Caroline's Promise News

This whole "7 Days of Celebration" idea came to me (Lisa) a few weeks before Erik & Samuel died in an accident.  I was so confident that God was asking me to use the last 7 days of 2017 to CELEBRATE all that He had done.  He had led me to readings on the Feast of Tabernacles, a time when the Israelites gathered to celebrate how God had provided and protected them during their 40 years in the wilderness.  It seemed like a great idea.  Share a story a day for 7 days, celebrating all that God had done in and through the ministry of Caroline's Promise.  Easy, right? And then I received the call that rocked my world.  It was a snowy, Friday afternoon in North Carolina and I was waiting to have a video conference with our partners in Guatemala.  I wasn't shocked to see Delmi's name pop up on my phone but I was shocked to hear her weeping hysterically on the other end of the line.  I'm not sure I have cried on that level before.  In the h...

During my second trip to Guatemala, I knew I wanted to find a child to sponsor through Caroline's Promise. Over the two weeks I was there, I prayed that God would reveal which child he wanted me to sponsor. One morning, I was praying for my sponsor child and asking God to make it clear which child he wanted me to sponsor. The same day we were giving out parasite medicine to all the kids at the school, which they absolutely hated.  I had been particularly drawn to one boy in the Prepa class, and we had bonded over the week. When we were giving out the medicine, I was with a friend in the Prepa class. All the kids were complaining about the parasite medicine and some were even spitting it out when we gave it to them. I gave the medicine to the child I had been bonding with over the week and he reluctantly swallowed the pills. He came back about five minutes later with a disgusted look on his face, took my hands, and threw the medicine up STRAIGHT INTO MY HANDS...

As we continue our 7 Days of Celebration we want to share the story of our friend, *Maria*.   Extortion is a major issue in Guatemala.  It's not unheard of for gang members to go to people who own businesses and demand that they pay them or they will be killed.  Extortion was a part of every day life for Maria.  She owned a small cafe and for 10 years she gave the same extortionist $4 a day.  For 10 years.  Every day.  10 years.   One day in September Maria didn't have the $4 so the man shot her.....7 times.  It was a miracle that she survived and we were blessed to meet her in October when we visited a neighborhood Bible Study in her community.  The people that our partners had been investing in for several years had started investing in Maria.  They took her in, helped her, and loved on her.  And that night she asked Jesus into her heart.  It was a beautiful moment.  We saw her a few weeks later whe...

Several years ago God gave me a dream of teaching welding to young adults in our partner communities in Guatemala.  You may ask "Why welding?"   Well, if you know me and my family, it makes sense. I'm the daughter of a welder.  My Dad, Kenneth Best was the son of a welder and both of his brothers are welders.  Through the years he and my Mom built a successful business that my brother, Brian now runs.  My Dad taught me what it means to have a strong work ethic and I watched his business grow, even in the toughest economy, making a way for him to pay for my college education and most of graduate school. Through the years I would see young men in Guatemala search for a job that paid decent money and over and over I saw them struggle.    If only they could learn how to weld.      In January my brother, Brian traveled with me to Guatemala where we met with the Director of the Welding Program at Intecap (technical sch...

Merry Christmas! Today we celebrate the birth of Jesus. What a special baby, to say the least. As we were thinking of stories from 2017 to celebrate, we immediately thought of a baby in Guatemala and how God spared his sweet life.  We didn't plan to take a medical mission team, but God made it clear that this was his plan. (You can read how that happened  here ) At the end of the first day of clinics, a mom showed up with a baby that was less than a year old. She didn't live in the community but was visiting a friend whose kids attend our Sunday afternoon Kids' Church. Dr. Smith and our Guatemalan doctor, Tiffany Quan, both realized that the child was near death. Tiffany jumped into the back of a truck with the mom and baby and took them to the nearest fire department where they were rushed to a local hospital. The mood was somber as we boarded the bus, each of us realizing that unless God intervened, baby Marvin would not live for very long.  Two days later,...

Last Spring we asked you to help us purchase books for the library at Casita Adonai and you came through!  Over 100 books were purchased and taken to Guatemala where our summer teams added them to the current collection.  The teachers on our teams worked hard to code all of the books by grade level and other members of our teams spruced the room up with paint, new furniture, and artwork by the students at Hayworth Christian School in High Point, NC.  A special highlight was when our teachers shared their experiences with the Casita teachers on how to best use the library and teaching kids to read.   The teachers at Casita are taking their students to the library regularly and report that this is often the highlight of their week.  Very few families have books in their homes because they are so expensive, so having a library is a treat!  We were even able to deliver adult books for our teachers to enjoy in their lounge. ...

Here's a glimpse into the 2017 Northwest Athlete & Medical Team

In the summer of 2016, 15 year old Cameron Holbrook shared how he felt that Caroline's Promise needed more men on their mission teams.  His heart was touched by the boys and young men he had met in Guatemala and he began to pray for men to catch a vision for the ministry. That Fall Cameron played football for the first time and met Coach Jared Rolfes who was not only a great coach but a follower of Jesus.  Cameron asked Coach Rolfes if he would be interested in taking a team of guys to Guatemala and that opened the door for Lisa to have several conversations with him.  We all laugh that Coach Rolfes turned Lisa down 3 times ! Kristi Clary at the medical clinic in Gerona Once he finally agreed to take a team, he invited Phillip Clary to join him.  In the weeks that followed, Phillip's wife, Kristi expressed an interest in going on what we thought would be an English teaching team at the same time.  Lisa remembered that Kristi was a nurse for a local ...

We don't just take short term mission teams to be taking them.  We try to be purposeful in our planning, making sure that we are doing projects and ministry that our Guatemalan partners need and request.  We are constantly reminded that God puts the people that He wants on each team.  It's a privilege to serve with them and watch God work in and through them. One of our teams was led by Kaitlyn Armstrong, Ruth Edward, and our amazing interns. "During our week in Guatemala, we were able to partner with church members and school staff to provide a variety of ministry opportunities. While working with the women, we were able to share our personal testimonies and encourage the mothers to be unified with their daughters. We were able to partner with Casita Adonai and chaperone the sixth grade trip, serving the students and providing devotional time. Throughout the remainder of the week, we teamed up to provide English classes and partnered with the school to updat...