Dear friends, family, and those I’ve yet to know,

Upon returning from my most recent trip to San Pedro, about one week ago, I was asked to share a little something about “generational missions.” I must confess that I am no expert on this subject by any stretch. But as God has so graciously allowed my husband and I to invite our own children into missional work now, I’m cultivating some thoughts on the topic. So, if you’ll allow me, I’ll share with you a little bit of our story…

For context, let me take you back in time… 25 years, to be exact. I was 14. Joe LoMonaco, founder of Proyecto Fe, but who has always been “Uncle Joe” to me, took a team down to San Pedro, of which I was a part. I’m not sure I will ever be able to adequately put into words the impact of that trip on my heart, soul, and mind, but bear with me as I try for just a moment… My 14 year old self, accustomed to having all my needs (and if I’m honest, most of my wants) met, and having been exposed primarily to the Jesus of comfortable, middle-class America, I was primed for a wake-up call as I headed to, what was then, quite a rugged, rural village of raw poverty, nestled at the base of a volcano on the stunningly gorgeous Lake Atitlan in Guatemala. That first trip, we never saw another foreigner in San Pedro. People didn’t know what to make of us, or so it seemed. We worked hard, helping construct the school, Colegio Bethel. But what got me then – what utterly shattered my heart and yet opened it to a beauty and awareness I don’t know that I even needed, was participating in the school devotions one Monday morning, as Pastor Emilio led the elementary children in worship before beginning their classes for the week. I’d visited their houses. I’d seen the poverty. I’d been a part of the conversations where parents pleaded for prayers for health or work… And yet. And yet those little children could stand there in that simple courtyard, eyes closed so tightly, hands raised, and belt out their worship to their Creator. I was wrecked. It still brings tears to my eyes. In those brief moments, the Lord won my heart, hook, line, and sinker. He opened my eyes to the reality that He truly is for all people. And He showed me how incomparably rich those people were in comparison to the life I was living. I would trade all I had to have what those little children had…

…And one day, I did. In the years that followed, up until I graduated high school, I went back to San Pedro every year. Each year falling more and more in love with the people and culture there. After graduating high school, I worked and saved for the better part of a year, and then headed back down to spend several months working at Colegio Bethel, the school I’d helped construct with my own hands, and had personally watched go from one, unfinished level, to 4 completed stories, now serving over 400 Mayan children.

With Dora, who started the snack program with me 20 years ago!

I traded in my American clothes for traditional blusas and a corte. I traded in my varied American diet for a far simpler way of eating (though I’m sorry to say, Emilio, I will never be able to eat those little, dried fish with tomato sauce!). I traded attempting to communicate in English, in exchange for being immersed in Spanish, and even managed to learn some of their Mayan dialect, much to their amusement. I worked elbow to elbow with them, I spent time in their homes, I learned to make their food. I attempted to love them, alongside them, assimilating into their culture as best I could. And in return, they accepted me. It will forever be one of my most humbling experiences, to be accepted as one of them, entrusted with their hearts, and welcomed into their lives as if I was part of their families.

Those months came to an end, I reluctantly came back to Alaska, eventually entered into a relationship with my now husband, Scott, and we continued to take teams of youth down to San Pedro for many years after. Those trips came to a stop with the birth of our first baby girl, and our focus shifted to her and the 4 babies that followed. Life was beautifully chaotic – still is! But the whole time, I held on to hope that one day we would be able to introduce our family to our loved ones in San Pedro, and that our kids would get to meet our San Pedran family that had so impacted our lives.

I had to wait 15 years, but God graciously granted that dream I had tucked away in my heart. Just a few weeks ago, Scott and I and our 5 kids (Paisley 14, Sage 12, Aspen 11, Juniper 8, and Ridge 6) all made the trek down to San Pedro. “Welcome home…” the pastor’s daughter mouthed quietly to me from across the courtyard, as the staff of the school were being introduced to us. As I sit here, typing through tears, I still can’t believe the richness of the trip we just experienced.

But let me pause here. Some have asked why we wanted to do this with our kids. It’s not cheap. It’s not easy travel. What’s the appeal? Well, let me put some words to the “why,” for us…

We wanted our children to be exposed to what real-world poverty looks like for so many around the world. And I prayed that they would come back with a new perspective and a new sense of gratitude.
We wanted them to taste and see with their own eyes and ears that the same God we serve is the very same God of every people group on this planet.
We wanted them to step outside their comfort zones and watch God work in ways they’ve not experienced before – in them and through them and around them.
We wanted to put them in an opportunity to serve, to work hard for the sake of someone else, with nothing in return… and to watch what God would do with that.
We wanted them to cultivate a love of learning about and immersing themselves in another culture – to find the beauty in it, and to grow to love the search for that beauty.
We wanted them to see God’s kingdom expanding globally, and that the Gospel message is still impacting lives in very real ways around the world today.
We wanted them to experience the richness of cultivating relationships with brothers and sisters in Christ, and that it can be done even in spite of language barriers and cultural differences.
And yes – we wanted them to meet people that, to this day, I consider my family.

Let me tell you that each one of those requests I laid before the Lord, He answered. And I pray is still answering and will continue to do so in each of their hearts as they carry this experience with them into the future God has for them…

Oooh, the stories I have to share from this trip! Buy me a cup of coffee some day and I will recount them all with much laughter and, yes, tears! (My kids like to remind me that I cried every day on this trip – so many happy tears!) Suffice to say, each of my children has asked, multiples times, upon returning – “When do we get to go back??” And again – tears well up. This was not just some vacation that they want to go repeat. They worked. They got sick. They cried. They had moments of overwhelm and fatigue and meltdown. And yet. And yet, something is drawing them back. I can tell you that it’s probably not the literal thousands of dishes they washed or the overpowering smell of the termite-killing varnish. No, it’s the richness and beauty of relationship. Relationship that changes lives. Maybe not always in big, flashy ways. But the impact remains nonetheless… and what started as a small impact has the power to continue on, changing generations.

In an effort to communicate what I mean, let me intersect another story into this one…

About 24 years ago, my second trip to San Pedro, a 4 year old, teeny, tiny little boy was walked into the school’s courtyard. His mother, knowing I had recently sponsored him, I’m sure told him to come give me a hug, but he didn’t need coaxing. He ran right up to me, threw his arms around my neck, and wouldn’t let go. I’ll never forget the way he held on so tightly. Neither little Agustin nor I knew that day what the future would hold, but we knew a bond had been formed. I sponsored Agustin for many years, which allowed him to continue to get his education at Colegio Bethel. We sent letters, we spent time in his family’s home, and we got to know his family. Sadly, as he outgrew the sponsorship program, and as life with Littles kept me away, we lost touch with one another.

Agustin and his family. I sponsored Agus since he was 4 years old. His sister, Herdy, came up through Colegio Bethel, and is now that Bible teacher at Bethel`s High School.

Fast forward 15 years, and on this most recent trip, I was walking across the basketball court on the school grounds, when I heard someone say, “Liz??” I turned around to see a young man looking at me. He could see my apologetic “I’m sorry – I don’t recognize you…” look, and all he said was, “I’m Agustin.” Let’s just say that if you’d been a fly on the wall for that moment, you’d have needed a tissue or two. Hugs, tears, laughter… It was a most unexpected and beautiful reunion. Later in the week, Agustin and his family welcomed us into their home, sharing their hearts and gratitude from the years of relationship and support. A most impactful moment was when Augustin pulled out my letters and pictures I had sent him over the years. Every single one. Never underestimate the power of intentional relationship and its ability to change not just one life, but to have a ripple effect into the lives of others…

What was Agustin doing there in the school that day? Turns out, he works there. He works at the same school that I helped build, where my relationships with and love of his people caused me to sponsor him, which allowed him to have a God-focused, quality education, that gave him a future, with which he is now using to pour into the next generations. What blows my mind, though, and – again – brings tears to my eyes, is that one of the students he now teaches and loves on and gets to share Jesus with on a daily basis somehow connected hearts with my eldest son, and as a result, my son got to tell that little boy before we left that we are going to be his sponsors. …And the cycle of love and relationship and changing the world one life at a time continues…

Shall we bring it full circle now? Why do we desire to involve our kids in this kind of ministry? This generational missional work?

I have come to be convinced that, when done well, mission work is reciprocal; mutually beneficial. In our American arrogance, the approach to mission work has sometimes been a “*we* will come to their rescue” type of approach, but how truly arrogant of us to think that those other brothers and sisters have nothing to offer us in return; that there is nothing for us to learn from them. It can be as equally life changing for those of us being “sent,” as it can be for those to whom the “sent” are going to serve. Scott and I were witness to this time and time again as we took teams of youth down to San Pedro. Now, this should never be our primary driving force, of course; our intent has always been to serve and love on the people of Guatemala, and yet, without fail, the most impactful stories from the youth we took (and in our own lives as well) were of how they felt as if they had received far more in return than what they were able to give, even when we could clearly see with our own eyes the real, lasting impact of our work down there. We desire to bring our kids into this realm of ministry in part because – done well – we know the power it has to change our own children – to set them on a trajectory toward intentional service and intentional relationship and to set their feet on that sought-after “narrow path”; to impact them spiritually and emotionally; to broaden their awareness and give them a new, global perspective and a heart for God’s people all over the globe… while at the same time still fulfilling the primary goal of practically serving and loving well those receiving us.

Benjamin (second generation of Battz’) and my boys (our second generation serving in Guatemala).

Doing missional work as a family also sends a message to our kids about what we prioritize. This is not intended to be judgmental, but as we chose to pursue this trip over a traditional vacation, I’ve prayed that it speaks loudly to their hearts that serving God and loving His people, whether that’s at home or across the globe, can be richly rewarding for all involved… beyond their wildest dreams.

At the end of the day, we hope that pursuing missional work as a family plants a deep-rooted desire in our children to see the world come to know Jesus in a real way, and to have cross-cultural experiences and relationships that give them the confidence to step into the new spaces and places that their life journeys will take them, knowing how to lovingly and thoughtfully come alongside people, earning the privilege of being able to share Jesus or encourage a fellow brother or sister – the impacts of which will ripple through generations and on into eternity.

I’m serious about that cup of coffee… If you want to know more about what it could look like for you and your family to plug into what Proyecto Fe is doing in coming alongside the ministries in Guatemala, please do reach out!

Liz Luber