Friends

October was the busiest month of the year, but an amazing one. The day I got back from the USA, I had to run straight to our first clinic at the church with Jennifer, Sean, and Karen — we saw a lot of people in need.

We'd barely finished when our second medical team of the month arrived, from Seattle, Washington. They worked hard, and we even had the chance to hold a clinic on the Pacific coast, right in front of the ocean — where we were gifted with the sight of a sea turtle coming back to lay her eggs, 12 years after she herself hatched on that same beach. Fantastic.

In the middle of all this, God blessed us again through our sponsor in Tennessee, Two Rivers Church, who brought a load of snickers for every kid in the feeding program — we took the time to celebrate this blessing together.

The month wasn't even halfway through when our third medical team arrived, and we visited another part of the Pacific coast and the highlands to bring medical care to people who had never had the chance to see a doctor.

Right after that, God sent us a team from Portland, Maine — a wonderful group who did a lot of work, brought a lot of sponsorship, had a lot of fun, taught English classes, and helped us begin work on the second area of the church parking lot and start (though not finish) our prayer room. During this same stretch, another sea turtle came, and we were able to save her eggs and bring them to the Sea Turtle Institute's conservation program.

In the middle of all this activity, God gave us a glimpse of what's ahead: we're planning to open a second feeding facility for 100 more kids next year, and a couple from North Carolina, Kail and Loren, are considering spending six months with us to help with the project. Please keep them in your prayers.

This month God also let us finish a construction project we'd worked toward for a long time: homes for 14 families who lost everything a year earlier to Hurricane Stan. The Guatemalan company King Express donated the money to buy the properties and build the homes — one of the most exhausting projects of the year, tiring enough that it led me to resign from the fire department, but full of blessing for these families. Thank you to everyone who trusted us, and thanks especially to Silvia Arias and Dora Orellana and the rest of the crew — it's done.

Finally, this month we got to host a dear friend from Costa Rica, Jorge Barquero ("Koki"), at our home. He's one of my best friends, and he came to share with us and our worship team, who received a real blessing from his wisdom and love. Thanks, Koki.

This was also the last month of breakfast at the church before the kids' school vacation — instead of breakfast, we're saving that help for their vacation camp, including a day at a water park, instead of breakfast every morning. Thank you to everyone who made that possible.

Fabiola and I are also finishing preparations for our next couples' retreat, which starts next Friday — three days sharing with 30 couples about how God is calling us to make a difference in the world. Today is the Day of the Saints in Guatemala, and we're celebrating with fiambre, buñuelos, rosquillas, and seasonal fruit with Fabiola before getting back to work.

If you can reply to this letter just to say "we received your mail," it would be a real blessing to us. God bless you for keeping us in your prayers and thoughts — thank you for being our friends.