Hi there family and friends! I can’t believe it is almost December already, which means we have almost been here for a year! Who would have thought….well here we are. I really wanted to write all of you and let you know what is new with us and what we have been up to here in Guatemala. So here is an update of the last few months.
Steve has been busy helping at Shadow of His Wings Orphanage with construction projects, maintenance of buildings and grounds, and also working with teams putting together projects for them. He loves to work with the teams organizing things for them to do and getting to know them. There have been teams from Missouri, Arkansas, Langley (full of his buddies from Christian Life Assembly), and many more to come. The last team Steve worked with, made a huge playground for the kids at the Orphanage to enjoy….it is big wooden structure with slides, swings, and more. It was a big project that Steve put a lot of time and effort into helping make sure it was ready to go and it went off without a hitch! Steve also does many things with our kids, like going for swims at the local pool, outings around the area, and playing in the house. Another passion and love Steve has here in our little town is spending time with some friends he has made here. He meets with around 3-5 guys each Tuesday reading the Bible, teaching, challenging each other, and encouraging one another in the things of God. When Steve began this around March, the three guys that came where from Catholic background and not believers. Now the guys are all either close to accepting Christ as Lord and Saviour or already have. IT is very exciting and they are such great friends to us and we love to spend time with them. Steve also plays soccer with a group of 10-15 guys every Thursday night….some are guys he works with at Shadow and others are guys from town. This has given Steve a big opportunity to build friendships and a chance to have fun and exercise too!
The last few months, we have had Hannah Rempel living with us. She is a family friend and used to babysit for us back home before we moved here. I felt led to email Hannah about 5-6 months ago to see if she was interested in living with us while the kids were on summer break from school here in Monjas. The school year runs from January to October in Guatemala, which meant our kids would be off all day and yet Steve and I had lots to do during the days. Hannah joined us here in Sept. and is here until mid-Dec. when we all head back to Canada for a break. She has helped us tremendously with the kids, home-school work, and just a great friend to have live with us. I am really going to miss her, as will our kids! She has learned a lot of Spanish in her time here already and the kids at the orphanage love having her here as well. We will miss Hannah!
I have been super busy in the last few months, as I am transitioning into a new role here at Shadow. My role for the last 6-8 months has been helping out with the Sponsorship Program at Shadow. I have helped make, organize, and send out mail-outs every two-three months from the kids to their sponsors. I also was in charge of giving out the gifts and letters from sponsors to their sponsor child and emailing a photo of the child receiving it. It has been a great blessing and privilege to be a part of helping with the program and seeing the kids faces when I get to give them something from their sponsor; what JOY it brings them and me too I am thankful for the many things I have learned and to able to work with the sponsorship director, Vanessa Priest. Thankfully the program has seen a huge increase and we are almost at the place where each child has full sponsorship (one of my dreams for this year)! So exciting!
A new development in the last couple months is that Steve and I (with agreement of our kids) feel that our time here is not yet done. We have felt very clearly that we need to stay here and have committed to another year. This comes with much joy, expectancy, excitement, and yet a bit of sadness as we miss all of you back home in Canada. God is in control and knows the plans He has for us, which are the best for us. Part of these plans, are that Steve and I will be in charge of teams who come to Shadow as of the new year. This entails a lot of work in preparing, emailing, organizing transportation, projects, activities, and communicating with people here about what they will be doing, ect. The job description is long, detailed, but quite exciting for Steve and I because we love to work with people. Our passion is to love the kids at Shadow, share the heart of this place, and reach out to other Guatemalans with the love of Christ. It is a big change with a lot of responsibility, but we feel like it is what we are called to do here in this next season. Steve will continue to help with building, maintenance of buildings/property, and other construction projects.
As I write this, I remember how our journey to get here began and how FAITHFUL God has been through it all. He has been with us every step of the way and has taught us so much about who He is and who we are in Him. The times that have been challenging in this first year on the mission field have molded our characters and stretched us, but that is such a good thing. I am so thankful for the opportunity for us as a family to be here in Guatemala serving people for him! It is all for his glory! I was thinking this morning before writing this of a scripture; Matthew 24: 40 “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” We want to live this out and help others, encourage, share, and support as though we are doing it all for Christ! He is why we are here and He called us to love those who He puts in our path.
For another year we will serve and work to the best of our ability as a family here in Monjas, Guatemala. If you want more information or just want to send us an email, please do so. We love to hear from people and it is encouraging to hear about what is going on in your lives as well. We do ask that you please continue to lift us up in prayer and support while we continue on this journey here in Monjas and at Shadow of His Wings. We love you all, appreciate all the support, encouragement, and giving from so many of you back home. THANK YOU and you are in our hearts and we are forever grateful!
Steve, Anna, Jenna, Rachel, Elijah, and Noah Lindberg
Some prayer requests:
- To keep our marriage and family strong, close and united!
- That we would make a positive impact wherever we go!
- That God would continue to provide for our practical needs.
- On Jan.8th at Christian Life Assembly we are sharing briefly.
Contact Info:
Email: the6lindbergs@gmail.com
Blog: www.the6lindbergs.blogspot.com
Facebook: Shadow Of His Wings Orphanage
*If you want to partner with us financially, please contact the missions department at Christian Life Assembly, as all funding goes through them (604-530-7344). You can make tax-deductable contributions through C.L.A on their website- www.clachurch.com and go to online giving; missions; other; and then write in the comments “Lindberg Guatemala Projects”. *
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