July 14, 2012 | Guatemala

hunger, healing, and baby smiles

“One of the most difficult things in the Christian life is being hungry and full at the same time.” – Bill Johnson
In the natural, you get hungry by not eating. In the supernatural, the more you eat, the more hungry you become. I think this week I finally began to understand this.

Our worship times have become so intimate and awesome – you can physically feel the presence of God, chains are broken and truth is spoken, and it ALWAYS rains (I just think that’s cool). It’s not about just singing words anymore, it’s about joyfully celebrating who God is, and receiving the love He is pouring out on us – which is so beautiful. After these times, I feel so full I could overflow, but at the same time I’m desperate for more. And this feeling is starting to carry over into our times of ministry as well.

Yesterday, a few of us really felt a nudge from God to go to the market and pray for people. We had been talking about healing a lot, and there were a few of us who felt like God was calling us to take a risk for Him and try it. So we headed to the market, and without any real plan, just started walking around, looking for people to pray for. We ended up talking to 3 different people, and we prayed for each of them, asking for the Holy Spirit to touch them and heal them. While we were talking to the third person – an older woman with a broken arm – another woman we had talked to earlier, (with 2 torn tendons in her leg) came over and told us she had no more pain!! Then the woman we had been talking to took off her sling and raised her arm up higher than she could before! It was so freaking awesome to experience God working in such a tangible way, right in front of us! What a blessing to stand in the middle of the market in Puerto Barrios, celebrating the work of God.

Another ministry that really blessed me this week was our time at the orphanage. I’ve really started bonding with this sweet baby named Diego, and the time I get to spend with him has become really special. Even though he’s spit up on me twice – I really love this kid.

I could sit there all day and hold him. It takes him a while to warm up, but I finally got a smile and a giggle out of him – and it was literally the most exciting moment of the day for me. I just feel like these kids don’t smile very often, and it is so rewarding to see his chubby little cheeks bust out in a grin. I got to feed him before we left – and it was so neat to be able to meet his physical hunger needs, but also his hunger for love. I just hope for the short time we get to be there to visit the orphans each week, they feel like someone loves them and cares about them, especially since adoption is closed right now.