose.

If we are directed to preach the Kingdom and make disciples and we are empowered for the task, why does it seem like nobody can go. The world has filled us with priorities that keep us from going but there are other reasons too. Some people tell me they can't go because of kids or work. Others have a responsibility at home that keeps them from being able to get away. For many the issue is fear of the unknown or maybe a lack of funds. The reasons that limit people are numerous but I want to tell you that God has an answer for you.

If you have a desire to go and a reason not to go, God has a plan for dealing with the reason. If you will commit to following through on the desire, He will show you how it will work. You need to continue pressing forward and let Him fill in the holes in your plan. I have seen people go on missions trips that told me it was impossible.  I have seen finances come in when bank accounts were empty. I have seen people bring young children with them and others have a family member take care of their children for 2 weeks so they could go. I have seen jobs change people's schedules to accommodate. I left for a missions trip less than 2 weeks after my last chemo session. For every reason, God has an answer if you will let Him give it to you.

I am not trying to lay a guilt trip on anyone or tell anyone that they are called to long term missions. I just want to encourage you that it is possible and that God is only waiting for your desire to propel you to action. When you take a step, He will start moving things in your direction to make it possible.

Many of you will ask "why me". Can't someone else go? You believe that it is easier for someone else or that they have more options in life than you. That is not true. Leaving your life for a few days or forever is inconvenient for everyone. There are rewards though. We all have friends and relatives that do not have a relationship with Jesus, We pray for them and even share the Gospel with them but they do not respond. I want you to think about something. The world is waiting to see Jesus in action. They want to see love demonstrated and they are waiting to see people radically transformed by the Gospel. Your family may be waiting to see how the Gospel affects you. When they see you stepping out they will take notice. For many, I believe it will make a bigger impact than anything you say.

The other reason that I think you should consider going now, in the face of all of life's difficult circumstances is that time is short on earth. We each have a finite number of days and when they are gone, we will have missed the opportunity. You cannot go back when it is over and change things. All you can do is encourage others not to follow your mistakes. I did not go on my first missions trip until I was 35 and did not start consistently doing missions until I was 40. I regret all of those young healthy years that I was pursuing my own agenda. I have never regretted going but have often regretted missed opportunities. I pray that you begin exploring you desires to go and remind yourself that God is bigger than any reason you can't.

I love you all and want you to experience the joy of ministering in another land. I am not telling you that you are called to uproot and go. but I do want to encourage you to begin exploring your dreams and desires.

Off again

It seems like it is hard to get settled in these days. Whether I am in Illinois or Guatemala, I know that is a short time I will be leaving. I have been in Illinois for six weeks now and will be leaving again in less than two. I have had a great time here and I love catching up with my family and friends. I have been able to spend time with two of my three sisters, my parents, Church family and many friends. It has been a blessing and is going to be hard to leave. I am blessed to have such an amazing support system here and they encourage me more than I can express. I love all of you.

I am doubly blessed though. While I am leaving this incredible group of people here, I will be heading to another home. I am no longer visiting when I go to Guatemala. God has blessed me with a second family there. I have been taken into the family of Iglesia Galilea and I know that I am loved there as well. When I return, I am still surrounded by the love and support of brothers and sisters. I am reminded that Jesus promsed never to leave us or forsake us. Not only has He sent His Holy Spirit, but He surrounds us with physical manifestations of His love in the people that He brings into our life. I am grateful to have a second family that I know loves me.

When I return we will work with three additional teams this year. First, my home Church is coming and it is going to be a blessing. There is a group coming to work on construction projects and a medical clinic in Membrillal. Then in October we will help another organizations team as they conduct a medical clinic at our shared school in Zapote. Because many do not have access to good health care, these clinics are needed and are often the only time many of these people will see a doctor. Then we will close out November and our teams for the year with a construction team from South Mountain Church out of Utah. We will have about 4 weeks work in the 8 that I will be there.

I am looking forward to closing out the year strong and then relaxing in Illinois with family and friends through the holidays. I believe that it will be a great end to the look forward to sharing many of you.

I still need to raise about $700  for the rest of this year. I have received several hundred dollars  since my last post but I finding airline tickets unusually expensive for my return dates. While I was able to do everything that I needed to in the first half of the year, I fell about $3,000 short of my overall goal. This kept me from being able to do several of the things that I needed to like going to Spanish school and getting some form of transportation, both of which I will need to address next year. If you would consider praying about supporting me in this work, I would greatly appreciate it. You can contact me at 779-227-3812 or email me at thegeokr@yahoo.com If you would like to send support you can mail it to

Life Church Morris
c/o Guatemala Missions Fund, ongoing
P.O. Box 679
Morris, IL 60450

Serving with Passion

I have shared with you many of the projects that we are doing. I have written about houses, stoves, schools, clinics, Churches and hydroponics. I have tried to keep you informed of the things that we are doing but today I wanted to talk about motivation. The why behind all of the whats. What is the motivation for leaving the comforts of Illinois and my family and friends here.That is a good question and some days I ask myself that. I will try and share it as    best I can and pray that you are grabbed with a vision for service yourself.

Let me start by saying I do not love every aspect of the work that we do in Guatemala. I hate spiders, snakes, rats, scorpions and roaches but we encounter them frequently. I do not like to be covered in dirt and muddy sweat. Adventure is overrated when it means you could be stuck overnight away from your bed. 100 lb bags of cement are heavy. There are lots of things that we do on a regular basis that are not high on my list of desired tasks for the day. So WHY do I go?

When I get up many mornings I know the work ahead and I know that it is going to be a difficult day. I want to role over and pretend to not be there but that is not an option. I get up and I go to breakfast with the team. Hopefully it was after spending a little quality time along with God but that does not always happen. It is during breakfast that my perspective on the day changes. I begin to see that there is a purpose and a plan for today that has been taking shape since the beginning of time. Today, God is going to show His love to somebody through this group of people that I am with and I am going to get to be part of that. I am much more excited about the day at this point.

When I start focusing on people, God's love, and being a son to my Father the day takes on a special importance. Who knows, maybe that day there will be a breakthrough of love to one of the kids that I have seen countless times. Possibly God will use our team to bring healing and restoration to a person that has been hurt and abused. What if today is the day that someone we minister to with our words or actions would lay down their life at the cross of Jesus and receive all that He has for them. Today takes on a new meaning and importance that is easy to forget in the business of the work we are doing.

When I let God show me the bigger picture I develop a passion for what we are doing. I have God's heart for the people that we are serving. I see myself as blessed for being able to see the love of God manifest through His children to people that He wants to reveal Himself to. I become passionate about what we are doing because my Father is passionate about it. I get to reap rewards that are beyond what I can comprehend because I am working with Jesus and watching Him move in people's lives.

God has called us all to serve Him but not as slaves. He wants us to see the big picture and know what He is doing. He wants to ignite His passion in us for those that He came to save. He wants to partner with us to make His name known. God wants to give us an inheritance and fill our lives with brothers and sisters to share it with. God does not want us to spend our lives in meaningless tasks but wants us to see that whatever He has called us to should be used to draw people to Him. If you are a teacher, carpenter, mechanic or garbage ruck driver, God wants to ignite you with passion for your work and show you how to disciple others through that thing. You can do any legitimate job for His glory and to make Him known.

Are you passionate about what you are doing today? If not, ask Holy Spirit to show you how your role can have a kingdom impact on people's lives. Let Him show you how you can use your skills, gifts, talents and resources to Make Jesus known. You have a purpose, destiny and inheritance. What you do is important to the lives of those you are called to minister to. You are alive today to make known the kingdom of God. He wants you to have a passion for that.

I still need to raise support for my personal finances. I need another $1,000 before I return Sept 20th. I would also like to see several of the school children sponsored before my return. If you would like to help with either of these things you can contact me at 779-227-3812 or email me at thegeokr@yahoo.com If you would like to send support you can mail it to

Life Church Morris
c/o Guatemala Missions Fund, ongoing
P.O. Box 679
Morris, IL 60450

Thank you all and I pray that you find a kingdom purpose and the Father's passion for the work He has called you to today.

Just hanging out with some friends

Replacing a house in Zapote

If we want to receive love, we must be ready to give it away.

I am sitting at the school in Membrillal this morning watching the Capital Church team play games with the kids and I am thinking about the last 6+ months. I am watching the kids and seeing how much they soak in loving attention from any older person that notices them. I find that I constantly am the victim of hugs, fist bumps and pile ons. I am so grateful that God has opened the door for me to spend so much time at this school and to get to know the kids. They have taught me much about life and about myself. I have learned what our relationship to our heavenly Father is supposed to be. I have come to understand in a much greater way the need we all have to experience love from someone stronger and wiser than we are. It is the very reason for our existence. We draw a sense of security from knowing that we are loved by someone that knows more and has more strength than we do.

When I go to the school every kid knows my name and most or the 1^st, 2^nd and 3rd graders clamor for my attention. They are saying “Do you notice me?” You cannot get away from the feeling that your attention is of vital importance to some part of their lives. Sadly, by the time that they get to 4^th Grade many of the kids, especially the boys have begun to retreat from many of the adults. They still will interact but it is not with the same degree of enthusiasm as the younger children. It is obvious not just that they are getting older but that they are also closing their hearts a little bit to people. They are not as receptive to the attention that they craved just a year or two earlier.

Many of the children in this community come from single parent homes for several different reasons. Others come from homes with alcoholic or abusive parents. Many come from loving homes but they have a dad that is gone several days at a time to make a living in a low paying job in another region. The reasons that the children have come to isolate themselves from authority are numerous but the results are usually the same. They are not limited to this small community in Guatemala but are everywhere. Kids that feel abandon, neglected, abused or forgotten will gradually begin to shut down to receiving love.

   

I am beginning to see that through much of my life I have done the same thing. Where I once craved attention from authority figures and older people, I eventually began to resent them and try to stay under their radar. I developed a mistrust for their attention to me. I became defensive and did not want to be accountable to them. After all, who are they to tell me what I can or cannot do? This attitude did not show up in 4^th grade but I suspect that it start to take root then. As I felt the sting of criticism from one of my teachers and began to develop my first ulcer. I am sure that it progressed as my parents, out of love and concern kept me from some of the things that other kids were doing. While today I can see that their motives were for my benefit and protection, at the time I just felt resentment. I felt like an outsider and it became a self-fulfilling view. The more I felt that way, the more I acted in ways that separated me from the people that I wanted to be like. There were times that I resented everyone and was angry at the world but only my family saw it of felt the resentment because a good Christian guy does not act out how I was feeling and to show it would just bring more isolation and resentment so I wore a mask.

For most of my adult life I have been actively involved in youth ministry. I loves kids and wanted to pour into them. It has not been until recently though that I have learned that what they need from is that I learn to receive the love of Jesus and allow that to fill everything I do. When I am doing a difficult or dirty task, I have learned to remind myself that I am l a son loved by my Heavenly Father. When I am spending time with the kids, I have learned to ask Jesus to fill my heart with His love, not just for them but for me. I realize that a person that is lives in and is aware of love filling their lives is able to serve much better. I have begun to serve from a desire to see the love that is filling me more daily to fill others too. Jesus loves us and it is in receiving that love that we are really able to show the world the power of God to bring transformation. I want Him to use me not just to transform individuals but towns and a nation so I need to live continually in the awareness of His love.

Jesus wants you to experience His love in real and deeply profound ways. He wants to fill you so that you can go and pour into others. He wants to use you in ways that are beyond anything that you can imagine and bring fulfillment to your lives. I also have come to believe that you will never experience more of God’s love until you let Him show you an outlet to release it. Love cannot flow into our lives unless we have a place for it to flow through. What is your outlet? How is God leading you to share His love? Are you called to join me or others in foreign missions? Maybe He is calling you to visit the sick or elderly in the hospitals and nursing homes. Possibly you are called to reach out to the young people in your community or lead an exploratory Bible study or Alpha group for your neighbors. I do not know what the specifics of your life or but I know this, If you want to receive the love of Jesus Love cannot flow into our lives unless we have a place for it to flow through. What is your outlet? How is God leading you to share His love? Are you called to join me or others in foreign missions? Maybe He is calling you to visit the sick or elderly in the hospitals and nursing homes. Possibly you are called to reach out to the young people in your community or lead an exploratory Bible study or Alpha group for your neighbors. I do not know what the specifics of your life or but I know this, If you want to receive the love of Jesus you need to let Him show you where to give it away.

I will be returning to Guatemala on September 20^th and will be followed a few days later from a group from my Church. I need to raise about $2,500 in order for that to happen. I already have ticket to go but need my return ticket and living expenses for 2 months. I would like to ask you to pray about partnering with me in this. God is faithful and I know that He is the one that has called me to what I am doing. He has always provided for my needs but He often uses people. I do want to make it clear that this is only for my personal living expenses. I am glad to provide you ways to give to our projects also but that is not what I have asked for here. In the tabs of the blog there are tabs for ministries that you can give through to support our schools and projects.

Thank you all for your prayers and support in the past and I would love to get together with any that would like to hear the stories and see the pictures of what we have been doing.

Friendship, Ministry and Life

The last few weeks have been busy and filled with lots of work, friendship and fun. Early last Saturday we took the team from Hinton to the airport and said goodbye to our friends. They continued working right up until Friday evening. Because of their hard work, computer desks were built at both schools, one of the walls of the Membrillal Church is closer to completion and the playground on the Church roof now has a roof of it's own. They kept going right up until it was time to pack up and go home.

This team has become real friends over the last 2+ years. It is always good to spend time with them and work with them. They encourage me to work more, try harder and be more available to people that come to work with us. I am thankful for them and am already looking forward to their return next year. I am hoping that they are able to bring back a few more of their team from past trip.

While Hinton was still here the His Hands Support Ministry team came to begin the evaluation/registration process for the Membrillal school for next year. Because of the financial concerns at the school, they left with some unanswered questions but they still took time with each kid as if the expansion for next year is going to happen.The kids love the visit from them each year and there are always lots of hugs his week. I have to admit that I had a good time with these crazy ladies myself, though I might have blushed a few times.

My favorite part of the time with His Hands is that I get to spend more time with the kids at the school than any other week in the year. While I drive them around, I also got to interview kids and to play with them during their free times. I was able to laugh with them, get high fives, hugs and fist bumps frequently and occasionally pulled around the playground. This is an important week because it reminds me that I need to keep my focus on the kids and communities that we serve and that the call is to make the love of Jesus known to them. Sometimes this can get lost in the business of the work when we are doing construction.

I am excited for the future of both of the schools here and for the Churches that serve the communities. As I get to spend in these communities I see the heart of the Father for the people that live in them. Looking at the kids, I see the need that we all have to know that we are loved by a perfect Father and that this love is perfect, unconditional and free. If I can see His love in this way, I am sure that it is way greater than I an fathom. If His love is this great for them and for me, then He is going to bring breakthrough in the lives of the families in Zapote and Membrillal. He is going to bring healing and and deliverance to them and as long as I am obedient, I am going to get to see it.

Than you Jesus for your love to me and for that same love reaching to the communities that you have led me to.

Soon I will be returning to the States for a few weeks and while there I will need to raise the funds needed for my return. I will be spending another 2 months here this year and will need to raise $2,500 to $3,000 more to complete the year. Many of you have been a part in my funding already this year and I am grateful for that. I would love a chance to talk with many of you and share all of the things that we are doing here. The vision is much bigger than one person, Church or group and all of you can play a role. Thank you and see many of you soon.

Interviewing families for Source of Hope

Joyful faces of kids at play

To say last week was interesting would be an understatement. Friends from the Hinton Alliance Church from Hinton, Alberta are here for a two week stay and we have been doing everything that we can to scare them but so far they have come through very well. We took them to work into Zapote to work most of the week and it has created some interesting situations.

 On Monday as we were returning from work, the skies opened up and the rain came down  at probably and inch or more an hour rate. About the time that we got to a straight section of road where we could go a little faster the wipers quit working and I could not see to drive but I also could not see to safely pull over So I continued the last 6 miles home with the help of others telling me what I could not see. We made it but my knuckles were white. I was able to get them fixed when we got back.

On Tuesday We went back to Zapote. The drive is downhill the whole way and finishes with a 5 mile dirt and gravel road that requires 4 river crossings. When we came out of the first river the brakes went out. We still had to go 4 miles to drive into Zapote and 25 miles to get home. I had to drive home pumping the breaks so that I could have any break pressure but still the pedal was close to the floor the whole way. Once again we made it home safely.

On Wednesday we had to split the team up. While a few went into Zapote to work on the next house we were going to build I kept half of the group at the Church to work on projects around there. We had to have the mechanic work on the breaks. The break fluid had become contaminated, the pads were cracked and the shoes were completely worn out. The ones that went into the Zapote got to see a show. Fuego, the volcano that we have to drive around to get to Zapote began erupting. We could clearly see the smoke and Ash from 20 miles away. They were only 3 miles from it. In the evening we all went on the Church roof to watch the lava as it shot a few hundred feet above the cone. It was a spectacular show.

In spite of all of the adventures, God protected everyone and we got home safely each night. We also were able to build 2 houses and 2 stoves as well as get the playground at the Church painted with 2 coats and get a roof over the upper level. This team, like the team from Risen Life, works hard from the time they get to the job until the time that we are finished. Not stopping has  allowed us to accomplish a lot for being a team of 7. They have been working hard. The good news is that we still have a second week of work and that will be mostly focused on the Church at Mebrillal.

I am so grateful for the many people that God has brought into my life in the last few years. This team from Hinton is now here for the fourth time and they have become great friends over the last few years. It is always great when they come and we enjoy having them come visit and work with us. It is always good when teams come but it us my favorite when they come back.

Ash shooting several thousand feet in the air on the next day after it calmed down.

Progress

It has been longer than I intended since my last update. I was planning on posting right after the team left but unfortunately my body would not cooperate. I spent most of last week in bed or asleep on the couch with the flu or something like it. I had body aches, chills when I was not roasting, a nasty cough and no energy. I wanted to do things but every time I stopped or sat down, I was sleeping in a few seconds. Needless to say, writing was out of the question.

Happily, I am fully recovered now and would like to update you on the team and the work that happened in early June. The team from Risen Life Church in Utah arrived on Friday evening and they began helping out immediately. There was an evangelism event that was Scheduled for Saturday morning and they went to the streets along with Church members and they blanketed much of the town. They went to the park and to neighborhoods handing out the Gospel of John booklets and looking for opportunities to share about Jesus. Even though they were limited in their abilities to communicate, they all had a great time and were excited to help.

On Monday we started the construction week. The team began the prep work for constructing the Church walls in Membrillal.  They cleaned the area, tied re bar for the beams and began to get the block work started. This is the first team that has done significant block work because it is one of the more difficult jobs. We took a break from work in Membriallal to go work in Zapote for two days. The plan was to work there Wednesday and Thursday and then go back to finish the block on Friday in Membrillal. They were going to build a house and two stoves, not a hard two days work but enough that they would know that they had been busy. They finished it all in one long, hot, tiring and dirty day.

Most of the team went back to work in Membrillal a day early. Rudy took 3 with him back to Zapote to finish tearing down the old, dilapidated house while the rest of us went to continue working on the Church walls. By the end of Thursday we were a full day ahead of schedule. The block was almost completely done up through the first 5 rows, where we were going to stop and pour columns and beams. On Friday, our bonus day we were able to pour them and the Church was starting to shape up. You could now see what it was going to look like.

Risen Life worked hard and I was once again impressed by their work ethic and determination to finish more than anyone though was possible. In their week of work we had 4 days of monsoon rains each afternoon. It poured so hard that the water was making rivers running down the streets. They kept working through it all. Tono told me to clean up because we were done so I started collecting tools and cleaning up the garbage in the rain. Two hours later they were finished with all the work that they wanted to accomplish. They were not going to let 2" if rain falling in a 3 hour period keep them from finishing. They worked hard and they never complained.

I was impressed by how hard the team worked but even more by their attitudes and their view of the work they were doing. They did not come to Guatemala to build buildings and stoves. They came to advance the Kingdom of God and were going to do that regardless of the tasks that entailed. Their work was primarily to honor and glorify Jesus. They did that in Guatemala and they will be doing that in Salt Lake now that they are home. They understand that the call is to be faithful to God's purposes and plans wherever you happen to find yourself at the moment. They made eternal progress this week that goes beyond the number of blocks set and the projects finished. I pray that they are blessed and that Risen Life reaps blessings for all of the sowing that they do.

Jarrod fitting block around a roof drain.

Greg working on the wall near the stage.