Guatemala News
News, updates and stories from the LoveServes team in the Dominican Republic, Guatemala and US. SubscribeTRANSFORMATION in Guatemala
What do you think when someone mentions the “global impact of COVID-19”? If you are like most people, your thoughts divert directly to challenges, loss and overwhelming changes. Whatever immediate thought you have, it’s unlikely you thought about a transformed, healthy church. But that is exactly what happened in El Chico in the midst of the COVID pandemic.
El Chico is a small island in the Guatemalan Pacific. In El Chico, almost in the middle of nowhere, there is a small church focused on the integral transformation of this fishing village. In November 2018, when LoveServes began training in Guatemala, the El Chico Presbyterian Church was in a deep crisis: the assigned Pastor only attended eight days a month and the membership was only 15 adult women, 10 youth, 10 children, and five men who governed the congregation.
Since the church lacked a permanent Pastor, the church assumed there was no way for them to participate in LoveServes’ training and apply the precepts and Integral Mission programs. “But God” had already been stirring hearts. Three leaders of the church assumed the commitment to heal their church. In 2019, they chose to be part of LoveServe’s training. These devoted church members (brothers Elvis and Samuel Rodas and Antonieta Trinidad ) carried out the training faithfully and shared the spiritual enthusiasm they learned with the other church members.
In a short period of time, this small group of believers began serving their community in new ways.
- They changed the vision of being a water purification plant to being a supplier of pure water for the elderly, the disabled, and sick people in the community.
- The church began to promote cleaning days throughout the village and created a food distribution program.
- They also began working with drug and alcohol addicts.
Villages are Transformed as people look outside the four walls.
This works. This is proven
In 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic closed churches across the globe, the El Chico Presbyterian Church members had already developed a strategy for hosting small groups in homes. This allowed them to reach many people for Christ, including four addicts who have already been baptized and who are now serving in church ministries and telling others about their personal spiritual transformation.
As the transformation of the church began happening, God stirred the heart of one of the three leaders, Samuel Rodas, to pursue becoming a Pastor of the El Chico Presbyterian Church. In the midst of the pandemic, Samuel completed his seminary studies and was appointed a full-time Pastor. Now the church has a Pastor fully trained in the holistic vision of the Gospel.
God has grown the El Chico Presbyterian Church to a current membership of 115 people (including children). They are sustaining four outreach ministries to the community:
- Family Counseling,
- Food Distribution,
- Environmental Care and
- Supply of Drinking Water
The El Chico Presbyterian Church is a testimony to the wonderful work that God has begun to do in Guatemala through the coaching and training of LoveServes.
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