What We Do

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We are a non-profit organization that works with pastors, churches, schools, and the local hospital in Chiquimula, Guatemala. We host training seminars for pastors, leaders, and youth from rural areas and we help supply the congregations with Biblical materials to minister to their communities. We visit several public schools to share a Biblical story and play with the kids. We also pray in the local hospital and give out toys, toiletries, and Biblical materials. Ways to Be a Part of this Ministry: Come - We need pastors and leaders to come and teach these pastors and leaders here in Guatemala. Or you could bring a group to work in the churches or schools with construction or evangelism. Financially Support - If you would like to support this ministry, please visit our website at www.eyeswideopenministries.com to donate online or send your donation to: P.O.Box 245 Florence, Alabama 35631 Make your checks payable to Eyes Wide Open Ministries. All donations are tax-deductible. Pray - Please pray we will follow God's leading in all we do.

Friday, December 30, 2011

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!

We are soo happy and excited to have Uriah Nathan with us through this Christmas and New year. He has been wonderful and is adjusting soo fast to the trauma of this world and not the tummy world. We had a great experience at the hospital. We got in there with the doctor at 11:30 pm on Dec.. 14th and Uriah was born at 12:30 am on Dec. 15th. He was 9lbs 4ozs and 21in long. He has redish blonde hair and after the lie detector and a few interrogations, I'm not worried, but it is different to have a baby with that hair color for the second time in a role. His eye color is now coming in and they look like they are going to be a dark greyish blue. After more interrogations and detectors with Brandi, we're going to make it through the different appearances. He is doing so good at night and seems to be adjusting to everything very well. The kids love him! They are so precious and tender with him. And everyone here says he looks just like a baby doll. So we are proud, if you ain't noticed, and very thankful for your prayers and support!! God is soo good and Faithful!

We managed to get a little done with the ministry between Uriah's birth and Christmas. First of all, the morning that Uriah was born, I went with Jeff Edwards, another missionary, to take clothes, toys, and food to a family in the village where the church on the rock that we built in Salfate is, and they were so excited! Jeff and his church back in the States sponsored this family for Christmas, and it was a blessing to see their faces when they received their gifts! That night, Jeff met us at the hospital to welcome baby Uriah into the world.


I also was able to go with our church here in the city, Casa del Alfarero, to the church on the rock. Our church took over 600 tamales (a typical food they serve here at Christmas time and other celebrations) and over 200 toys for the people in this village on Dec. 22nd. We did a little drama about the birth of Jesus and gave testimonies on the change in the house after Jesus was invited in. The people loved the drama and eating tamales, since most in the village cannot afford to cook them at Christmas. But they were very happy to get to eat them this year and get toys for the kids!

I also had the privilege of helping the missionaries, Larry and Marla here in Chiquimula, to deliver food and gifts to two different villages again at the top of the mountains here in Chiquimula on Dec. 23rd. The site was beautiful!! And it was a blessing to be able to help and be apart of what they did for the lives of the people in the villages.





We had a wonderful Christmas. We celebrated Christmas Guatemala style which involves eating until 12 am and then shooting fireworks for the longest. Levi and Mary Kathleen were running around having so much fun. We were at our pastors' house that night. We actually had to wake up the kids the next morning to open their gifts here at the house at 9 am!! Imagine that parents! But we were out until like 2 am. Then we were invited to eat with some of our friends in another town called Ipala for Christmas lunch. Amazing turkey and mash potatoes!!! So we were too busy to be too sad that we weren't with our families in the States and were taken very well care of by our friends here in Guatemala! God is good!! And now we have my folks here with us until the 6th of Jan. and then my in-laws are coming until the 13th. So we are having Christmas up until the 7th of Jan.! Can't beat that! But thank you everyone who prayed for us with Uriah and for our Christmas in Guatemala! We are very blessed and happy and very thankful for our friends and family all over the world! We are already planning new seminars and school visits for 2012. Be with us in prayer for God's guidance in all our plannings. We want His will to be done and His kingdom to come in the ministry and lives in Chiquimula. Love y'all and Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Daniel and Family!!

Friday, November 18, 2011

Seminar In November

Well we had another wonderful training seminar with the pastors in Guatemala on November 3rd through the 5th . Pastor Philip Skipworth came and taught on how to study the Bible. He taught many new things for these pastors. Many were sharing that the teachings were amazing and had a big impact on their spiritual lives. Some have told me since then that they are using some of the methods taught in the seminar to study different books of the Bible. This is what it is about! There were 17 pastors in all, and we handed out 14 diplomas at the end of the seminar. We had some very good discussions during the sessions. I really enjoyed that because they seem to be getting comfortable with each other and thinking deeper and wanting to grow deeper. They split off into groups to do some homework and really came out with very good answers that showed how they are learning and using the Word. We were woke up the first morning with singing and playing guitars outside from the pastors. They all like to sing and just to give you an idea...Brandi fits in perfect with their style of singing...LOUD! Hahaha But it was awesome to see the fellowship and challenging and encouragement going on between the pastors. They loved the bunk beds! They made the youngest guys get on the top bunks on the triples. And they were even nervous about sleeping up there. Good stuff! They really enjoyed Philip and his style of teaching and his willingness to fellowship and be apart of them. Philip brought some very impressive notebook folders with all the material that he and his wife put together. So we are going to have another day meeting in December or January to study more in depth in some of the material in the notebooks. I am excited to be able to review with them and see their growth and application of these principles in their lives and ministries.

We posted a video on Youtube to give you an idea of what we do. This video has a portion of one of the teaching classes, a night service, and the certificate presentation. It is not the best quality, but we hope it gives you an idea of what we do.
Follow the link ---> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jU7baCSUGBo

Pastor Phillip also brought some bulletproof vests with him as well, so during his visit, we were also able to visit the San Jacinto Police Department and give them the vests. They were very excited to receive them and it was a blessing to be able to minister into their lives. Also, there was a "man" that needed ride home from the hospital after his surgery, and the bus would not take him all the way up the mountain to his house. So, we offered him a ride...but then when we went to the hospital to pick him up, we found out that we were also taking him and his family back home. Let's just say we were a little cramped.

Levi had the Rota virus during this week and Mary Kathleen and Brandi had a bacteria also. Brandi was taking care of the kids and helping as much as she could with the food and snacks. Nancy and Blake did a lot of work to keep things going smoothly and make sure everyone was comfortable. So we are so thankful to God for blessing us with another seminar with the pastors here. And we are thankful to Pastor Philip for all his work and for coming to teach and glorify our King in Guatemala. Thanks to everyone of you for your prayers during this week!! How we needed them and felt them! God is good!!
May His kingdom come and His will be done in the lives and ministries of these pastors! Amen!

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

The Crusade with the Pastors

Well, let me tell you, I thought I was a country boy that knew how to camp and do without! Blake and I went with the pastors to a village that seemed to be at the top of the tallest mountain in this area. We drove and drove and drove up a mountain for almost 1 1/2 hours before we reached the village. There was a pavilion there for the church. Another ministry had built that to be the church for the village. We slept and held the night services at the pavilion. We stayed there three nights and four days. It was really amazing to see what these pastors do to reach out to other communities and to help other pastors reach out and impact more of their people. (This is the same group of pastors that had the accident returning from one of these crusades.) A couple of their wives came along and another lady from the village was there to help cook the food for us. We learned how to eat with our hands because they don't use spoons or forks there to eat...only tortillas to get the beans and the food out of the bowl to eat. Thank the Lord they did have a outhouse to use for the bathroom but...don't think I'll go into that part of the trip and that experience. But it was better than walking over to the other end of the church area to do your business. Everyone there was following Blake and me and watching everything we did because we were the white boys there, and it amazed them that we were there and staying with them through the process. ONE day the pastors went to walk to a creek a little ways off to bathe themselves. The next day they offered to take us and show us where to bathe. We were ready, but they had a meeting and it lasted too long so we had no time. But later I thought it probably was for the best because the whole village would have all came out to see the white boys bathing in their creek. A COLD creek. Hahaha! But we had wet wipes and a bucket of water to wash our hair and face and body. That alone felt wonderful! We would walk for about 3 or 4 hours to visit the houses in the village and share the love of God with the families and invite them to the night services. This wasn't as hard as I thought it would be, but there were several mountain climbing moments that, although very physically exhausting, were VERY beautiful experiences. It was amazing to see the mountains and waterfalls and how pretty everything was. The first night we were going to sleep, I rolled over at just the right time to see a big bug crawling up Blake's bed beside me. I flicked it off and then all the pastors started saying, "Kill that bug. It is dangerous." So we killed it. Then they started telling us the bedtime nightmare story of how those bugs carry a virus that will kill you if it bites you. Oh thank you pastors....We'll sleep very good now! They just laughed and kept on telling us things about the dumb bug! Then one of them sincerely tried to comfort us and said, "Brother Daniel, there have been several cases where the bug bites people and they don't die. Take it easy." OH thanks again for your soothing words. So I slept in the cocoon of my sheets for the rest of the night. And it was very cold up in those mountains!! We definitely weren't ready for that! So we froze during the night because we only brought a sheet to sleep with! Who would have known it could be cold in Guatemala!?
But I know that 8 people for sure received Christ the first two days of the crusade. The last night service, I never heard whether anyone received Christ or not, but God really used the music from a group that came to invite the Holy Spirit's presence. So in all, the experience and time at the crusade was life changing and powerful. I learned a whole new level of comfort in Guatemala. Usually I say, "It is wonderful to go to the capital and sleep on the beds in the hotels and take a hot shower." After the crusade, I couldn't wait to sleep in our bed at the house, and the first thing I did when I got home was take an amazing life-changing shower in our house! Well-learned level of appreciation. The pastors now are hoping that we will go with them on all their crusades and help them get there and back, help them minister, and be a part of their team. Pray for us!!! We are willing but the body is weak! Hahaha But who knows....that could be an amazing service for them and their outreach to the village communities.
Well....enough of that thought. Thanks for your prayers and support for God's ministry in Chiquimula. Continue to pray for our eyes to be wide open to His will and calling in our lives!! God bless!!

Daniel

Sunday, October 23, 2011

A couple of trips to the schools and an eye surgery

Hey everyone!! Daniel has been on a evangelical trip with some village pastors for three days now up in the mountains. He'll be back tomorrow :) I'm glad he's got the opportunity to go, but we are ready for him to be home.
We just had our first group from the States leave on Wednesday, and it went pretty well. Getting the kinks out of the rooms and showers has been an adventure, but we were very happy to be able to have them here while they ministered to the people in Guatemala.

Right before the group got here, we were able to go to two of the public schools and do activities and Bible studies. We were sad we did not get to go to the school in a town close to Chiquimula with the older students, but the teachers had been striking for so long that by the time school was back in session, they had to prepare the students for the final exams! Can you imagine!!?? (Schools here go from January to October 15th)
Anyway, Daniel and Blake went to a public school here in Chiquimula, and the particular class they ministered to was a class of boys. They did a lesson on how everyone has a purpose in the body of Christ, and with the lesson they tried showing the students how to play American football. (All they play here is soccer.) Daniel said that they got the point of the message but not the point of American football. Haha! Since both the guys were "playing", they didn't get pictures...oh well.

The same week, Daniel, Nancy, and Blake went to a public school in San Juan and did a lesson with them on building their house on the Rock of Jesus. They seemed to have a great time. We are sad because school is now out for "summer" vacations, and we did not get to visit the schools like we wanted to because of all the striking, but we are thankful for the time we had with them. Lord willing we will be able to do a few activities with them during their vacations.


A couple of weeks ago, one of the pastors that comes to the seminars brought a man that is in his congregation to our house that had been in a chemical accident at work and the chemical had got in his eye. His eye looked HORRIBLE because three months had past since the accident. He had been going to a public hospital and they had told him that he would have to have surgery that would cost money that he did not have, so he just didn't do anything and didn't tell anyone. Praise the Lord, we know an eye doctor here that is a Christian and did the surgery to remove the infection and place a large contact in his eye that will protect it, but sadly he will not regain his site in the one eye. This surgery cost a little over $250, and if you feel led to give to this eye doctor and bless him, please contact us. Daniel and Blake went to go witness the surgery, and Blake almost passed out. I actually can't believe Daniel didn't because of his "surgery" experiences in the past. :) (I bet they'll kill me for putting this picture on here. Hehe)

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Take a Bite out of it

Well when we pick Levi up from school on Friday, the teacher actually came to our car and told us that Levi had an accident today. He fell and bit the inside of his cheek. She said it bled a lot, but in no time Levi was running and playing again. They had to get the English teacher to come and talk to him to see if he was ok and get him to calm down. So when he got in the car we could tell his cheek was swollen. And when he opened his mouth to show us...DANG!!! There was a hole in his cheek! It wasn't a little bit that bled...it is a hole!! And when we were eating at the table tonight, Levi said he didn't want to eat. And when I told him he had to eat, he said his "hole" was hurting. Then I said that it was just noodles with a little sauce and it wouldn't hurt him. Then he said, "Well it ain't your mouth that has a hole in it! It's my mouth!" Hahaha He's just like his mom! But Mme Jo looked at it and Paw and Bones have prescribed salt water several time a day, and praise the Lord it is getting better. (Mary Kathleen wanted to show you her mouth too.)


We also have the bunk beds installed and Sat. we put the last two A/C units in the wall!! The bunk beds are awesome and the pastors are going to love them!! The triples are a little high and I don't know how they'll take that, but they are amazing!! They are adventures for Levi and Mary Kathleen! They love to go in there and play all the time. It's like we have baby sitters now. Haha But thank you sooo much for y'all that gave money for the beds!! It is a huge blessing for the ministry and the pastors!! And others have been donating sheets for the twin mattresses! Thank you soo much! It is wonderful to see God bring His plans together in His timing and His way. Thank y'all!!

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Went swimming!

Well...we woke up this morning around 3:30 and I could hear that it was raining very heavy outside. It did this for a while. The day before we had workers on the roof trying to repair some leaks. The last time it rained this hard here was last year when it flooded the houses close to the river, and now we live in that area! So I got up to look outside and see if the water was in the yard or on the street in front of our house. Then I noticed that it was raining in our house...where the workers REPAIRED the roof the day before! Our table and couches and beds and floors were all getting wet! So we spent the next hour moving things around and getting up and down with Levi, who was having a nightmare, and we finally just put him in the bed with us. So now it had been raining very hard for a while, and the fearless, valiant Brandi was scared for Mary Kathleen being on the other side of the house by herself because when the water floods from the river, everyone has told us that it comes in all of the sudden, without warning. So she was going to be close to her if we had to "grab them and run," according to Brandi. So Levi and I slept in our bed and Brandi in Levi's bed next to Mary Kathleen's room. I woke up again around 6 am and it was still raining but lighter, and I noticed that I did not hear any cars passing by on the road. So I thought I'll get up and put a tarp on the roof. I looked out the window and over the front wall in front of our house, which comes up to my chest, I could see rolling brown caps of water, because the water was very dirty!! So I thought we better get things together and go while the water is still not on our house. So I went to wake up my fearless, ready wife, and after 5 minutes of yelling, "Brandi! Wake up!" She finally jumps up ready to RUN!! We managed to get out and and cross the river in front of our house with our awesome 4-runner we just got! Brandi and the kids were in the back crying and scared to cross the running water in front of the house, and after we crossed with no problems Blake said, "Oh my gosh. That was nothing!" So we went to Mme Jo's house for a while to eat breakfast and then came back and Blake and I spent a few hours with the hose and a broom sweeping the mud into the drains! Oh and we went up on the roof to put the tarp down and Blake's foot went through the roof and broke some of the clay tile! Hate that! So now we have to wait till Monday for the wonderful guys to come back and, Lord willing, to fix the roof! Just glad Blake didn't fall all the way through! But praise the Lord that no water entered the house or passed the front of the house! So it wasn't that hard and didn't mess up anything. One of our missionary friends about a mile down the road had over 2 ft of water in their entire property and inside the house!! So keep us in your prayers! God is good and merciful!

Daniel

Friday, September 30, 2011

Pictures of our Past visit with the Pastors, Daniel Preaching in Salfate, and Pastor Meeting at the house

We have been able to take food to the injured pastors for the past month and a half, and these pictures are of the last time that we could take food to the pastors...but just the way the Lord works, the next week, the Johnson's, another missionary couple here, started giving money each week to provide for their needs! God is amazing!!! Don't let anyone tell you different!!!!





Daniel had the privilege of teaching a service at the church in a village close to Chiquimula this past Sunday (Sept. 25th). They wanted to do the service in the new church, but since it was coming a flood, and the church doesn't have a roof yet, we still had to have the service in a house. (But praise the Lord, the church will have a roof very soon!)




These last pictures are of the Pastors' Meeting we hosted in our house on September 28th. During the meeting, Daniel gave a devotion and got an update on how everyone was doing and how the Lord was working in their churches, we had lunch together (good 'ole southern fried chicken...with tortillas), and Pastor Jendrick Lobos led them in a very encouraging worship service and message after lunch. We all had a great time!