This past week, our team in Guatemala was able to help at a camp called “I Am Art.” It is a camp founded by Athentikos, a ministry started in Guatemala by a couple who wanted to give back to the country their two adopted sons were from. Our team, alongside the other volunteers and workers, spent a week ministering to teenagers from ages 14-17 who are considered ‘at risk’ and have been affected by drugs or violence for a major part of their lives. This is the testimony of one of our liaison’s, Brooke, who was a part of the team that went and served there.
Hi Everyone,
I wanted to share with you what an incredible blessing ‘I Am Art’ camp was for our team that was able to go. The founders of Athentikos and their staff have a kindred heart and spirit with PFM in so many ways.
We learned just before going to the camp that the ‘kids’ that would be participating were actually 14-17 years old, the majority of who were going to be boys. As a team of mostly women, most of us felt a bit anxious about this. I remember asking the Lord, “Why are you sending the six of us females and not Matt and Julio?”
But God.
The first morning I wanted to cry. The boys were vulgar and tough, but also barely spoke. We could not get them to participate in the first activity.
But God.
Laurel, our workshop leader, had planned to use music as a way to creatively express what the kids were feeling as they painted with watercolors. Once the music began playing and the boys picked up their paintbrushes, everything changed. They were all so gifted and LOVED to paint. Little by little they began to soften and open up.
Monday, the music was a peaceful classical piece and all of us painted something that was tranquil and peaceful.
Tuesday, the music selection was a longer piece that had lyrics in Italian. It was full of crescendos and highs and lows. Everyone painted something that was dark, something that expressed fear or pain.
It was so interesting to see how the music allowed us to express what we were feeling – and how much the paintings told the story of what was inside each one of us.
Wednesday was the day we ripped up our artwork. It was heavy and difficult, and it was hard to hear the boys express their feelings. They felt like all their work was for nothing – the works of art that they had created were now trash. That night was a special chapel service where one of the AMG staff (the hosting organization) shared his testimony and the gospel. Because it was in Spanish, most of the Athetikos team were not in the service, but Talitha and I were. At the end, when the gospel was shared, around half of the boys went forward to receive Christ, including a couple from our class!
One of the boys who the Lord had laid on my heart, went forward and was on his knees weeping before the Lord. Talitha and I were able to pray with him. That night changed the rest of the camp, as so many hearts had been transformed by Jesus’ love.
Thursday was the day we created something new out of the pieces from our ripped paintings. I love the way they turned out. Rolan, the boy I wrote about above, did not completely finish his new creation, but his takeaway was that, in the same way, God was not finished with him yet either. What looks unfinished often is really just a work in progress. Oh, how we need eyes to see this in today’s world! Another boy wrote that we learned in camp what the I Am Art t-shirts say – to shine through the scars! That night, there was an art show where all the works of art were displayed. It was so special!
These kids came in rough, vulgar, disobedient and left softened, with hearts transformed, and seeking- not actually wanting to leave.
I was able to have conversations with several of the toughest of the older boys- because I kept getting asked to be a part of where they were. The softness in their eyes has given me great hope for their futures. Many of them have never heard anything positive, let alone had someone look them in the eyes and tell them they have value, that their life matters, and that there is more to their life than what they currently see. Many of them have used drugs in the past. Many, if not all, have had their lives affected by gang violence or have seen loved ones killed. All of them came into the camp angry and not wanting to be there. But no one wanted to leave on Friday.
I believe the Lord will water all of the seeds sown and that He will bear fruit – even more fruit.
We truly are seeking the Lord for how we can continue the relationships we built with these kids. The Lord used each of us in different unique ways and we have all been impacted by what we saw the Lord do and how He moved. This is only a glimpse into what I experienced. Izzy and Shannon were in a group of five girls who have lived through horrible things, and two of the five accepted Christ this week! Lexi helped in the other girls group and was truly impacted herself by what the Lord did in the girls; one of the girls accepted Christ! Ale was in a group of guys that had several of the older and most ‘troublesome’ guys – but it was a group that the Lord really moved in and through.
We are thankful for hearts knitted together with Athentikos. One of the Guatemalan staff members has already invited us to go with her to an activity next month to minister in one of the areas where a camp will be held this fall. The founder and the camp director invited us to serve again with them at a camp.
Thank you for your prayers and for this opportunity!
Blessings,
Brooke
pottersfieldministries 