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.

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Youth Seminar



We had our second youth seminar this year on September 28, 29. We had 19 youth come and participate in the seminar. We taught the youth using the Experiencing God book but the youth edition. We received 17 of these books from another ministry here in Guatemala that collects material and ships it to Guatemala to give out to churches and ministries. So we were able to give each youth their own book to use and have. We are going to get two more to give to the two who did not get their book. We asked the pastors to send us the youth from their churches that were between 15 to 23 years old and who were leaders and teachers in the churches. We were really praying and hoping that this would be a seminar to equip and teach these youth to be able to go and do the same in their communities and churches. We had a awesome group of leaders and youth who were in love with God and hungry and passionate for His Word! It always makes things easier and more enjoyable to teach those who are hungry and listening to everything being spoken! Amen Pastors and Teachers?? We invited Bryan...Ashley's "special friend" HAHA...to help teach with Brandi, Nancy, and myself. We taught on God speaking...The test of Faith that comes afterwards...The adjustments we must make in our lives because of this...and The importance of obedience to what God says. All this is tied together in the book on how it leads us to a personal love relationship with God. GOOD STUFF!! We had a great time during the two days with the youth. Nancy and I actually cleaned and filled the pool with water so they could swim during the breaks. And of course they Loved that! We also played games and took them to the local mall to eat lunch the last day. It was the first time ever again for many of the new comers to eat pizza. I found out that almost all of them have never eaten at McDonald's...something different to take in.
But at the end of the weekend with the youth, I really enjoyed being with them and of course aggravating all of them!! I tried to set a few of them up with the lovely godly girls and godly men that were there from other villages. They just turned really red and looked at me like I was crazy! And I had my few that I always picked on and used as examples. But I find out that even though they act like they are going to be scared for life...that is what they enjoy and like...I am Crazy!! Weird concept but it works with the youth...not so much with the older folks...they just sit their and look like they are going to knock my head off. But there you go...keep these youth in your prayers! I have already communicated with many of them, and I am going to go listen to them as they teach the Experiencing God book to their churches. Awesome! Praise God!! There you go...

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Sick!!!

Well I had my first experience with the Dengue Virus! WOW! It was horrible! Dengue is very similar to Malaria. It comes from a mosquito bite that is infected with the virus and lasts usually from 7 to 10 days. It causes very high fevers, severe body pain, sore throat, nausea, a rash, and much more. I told Brandi to go ahead and call our pastors and tell them to come and pray for me b/c it was the end! HA! It was really that bad though. And about three weeks before that, I had a really bad infection in my body that took a big hit on me. And then two weeks before the Dengue I got Shingles on my right hand and a little on my arm. Those things really hurt and effect too much of the normal activity. I was prescribed a strong anti-biotic for these shingles because the doctor thought it was a fungus under the skin. Well because I took the anti-biotic when it wasn't necessary I ended up getting a fungus in my stomach and intestines the week of my Dengue suffering and couldn't leave the bathroom...if you know what I mean! And while I was sitting in bed getting over the fever, I got an upper respiratory infection and cough. This was all within a 4 to 5 week period! Too much for this old man! It was like I turned 31 in August and everything went down the drain!! BUT...I am finally getting over everything and getting some strength back. My hand still hurts where the shingles were. I don't know how long that'll take to stop, but I am praying and believing it won't be much longer. But it's all good to go! I'll get over it and get it done...Lord willing! Please keep me in your prayers! That was really tough!

Monday, August 26, 2013

Lindsay Lane Baptist with Us!!

We worked with Lindsay Lane Baptist Church for the first time this July! It was awesome!! A couple pastors came to teach at a church in a village about 1 hour from our town. Eric and Susan Pugh taught along with Glen Harrison about the family and home life, prayer, and the spiritual gifts. There were about 40 people there at the church. The pastor there has been coming to our seminars for more than two years now, but this was our first time to teach in his church. I didn't know what to expect, but the Lord took care of everything and we had a great time!! These were much needed topics in this area where there are a lot of broken and abandoned families and little education. They are very smart people and were very attentive and some were even taking notes. Much of the material was taught for the first time to many of the people. I saw some fanny faces while talking about the husband and wife and kids. The culture there is not very expressive so it was different talking about being affectionate to your spouse and kids. But they were very open, and based on some of their comments, were understanding the Biblical importance of each person in the family and how it all worked together. And it was helpful having Eric and Susan there to teach from both the man and the woman's perspective. Then Glen taught on prayer! The church had just finished a all-night prayer service the night before! So it was great being able to teach on prayer and see the growth in their prayer life as they saw new ideas and teachings from the scripture. But the teaching on Spiritual gifts and how they can edify the church was really great! They had never been taught on this and didn't know how the body functioned together as one with these gifts. It was nice hearing them talk about what they thought their gift was and how it could be used to edify the church. And some were asking questions and arriving at a new understanding on the Spiritual Gifts and how to use them. A couple of weeks later, the pastor there told me that the church was so excited and already waiting for the next teaching seminar for the church! How awesome is that! We are also trying to translate the lessons that go into more detail but that are in English for the church to have and be able to study more!
The next day, Pastor Eric and Susan did a short but wonderful marriage retreat for us in Josh Byrd's living room! Josh and Jessica Byrd are our missionary friends also working in Chiquimula and with Lindsay Lane Baptist. This was both fun and refreshing for Brandi and me! We had a lot of laughs and learned a lot too. It was nice to be taught and to receive from this godly couple and from their experiences. Brandi and I are already doing things differently and feeling the difference! God is good!!
And that night Pastor Glen came to our Bible study that we have in our house each week. He shared his testimony and how God is still revealing Himself to him and changing his life! What an encouragement for us all! One of the couples at the Bible study was dealing with some of the same issues that he had dealt with, and they were very excited to hear how God had helped him and got him through the similar circumstances. I think Glen was feeling uneasy about teaching with a translator and if it would relate to the people, but when God takes His servants and uses them...awesome things happen...more than you thought could come of it and everyone leaves praising God! That is our God and The God we serve...amen!
The next day, some teachers from the Athens, Limestone County area in Alabama came to Chiquimula and taught at the school in San Juan where we teach and visit the kids. There were three teachers in this group, and they came to give a workshop or conference to the teachers here in Guatemala. The school's principle was very excited to have them come and teach. There were other people in the group that came to help take care of the kids in the school while the teachers received their classes. This was way harder than I thought it was going to be! The first two and a half hours went great! But after that it got a little difficult to keep them together and teach them. But the group did a really good job! They played games and soccer with the kids! They also brought some arts and crafts and used them to teach the kids about salvation and how we receive it in our hearts. There was also a guy who sat for an hour drawing things for the kids like boats, planes, flowers, princesses...He saved me from having to hog-tie all the kids and stuff socks in their mouths! You say, "Oh how bad, Daniel!!" But you weren't there! Don't judge! The teachers just laughed at me and told me to come back the next day to be the 5th grade teacher! HA! I regretfully had to decline!
So we had more doors opened through the group and their ministering in Chiquimula with us! What a blessing to work with these wonderful people and serve the Lord together! We look forward to having them come back!! Praise God! There you go....

Killen UMC Youth Group


Well we had a wonderful time with the Killen youth group! They have come here every year since we came to be missionaries in Guatemala! We always look forward to having them come and act crazy with us! Eddie Grissom is now the youth pastor at Killen UMC, and he got the trip together and brought a great group down to serve the Lord and the people in Chiquimula! I love hanging out with this group. Just about all of them grew up in Luke's and my youth group! Bless their hearts....right? But they are some of the most awesomest people! They came to work hard and minister as well. They put on a roof in a place called Maraxco. We have never worked in this area but learned of it through some of our friends in our church. It is another poor area with a lot of violence and need for the love of the Lord. We found a family, through the same friends in our church, that needed a roof on their house. The man that live there can only see out of one eye and is losing his site in that one good eye. His wife is completely blind and his son is also losing his eye site. The group bought all the material and spent two days putting up the wood and tin for the new roof. While working on the roof, we met some new guys and were able to talk and minister to some of them. The family was very thankful and at the end of the project, they were praising God and exalting the church or the body of Christ that had worked together to help and strengthen itself! Wow! Good stuff! I pray that this opportunity that God provided to work in this community opened more doors for our friends that live there and the Word to impact and change more lives! We also saw a momma pig with her new babies when we arrived the second day. She had her babies right where we were working! Momma pigs can get mean!!
The group also went to two schools and taught the kids and played with them. I am discovering that these kids love it when people from the States come and play with them. One of the kids asked me just the other day when we came to teach and play with them, "Where are the other people that came to play with us?" We told him, "It is just us this time." Then we said, "Oh man!" and made a sad face. I quickly grabbed him and took care of that sad face, but they love playing with the groups! At one of the schools, the group played soccer with the kids. Let me tell you we showed off our soccer skills! HAHA! We had all the kids and teachers laughing and asking us if we were doing karate moves or trying to kick the ball...it was that bad! But again, the kids loved it and so did we! Jackson, aka Marv, actually mad a goal from the other end of the field!
The group also went to the hospital and prayed for the kids and other patients. Most of the people in the group had been there before and prayed for the people but some of them experienced this for the first time. Very impacting and changes the way you think about a lot of things. But we are very thankful that the groups go and lift up the people in prayer and love on the people! This changes lives and impacts many there in the hospital!
They also put a concrete floor down for a family in El Morral with Pastor Esau. We had to cross a small creek and carry the concrete bags and water from the creek to the house about a 100 yards away. It was very hard work, but they worked together taking turns carrying water and making assembly lines to get the buckets of concrete inside the house to pour out. They finished the floor inside the house and the porch area outside in one day. The family that lives in this house is very poor and couldn't afford to get the concrete for the floor, but they bought food to feed the group lunch. Sonia, Esau's wife, cooked the food for the family. We ate the food in Esau's house. This was huge for the family to buy everybody food, and the food was delicious!!
The group went to Rio Dulce about three hours from Chiquimula towards the east coast. There is a touristic spot on the river where we saw the old fort built in 1595 by San Felipe. I was their tour guide and filled their heads full of knowledge about each room and rooftop we saw. There are a lot of interesting facts and inventions in that fort. I convinced some of them that the first electric plug was invented there in 1595...and the rave parties and gym spa was very popular there as well. Good stuff. We also ate on the river and took a boat ride around the area. The guy in the boat told us there was a bird island...well what a flop! We start out and see a few floating trees and wood that got hung up on some actual live trees with a bunch of the same type of birds....and thaaat was "Bird Island"!! Good stuff! But that trip was fun and I think that was when it became official...Levi likes on of the girls from Killen, Whitney. Marv...Whitney's actual boyfriend...didn't seem to feel threatened by Levi, but Levi was putting out the vibe! He asked her to play some cards outside and when she showed up to take her seat there was a flower in her spot...placed by the all romantic Levi! Better get yourself in gear there Marv! Haha The last day some of them played a couple of worship songs at the Church on the Rock. Ashley sang while Eddie, Marv, and Brandi played the music. They sang one song in Spanish and the other in English. The Spirit really moved and touched the place through the worship.
We really had a great time with them and praise the Lord for their hearts and attitudes that we saw while they served the Lord and others here in Chiquimula!

Seminar with Mark and Preston


The day we dropped off the group from Killen UMC, we picked up Mark Adams and Preston Headrick from Alabama. We always have the best time with Mark. He was my...well all of our leader at the youth camp we grew up in. He even was there for the youth that were in my youth group! OLD!! haha But my kids love him...we love him...and the girls here with us love him. It is always an experience with Mark. My mom actually accused him of being a bad influence on MY dad! Wow! Pretty rough! And I was actually accused of being a bad influence on Mark here in Chiquimula by some of our friends. Really bad!! But that was quickly brought to light the longer those folks were around us and got to know Mark! Love it! And this was Preston's first time to visit us in Guatemala! He was the minister at one of the camps where we were the worship band. That was one year that we still talk about. The presence and anointing was tangible that year during the night services. Preston is truly a servant God has poured out His anointing on and uses him to minster to His people. So we were honored and blessed to have Preston come and teach the pastors with Mark this year.
We weren't able to go see a lot with the guys b/c we were still getting everything clean and ready for the seminar for that Thursday through Saturday afternoon. But they did go pray at the hospital with the girls and Brandi. There was actually some rain the first couple of days they were here so they didn't get to go out much.
We had an amazing seminar! The pastors really love and appreciate Mark. They feel very close to him and have really accepted him here into their "group." That is one of Mark's talents, to be real and befriend people very easily. And Mark actually remembers their names and who they are and the past experiences with each one of them! That alone is ministering and encouraging to the pastors. They taught the pastors on the Presence and the Anointing in the church and prayer. And glory to God the Presence and Anointing were heavy during the teaching sessions! Mark taught on getting the focus back on having God's presence in the church and what that really means. He also taught on how easy it is for us to get focused on the numbers and events we set up in our churches. We must learn as Mary did to see our time sitting and listening at the feet of Jesus as more important and better than programs and events to grow and look better. Bro. Preston taught on the anointing in the churches and how to minster and stay in that anointing. It gets too easy to start doing things relying on our strength and knowledge, but true ministering and making disciples can only flow from God's anointing and power! He also encouraged and refreshed the pastors on prayer. We went through a time of putting it all into practice by spending time in prayer that covered all areas of ourselves, families, and ministries. What a wonderful time!!
Bro. Preston also was able to go and teach at one of our pastor/friend's church about 20 minutes from our house Sunday morning. The glory and presence of the Lord were there and ministered to many people in the church. Mark was sick on Sunday morning and was not able to teach or preach that day. He normally preaches at one of the churches in the villages when he comes but was not able to do so this time...He was sad. But we all went to the church on the rock and Bro. Preston taught on the anointing in the church and prayed for that anointing to fill that church and the lives of each member! At the end of the service we celebrated the pastor's granddaughter's birthday with the church and friends. That was a new experience but was great to be a part of that church family and the pastor's family.
Praise the Lord for using His servants to fill His pastors with more power, presence, and anointing! We pray that each one of them take the lessons and what they learned and teach their communities and be the example of all they learned! Good stuff!

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Pastor Seminar in June!

We had the privilege of having Stan and Bart come back to Guatemala to give a seminar to the pastors on Effective Christian Leadership. Stan's son, Tristen, also came with him for the first time to Guatemala. Tristen has been waiting for a long time to turn 14 and visit Guatemala! They came and worked very hard putting on a roof in El Morral for one of the pastors that was in the accident two years ago. Because of the accident, he had to spend all his money he had saved to finish the house he was building. Stan and Tristen provided the money to purchase the tin roof and wood to finish that part of the house. While working together on the house with the two pastors, they shared at the end of the day that as they were watching Tristen and listening to him as he worked and helped they could see the workings of a missionary heart inside of him. They even went as far as to have a special time of prayer at the end of the day for Tristen and Stan. That was the first time that had happened with a group so it was a first for me too. Who knows Stan....Amanda might hurt you but we'll see what God has in store for Tristen. Good stuff!
Then we started the seminar with the pastors the next day. The ladies, once again, worked very hard cooking and preparing the food for everybody for the three days. The food was awesome!! There is one pastor called Enrique. One time during a seminar, he actually got up and left and went to a street vendor and bought more tortillas and brought them back for everybody. He can eat like 15 tortillas with his meal!! They are use to filling their stomachs with tortillas b/c there isn't much food. Well this time we played around with him and made sure his plate was extremely full of tortillas! It was hilarious! His expression was so funny when he first saw the tortillas and didn't know what to say...but once he figured out it was a joke he said, "Now you are getting close to the right amount." Haha But then at the end he was so full he didn't what more even when it was offered to him! Good stuff! A huge ministry from the ladies to these pastors! There is nothing wrong with getting a full stomach every once and a while.
We had a lot of comments and testimonies during this seminar. Many had never been taught the steps and details of setting goals and steps to meat the goals, or how to set up a leadership team and delegate things out to accomplish more in the ministry. Many were sharing that the material was really helpful, and they were going to take it back to the church to teach it to their congregations and leaders. One of the guys is a leader and not the pastor of the church...he set some goals and steps on how to start a discipleship program at the church in his village. He said that he was going to ask permission from the pastor to start it when he got back. Others for the first time were writing out their vision and mission statements, and understanding the difference between the two. It was great seeing their faces when they realized that they really hadn't put something in writing or thought specific about their vision and mission. But that was taking care of that day when they all took time to pray and write out their statements and then have them reviewed by the other pastors to maybe help revise them or reword them. We also did more dramas or skits on the story of Nehemiah and how he received his vision and what his mission and goals were to see it through. The guys did very well and some might have a future in the acting world. HA We also shared Communion or The Last Supper together at the end of the seminar. The pastors really enjoyed this the last time Bart was here and asked to do it again. Bart wanted the pastors to serve each other the elements making it a great fellowship time and an opportunity to serve each other and grow closer together. I can see these pastors growing closer together and starting friendships and accountability groups and prayer groups with each other. What an important thing for some who are so alone and so far away from others to have that help and encouragement from other pastors.
We were able to hand out diplomas again to each pastor for finishing the study on Effectiv
e Christian Leadership. They shared their thanks and appreciation to the guys for coming and teaching them and also to y'all for your prayers and support making this possible! They sent their blessings and thanks to "the people and churches in the USA." Thank you! And praise God for a great time with the pastors and for Bart and Stan coming to teach them!! God bless!!
 




Gordo UMC Trip!

I am not calling this group fat! That is the name of their church close to Tuscaloosa, AL. This is Bart's church he is serving right now. After Bart finished the seminar with the pastors and with Stan and Tristen, we dropped Stan and Tristen off at the hotel and picked up the group for another week of ministering in Guatemala! We had to stay the night in a hotel in the capital b/c the group arrived very late on top of their flight being delayed. But all arrived in Guatemala...some very pale and sick looking, others tired and asleep...and others ( Liz) very talkative. lol But everybody was good to go and ready to get to Chiquimula. The next day we get to Chiquimula and get settled down and in the rooms. They put on a roof the following down and walked around the village praying and ministering to the families at their houses. We had to carry the wood through creeks and up mountains to get it to the house! Everybody surprised me and managed to make it to the house without passing out or falling in the creek. It was a lot of wood and some pieces were 3x4 16 foot long pieces! Not that light! Then we split up in teams, some to work on the roof and others to go visiting. The house was horribly squared making it very difficult to cut pieces and line everything up just right. And b/c of that it took extra long to get things going and finish the roof! Plus the language barrier b/t the Guatemalans working and the group all trying to communicate and tell the other what they were wanting or doing...but everyone worked together so well and got it done! The ladies were escorted around by the guy's daughter who owned the house we were putting the roof on. They walked all over the side of that mountain...up and down...visiting houses and praying for people. They stayed gone the entire morning visiting and praying and came back around 1:30 to eat lunch. The owner's of the house fixed a lunch for all of us!! That is huge for these people to share that much food with us!! It was very touching and humbling to receive the food that was really a sacrifice for them. But they gave it to us with a smile and were very happy to see everyone enjoying the food and eating it all!! Then we got back to work on the roof and didn't finish until around 7 pm!! Not normal but b/c it was so out of wack, it took a little longer than usual. But it was a great first day!
The next day, we went with the pastor from the same village as the first day, up the mountain a good ways and met with another pastor under his care to minister in his church and in his community. We played with the kids, did a Bible lesson with them and handed out candy to them. We did the skit about the good Samaritan again and the group acted out the parts. The kids loved it and listened very well! Then we went to three different families to hand out food and pray for them! The pastor had picked out the families who needed the most help. I think everyone could see how content these families were living so simple and humble and how excited they were to receive food from the group! Our baby, Uriah, woke up that day vomiting and with the runs so Brandi had to stay home when we got back to go to the hospital that afternoon. The group went and prayed for the babies in the ICU and the other kids in the recovery rooms. They brought toys and candy to hand out as they prayed for each family that was there. We had a mom receive Jesus into her heart that day!! Good stuff! Then we took the rest of that afternoon and noght off to get ready for the next day of construction.
The third day we went to the Church on the Rock to put another tin roof on a house for a very poor family and at the same time Liz taught the ladies in the church a two day seminar. Before we got started with the roof, we had another opportunity to play with the kids in that area and do the same Bible study with them. After the Bible study, some stayed to play with the kids while the others went to work on the roof. This house was a little more squared off than the other and we had help from some of the guys in Carlos' church so it went a lot smoother! And once again...this family fixed a chicken soup for all of us who were working on the house. Some of the guys said they didn't know that all of it was chicken in the soup and after we found the shell of an armadillo we were sure that it wasn't all chicken. Haha! Joking! But we did find a shell of an armadillo but Louis said that they had eaten that a long time ago. So what was it??? It was good and gone whatever it was! And what a blessing and sacrifice for them to share with us the little that they had! Good lesson on sharing! The seminar with Liz went very well that day. Some ladies and kids from the group helped take care of the ladies' babies that were participating in the seminar. Huge help! She taught on Effective Prayer. I wasn't there but I heard some of the ladies sharing afterwards about how they had been encouraged and refreshed on the importance and power of prayer and the steps they were taking to get back into their prayer life. Good stuff!!
Then on Saturday we went back to Salfate for Liz to finish teaching the ladies and the rest of the group that wasn't helping take care of the babies at the church walked around the village visiting and praying with different families. They also bought two more baskets of food to hand out to the families that the pastor had chosen that needed help. We had a great time in that village and are very thankful for the group sharing and ministering there with us!
Then we went back to Chiquimula to visit down town and see the central market where the meat was hanging to buy and the vegetables laid out to choose. Some of them bought some hammocks to take home and relax under the tree and others just looked around and were thankful for Wal-Mart (for Peggy haha) or for the grocery stores in the States! But we had a good time seeing all of that and also visiting with the local volunteer fir department.
Sunday morning and afternoon they went to the Copan Ruins in Honduras. Then they went back to the church on the rock and participated in the church service. Then they left for the airport on Monday morning! We were so blessed and happy to have this group with us! They were wonderful to carry around...they quickly came to understand how wonderful and pleasant the McIntyre charm is! Hahaha! I was their tour guide all day Sunday!! Good stuff!! The things I can come up with scare even me! But we want to thank y'all for coming and hope to see y'all again soon!!



















God bless!!!

Friday, July 12, 2013

God's Faithfulness

I found a journal entry today from 2008, when we were praying about coming to Guatemala. I was pregnant with Mary Kathleen and Levi had just turned 1:

March 13th, 2008:
God reminded me today of His faithfulness. He told me to look at the bare trees in the yard, and then He said that He would be faithful to bring the leaves back to those trees, and the trees would no longer be bare. He does it every year. He told me I was more valuable than those trees, so He would be sure to be faithful to me. He has never forgotten about me, and He never will. I can trust Him with my life, and I can trust Him with the lives of those I love.

Here it is July 12th, 2013 and we have been in Guatemala for four and a half years, and He has never left us. Levi is 6 years old, Mary Kathleen is almost 5, and Uriah, who was born in Guatemala, is 1 and a half. He has proved His faithfulness to us over and over again, even though He isn't required to because He is God. He will continue to be faithful, although the humans around me and the circumstances I face with more than likely fail me. For that, I love Him more today than I ever have.

Monday, July 8, 2013

Trip to the States!

Welp...we did a little something different for this summer! For the first time in three years we visited AL in the summer!! We didn't tell anybody accept a few people that we were coming so it was a great surprise for the family! Luke, Kimberly, and Lily Grace picked us up from the airport. They didn't tell Lily Grace so it would be a surprise for her to see Levi, and so she wouldn't tell anybody else! It was great to see their response when they saw each other. Levi chased her for a while until Luke finally grabbed Levi and put them together so Levi wouldn't clobber her and take her to the floor! We had to tell my mother-in-law because for the first time in her LIFE she was going to leave Alabama and stay for a few days in Florida with her brother...the day we were going to arrive!! Can you believe that?! So she knew but managed to keep it a secret...another miracle!...so the kids were able to surprise their Paw Paw, Keith McBay. He was asleep and they ran in and jumped on him in bed. After he yelled, "Hey! Mercy!" He figured out it was us! I didn't know if he was going to hit them from being jumped on while dead asleep but it was perfect! The next day we went to the early service at my folks' church and surprised them! Leigh Cron did a Brave Heart charge across the parking lot screaming and mounts me and Uriah! Uriah is looking at this crazy woman like what is her problem and starts crying when the teeth got so close! LOL!! That was for my sister! But he did cry. And mom and dad's reaction was classic too! So we had a good surprise and a great time relaxing with the family and seeing everybody again! And of course...The FOOD!!! was AWESOME!! Gained about 10 lbs in 2 weeks...that's right! But lost it all in a few days back in Guatemala! We were able to hang out with the family, and the kids got to see the cousins and go out on the boat at the McBay's and the four wheeler at the McIntyre's...GOOD STUFF!! Thank you God for our visit and great time with the family!
But we got back Sunday, and Monday I had to go back to the capital to pick up three guys to do construction and a pastor seminar, and then a week later when they left we picked up a new group from a church in AL to do construction, school and hospital ministry, and seminars for the next week. WOW! Didn't really stop until this past Tues., but the groups were great and a lot was accomplished in the ministry and villages, Praise God!! 
There you go...

Monday, May 27, 2013

Playing with the kids in the city school

We finally were able to go back to one of the city schools in Chiquimula to play with the kids and teach them from God's Word! We had not been to this school in a while because of their test scheduling or conflicting schedules. But we went this morning and had a wonderful time!! My team lost really bad in the game we played! I love playing with them and getting them all-keyed-up and crazy for their teachers after we leave! Doesn't sound like me? I always try to get them into the games by making it competitive, but this time it back fired on me! We lost really bad! But to make everybody mad and crazy...the last attempt we had to try to win I told everybody that whoever won this one, won the whole thing! Some agreed thinking they would beat us again and others were yelling noo!! Well we WON!!! Haha! We were happy but the other team didn't seem to like me making up rules as we played....some people just are sore losers! I bet some of y'all who are reading now are even getting a little fired up huh? Haha Good stuff! We did the drama based on the Good Samaritan from the Bible! We had some of the kids act out the story as Nancy read! It was wonderful!! All the kids were laughing and participating really good! Then Nancy shared and taught about the story planting the seed in their minds and hearts! The teacher that allows us to come is a Christian and really works hard teaching these kids and trying to lead them to Christ, but with it being a public school and the fact that the principle is not a Christian, it gets tough sometimes. While Nancy was praying with the kids at the end the principle starting walking down the hall towards us, and Nancy had to cut the prayer short b/c the teacher was afraid that if the principle finds out he won't let us come back. So keep this teacher and her kids in your prayers that God will protect them and cover them with His grace and give opportunities for her to teach the kids about God's love and truth everyday!  God is good!!!

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

We have visitors!

We picked up three strangers, lost and all alone at the air port, this past Friday! They looked scared and confused so we took them home with us as our personal slaves to serve us and give us foot massages for the next two and a half months!! Hahaha! Kathleen, Melanie, and Ashley are here to help us out in the ministry for the next two and a half months. We are very happy to have them here and look forward to having their help and company for a little while now. Mary Kathleen is sooo excited to have other girls in the house and not just her and Brandi! She is all the time checking on them in their rooms making sure they are still there and just checking to see if they are wanting to play! She is so cute! We are very blessed to have them stay during this time because we are going to be having groups or seminars every week starting the second week of June to the first week in August!! But these girls are great workers and love to help and serve...as long as I can keep Ashley away from the guys here! Hahaha She'll be mad if she ever sees this! They are already helping with the school visits and praying in the hospital and are ready and informed about the upcoming groups and seminars! Please pray for these girls while they are here! Pray for protection....don't like having teenagers to be responsible for!! and pray for God to speak to them and show them things while they are here serving and loving on these folks in Guatemala! Imagine that...a McIntyre able to influence and be a mentor to more young people....scary huh?! Haha

We are Residents!

Well we are officially permanent residents of Guatemala. We have been in this residency process now for a year and a half! And finally this past week we both passed through the last process and paperwork and will go in a few days to pick up our passports from immigration with our residency stamps inside! The kids have already had their temporary residency stamps since February, praise the Lord, but we had to file for other things that took longer. We are very excited that the process is finally over and everything is done! But it feels weird to be permanent residence of Guatemala! Now we have our Guatemalan ID and have to get our driver's license from here now...weird! I had some of my friends here calling and congratulating us...they said that I am no longer Daniel (pronounced in the English accent) but that I am Danielle (Daniel pronounced in the Spanish accent)....Like I said, don't know if I like that or not! Haha But it sure makes things easier here not having to leave the country to keep up the visitor visa and safer being legal here as residence. We want to thank everyone who helped us in this process with your prayers and giving! I know that it's hard to understand living in the States where everything has a 1,2,3 step process to get things accomplished, but it is a work of God that this has come to be and is over! Here, they tell you one thing and mean another...or the person telling you really doesn't know and sends you on a huge rabbit chase wasting a lot of time and money! This based on our experiences and stories from others. So thank the Lord and thank all of y'all for helping us!! God is so good and faithful!!

Thursday, May 9, 2013

School in San Juan



Praise the Lord we were able to visit the school in San Juan again this past week. We haven't been back to this school since August of last year. This school can be a challenge for me because the kids are a little harder at listening and participating. The kids love Nancy and she enjoys teaching them so we usually take turns teaching this school. However, this visit was just the opposite. We arrived and the kids were very excited to see us and asked where we had been for so long and why we hadn't visited them before now. I chased some of them around and would hang them upside down or throw them up in the air until they would cry...haha! Just joking about the crying part...but I had you going there! But we did play around while waiting for the time to share. Then we played a game with them...boys against girls. And I don't think I have to tell you who won....BOYS! of course! There were a few of the guys who I reckon thought they were too cool for the game and just sat and watched...but when it got pretty intense and close to the girls winning, I notice they were pretty involved and intense themselves! Good stuff!! I use to be there, sad enough! If they could just realize that being cool is not fun and being crazy is awesome...their lives would be so much easier! Then we taught them about the Good Samaritan. But we did it by acting out the parable. We picked some guys and girls to be play the roles of the different characters in the story, but when we got ready and Nancy read the part for them to go out and act...they would run away and try to hide from me! So I ended up playing a role in every part of the drama with them. I was a priest, Levite, and a good Samaritan and at the same time...the Samaritan's donkey! But the sweet thing was that all the kids were watching and listening....quietly!!! WOW! They all stayed to listen...they all sat and watched....and no one was talking or not paying attention! It was awesome!! They were able to repeat the main points and seemed to understand what it is to be a neighbor and how to treat other people! Praise the Lord! Even the teachers were surprised! Now the next time could be a total flop!! But I am excited and happy about how things went this time! We hope to go visit another school this week and do the same lesson. God is good!! There you go...






Friday, May 3, 2013

Youth Seminar (April 27th & 28th)

We had our first youth seminar for this year, and there were 20 youth who attended. We hosted the seminar at our house all day Saturday and half a day Sunday. We started at 9 am Saturday morning with lessons in the morning and then Brandi and Nancy served a delicious spaghetti lunch. We then had more lessons in the afternoon. And Brandi and Nancy served supper again for the youth. Our local church has a youth service every Sat. night so we took these youth to that service at our church. Now most of these youth come from high up villages in the mountains and usually never come down to the cities. So they are not use to bigger places or technology...lights...sound...modern Christian music...but that did not stop them!! I was laughing soo hard during worship! I was so happy for them. When the worship music started the youth in the service all ran to the front of the stage and started dancing and clapping to the music...songs such as "I am free," or "Our God," some of our youth as well went down and were jumping and dancing! But it was so awesome! Bless their hearts, they looked more like stiff robots trying to dance because they had never done it before. They looked more like me dancing! But they didn't care!! They danced and clapped the entire worship time!! That was awesome! Normally you can't get them to participate for nothing...when they are by themselves at our house much less in front of 100 other youth! That night went awesome and they loved it!! Now this youth camp went a lot different from our youth camp when I was younger and a camper. We always stayed up really late talking and laughing and getting in trouble but when morning came around we were in trouble again because no body wanted to get up on time! The counselors would come in and get us up...my dad would take it upon himself to carry the video recorder around and record himself aggravating everybody who wouldn't get up on time...aggravating!! But with these youth...they were up before we got up!! We woke up to start getting breakfast ready and they were already up. showered, and dressed walking around and talking. I reckon next time I'll have to slip some Benadryl or Nyquil in their drinks so they'll sleep longer!! But we were able to sleep just a few minutes longer after I put some of them to sleep again with a few special techniques! Haha! After Brandi and Nancy finished with breakfast our kids helped serve the youth! They felt special and helped so much getting the food out to the youth. We taught the youth about purity Sunday morning and separated them to go further into the message. Then we were able to do another new thing with the youth...we took them to the mall here in Chiquimula to eat lunch and see the city mall. For most of them it was the first time that they ate pizza and ice cream! Can you imagine that! And it appeared that all of them liked it! Some of them even went and played some arcade games afterwards and were pretty good at it! There are some escalators in this mall...I was so upset I wasn't there to see them trying to go up for the first time but Brandi said it was great. Two of the girls refused to get on them so Brandi took them to the elevator. I would think that would be scarier to be locked up in the elevator but there you go. After everybody had eaten and played a little, we took them to the bus to go home. We had two guys from our church help teach some of the lessons...Bryan and Ruben. They are amazing guys/youth who love God and did a great job teaching the youth! And Nancy also taught a lesson. And I taught as well. Ruben and Brandi lead worship the first day and then we let the youth lead the worship the next day. They seemed to be learning and taking notes throughout the seminar and all said that they had a great time! I hope to be able to do another one with these youth by the end of the year and also go back up to Peten to those youth and teach them as well. But we are praying and seeing if all that can be possible. We had a great time and are very thankful for all the people on this end that helped us out with preparing, cooking, and teaching! And we are very thankful for your prayers and support making it possible to host these seminars! Keep these youth in your prayers!!




Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Encouraging a pastor

I have had a certain pastor on my heart now for about 8 months. I thought it was because he needed help finishing his church construction in his village. I have been praying about helping him this whole time and even came up with a little extra money once that we could give him, but that fell through and was not able to give it to him. So I went up to his village last week to see him and the church and visit some families to pray for and invite to church. We arrived and saw the church structure which is basically a pavilion built by another ministry here in Chiquimula last year. He had already bought the block to close it in but lacked other material to finish. So we wrote down the materials he lacked to see what we could do to help. During our visit and talking with the pastor I began seeing how alone he was in his ministry and how difficult it has been for him. He basically had to take over a church where the previous pastor had committed an immoral sin and had left the church. So he started off with a very tough situation and because of what the people thought about what the previous pastor had done, they left which left basically no one in the church. He started off by going to the Biblical Institution from the denomination he is under and just graduated this past December. Which says A LOT because he only has a 1st grade education!! He basically had to learn to read and write again while in seminary college!! WOW!! But praise God he graduated and is now back in his village and with his family. But because he doesn't have much help from within his church, it makes it very difficult to get out into the community and make disciples and evangelize those who don't know Jesus. It is not being done right now. So I began to see that all this time God was putting him on my heart to encourage him and help him get a jump start again in ministering to his community. Which is the very purpose that I feel God started this ministry. Sometimes I can be really slowww and blind!! So I have a few friends that are pastors from our seminars that also work with me in the ministry who are going to go with me to visit and encourage him and help teach him some pastoral administration and tips on restoration of churches and communities which have passed through tragic situations like the one with the previous pastor. I have to call and set up the day and time to go and do this. I pray that he is willing to receive the help and encouragement because he also works very hard and everyday in order to provide for his family. But both the other pastors who are going to help me work the same way and are going to give him some advise on how to manage time with the job and the ministry! I am soo excited and looking forward to see what God has in store for Enrique and this community. Please pray with me that the opposition from the enemy will not prevail and that the Light will shine like the stars to reach the lost and heal the hurt!!