YWAM Destination Paradise: Faith. Life. Adventure. Dear Family and Friends, It's hard to believe we're over halfway through our YWAM (Youth With A Mission) adventure in San Pedro, Belize. We could write a decent-sized book about all the new experiences we've had so far, but I'll stick to the highlights. Our flight to Belize was eventful, to say the least. (You can read more about that here.) For the last leg of our journey to San Pedro Island, we hitched a ride on a 12-person, single-engine plane. From our birds-eye view, we saw a landscape filled with lush palm forests, dotted with dense, swampy marshes and surrounded by the sapphire waters of the Caribbean. Breathtaking. Giant, beautiful resorts stood guard over the Sandy shores. With such prized beauty, the western world has hailed Belize as a top, Travel Channel destination. However, the grandeur shown on TV is in stark contrast to the conditions the vast majority of the local people live in. The simple and peaceful, fishing - village traditions of San Pedro's recent past have been paved over by flashy tourism, outlining an obvious economic disparity between the upper and lower classes and perpetuating a cycle of poverty amongst the less-privileged. Poverty has contributed to widespread alcoholism, petty drug crime, and poor living conditions. And yet, even in the midst of these ugly extremes, there exists a spirit of friendship and kindness so genuine amongst many of the locals we have come to know. On our 1st full day in Belize I woke up at 5am to catch the sunrise over the Carribbean. While on the dock, I was approached by a resort security guard finishing his night shift. As soon as Allen found out I was not just another tourist, his eyes lit up and he was eager to share his life story with me, even offering to borrow me his motorcycle if I ever needed it. Allen told me he was an OK father and his goal is to reunite and reconnect with his son someday. Please pray for Allen and his half-American son, Allen Jr., who is currently in basic training in the US Marine Corps. During 2 separate soccer ministry days, we had many opportunities to connect with the local children of a severely impoverished village called San Mateo. Please pray for all these children who face all of the difficulties associated with extreme poverty. We also assisted in the building of a Christian High School called Living Tree Academy. Please pray for continued resources and encouragement for LTA Directors Anthony and Shannon as they strive to complete their dream and vision. (For more info/pictures of our ministry, click here.) We have had 12 weeks of amazing classes taught by even more amazing teachers from all around the world have helped Christina and I to address real, heart issues and encouraged us to continue to develop authentic relationship with God, each other, and others as we seek to strengthen our spiritual roots. The training has truly been invaluable!! (Check out our class schedule here.) Finally, this Friday, on 09-25-2015, we will leave with our team of 17 to the Far East country of MONGOLIA!! We are currently in the process of preparing for this 6 week outreach, the final phase of our training. The challenges we will face in Mongolia are many: from diet changes to spiritual resistance and everything in between. Please pray for our safety and against sickness. Please pray for ministry effectiveness and against spiritual opposition. Please pray that the Mongolian people would hear and understand the message of the Gospel of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. This is the whole reason why we are here: that the whole world may know! We love you all so much. There's no way we could ever thank you enough for your prayers and support, but please know it means a lot to us to have you by our side. To Know God and Make Him Known, Nathan & Christina Duran
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Soccer Ministry in the Slums of San MateoJust to the north of San Pedro Town lies a severely impoverished, slum-like village called San Mateo. Here, dirt yards are riddled with heaps garbage, and flooded with runoff and sewage, and the winding gravel roads are dotted with makeshift shacks on stilts. We wanted to help bring joy and smiles back into this place, so we decided to attempt a soccer ministry. It was an instant success! Armed with a soccer ball, we walked through San Mateo inviting all the wandering kids to come play. Soon had a crowd of laughing children gathering behind us, Pied Piper style. It was cool to see their excitement that foreigners (usually busy tourists) would take the time to play a pickup game with them. Long story short, we quickly found out we were out of our league as these kids out-ran, out-juked, out-scored and out-played us! After the swift beating, we prayed with the children, sugared them up with cookies and sent them home with promises to return. "Let the little children come to me." - Jesus Construction Ministry - Building a Christian SchoolBuilt on cheap land in a flood plain, many measures have to be taken to ensure this structure stands the test of time and Belize's rainy season. We sandbagged, shoveled, raked and moved extra large cinder-blocks. When completed, this complex will include a schoolhouse (pictured), a library, teachers quarters, student quarters, cafeteria and other outbuildings. Long way to go yet! |
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. Archives
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