Our next sponsorship story is from Dave & Amy Hicks!
We arrived in Guatemala City on a rainy Friday afternoon. My husband, Dave, and I had joined a multi-generational group from our church in Greensboro, North Carolina, to spend a week ministering to the needs of children and adults in the Central American country. It had taken some convincing on Dave's part to persuade me to go. Each time he would mention the short-term missions trip, I found myself enumerating in great detail the dozens of reason why I simply could not go.
"Who will take care of my aging mother?"
"What if I get sick?"
"What if I can't eat the food?"
"I can't even speak the language"
"I'm not sure where Guatemala is on the map!"
"What if they discover I have nothing to offer?"
But the still small voice in my hear would not be deterred, and I became that somehow God would show me why I was present "for such a time as this."
I was pleasantly surprised and delighted by how quickly I became acclimated to our home-away-from-home, thanks primarily to our wonderful and gracious hosts who took all of us in as if we were instant family. We spent time with them learning about their church, their school, and the children in the area.
On Sunday morning, we attended Sunday School and worship service with our hosts and had the opportunity to meet many of the precious church members. I felt myself falling in love with the youngsters who seemed to be everywhere! They were bright and friendly with outstretched arms, longing to welcome us. By this point, the Lord had relieved all of my fears about the journey, and I was looking forward to the doors He would open. Little did I know how soon that would happen.
Following a lunch that included the BEST fried chicken I have ever tasted, we boarded our van and began the hour-long trek to the community of Gerona. While the living conditions in Gerona were poor, we arrived at a sizable neighborhood center from which I could hear music intermixed with the sweet sounds of children's voices laughing and singing.
Some member of our group had volunteered to lead the children (who numbered between 60 and 80) in a song and dance, while the rest of us did our best to learn quickly and keep up! Dave and I took our places in the midst of this sea of young faces and joined in the fun. It must have been pretty clear (and more than a little humorous) to the children that I was a "fish out of water" - and not a terribly good singer or dancer. But they also sensed that I wanted to get to know them, and a group of little girls gathered around me and took me under their little wings.
Dave and I were drawn to two of the girls almost from the beginning of the afternoon. The older one, 10-year old Cindy, was inquisitive, beautiful, and smart. The young girl, Magdelena, had an angel's laugh and eyes that sparkled to match her bright smile. Only God could have put such a deep love in our hearts for children we had just met. I inquired to one of our hosts whether Cindy was sponsored by anyone, and I was told that she was not. I literally jumped for joy to think that I might be able to make this beautiful child's life a little better. While we had experienced a fondness for other children on our travels throughout the world, we had been unable to find a safe way to give them financial support. Blessedly, Caroline's Promise allowed us an avenue to send both financial and emotional love and support to the children of Gerona. Dave and I had our photo taken with Cindy before we boarded our van to return to Guatemala City.
After our return to the United States, we were able to arrange through Caroline's Promise our sponsorship of Magdelena as well. Several weeks ago, we sent letters to both girls about ourselves along with our photographs and these packages were delivered to Cindy and Magdelena by some folks from Caroline's Promise during a recent trip to Guatemala. We have photographs of our "Guatemalan god-daughters" in our home with pictures of our children and granddaughters, and we pray for their health, safety, and happiness daily. We miss them dearly and cannot wait to see them again when we return to Guatemala in June. This time I will need no persuading . God has opened a treasure for us in the lives of two little girls who have already brought us such joy. We are so thankful for them, and they are in our hearts and our thoughts daily.
To find out more about sponsorship and to see children who need sponsored, click here