In a society obsessed with the accumulation of things, we often fail to see or acknowledge God at work. Unfortunately, this is even true among born-again believers, especially in North America where we have been so blessed. Romans 8:28 tells us the following: “We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose.” God takes the good and the bad and brings them together to accomplish His purpose. Following is a beautiful story of God bringing people and resources together to accomplish His purpose among “the least of these.” Circumstances were not always good; although most were. Mistakes were made, and Satan was real, but God was still in control. As you read this story, pay attention to God’s provision as He brings things together and uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things. 

 

My wife, Laurelle, and I served in Guatemala as missionaries, appointed by The International Mission Board under the Master’s Program. We had already retired from our secular jobs. We were assigned to a project in Guatemala called “Operation Gospel Outreach.” We coordinated and led volunteer teams to different parts of the country. The primary objectives of Op Go teams were prayer walking, distribution of gospel material and sharing the gospel door-to-door. We worked with local pastors and church leaders.

 

We believe, with all our heart, that God had the small, mountainside village of Conevisa in mind when He arranged this assignment for us in Guatemala. In 2005, we attended a candidate conference at the International Learning Center in Richmond, Virginia. We were given the opportunity to review a list of job requests from the mission field and determine what might fit us best. We thought Southeast Asia would be our destination, but we found no job request that caught our attention. We prayed earnestly about this, seeking God’s direction. With my business background, I was expecting an administrative support position; although, we preferred a ministry that engaged the lost. We had never given any thought to Mid-America. Laurelle and I were having lunch in the Learning Center dining room one day during the conference when Phil Templin, Mid-American Regional Leader, joined us at the table. He asked where we were going and our job assignment. We replied by telling him that a decision had not been made. Phil, then asked what we would like to do and where we felt led to serve. We shared with him our desire to be directly engaged with lostness wherever God placed us. He responded by saying, “I have the perfect job for you.” He then shared with us about “Operation Gospel Outreach” in Guatemala and immediately we knew, God had answered our prayers. It was also interesting to learn, after returning from Richmond, that the Alabama State Board of Missions had established a Partnership with Guatemala Baptist and “Operation Gospel Outreach.” Most of our teams would be from Alabama Churches.

 

We arrived in Guatemala in February 2006 and after some language study, started our mission ministry. In March 2007, we led a small team of college students from Jacksonville State University to Conevisa. Conevisa is a small village in the eastern part of Guatemala near the city of Zacapa. This village was a spiritually dark place. Many of the people living in Conevisa were young female prostitutes. There is a host of children; most do not know a father. It is a place of extreme poverty. We were somewhat reluctant to take young college students into such a place at first, but the results confirmed a bigger plan for the village. Many prayed to receive Jesus, and they found hope where there had been no hope. It was while in that village that God authentically spoke to our hearts. He impressed upon us the need to plant a church in Conevisa. The Conevisa Story, God’s Story begins.

 

Our host church was Shalom Baptist Mission in Zacapa. Shalom is a mission of Shalom Baptist Church in Guatemala City, about four hours’ drive from the Capital city. It is a small mission with minimal resources and the worship center, although within a walled enclosure, is an open shed-type structure. The church is pastored by Pastor Rolando Cruz, a man with a passion for reaching the lost. We met Pastor Rolando while on a scouting trip to the eastern part of Guatemala, searching for pastors and churches that would host volunteer teams. Pastor Rolando shared with us that he had been praying that God would send help.   Our offer to bring volunteer teams was an answer to his prayers. When we shared our vision for Conevisa, we learned that God had given him the same image. We spoke with other church leaders at Shalom, and they were eager to follow and excited that they would have a part in what God was about to do.

 

We led other volunteer teams to the area, and as we prayed earnestly for direction, God began to reveal His plan, step by step. The volunteer teams encouraged home bible studies as they visited and shared in the homes. Like most of Guatemala, we found that the people were profoundly influenced by Catholicism, so they were much more receptive, at first, to home Bible studies than going to a Baptist Church for bible study. Pastor Rolando and other church leaders from Shalom Baptist Mission conducted the bible studies, and from these home studies, a church was started in Conevisa.   Another chapter in His Story.

God had other plans for His church in Conevisa. Because of known sinful practices in some of the homes, the people were reluctant to leave their homes going to another house for church services. It was not easy for the people to travel to Zacapa for church and most could not afford even a small transportation charge. God revealed this to us in a unique way and again impressed upon our hearts the need to build a place of worship so that these poverty-stricken people would have a place to worship, fellowship, and be taught the Word.

 

Building a place of worship presented strong challenges for us. First, we had no idea how the resources for such a project would be provided.  Shalom Baptist Mission was a mission itself with no ability to offer financial assistance for such a project. We were not sure how the people of Shalom would respond, understanding where they met for worship. Finally, I just had no idea how to start such a project in a strange environment, difficult communication due to language barriers and knowing nothing about construction guidelines in Guatemala. However, God had given me a word from His Word that was guiding me through other challenges. Jeremiah 33:3 “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” We called on Him, He answered and showed us things beyond human understanding, things that reason does not comprehend.

 

We shared the vision with each team brought to Zacapa and Conevisa. They joined with us along with the new Conevisa Church members and Shalom members in praying for God to give us direction and provisions that His will might be accomplished. One of the teams was from our home church, Thomasville Baptist in Thomasville, Alabama led by Dr. James Best who was associate pastor at that time. Dr. Best shared this vision for Conevisa and returned to Thomasville challenging the church to pray and seek God’s will for helping with the Conevisa project. The Story continues.

 

Our term with IMB ended March 1, 2008. Due to some team cancellations in January and February 2008, we were permitted to return to the states in December. It was very tempting to return and enjoy Christmas with our children and grandchildren especially since we had twin granddaughters that had been born in August and I had not seen them. However, God would not release us. We felt compelled to stay on until our term officially ended.

 

The last team we were to lead while with IMB was a small team with members from First Baptist Church of Ashville, Al. and First Baptist Church of Moody, Al. The team was led by Pastors from these two churches, Dr. James Sampley from Ashville and Dr. David Spray from Moody. A total of 8 team members arrived in Guatemala 4 hours late having been delayed and separated on flights to Guatemala. Only about 20% of their luggage came with them. Dr. Sampley arrived with a heavy heart due to the recent death of a close missionary friend that almost prevented him from making the trip. Within minutes after they arrived in Guatemala, Dr. Spray received a message from his church advising him that a staff member had died suddenly. The team was visibly shaken and saddened by this news. Dr. Spray and two other members decided to return home the next morning. The remainder of the group was somewhat undecided for a while but decided to stay in Guatemala. We took the team to a small nearby restaurant for dinner that night after decisions were made. There seemed to be a cloud of gloom hanging over this group. I firmly believe Satan was desperately attempting to discourage and disrupt this team from achieving God’s purpose. We arrived at the restaurant and were the only diners. The restaurant had prepared a table in an open court dining area nicely decorated with live Christian music. The cloud of gloom changed to a cloud of victory. It was as though God had prepared this setting especially for this group and He wrapped His arms around the team and gave them comfort. We did not take this team to Conevisa, but we were close enough that we visited the village and shared the vision. God did a mighty work in and through this small team, and they became excited about what God was about to do in Conevisa. It became clear to us why God did not release us to leave Guatemala in December. From this encounter, a close relationship with these new friends from Ashville and Moody, AL was established. This was one more step in God’s plan as His story unveils.

 

My wife and I ended our term with IMB and returned to Thomasville, but our hearts were still in Zacapa and Conevisa. One year after returning to Alabama (February 2009), we were asked to lead another team from Ashville and Moody back to Conevisa. We were no longer with IMB, but we still had contacts in Guatemala. This time the team had expanded to 14 members from the two churches. The people of Conevisa captured their hearts.

 

There is an elementary school in Conevisa with first through sixth grades. We had established a close relationship with the School Director and teachers. They allowed us to come into the school and share with the children and allowed teams to conduct VBS. After the Ashville/Moody team had shared one morning, the School Director asked me if we could return the next morning and share with teachers. The children would not have classes that day, and the teachers were having a meeting. There are only about six teachers at the school, and I assumed she was referring to them. I did ask how many would be present and was shocked when she said “about 280”. Later, I decided that it was a mistake due to my limited understanding of Spanish. It made no sense for such a large group to have a meeting at such a small facility since better facilities were available in Zacapa, just a few miles from Conevisa. However, the next morning we arrived at the school to find the classroom dividers pulled back and people were packed in that small building. They were having a district meeting, and for some reason, they chose to meet at Conevisa. Team members shared the Gospel of Jesus with the teachers who have a tremendous influence on thousands of children. I believe this was all part of God’s plan as His story unfolded.   

 

God had already revealed to us the location of the church building. Within about 200 feet of the school was a site where construction had been started and never completed. Concrete block walls had been started on three sides with a reinforcement bar extending high above the walls. It was the ideal location for the church building. This area was the gathering place. It was where the village people came for public transportation to the city. A small tienda or store was adjacent to the building site. We knew this was the right place so we asked Pastor Rolando to check it out and see if the property could be purchased. He contacted us later and said it was not for sale. He also learned that the owners had planned to construct a building to include a house of prostitution. They had intended to build such a place within 200 feet of an elementary school, but God had other plans. I previously mentioned that Dr. James Best from Thomasville Baptist had returned from a trip to Conevisa and encouraged the church to pray and offer support for the Conevisa ministry. A faithful member of Thomasville Baptist donated $5,000.00 designated for construction of a church building in Conevisa or to be applied toward the purchase of property on which to build.   I gave the money to Pastor Rolando and suggested that he offer $5,000.00 as earnest money for purchasing the property. After many contacts and offers, an agreement was reached to acquire the property at the cost of $12,000.00. FBC, Moody and FBC, Ashville agreed to share the balance and donate $3,500.00 each. God answered and was showing us things we did not know, “great and mighty things.” 

 

Thomasville Baptist, FBC of Moody and FBC of Ashville joined in partnership with the Conevisa Ministry. Pastor Tyron Parten from Thomasville, Pastor James Sampley from Ashville and Pastor David Spray from Moody were actively engaged in this ministry which was the key to the support received from these three churches. In October 2009, we led a team of 25 members back to Conevisa. This team was made up primarily of people from the three churches, and all three pastors joined the team. We conducted VBS at the elementary school, a leadership conference at Shalom Baptist Mission in Zacapa and revival type services at night in the school. God was blessing in so many ways as people were being saved and church leaders being trained to continue the work long after we departed. It was amazing to see God working in and through the team members as well as our host church leaders.

 

Normally we do not take teams out at night in the villages of Guatemala for safety reasons, but we felt led to have the worship services at night to reach more men. Also, we had three pastors with the October 2009 team that was anxious to preach. We also had been told that government officials sometimes objected to the work we were doing and watched us very close. As we were driving to Conevisa from our hotel in Zacapa the first night of the revival services, I was somewhat concerned and wondering if we were doing the right thing. Conevisa is not a safe place, especially at night. We left the main road and started up toward the village, and I could see lights in the distance, almost like an athletic field with a night game. As we got closer, I realized the whole area around the school was as bright as day from floodlights mounted on power poles in the area. I could hardly speak because of the emotions that swelled within my soul. We learned that the Mayor of the Zacapa Department, which includes Conevisa, had ordered these lights installed after hearing that we would have worship services at the school for several nights. We also had a police escort back to the hotel following the services. God is Great!

 

In April 2010, we again led a team made up of 15 people, primarily from the three partner churches, this time a medical/dental team. God’s power and the way He provided for this team was incredible. Laurelle and I usually go to Guatemala a week in advance of the teams to make final preparations. On Easter Sunday we drove to the Birmingham area so we could fly out early on Monday morning. We decided to attend worship services at First Baptist, Moody. Doug and Louise Dungan are members of First Baptist, Moody and were part of the first mission trip in 2008 and subsequent trips. They have become dear friends and invited us to have lunch with their family at their son’s home in Birmingham. Their son, Jeffrey Dungan, happened to be an Architect. After lunch, Jeff pulled a chair up by me and said, “Let’s talk about this church building you plan to build in Guatemala.” I did not have much to share. He asked about our budget, and we had no budget. In fact, at that time we had no money. I shared with him about the property and the size of the site. I explained that we would like to build a beautiful, practical building that would blend with the area. Jeff had never been to Guatemala, but while sitting there, started drawing on a piece of paper and when he finished, I said that’s it, that’s the building. I will pick up on the building story later, but Jeff’s design was used for the basic plans.

 

When Laurelle and I arrived in Guatemala and shared with missionary friends about the medical team, we were very discouraged with news of problems other medical teams had in bringing medicines into the country. New regulations resulted in medications being confiscated, or heavy taxes imposed.

I contacted Pastor James Sampley, who was coming with the team, and at first, suggested that the medicine not be declared on customs forms. I quickly realized that was wrong and again contacted Pastor Sampley and suggested that he write a letter explaining what we had and how it was to be used.

He wrote a very nice and informative letter, translated into Spanish with his signature notarized. He was the first to be checked at customs. He showed the letter to the customs official who read the letter and then showed it to another that we assume was his supervisor. They briefly discussed the matter and then waved Pastor Sampley thru as well as rest of the team.  I had contacted Pastor Rolando Cruz about the potential problem and suggested that he make this a matter of prayer. We attended worship services at Shalom Mission the next day after arriving in Zacapa. One of our team members shared the medicine story with the church and the church exploded into praise. Pastor Rolando later explained to me that the Church had an all-night prayer service the night before we arrived in Guatemala, praying specifically for this issue. Their prayers had been answered. Dr. Daveta Dozier, from Thomasville, was our medical doctor on this trip and had made arrangements for the medical supplies. She was unable to get delivery of Albendazole before the team departed. Albendazole is a “worm treatment” medicine that we anticipated using to treat several hundred children in Conevisa. Dr. Daveta was seated next to a man on the plane with whom she shared this need. He immediately gave her the name and telephone number of an employee of Ross Pharmaceuticals, located in Guatemala City. We contacted this person on Monday morning before leaving the hotel for Conevisa. Francisco Jose Solis personally delivered the medicine, which was almost a 4-hour drive and we had it by noon. God continued to show us “great and mighty things”.

 

One day while we were taking a break for lunch, I saw one of the team members out on the property with one of our female translators. I walked out to the site and heard this young woman using terms that only someone knowledgeable with construction would be using. I questioned her and learned that she was an architect student at a local school. Her father is a pastor, but he was also an architect as well as her brother. They lived there in Zacapa, she knew all the suppliers. Our relation with this young woman, Deborah Medina, had been by divine appointment. We discussed our plans for building and talked about several options. I revealed to her, the sketch drawn by Jeff Dungan. The next day, Deborah showed me some print-outs of several proposed floor plans. She had worked most of the night on the plans. Deborah was invited to Alabama that summer and spent several days in the office of Jeff Dungan in Birmingham. With the help of his staff, Deborah drew the plans for the church building. At the time Deborah was only 21 years old. She volunteered to manage the project for us. Now here was a 21-year-old female in a male-driven culture managing construction workers. This was one of those things that reason did not comprehend. Although we had two back to back construction teams that did a great job, most of the work was done by local guys that Deborah hired and they did a super job. Deborah won their respect. She did a great job as well, not only managing the building project but also managing the funds that I transferred to a bank account for which she had access in Zacapa.

 

Time and time again, we saw God’s hand at work in providing for this project. I mentioned the two back-to-back construction teams that went down in October 2010 to work on the church building. The two teams included 31 men and ladies, representing 11 churches in Alabama and one in North Carolina. These teams were made up of pastors, music directors, youth directors, and laymen with various business backgrounds. The first team met at the hotel on Sunday night with Deborah Medina and received instructions from her as project manager. During early morning hours on Monday, I woke up realizing that this group would need a supervisor and I was not the man for that job. Without a knowledgeable supervisor, chaos could result. I got dressed and went outside for prayer and bible study. I was reading in Samuel about David. The passage said that in preparation for battle, David called his captains together for advice. I realized I had some Captains, men that had been involved in the Guatemala Ministry from the beginning and I could call on them for advice. After breakfast, I called my “Captains” together and shared the need. Immediately, one of the pastors said: “Johnny Scott is your man”. Johnny was from North Carolina and this was the first time I had met him. We went directly to Johnny and he agreed to accept the responsibility. He said it would probably take several hours on the first day to get the men organized and working. In less than forty-five minutes after reaching the site, the team was working as though they had always worked together. The second team also had a natural construction leader, Howard Hill from Thomasville. It was a blessing to see these groups working together with the local guys with purpose and joy.

 

I haven’t mentioned the financial resources. We had no estimates and no cost runs. We had no idea what it was going to cost to build this church building consisting of about 3000 square feet. Labor in Guatemala is very cheap, but the materials cost as much as they do in the states and sometimes more. The three partner churches agreed to donate $15,000.00 each for a total of $45,000.00. We started construction with this commitment, again not knowing what the cost would be. We had some individual donations resulting in a total of about $53,000.00. The building was completed and the construction account had a balance of $100.96. We had no estimates but God knew the cost and He provided what was needed.

 

On October 9, 2011, after over 4 ½ years, we celebrated the official opening of the Shalom-Jireh Baptist Church. President of the Guatemala Baptist Convention was present and officially recognized the church as part of the Convention. The new church has some good core members and under the leadership of Pastor Rolando Cruz, they are busy discipling new believers and raising up new church leaders.

 

It is my prayer that this church will dispel darkness for light and be a reminder to all that area of what a difference God can make when His people put their trust in Him and call out to Him in prayer.   Shalom-Jireh Baptist Church is evidence of God working miracles thru His people.

 

We found at the Conevisa School that they averaged about 50 students each year in the first grade, but by the sixth grade they would have only about 12. In fact, that school year, there were 12 in the class but only 6 had been the required number of days to graduate. Guatemala is the most illiterate of the Mid-American countries. Only about 20% of the children go beyond the 6th grade and found that when the children reached about the 4th grade, they were kept at home to care for younger siblings while the mother went to the city selling tortillas or doing something to put food on the table. Through our relationship with Deborah, the architect, we learned that her mother was Director of a Christian School just over the ridge from Conevisa. The school has excellent facilities and teachers and is well managed. The name of the school is ELIM. This school agreed to accept students from Conevisa for $415.00 per school year which is 10 months. This has since been increased to $600.00. This includes tuition, books, uniforms, and transportation. We set up a scholarship program working with both schools and involving the church. We shared this program with the partner churches as well as other interested people. The response has been incredible. Since starting this ministry, many have graduated and presently there are 43 students attending ELIM Christian School on scholarships sponsored by individuals and church groups. These students are receiving not only a good education but also within a Christian environment. This program is motivating the children to do their best to qualify, it is motivating the parents since it gives them some hope, it motivates the teachers to help the kids qualify and it identifies the church as helping to improve lives and the community. We believe this will have a great impact on the area and hopefully end a cycle that left very little hope for the people. 

We have been told by teachers that many of the children go to bed at night hungry, sometimes going all day without eating. This really tears at my heart knowing how much we waste every day. In July 2012, we led a team of 43 people, mostly young people, to do VBS at Conevisa. These young people saw the needs and were also burdened to realize children were going to bed hungry. The youth group from Thomasville came back home and started a fund to feed the children. About 225 kids are now receiving a hearty breakfast.

 

Water is another big problem in Conevisa which is common in most villages of Guatemala. Water is available in the village on a very limited basis. We are praying about how we might help with this need. We have no clear direction at this time.

 

We have experienced God’s hand at work, doing great and mighty things, unbelievable things until we realize we serve a God for which nothing is impossible. There are many many villages all over Guatemala and across the globe just like Conevisa. Extreme poverty, no work, no food, no education, tainted water, sin, and little children going to sleep at night hungry. I don’t know why God chose Conevisa or why He chose us to be a part of what He has done, but He did and many lives have been touched. This has been a life changing experience for us and many others.

 

I have used the pronouns, I, we and us many times in this story, however, it has never been about me or us, it is all about HIM! God has used so many in accomplishing His purpose in Zacapa and Conevisa. The partner churches and Pastors have encouraged people to be involved in this ministry and have led by example. Many from these churches have been on multiple trips and involved from the very beginning. Others have become involved after learning about what God is doing. More and more are volunteering for trips. Many that cannot physically go are supporting others and of course, numerous people are joining in prayer support. Then there are our friends in Guatemala that have been so faithful and ready to serve.

 

I would like to name names, but I’m sure I would leave out some. One of the truly great blessings has been the close relationship established with the volunteers as well as those in Guatemala. They have become like family and we dearly love everyone. Regardless of the role in which each participated, it has been important to God’s purpose.

 

The Conevisa Story does not end here. The story continues and I challenge you today; don’t limit God with age requirements or human qualifications. Remember, God does not call the qualified, He qualifies the called. It has been ten years since we began travelling to Conevisa. Since that time many teams and many lives in Guatemala have been touched, but I am convinced that the lives of team members will never be the same. The team from Jacksonville State was made up of only six members, four females and two males. This was an entirely new experience for them. One of the male members became a missionary and has served in East Asia. We recently saw one of the female members featured on the cover of a mission magazine, serving in Africa. “Call unto Me and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.”

 

We are to be His hands to touch, His feet to go, His voice to tell and His heart to love as we take the Gospel to all the peoples of all the nations. 

As stated above, this God Story continues.

 

January 2017, marked the beginning of the seventh year of the Scholarship Ministry. Forty-three students are receiving scholarships. The first class of six graduated in October 2015. These young people have matured in so many ways and are having a tremendous impact on the community.

 

Like most undeveloped countries, water is a critical problem. Conevisa’s source of water has been a water truck that delivers water once every eight days. Metal or plastic drums, scattered around the village, are filled and that is the source of water for eight days. This method of supplying water has not been sufficient nor is the water clean. This has contributed to health problems.

 

In March 2014, God spoke to the heart of our Grandson, Chance Hill. I believe his story should be a part of God’s Story in Conevisa. He has given me permission to include his testimony. 

 

By Chance Hill, Spurs Ministry:

 

“God Moments” was a huge part of our devotion time while in Guatemala. Each day some would share their moment of the day as a testimony of how God used them or blessed them. For me, I had several little moments, but I felt that I couldn’t give a reason as to why they happened. However, on Friday morning as we traveled from Zacapa to Guatemala City, God put all of my moments together and answered the question “Why?” followed by a challenge.

 

My first moment was Monday, March 3. My dad and I, as well as George O’Gwynn and Trey Huggins, were repairing the water system for the church in Conevisa. They have a tank on top of the building that feeds water down to the church whenever a facet is open. That tank was not draining, so we had to clean it out because the water had been in the tank for weeks and became algae infested. As I cleaned that tank, I could see the whole village from the rooftop and all I could think about was how much I would love to see a well at the bottom of the hill in the middle of that village.

 

My second moment was Tuesday, March 4. We loaded the vans at the church after a long hard day and headed back to the hotel. As we pulled off, I asked one of our translators, Iris, if anyone in Guatemala would name their son Chance. She answered with “I don’t really know because Chance would mean that someone would have another opportunity, which would mean they had “hope”. So if someone was named Chance, it would be because the family is rich”. I thought that was interesting so I responded in a joking manner- “So, since my name is Chance, I could just move to Guatemala and be rich?” Iris turned and looked at me and said, “but why would you want to do that? You are already rich because you have everything you need.”

 

My third moment was on Thursday, March 6. We split up into small groups to prayer walk in the village of Conevisa. My group consisted of myself, Sarah Correll, Morgan Alford, Trey Huggins and our group translator, MJ. We walked through our assigned part of the village, praying with people whom we saw as we walked. We came to a house and a woman was sitting in the doorway. We asked her from a distance if we could pray for her and she said “yes”, but to please pray for her son’s body and then immediately invited us to come inside her house. As we crowded into her small shack, her little boy, about 9-10 years old, was sitting up in what we would call a beach chair with his legs covered with a sheet. We all crowded around him and the mother pulled the sheet back and we saw that the little boy had a cast all the way up his right leg. Sarah began to pray a sweet prayer for the healing of his leg and for the mother. When she finished, our eyes turned immediately to the little boys face to see tears in his eyes, as well as the mothers. It was such a sweet moment to be a part of, and when we walked away, I thought to myself, “just how long has that little boy and mother been waiting and needing someone to come say a simple prayer for them?”

 

God put all my moments together for me on Friday morning. Everything made PERFECT sense and I was faced with a challenge that I know came from God. There is a lack of HOPE in the village of Conevisa. There is so much love, but they have no HOPE. When He gave me that thought, He reminded me of my moments in reverse order of how they happened. The little boy and his mother seemed so hopeless, you could see it in their eyes. But, when Sarah prayed for them, it gave them a glimpse of hope. How could I help continue to give them as well as others more hope? And then I thought of what Iris said to me. I have everything I need. So, why can’t I and others share?! I want to give back to them so they can have a chance; a chance of HOPE. Then I remembered my thought on top of the roof of the church as I stood over that nasty, filthy water tank. What if they had a water well? Wouldn’t that be a start for a chance of hope? Everyone in the village could have free access to an abundant supply of water. How awesome would it be!!

 

After I thought about my questions, God gave me a challenge right then. A HUGE challenge. My instant reaction was “God, how? There is no way I can raise $50,000.00 in one year!” But, I know I can do all things through Him, who strengthens me. So, (still scared to death) I accepted His challenge of raising $50,000.00 by March 1, 2015, simply to help in supporting ways to give the village of Conevisa a Chance of HOPE. I want to add HOPE with the abundance of LOVE in that village. And with those two things, I believe that the people can have Faith in God so strong that the devil can’t pierce.

 

“Then, indeed, you could lift up your face without moral defect, and you would be steadfast and not fear. For you would forget your trouble, as waters that have passed by, you would remember it. Your life would be brighter than the noonday; darkness would be like the morning. Then you would trust, because there is hope; and you would look around and rest securely”. Job 11: 15 – 18.

 

Chance returned and immediately started efforts to raise money for the water project. One way he did this was to accept a challenge from church members who told him they would give money for every mile he would ride his horse. Chance responded by riding his horse, along with some others, from the Tennessee River to the USS Alabama Battleship located on the Mobile Bay. This was a 355 mile ride lasting 13 days. He raised another $10,000.00.

 

He raised about half the goal of $50,000.00, but God worked another miracle and provided. Our thoughts were to drill a well near the church in Conevisa and people could come there for water. On a trip in February, 2015, I had arranged to meet a man in Guatemala who had equipment for drilling the well. God had other plans. The local government gave ownership of an abandoned well to the Church in Conevisa. Arrangements were made to restore the well and this was done at a cost much less than what we had anticipated. Not only is there a sufficient supply of water, but it is going directly to the homes. The well is over 400 feet deep which means the water is also clean. Only God could bring together the people and resources to make this happen. 

 

At the time of updating this story, it is sad to say that there are problems with the well. There has been very little rain in the last three years. The water table has dropped in the area. We hope to have the problems resolved in the near future. We ask for your prayers. 

 

God continues to open doors of opportunity in Conevisa and He continues to bring people and resources together.

 

 

“Praise God from whom all things flow.”

 

 

Allen and Laurelle Stoudenmire