Christmas Newsletter & Photos

Christmas Time Is Here (And Going WAY TOO FAST!)

I love Christmas time. I love it. I can't wait all year for it and then the season is upon us and passes by like a flash of lightning. Every year we talk about making a calendar of special traditions to make sure that we don't miss out on something and every year we fail to do so and it is Christmas before we know it!

At our church this weekend, we had 1980s Christian music icon Wayne Watson. I was never a huge fan of the man although his duet with Sandi Patty on "Another Time, Another Place" was a standard in the Hughes household. I managed to sit in the balcony at the Saturday night service by myself. Nobody was really sitting up there so I had the luxury of stretching out and enjoying myself.

I have been feeling stressed out, tired, and overworked for the past few weeks for a number of reasons. God found a way to speak to me in that service to remind me that the lacking "tradition" of Christmas for me right now was joy.

I began to think back on past Christmases as I listened to Wayne sing some carols. It's funny too because my most treasured Christmas memories are not those involving a cool gift that I received or an especially generous season.

The things that came to my mind were all centered around the joy of the Lord.

I thought about my childhood pastor and the joy of the Lord that he exhibited to everyone, but especially at Christmastime.

I thought of the endless times we went Christmas caroling to shut-ins, to the sick, to nursing homes.

I thought of the Christmas parties our church threw for the kids from the Camden neighborhood center and of one girl in particular from that center. She was all of about 7 or 8 and had absolutely nothing in this world stuff-wise. We stood around a piano and this little girl from Camden belted out the most beautiful, innocent and joy soaked version of Away in a Manger that I have ever heard even to this day.

I think of the time I spent with my parents and brother and the trips to Lancaster to ride the train.

I think of my wedding (Dec 4, 1999) and our first Christmas together.

I think of all of the Christmases since the birth of our children and the pure joy that sharing this season with them brings to Jaci and I.

I then think of the Savior of mankind. The Son of God, who chose to be born to a couple so poor that they had to offer a turtle-dove at the temple (the cheapest offering one could make) and who had nothing, providing only a manger filled with hay for the Savior to sleep in.

How ironic that the world tries to make Christmas a holiday about stuff, when Jesus makes it just the opposite. The one thing that Mary & Joseph did have was the joy of the Lord. Jesus brought joy to the world that night in Bethlehem. It was despite our circumstance and in spite of our sin.

I find that I generally like the beginnings to stories more than the end. Maybe that's why I respond so much more strongly to Christmas than to Easter. Maybe it's because I can relate to Joseph and often try to think about what this night meant to him.

Don't miss the joy this Christmas season that the baby in Bethelehem represents!

(FYI we will be taking the Christmas pictures of the kids this week. Check back soon as I will be posting them as soon as I get them!)

Happy Birthday Jackson!

You might be thinking to yourself, "Gee, didn't they just post about Noah's birthday yesterday?" You are correct. Our sons birthdays are the 28th and the 29th. Six years almost to the day.

So our little linebacker Jackson turns 2 today! HAPPY BIRTHDAY SIR!

Happy Birthday Noah!

Eight years ago today our little boy Noah was born. It is hard to believe that our little guy is now 8. How quickly the years go by! Please join us in wishing Noah a HAPPY 8th BIRTHDAY!

Remember To Give Thanks For Unexpected Blessings!

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our friends on the web from the Hughes family. We are currently in the midst of decorating our house for Christmas, cleaning for company, and cooking Thanksgiving dinner. Just call us masters at multi-tasking!

In the quiet before the guests arrive, I stopped to reflect on the people in our family and how thankful I am for each of them.

First, I am incredibly thankful for my wife. She's the perfect wife for me. We like to relax together and share in this journey of life. Laughter is a constant companion of ours in our busy lives. Her humor, support, and patience with me as we share the burdens of raising a family has been a source of great strength for me. After nine years of marriage on Dec 4, we have learned a lot about each other and ourselves. We've smoothed each other's rough edges. We're not perfect (anyone who has seen our messy house can attest to that) but we have fun and we're in this together!

Second, our oldest son Noah turns 8 tomorrow. I remember the day we found out that we were going to be parents. We had only been married a few months, and with our "no kids for at least 5 years" plan that we had going, a baby was the last thing we expected. Jaci came out of the bathroom after taking the pregnancy test assuring me that she knew she wasn't pregnant only to see as she completed that sentence a second line appear on the test. Shock soon gave way to surprising joy. God is often like that. He brings things to us that we didn't expect, or perhaps in a way or timing that we didn't expect. Hey, I met my wife because I dated her sister first, so the Hughes family is all about unexpected blessings! Noah was born 5 weeks early and peed in my face the very first time that I changed him. He has grown from a playful outgoing little baby to a deeply reflective and tender-hearted boy.

Noah can be a handful sometimes, but when I reflect on all of the contributions he has made to our family and the tremendous heart that he has for others, I can't help but be blessed. The Lord has big plans for that boy!

Then I reflect on the baby that Jaci and I lost a few years later and the subsequent 2 years of trying for another baby. I remember how Jaci struggled with others who were having babies. It seemed everywhere we looked a new baby was being born and yet every month our hopes for a second child were dashed. Finally, in a Christmas card in 2003, Jaci's cousin wrote a word from the Lord to us that we would be pregnant within a year. We held on to that promise as month after month went by.

In October of 2004 we were on our last month before infertility treatments were to begin. Jaci took several tests which were all negative. This month for me was different though. I felt the Lord (who doesn't really speak to me audibly like others claim) telling me that Jaci was going to be pregnant. Finally, Jaci took another test and again the result was negative. I wasn't defeated, but Jaci really was. She left her test on the sink in the bathroom and as I entered to take my shower, I noticed that there was now a very faint second line on the test. I told Jaci the news and we took many more tests just to make sure. They all turned out the same. One mature Christian woman told me that God wanted me to tell Jaci the news because I was the one He had sent the word to that she would be pregnant.

That baby turned our to be our daughter Reagan. She was the first girl born into the Hughes family in about 60 years. She is currently going through a little bit of a phase, but she is deep at heart a loving little girl who's smile brightens up our home. She can often be overheard singing a princess song in the car, the bathtub, the kitchen, wherever she happens to be.

Then there's Jackson. He is Dr. Destructo. He demolishes our house and doesn't think twice of knocking his sister over or taking toys from her. He is in the two year old stage of freaking out maniacally if he doesn't get his way on something. Yet he also has a joyful fun-loving side that just radiates throughout our home.

Jackson was also a surprise. I came home one day to my 2 kids sitting on the dining room table with balloons around them and Jaci manning the video camera. On Noah's stomach, she had written "Big Brother X 2" and on Reagan's she had written "Big Sister." I was shocked. We spent most of that next week bursting out into random laughter (much like I imagine Sarah and Abraham did!)

God likes to surprise us with the joys of life. We sometimes miss that when our child is misbehaving or the bills are late. We sometimes look at our problems instead of our blessings.

On Thanksgiving I am saying a big THANK YOU to the Lord for the wonderful family that I am not worthy of and that makes my life an unspeakable joy. It is the high calling of my life to be called Jaci's husband and the father of Noah, Reagan and Jackson.

God Bless you and your family this Thanksgiving!

THANKFUL & BLESSED

Okay, so we are officially entering that part of the year where the sentimentality and reminiscing begins for me. I find it very difficult for a day to go by during the fall and the Christmas season that I am not touched by the blessings that God has bestowed upon me or re-living a fond childhood memory.

Jaci and I have felt tired, stressed, overwhelmed and yet very thankful and very blessed by God. His provision for our family, his blessing on our church and ministry. The awesome gift of salvation.

I tend to see things more clearly through the lives of my kids. The joy and the deep love and trust that they have. The love that they are already showing for Jesus. The simple, yet profound childlike faith that I wish I had.

Each moment with our kids is priceless. Each moment with each other is priceless.

Reagan is so affectionate and really loves her family. It melts my heart every time she runs up to me excited to see me and leaps into my arms. Jackson's joy is contagious and it isn't long before everyone that he sees is giggling like a child themselves because of his tremendous joy. A gift that honestly I believe the Lord will use to great effect in his life.

Then there's Noah. It's hard to believe that my little boy is about to turn 8. I looked at some old pictures of him from when he was Jackson's age and it is amazing how similar they look. Yet, God continues to bless him with wisdom beyond his years. Talking about the election today, Noah asked me if Barack Obama is elected if all the people will have to "kill their babies" or only the people who want to. I had to explain to him that abortion is when some mommies and daddies don't want a baby and they choose to kill it.

He cut right to the heart of the matter and asked, "Dad, if they don't want their baby why can't they just give it to a family that does want a baby instead of killing it?" I was blown away by his wisdom.

God is good. During this time of year, it's fun to bask in that goodness and let Him know just how thankful and blessed we are and to share that blessing with others!

GOD PROVIDES & TRUSTING IN HIM TO DO IT AGAIN!

Jaci and I are coming off of 2 tough weeks of Kids Avenue. I have been sick for the last 2 weeks with a terrible cough and congestion that I can't seem to get rid of. The last 2 weekends in Kids Avenue have been, to say the least, trying.

Satan has been throwing every attack that he can at the ministry in an attempt to thwart our children's spiritual development. Last weekend, it was exhausting both spiritually and physically. It took a huge toll on me and I found myself just hanging on.

This weekend the attacks were also relentless. The sound system didn't work. The itunes set up on the computer wasn't working. The DVDs for many of the large group songs were missing. During our 9 AM service 4 kids had to leave early due to illness, during the 11 2 kids did. It was crazy.

Did I mention that we are teaching about Determination this month? As I taught the kids the story on determination focusing on the Apostle Paul, I began to feel the Holy Spirit sharing with me that this was what was being manifested in our ministry over the last 2 weeks. I could just give up and go home, or I could, like Paul, say "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run#cr1 with perseverance the race marked out for us." Hebrews 12:2 NIV

If only we could all have the determination of Paul. After every beating, imprisonment, and shipwreck, he continued to get up and push on again to that prize of preaching the gospel to the world! That kind of determination could literally change not just our community, but the world itself!

Why is it that we so often wonder how we will get through something when we serve a God larger than all of our problems? Sometimes it takes looking at the largeness of God reflected through the eyes of our children to remind us how big God is. After all, we are all "children" of the Father.

So, we just continue to pray that God will provide for all of our needs. Our current prayer as a family is for our van. We really need to maintain 2 vehicles due to all of our church obligations and picking Noah up from Bethel Prep in the afternoons when I can't. Our van's transmission has been on the brink of breaking down for over a year now. We just can't afford to get it replaced. It also doesn't have heat or defrost, which we were able to ignore during the spring and summer, but with winter around the bend we are going to need it replaced.

So, once again we sit here as a family with a financial need that is insurmountable in our own ability. Please pray along with us that God will provide a way to fix our van so that we can still maintain all of our current obligations in serving Him at Kids Avenue in GCCC! I, for one, can't wait to see God move!

PLEASE PRAY FOR LAUREN'S SCHOOL IN GUATEMALA

We just learned from Lauren that the School of Life and Hope (1 of 2 schools that we worked in during our July trip) might be getting new neighbors. Apparently the land next to the school is for sale and the school is planning on purchasing a part of that land. The rest, however, is going to be turned into a by the hour hotel that will be a den of prostitution and drug dealing. This would obviously not be a good thing to have right next to the school. In fact, the picture above would be overlooking the new set-up as it is right next to it.

Right now it appears that the only way that this can be avoided would be if God provided the school with the additional funding (which is quite substantial) to purchase more of the property. Please pray about funding and protection for this very important ministry in Guatemala!

EVERY DAY

Jaci and I had the priviledge of visiting North Point Community Church down in Alpharetta, GA over Labor Day weekend. North Point is pastored by Andy Stanley, son of the famous Charles Stanley. North Point is also where our church gets our children's curriculum from. We went down to check out the children's ministry there and were absolutely blown away by the support and just amazing facilities and program that they have there. It really inspired us to take Kids Avenue to the next level.

When we went into the church service, they sang a song called "Every Day" by Rascal Flatts. I've never really heard the song before. I like country music, but I don't really listen to the radio unless it's talk radio or Christian radio.

It's a hopeful little ditty probably not necessarily to be about God, but it fits so perfectly. The singer talks about someone who "everyday saves my life," how "sometimes I swear I don't know if I'm coming or going, but you always say something without even knowing, that I'm hanging on to your words with all of my might and it's alright, yeah, I'm alright for one more night..."

It's a beautiful song that works on so many levels. Obviously as a Christian it is the cry of my heart on many days. Just crying out to Jesus to save me. Realizing as I'm driving my car the depths to which He goes to save me. The understanding that the Bible tells us His mercies are new EVERY morning. He gives us just enough grace to carry on for one more day. That truth was recently powerfully conveyed by the daughter of Christian singer Steven Curtis Chapman. On dealing with the accidental death of her 5 year old sister, this young woman talked about how she knew this verse, but that she had never lived this verse. Her overwhelming grief and sorrow feels each day like it will crush her, yet Jesus gives her just enough, just enough to get through the day. Not enough, she noted to get through the next day, but enough to carry her to her pillow that night, and each morning she finds a new supply of mercy from her loving Savior. What a beautiful illustration of how desperately we need Christ! Every day. Every hour. Every minute. Every second. Now.

The song "Every Day" also speaks of other relationships in my life. My wife comes to mind first. So many days she offers the right words at the right time. Sometimes it's just her beautiful smile. Sometimes its that childlike twinkle she gets in her eyes when she's really excited about something. There are so many days when God uses her to save me from whatever I'm dealing with that day.

Another example is of course my kids. Reagan, our 3 year old, is so excited every day when I come home and always asks me if I had a good day. She came up to me today with her Cinderella shoes on and asked me to dance with her. Jackson provides such joy to me that my heart overflows. His giggles, and that big bright smile that sometimes means he's getting into mischief, but always warms my heart. Then there is my big boy Noah. He's grown so much, and his love for the Lord and for others, his surprisingly deep spiritual understanding of God's love and the spiritual battle between good and evil gives me hope everyday for the future. Every day I see glimpses of the future powerful man of God that he will be and I think I can't possible be worthy of being his father.

Finally, I also think of the people who work in the trenches with me at church. There is a bond in serving in ministry and doing the Lord's work that can't really be touched by the secular world. So many times the heart and devotion these folks show week to week and the words of inspiration that they say to me come at the right time. I'm sitting there doubting that I'm doing anything good, that I am useless, that I fail much more than I succeed, that I could leave and nobody would even notice, and someone makes a comment at my moment of need or demonstrates God's love through their actions at just the right time to save me from myself.

Everyday is a day to praise the Lord and thank Him for the blessings that he's given us and the fact that literally, he does save us every day!

P.S. I added the song I'm talking about to our player down below so enjoy!

HUGHES KIDS ENDORSE MCCAIN / PALIN TICKET!

I thought that I would share these cute pictures of our kids showing their support for the McCain/Palin ticket. It's very exciting as a father to have a woman like Palin on the ticket for Reagan to look up to!

Whose Kids Are They? An Important Lesson About Our Children

Last night, we took the gang to Ocean City, NJ for a beach photo shoot. Now, personally I was upset that I wasn't given enough of a heads up by Jaci in order to lose 80 pounds for the shoot, but we went anyway. So in addition to trying to strategically place the children in front of my fat stomach, we had quite the time getting them to all smile and all look at the camera at the same time!

Of course, it didn't take the kids long to soil their outfits with salt water and sand. After the shoot, the kiddies played on the beach. Sure it was messy and they were in fancy clothes not bathing suits, but sometimes you have to kick back and let kids be kids. Jaci and the kids were frolicking in the surf as I sat on the beach watching them and God began to speak to me about the tremendous blessings these kids are.

Then this mornging, Steven Curtis Chapman and his family appeared on Good Morning America to discuss the tragic accidental death of his 6 year old daughter Maria Chapman. The family discussed their faith in the grieving process and the hope that only Jesus Christ can sustain you with in such a dark time.

As a father of young children, it makes you really think about not just appreciating every second we have with our kids, but also realizing WHOSE they really are. God entrusts them to us for a time, but they belong to him.

God speaks of this truth in the account of Abraham and Isaac and of course, ultimately in Jesus' death on the cross and the silence that God the Father had to maintain during that difficult time. Our children are HIS CHILDREN first and foremost. Whatever pre-conditions or expectations we have on parenting goes out the window pretty quickly. For me that was in the first hours of Noah's life, when Noah peed in my face! Not exactly a hallmark moment.

Yet, that's the life that God has given us. Moment by moment we have the ability to shape these young lives and impart the wisdom of God in their lives. We have this HOPE in Christ that He knows the plans He has for us, but we don't know those plans. There are no promises of a neat and tidy orderly life. Life is messy. Bad things happen to even the strongest of Christians. So often when something like the Chapman family story comes along, we revert back to works-based thinking and ask God why He would allow something like that to happen to a family that does so much work for the sake of the Gospel.

Life (all of it) is a gift. Steven and his family know that they will one day see Maria again in that great big family reunion in the sky. We as parents need to understand the awesome blessing that our children are to us and recognize the source of that gift as the author of all life--Jesus Christ.

So take a moment and kiss your kids. Hug them, sing silly songs, make messes on the beach, embrace the miracle of childhood. Most of all, take the time to pray with them and lead them to be more like Christ with each footstep because you never know how much time you have. As you look at the face of your kids and realize how much they mean to you, remember the sacrifice that God made for each of us and thank him for the time He's given you with your precious little ones!

LESSONS LEARNED FROM GUATEMALA--IN THE WORLD NOT OF IT!

One of the things that stuck us the most about the believers in Guatemala was their joy in the Lord despite overwhelming poverty and hardship. It was so unique to see people with so little have so much more than we have here in the United States. Our higher standard of living and stuff get in the way. We have more things to rely on, so we don't desperately cling to the joy of the Lord the way these poor Guatemalan villagers did.

Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 1:12: "Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, IN THE HOLINESS AND SINCERITY THAT ARE FROM GOD. We have done so not ACCORDING TO WORLDLY WISDOM but ACCORDING TO GOD'S GRACE." (emphasis mine)

God has set His seal of "ownership" on us and "put His Spirit in our hearts as a deposit," (2 Cor 1:22) and yet so many evangelicals live like the world does in embracing our culture and popular media in an effort to not separate ourselves from the world.

Do we really do any witnessing there? Do we blend in just to be accepted or do we deal IN the world IN THE HOLINESS and SINCERITY THAT ARE FROM GOD? God's holiness has no part with the sinful and debasing cultural norms that we have become so comfortable with. Even in missions work, it's easy to get lost in the humanitarian work and neglect the Gospel.

Paul reminds us in 2 Cor 3:12 that because we have the hope of the Gospel we are "VERY BOLD" in our dealings with the world. He goes on in verse 13 & 18 to remind us that we "are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to eep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away...and we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the LORD."

So often we make excuses for our cultural acceptances and popularity seeking compromises by comparing ourselves to Jesus being in the world. The Word reveals this to be another deception of the enemy, however, when you truly examine Christ's life. He didn't merely dwell in the mud with the pigs and therefore get dirty himself. He sought to bring those pigs out of the mud and purify them to present them to His Father. He didn't avoid getting muddy, but he never joined the world in accepting the materialistic, and sinful cultural norms. On the contrary, He challenged everything society and worldly wisdom had to offer in a bold "holy" and "sincere" way that touched a spiritual nerve deep down inside the tax collector, the street prostitute, the dirtiest of sinners. He did so not by accepting and joining in in their behavior, but by showing them the way out of their behavior and into the fulfillment that can only be found in the joy of the Lord.

Those of us Christ-followers lucky enough to live in a well-off country like the United States need to really ask ourselves when the last time we dealt with the world in the Lord's holiness was? When was the last time we didn't just merely attempt to fit in and be friendly with the world, but that we actually put ourselves and our position, money, and reputation on the line to further the Gospel of Christ? When was the last time that we seriously attempted to help a fellow pig out of the mud instead of wallowing around in it with them?

The believers in Guatemala understand this holiness and joy of the Lord. Let their unveiled faces reflect the radiance that we seem to miss in the glare of all of our stuff!

Check back often as we will continue with this blog! Also, we are prayerfully planning a return trip to Guatemala next summer with a team of people. More details to follow. Let us know if you are in for the adventure of a lifetime! God Bless!

FLIGHT FROM "H" "E" "DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS!"

FYI: WE POSTED TWO BLOGS TODAY SO MAKE SURE YOU READ THE FOLLOWING ONE AS WELL THAT DETAILS OUR LAST DAY IN GUATEMALA!

Just an update to let you know that we are home in NJ after a long trip! We left Lauren's house at 4 am, and headed for the airport. Our plane arrived in Houston almost an hour late because of Hurricane Dolly that we had to fly around. Then we still had 2 hours in the Houston airport before boarding plane #2. Let me just say that anything that could go wrong with that flight did. We arrived at Newark on time (about 6:15) but then had to circle for 45 minutes because of a thunder and lightning storm. We then began running out of gas. SO, we flew to some hicktown airport in NY called Newburg, where we were to re-fuel and fly back to Newark. Only, we couldn't re-fuel because there was lightning there too, so we sat and waiting for over an hour and a half. FYI: this plane was "new"so they didn't have televisions of any kind, so there wasn't even an in-flight movie! Also, the Hughes family likes to eat, so sitting on a plane for 7 hours without any dinner was not fun!

Finally, we were refuelled and flew to Newark, where we finally set down about 10 PM. Then, our friend the lightning struck again. Our luggage took at least 45 minutes to be unloaded, and then only 3 of our 4 bags came out. Then an announcement was made that the luggage unloading would be delayed due to lightning issues. HOWEVER, what they later informed us was that the unloading wasn't delayed, it was STOPPED. They would need AT LEAST 2 hours to get the rest of the luggage off of the plane. Finally, we were able to get our last piece of luggage and head home (thanks to Jaci's Dad's smart thinking to ask some random people in a side office where they apparently DID have some of the luggage from the plane INSIDE the airport that for some reason they weren't unloading!) We got home around 1:30 in the morning, with Jaci having been up for 24 hours and me having been up for 22. It was so bad that even when I attempted to go to the restroom during our wait in the airport, they were closed for cleaning.

Of course, our experiences on the mission field in the last week taught us a little something about being grateful for what we have and keeping the right perspective. This little bookend of our trip was God's way of reinforcing that to us! Thanks for all of your love and support for our trip! We can't wait to see you all face to face to share with you!

P.S. We were so excited to see our little ones last night and this morning, but the second they go down for their naps, we will all be asleep!

GERBER'S FAMILY, NOAH THE KNIGHT & OUR LAST FULL DAY IN GUATEMALA!

SO SORRY ABOUT THE DELAY! We attempted to blog Tuesday night, but the internet was down at Lauren's house so we couldn't. Well, Monday night we went to dinner at Gerber's family's house. We got to meet Gerber's parents, and another sister. His sister Mirna, from the Proximos Pasos school was there as well. Noah got to play with Gerber's nephew Elvis and they had a great time together. Unfortunately, our camera batteries were charging, so we didn't get any photos, although Gerber did take some and will be emailing them to us at some point. Gerber's parents are such warm, loving and funny people (we laughed all night long)! They work really hard to advance the Kingdom of God in a village called Ixcan(?) I have no idea how to spell it, so I might be spelling it wrong. In this village they build wells, and houses for people who often literally stick a bunch of sugar cane together and call it a house. They have also been building a house and library for pastors to stay in to come share with the village, and they are putting together materials for local indigenous pastors to use in teaching the villagers about Christ. They do a VBS in December for 4 different villages in the area and have a minimum of 250 kids per VBS (that's right 1000 kids!) many of which have never heard the name of Christ before and now have a deep and lasting love for Him! The villages in Ixcan are incredibly poor, more so than any of the poverty that we saw, so it is really a large task for them to undertake. We provided them with a suitcase full of school supplies from Kids Avenue for their work in Ixcan, and they told us they would be using them for both their VBS outreach and their pastor support (many of the local pastors don't have any supplies: no commentaries, Bibles, paper, pens, anything...) Please pray for this wonderful family and the incredible work they do with these very needy people. Gerber's dad told us that our kids in GCCC were doing a wonderful service to Christ in helping people they have never and will probably never meet in the name of Christ. It was very emotional to hear him speak about the eternal difference some little kids in NJ can make simply by donating some school supplies.

After dinner, Jaci was dressed in authentic Guatemalan tipica. There were photos don't worry, but they will have to be posted when we get them sent to us by Gerber!

The last day in Guatemala was spent at the school in Santa Lucia (check out the pic above of Noah and I with Optimus Prime holding a Bible!), where Noah once again played soccer and some kick ball with the boys. He was nicknamed "Noah the Knight" by some of the boys and they really seemed to flock to him. He even said "I wonder what I did that made me so popular?" We worked with 4 more classes on Tuesday, and taught them both You Are Good and Mighty To Save. The "Mighty To Save" worship time was amazing. The kids really worshipped the Lord and all of us felt the presence of the Lord there in the classroom. It was quite an amazing experience. We also presented the school with the supplies donated by GCCC's Kids Avenue.

After we were done, we had a luncheon with Wally (the principal of the school) and the teaching staff. They each shared a little bit about what they do and Wally shared the vision of the school to really provide these kids with the education they need, but also to share Christ with them and their families. He talked of the many people in the community that had come to Christ as a result of the school since its inception in 1999. Tuesday night we went out to dinner at an Italian place to celebrate both my birthday and Lauren's birthday. It was a great dinner and we returned to Lauren's house to pack and go to sleep! Our Guatemalan experience was phenomenal. It really opened our eyes to the work that is to be done our there and the wonderful people serving God in very difficult circumstances. Please pray about a return visit next summer and the possibility of joining us on this very exciting spiritual battlefield for the Lord!

10,000 MEMBER CHURCHES, BATMAN, DROOLING CLOUDS & FUTBOL!

"I love the Lord, He heard my voice, He heard my cry for mercy, because He turned His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live." Psalm 116:1-2

"Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible...I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some." 1 Corinthians 9:19,22

Sorry that we didn't get to blog yesterday, but we were too tired! On Sunday, we attended a mega-church in San Christobol. The church sanctuary seats 10,000 members and this particular church has 2 locations! It was great, and as you can see from above we got to wear trendy headphones for an English translation of the sermon...the problem with that is that the woman who did the translation often stopped translating and started again several sentences later, so we missed a bunch. I actually understood more of the beginning of the service when I was only listening to Spanish. It's amazing how quickly you begin to pick up spanish when you have to!

Well, for the last few days we have not had running water in the house. The picture above is Jaci washing her hair with bottled water in Lauren's backyard. Sunday night, Lauren and I and a guy named Ricardo (who is also down on a short-term trip to Guatemala) went into the city to see the new Batman movie. It was PACKED! It only costs 3.50 to see a movie down here at night my friends! We actually pulled an ugly American moment. The lines were so long there was no promise that we would get seats, so Ricardo took our money and went up to the front of the line and offered to pay for the couple's tickets if they could buy ours as well. They said yes!

It rained quite a bit yesterday. Noah referred to the clouds as "drooling" because of the pouring rain and we thought that was funny!

Today we went to "Vida y Esperenza" (The School of Life and Hope) which has about 230+ students and is located in Santa Lucia. On the way, we got a good look at the volcano "fuego" which is active and a few days has been smoking. You can also see red at the top where lava has come out!

Anyway, this school has both boys and girls and Noah had a great time here playing soccer with the kids as you can see from the above picture. He really felt in his element. I think he made some good friends. We sang "You Are Good" with some of the kids, and taught it to them in Spanish and English. It's such a precious message to share with the kids because together we represent the words to the song, we are different nations and tribes and we are different generations praising the Lords together (a view that heaven will be like no doubt!) Tomorrow we hope to tackle a new song "Mighty To Save." Also, Noah is going to spend 30 dollars of his own money buying some athletic equipment for the kids at this school. All of these kids at the schools that we have been visiting are sponsored by Christians in America who sign up to donate a certain amount per month. That's Lauren's job at Mission Impact and she really tries hard to get all of the kids sponsorship as many of their families are in absolute poverty. This village is definitely more Americanized. Lauren said they are still poor and many have dirt floors in their houses, but some of them have televisions!

Also, we failed to get a pic of this because the camera was dying, but they have a mural of Optimus Prime (from the Transformers) holding up a Bible! Noah and I were quite excited about that!

It's been so great to see God working in the lives of these kids as they learn more about Him. This afternoon we went to the market in Antiqua and did a little bargaining. I bought some sort of wristband thing, but after looking at it realized that the design on it was a topless mermaid! So, we returned if for a more appropriate elephant face! It was very funny!

This evening we will be having dinner at the home of Gerber, a Guatemalan who serves as a missionary with Mission Impact and his family. Tomorrow we will spend our last day in Guatemala back at Vida y Esperenza. Please pray for Jackson and Reagan, as Jackson is starting to miss mommy. Reagan is doing great so far. God bless my friends!

Noah Is A Bobblehead!

No new pics today as we didn't want to get the camera wet. We went to a waterpark that was about an hour away from here. Noah had a great time and we finally saw what the Guatemala rainy season is all about! It rained off and on pretty much all day, but that doesn't really matter when you are partying in a waterpark! It had a wavepool, another regular pool, and a pool with slides, various types of buckets dumping water on you and other fun kid-friendly stuff.

One funny comment from Noah today: As we were riding through Antigua on our way to the park, we have to ride over all cobblestone roads. It's quite the bouncy ride, and a difficult one to make if you have to go to the bathroom as I did the other day! Anyway, as we were riding on the cobblestone roads, Noah told us that his head was "bouncing around like a bobblehead doll." He continues to crack us up!

Another God moment: On the way to the park we found ourselves in a dense fog. We prayed that God would remove the fog for us and literally within seconds the fog improved dramatically. We went from not being able to see even 5 feet in front of the car to a pretty good visability. Lauren said that the missionary life demands such prayers, that often you are on your way somewhere and something like really hard rain, fog, or random huge piles of sticks left in the middle of the road block your path. You just have to say, "Lord, I'm going to need you to take care of this for me..." and He does. How awesome! I said maybe we should pray for a million dollars since God was in a habit of answering everything immediately down here, but for some reason everyone thought that that was not the way it worked!


After the waterpark, we stopped at a place called Serita's for ice cream. Lauren had an altercation with the owner because her "egg nog" ice cream was in her words "disgusting." He wouldn't let her get another flavor, so she took a napkin and removed the scoop of "egg nog" and placed it on the counter. Oh that Lauren!

Tomorrow we will be going to a mega-church with over 10,000 people!

MARVIN & KELLY CONQUER GUATEMALA...ALSO LICE WASHES MADE EASY!

1 Corinthians 4:20: "For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power."

Okay, so we returned to the girl's school of Proximos Pasos today in the little village of Santa Maria de Jesus (as a reminder, the village on the volcano!) Now, you would think that having made such a big splash with my fat gut that these girls would remember everything about us. Well, sadly no. When Lauren asked them what our names were, Jaci was "Kelly" and I was "Marvin." My first thought was "who is this Marvin and did he have a bigger belly for drum beating? Because I can eat more donuts if that's what I need to do!" So after a hearty chuckle, we reminded them of our real names and we got to work!

We led the kids in "You Are Good" and it was such a blessing to see that these little girls had written down the lyrics, studied them and practiced the motions. It was such a great worship experience for us and the kids! After the singing was done, Noah assisted in giving each class some cookies after serving on the worship team.

After that, Jaci, Noah and I presented some of the school supplies that GCCC's Kids Avenue had donated for our trip to the school's staff. We then took some pencils, pens and erasers and presented one of each to the 74 girls at the school. They were very thankful and presented us with little wooden Guatemalan dolls that they had made for us.

Then came the moment you have all been waiting for...the LICE WASH. The day before we had gone the the local pharmacia and bought the lice wash and shampoo (as well as latex gloves!) All 74 girls of the school lined up and got their hair rinsed by a hose, and then the staff (including Jaci and Lauren!) donned latex gloves and massaged some lice shampoo into their heads. It had to "sizzle" on their heads for 15 minutes, and then they came through again and were

shampooed and rinsed one more time. ALL of these girls had lice. Some of them hadn't washed their hair in a month. Two and half hours later, the lice wash was done and the ladies looked "muy bonita." Lauren actually got a lice egg on her tongue in case you were wondering (no word on whether or not she added ketchup or mustard to her delightful feast!) To my knowledge Jaci did not partake in such a grand meal. The girls and Carlos from the staff were dancing to Caedmon's Call songs while they completed the wash, including appropriately "Volcanoland."

Noah entertained some of the girls with his various karate/fighting moves that he likes to do. He has truly been a trooper during this trip.

As we were preparing to leave the school, Mirna, the principal came up to us and presented us with pens that had crocheted covers that read "Proximos Pasos." She thanked us for sharing with the girls and bringing so much joy to them. She also told Jaci that the girls and staff will be praying for healing for her MS. The power of the Holy Spirit in that moment was so powerful that Jaci, Lauren and I were reduced to tears. I put at the beginning of this blog the verse that the "Kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power." In that moment the beauty of the loving bond of the body of Christ was made manifest and the power of God was present in that room. That they would care so much about us and find what measly few things we did for them as a source of great joy and happiness has blessed Jaci, Noah and I more than they could ever know. Isn't that just the way with our Lord though? Just when we step out in faith to do something for Him, He returns the blessing 100 fold.

We left the school for the last time, as we will be visiting the boys school on Monday, and it was bittersweet. It is our fervent hope that we will be able to return to these precious girls again and spend more time sharing in the blessings of the Holy Spirit.

I sit here at the computer a very blessed (and yet pleasantly plump and bald) man. My God loves me so much that He blessed me with my family, my church, my friends, and my country (but not hair or thinness.) He also found favor enough on me to allow me to be blessed with an experience like this. In the epic adventure of this life of faith, I pray that He allows me many more such adventures. It is an awesome blessing and priviledge to serve Jesus Christ. Drink it in my friends!

Tomorrow, we will be enjoying a little vacation day and going to some big water park that they have down here. Needless to say, Noah is very excited about this. Thank you for continuing to read this blog and praying for us. Your prayers are appreciated and deeply felt.

God Bless!

A Big Belly for the Lord!

Today we went to Proximos Pasos (The Next Steps) a Christian girls school in the village of Santa Maria de Jesus, which happens to be located ON the volcano! The weather continues to be beautiful--"Forever spring" here in Guatemala during the rainy season. We haven't had a drop of rain since arriving! On the way to the school, we stopped at an outlook to take pictures of the volcano yet again (I will never tire of seeing a giant volcano silently screaming the awesome majesty, glory and power of God every time I look at it!) There happened to be some clouds covering the top, and Lauren prayed that God would remove the clouds...literally within seconds most of the clouds were gone!

Once we arrived at the school, we were a little nervous. Not speaking Spanish and all, we weren't sure what to expect. We were introduced to the girls, and then the girls had a little worship service where they sang some songs to us. It was awesome to see their little faces lighting up as they sang about their Lord.

Then it was our turn! We went from classroom to classroom to teach them "You Are Good" a favorite from Kids Avenue...but in Spanish. Noah became a member of the worship team helping to teach them the motions to the song. One of the little girls really captured Jaci and my hearts. She sat in the front row and was so excited about the songs that the joy of the Lord literally jumped off of her face. The look of being so lost in her joy and love for the Lord on this precious little one who in the eyes of the world is so insignificant was something burned forever into my mind and was something of priceless value to her Creator. As the saying goes, "when you worship, God smiles"...well He must have been beaming this morning.

I am happy to report that the language barrier was broken by my big fat stomach. I started giving high fives to some of the girls and they were so eager for any kind of affection or contact with us that it just made your heart break for these little girls. How precious they are to Christ! Well, in doing this little game, some of the girls began poking me in the stomach. Now, I have never thought that my love of food and hatred of all things exercise related would ever lead to serving the Lord, but as you can see in the above photo I became quite the drum set for these young ladies. Pass the donuts, AMEN! It just goes to reinforce 1 Corinthians 1:17: "preach the gospel--not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power." We need only to allow ourselves to be Christ's hands and feet and HE will work through us no matter what barriers we face! He'll even work through a fat bald guy's belly.

I have to say that the girls seem to be rather fond of Noah. They giggled and smiled and could be overheard saying "novio" about him (it means boyfriend!) Noah is really getting to see some of the hardships that others face. After the school, we went to a house that the appropriate technology team from Mission Impact (led by a wonderful Guatemalan man named Margarito) was building a brick stove in. This family would literally bring wood into their house, set a fire on the floor and cook dinner. Their houses have very little furniture, and are pretty much like a dark and dirty basement would be. They have so very little, but they reflect a radiance of the Lord that I can't explain. 1 Corinthians 1:28 does say: "He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things and the things that are not to nullify the things that are so that no one may boast before him." All of our ipods, cell phones, a/c, material possessions, power and accomplishments are indeed nullified when you see the joy of a Christian living in these conditions. If only we were so content and allowed the joy of the Lord to so permeate our lives!

I also wanted to say that Lauren really shines down here. Psalm 90:17 says, "may the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us--yes, establish the work of our hands." God has firmly established this work in Lauren's hands. It's not just that she's so fluent in Spanish, but rather it's such a blessing to see someone who has discovered the purpose that God created for her and flourishing in the power of His calling. It is the Lord working through Lauren, Jeff, Terry, Gerber, Mirna and the others at MI that establishes His kingdom here in Guatemala.

Jaci has also truly shined here. Her eyes lit up today at the school when she was working with the kids. There is such a childlike innocent joy that radiates from her face when she is really engaged in doing the Lords work that is so beautiful to watch and makes me proud to be her husband. In addition to working with the girls with music, Jaci was also called upon by MI to take a bunch of pictures of the girls and the staff for their yearly calendar. How awesome that the Lord allowed her to work in an area that she loves so much! God really demonstrated that in our own weakness, He is strong. We were a bunch of gringos who know very little Spanish, and yet I can't help but think that the smiles and voices of this precious little girls were bringing such a giddy joyful grin to our Savior's face today. As 1 Corinthians 1:25 says "the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength!" What a blessing to know the all-powerful Savior of the world loves each little smile and hears each cry!

In other news, we got lost in Antigua today and were wandering around for a while trying to find Lauren's car. This is why Jaci and I will never apply to be on the Amazing Race. Not exactly walking GPS devices now are we? Don't worry, we were able to find Burger King alright! Then later tonight, Noah got to see Domino's pizza delivered via motorcycle!

I can't help but think about coming back next summer with a team of people to work in the schools (hello Kids Ave people!) and to help the appropriate technology folks (hello Nick Strohl!) There is such a need down here that you just feel so compelled to do something...anything that you can about it. Pray about it folks, because we'd like to take a lot of you down here next year!

Your feedback has been such a blessing to us, just to know that you care enough to read about the adventures of a few crazy gringos living in the shadow of a volcano!

God Bless You!

HOLD THAT PLANE!

Well, the Hughes family re-created some scenes from the cinematic masterpiece Home Alone. That's right, we were the LAST people on both our plane leaving from Newark and our plane leaving from Houston. The first one was because we arrived late, the second...well, we were pressed for time but we decided that a stop at Wendy's was important.

Now, the frenzied dash for the plane stood in contrast to the glory of listening to praise music on my ipod while flying above the clouds. Talk about the glory of the Lord!

We arrived in Guatemala around 1:30 and got settled in at Lauren's house. Her street is VERY STEEP. Now, I have done the BIGGEST LOSER workout DVDs, but I'm going to be honest--walking her street tires me out!

All throughout today we felt God saying...I am with you. His glory was revealed in the beautiful landscape of the country. Personally, I love volcanoes. Love them. A few years ago I was disappointed when Mt. St. Helen's failed to erupt. Gerber, another missionary with Mission Impact, who picked us up, told us that he and some friends hiked to the top of the volcano (a 5 hour trip for fit people...that would take me days!) I now have a new goal: get fit enough to bring some people back here and hike that volcano!

The majesty of the volcanoes here is really beyond description. To me, seeing the clouds wrapped around the top of the volcano just looks to me like what it must have looked like to the Israelites while Moses was meeting with God on the mountain. Of course, those clowns were busy worshipping gold cows every two seconds. When I make fun of them, God like to point out to me that we are often like those Israelites. Worshipping the "golden cows" in our lives while missing the all-encompassing glory that is literally standing right in front of us in the person of Jesus Christ. We long for beauty and yet somehow so often miss the beauty of our Savior. God pointed out to me today in Colossians 1:17 that "in Him all things hold together." The same hand that raised that volcano holds the unborn baby, the poor and downtrodden, marriages, churches, ministries, countries. We so often miss that and like the Israelites seek to make "golden cows" in an attempt to fix things, when we need to realize that God is the one that holds things together not us! We attempt to serve two masters while saying we only want to serve the Lord. If we put half the time into serving the Lord that we do serving ourselves, can you just imagine the possibilities?

Psalm 86:11-12 says: Teach me your way, O LORD, and I will walk in your truth; give ME AND UNDIVIDED HEART that I may fear your name. I will praise you, O Lord with ALL MY HEART. I will glorify your name forever!"

The volcano reminds us that we don't have an UNDIVIDED HEART towards God. We look at God with one eye and fashion golden cows with another. It is too easy to lose sight of what's important. I pray that all of our eyes can be opened to this truth that we may worship the LORD with ALL of our heart!

Tomorrow we will be going to an all-girls school and working with the kids. We'll blog about that experience tomorrow night!

God bless!

PACKING & PRAYING

With our trip only a little over 24 hours away, we are currently working our way through the packing process. We are attempting to squeeze all 4 big boxes of school supplies that Kids Avenue donated into suitcases without surpassing the weight limit. As a result, we are going to pack less clothing for ourselves and do some laundry at Lauren's house during the week to create more space for the supplies.

The Mom and Dad in us are beginning to worry about our two little ones that we are leaving behind in NJ for an entire week. That is probably the most difficult part of the trip. They'll be in good hands (Grandmom, Aunt Julie, Nana & Pop-Pop) but not seeing their little faces for an entire week is a bit rough, especially on Mommy!

God has provided the finances for the trip (praise Him!) We are looking forward to using this blog to updating our friends, family and supporters back in NJ about our trip. The plan at this moment is to try to blog each night with updates and some of Jaci's pictures.

Just wanted to share one verse God brought to my attention as we prepare to leave:

"For He will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help. He will take pity on the weak and the needy and save the needy from death. He will rescue them from oppression and violence for precious is their blood in his sight." Psalm 72:12-14

It has been such a blessing of ours over the years to see how God has continued to deliver us from seemingly hopeless situations. It is such a precious promise to know that Jesus came to rescue us all. He didn't see differing values on people based on social standing, ability, accomplishment, wealth, appearance, race, etc. He saw the inherent value and dignity of each life and the Bible reassures us here in the Psalm that the blood of the afflicted, needy and weak is precious in His sight.

He loves the poorest of the poor in Guatemala with the same powerful, all-encompassing love that He has for those of us lucky enough to live in the United States.

It's our hope to be able to be God's hands and feet in sharing this precious universal truth with the people of Guatemala. I can hear God saying to each of us in the words of the song by Tenth Avenue North:

"My love is over. It's underneath. It's inside. It's in between.
The times you doubt Me, when you can't feel.
The times that you question, 'Is this for real?'
The times you're broken. The times that you mend.
The times that you hate Me, and the times that you bend.
Well, My love is over, it's underneath.It's inside, it's in between.
These times you're healing, and when your heart breaks.
The times that you feel like you're falling from grace.
The times you're hurting. The times that you heal.
The times you go hungry, and are tempted to steal.
The times of confusion, in chaos and pain. I'm there in your sorrow, under the weight of your shame.
I'm there through your heartache. I'm there in the storm.
My love I will keep you, by My pow'r alone. I don't care where you fall, where you have been.
I'll never forsake you, My love never ends. It never ends."

What a friend, king, redeemer, and Savior we have in Jesus!

COUNTDOWN TO GUATEMALA

We are excited as our missions trip to Guatemala draws near. One week from Wednesday we will be heading off on our Central American adventure with our 7 year old son Noah. Perhaps equally as adventurous is the fact that our two little ones Reagan (3) and Jackson (1 1/2) will be remaining in New Jersey with Grandmom, Aunt Julie, and Nana and Pop-Pop. This could be problematic as Reagan is in a constant state of asking "Where's mommy?" if Jaci even dares to go into the other room or run to the store for a few minutes. A whole week without Mommy is going to be a challenge for our little princess, so please pray for the kids and our family that will be staying with them.

So far God has provided a good amount of money for our trip. We are still a little short on what we need, but most of our expenses are being covered by our generous friends, family and church. When God called us to make this trip, it was a financial impossibility, but we took a step in faith and God has supplied our needs.

I am attempting to figure out this blogging thing as our hope is to blog every day from the mission field with updates and pictures of our trip. In the meantime, please pray for the following:

Safety during our trip
God's favor on our trip
Health for our entire family
Bill, Jaci and Noah to be prepared spiritually, mentally, and physically for the trip
Jaci specifically for her MS not to act up while on the trip
the kids and school in Guatemala where we will be serving
Reagan and Jackson back in the states

We can't thank you all enough for the love and support you have given our family and for all of the generous prayer and financial support you have given to this trip. May God bless you for your sacrifices and faithfulness!

God Bless!