Just this month a group of JE travelers had the incredible opportunity to ring in the new year with young women and orphaned children in Guatemala. We’re so pleased to be able to share their story with you.

Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world. — James 1:27

Our week in Guatemala was life-changing for all of us. We saw the beautiful old city of Antigua. We climbed the Pacaya Volcano and ziplined through the rainforest. We also visited 4 daycare centers, did crafts with over 400 kids throughout the week, gave away toys, and threw candy out the window to begging children along a busy highway. Then we celebrated the New Year by lighting off fireworks in Central Park in Xela and shared sky lanterns with people from all over the world.

But the thing that made the most impact was visiting the women’s shelter for abused women. The majority of the “women” there were 14-16 years old — young girls, really — that had been abused by their fathers and brothers. They were hidden away in a shelter, and our group helped to build a wall around the shelter to hide them and protect them. These women and their children have nothing, most leave with the clothes on their backs. We were able to buy the kids toys, and give the moms a basket full of personal items. We loved on the kids and played with them, and the faces of those children are forever etched in our memories. We also helped them make crowns because the Bible tells us that we are all co-heirs with Christ — meaning we are all Kings and Queens! Our prayer is that someday the children of Guatemala will join us in reigning with Christ, as believers in Him.