This last Tuesday we were divided into two groups and set loose on the world. We were given a plastic baggie with a few cards giving us directions on what to do for the day, a blank piece of paper, and about 140 quetzales, which is $20 in USD, and were only allowed to bring a water bottle. The first card said that we were to take a bus to the market in Puerto Barrios, and from there go through the market and pray/talk with people and share two testimonies. The catch was two members of our group couldn't talk, and they had often led in the past. This forced the other girls and I to take a step forward and lead.
On the way to the market we hopped on one bus, but about a few blocks later smoke started coming out of the engine and we had to pull over. So we hopped on another bus and were finally on our way. About five minutes later we arrived at the market, paid 3 quetzales each (about $.42 USD) for the ride, and set out. We talked to two women for the first hour while the two girls couldn't speak. One woman worked at a clothing store and towards the end she and I shared testimonies. It was so interesting because as I said more about my testimony, she would say a little more about hers. Then we prayed and headed out again. The next place we stopped was a smoothie stand. The woman behind the bar was super friendly and gave us free smoothies as we talked to her. It continues to surprise me how open people are to giving you things when you take the time to talk to them.
After that we prayed/talked to a few more people, and then it was lunch time. We were only allowed to spend 46 quetzales on lunch, which is $6.57 USD, for all six of us. Even though most things are incredibly cheap here, it's still almost impossible to find anything that cheap for six people to share. Plus, the street stands aren't trustworthy to eat from, so that made it even more difficult. So we ended up getting seven flour tortillas and a watermelon for lunch. We got the seventh tortilla to feed a homeless man who was without a leg and missing an eye. We also bought two bottles of water just so we could use a bathroom in a local chain restaurant.
That afternoon we struggled with figuring out what to do. We ended up prayer walking around the bars, walking about a mile down a main street, and then stopping on a bridge to pray about what to do. One of the girls prayed that God would just smack us in the face with what to do. And he did. She and I both looked up and saw a homeless woman laying in front of a building. So we trecked back half a mile to a little restaurant stand thing where we spent 14 quetzales on a meal and a bottle of water for her. After that we walked a little further and prayed for some women in a laundromat and also talked for a while with a woman in a little tienda. Then we walked even further, praying for random people we encountered, and finally caught another bus back to the market for supper. We bought some bread for 20 quetzales and then walked all the way back a mile or so to where we had been before to cram on a bus that literally could not hold any more people. Then we spent our remaining 12 quetzales on crackers and bananas for the rest of our supper.
Even though we struggled a little with food, it still blows my mind that six girls caught three buses, had two meals, and fed two other people all for $20 USD. That would not even begin to be possible in the States. I just praise God for providing us with everything he did so that we were able to remain safe and healthy throughout all of that experience. It was definitely a struggle at times, but looking back, God really showed up a lot and worked through us to reach out to people in prayer. He definitely stretched us past our comfort zones, but God never said following him would be easy, and I thank him for teaching us how to step out as leaders and just listen to his voice and direction.
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