Sharing in Blessings with a Man at the Bus Stop

Hello! is something you don’t hear in guatemala. Instead it is hola! Hearing “Hello” at the bus stop caught my attention. 

I responded to the man as we waited for our bus. (I praise the Lord for our bus never showing up because that allowed for more time to talk with this stranger.)

Regularly, people come up to me selling cold drinks, toys, or snacks. I could tell he was eager to talk to us, but was confused because he was not selling anything. That thought went away immediately because he started speaking near-perfect english. He explained how few opportunities he gets to practice his English after living there for 15 years. 

Dionicio, his friends in America called him Nici, was eager to talk about anything, as long as it was in English. He saw our blonde hair from far away and took the step outside his comfort zone to talk to a group of strangers. He shared about his job and coworkers in the States. All of his sons and daughters live there, including two grandsons. He came back to Guatemala to take care of his wife and property. 

I like talking about culture, so I asked what his favorite part of Guatemala was. Dionicio said it is very peaceful here, but then immediately started talking about how traffic is crazy and how he misses the driving rules and order in the states. haha. 

I was not sure how to bring up the Gospel, but out of obedience I knew I needed to. I kept asking the Lord how to weave it into our conversation. From his stories, I could see how God provided for him. So whenever Dionicio shared a blessing, I would respond with “Praise the Lord”. After many times of responding to him like this, he started to say it too. Praising the Lord is contagious! 

He also shared about a sickness he had for two months, something to do with low blood sugar. He was nearly blind, but was healed. I gave the credit to the Lord, and he did too!!

A part of Dionicio’s heart is left in the States, but I reminded him he can find joy and comfort in the Lord. He agreed! He is still able to communicate with his children, but it’s difficult being far away. He and I were able to share in this discomfort because we have both been away from family recently. 

He continued sharing about his life, and I continued to bring it back to the Lord. I wanted to make it clear that we shouldn’t just be happy because of good things, but even through hardship we can find joy and hope in the Lord. 

At one point I didn’t know what to say to him, but I saw that he was still hungry to practice english. One thing I’ve learned over the past few years of being an RA, working at a church, growing in the Lord, and now being on the World Race is: when in doubt, PRAY. Giving the Spirit space to work is always a good idea. I asked how we could pray for him, but he didn’t say anything specifically. Which was surprising. After we prayed, that opened up some more conversation. I shared about how over the past week, God is reminding me to find joy, comfort, and strength in Him. Before he left to meet his ride home, Dionicio said he was filled with joy of the Lord because of us. 

Dionicio and I were an answer to prayer for each other. He got to practice his english and I had a deep conversation with someone in English. If you remember, my last blog started with the hunger for deeper conversations. I can only contribute the joy to the Lord, and I pray Dionicio did the same. God handed the english speaker to me, all I had to do was be obedient and receive the blessing. 

Prayer Requests:

• Our eyes would be open to more opportunities for conversation to share the gospel.

• one more week at the ministry locations, so using our time wisely to best serve the Lord. 

• physical health, because every time I say we are healthy, someone gets sick 🙁

• finding joy and strength in the Lord. because sustainability!

• rest in the Lord and positive reunification with the rest of our squad as we have two weeks of debrief and training. 

Not my will, but His,

Sarah