Walter

I met Walter on our 3rd day at the Ravine School. He is in the 5th grade class. He sat in the front row, and his eagerness to learn was evident. We were teaching a science lesson using "energy sticks" to talk about how our bodies conduct electricity. When we all held hands we could make the energy stick light up. We related that back to being the body of Christ. Walter got it. When we reviewed with the class after the activity he summed it up, saying that together we can do more than we can alone. 

The other activity I helped with was a writing activity in which the students wrote prayers or Bible verses, whatever they wanted really, on flags. Walter chose a verse and was the first to volunteer to read what he had written. His favorite verse is Psalm 4:8 - "In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety."

We decided to sponsor Walter before I even left Guatemala. I told the boys about him when I got home, and Max asked for a picture of him to put in his room. According to his profile, Walter enjoys playing the drums and helps at home by making bread and cleaning the house. He dreams of being a lawyer. 

God is doing great things through the Ravine School. We have hope that what is happening there and in other places like it will radically change Guatemala. Child sponsorships allow these programs to continue. For more information on sponsoring a child through Orphan Outreach, you can visit -http://www.orphanoutreach.co/sponsor-a-child/

Also, my friend Kristy recently wrote this article about child sponsorship - http://www.orphanoutreach.co/media-resources/newstory.asp?pageid=3614

The Ravine - Guatemala City

The name itself brings to mind starkness - "a deep, narrow gorge with steep sides; chasm; abyss".  Imagine that, but filled with garbage, vultures circling overhead, smoke rising from the fires that burn the trash constantly. Then imagine working there, day after day, digging through the trash to find scraps of food that you can sell to the farmers in the surrounding areas to feed their animals, items that you can resell, things that you might be able to use in your home. 

This is where we begin our week in Guatemala. Soon we will visit the children at school, but first we go to see their parents, to bring them groceries and pray with them. They are as thankful for the prayers we say as they are for the food and soap. 

The Ravine is a bleak place, but there is hope amidst the smoke and garbage. Many of these parents are now able to send their children to school. They have hope that their children will not live this life, the life of waiting for the garbage trucks to come, unloading them, resting in their crude shelters when it's not their turn to unload the trucks. These children now have an opportunity for education and dreams of becoming teachers and doctors and lawyers.

But today, they are here. We hug them and pray for them. We ask the names of their children who go to the school, and they tell us with pride. We say a special prayer for the parents and children. We also pray in our hearts that the children who we see still working here will be allowed by their parents to go to school.

They need to continue their work so we board the bus to leave. The smell of smoke that lingers in our clothes and hair serves to remind us of the people we have met and the future God holds for them. 

Many of the children that attend the Ravine School are available to sponsor. Child sponsorships impact the entire family and even community. More information is available at orphanoutreach.co.  one month. one purpose. every child sponsored.