Testimony by: Diana Gonzalez
Two years ago, our group of four missionaries began the work in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. The pandemic has caused us to be more creative and patient with the growth process, of course, although we certainly have enjoyed every bit of it.
Some of our services during the month of September continued online. However, we thank the Lord for eventually allowing us to start in-person services in the community again. Our brother Germán Lopez has been appointed to be the leader of the mission after we are gone. We’re already in the midst of that transition, and he has begun to take on more of the responsibilities, to know the believers in Pacajá better, and to propose new ideas about how to carry on the mission. That has filled us with joy, because we are already seeing how he and his team will continue the fruitful ministry in the community when we finish our time here and leave in a few days.
Sunday, September 26, 2021, we celebrated a service and received new members in the Church of the Nazarene in Pacajá. That was a day we had dreamed about as a team. God had been working in the lives of those people for a long time. I arrived in Quetzaltenango two years ago with a heart filled with thanksgiving, trust, and hope, although I admit those feelings did not always remain strong during my time in this city. Many times, my gratitude waned, and doubts came to the surface instead: Why am I here? What am I here for? Those questions were answered as we received the new members. As I saw that group committing themselves to God, to the church, and to the community, saying yes to living lives that are pleasing to God, I knew they would be a testimony of His transforming power! It allowed me to see the purpose of all the conversations, the laughing, the mourning, and the sharing of life with each one of those standing there.
We give thanks to the Lord for the new life he has given to the first members of the Church of the Nazarene in Pacajá:
- Jocelyn Rivera
- Karla Mishell Vázquez Rodríguez de López
- Héctor Fernando López Martínez
- Andrea Arriaga
- William Hernández
- Omar Neftalí Pérez Ortiz
- Ansoni Argueta
- María Luisa Guix Gonon
- Ventura Conun Chan
- Germán Alejandro Pérez Gonon
- Adela Esperanza Pérez Gonon
This final week of October we will be leaving Quetzaltenango because our two-year assignment with Genesis is coming to a close. As I look back, I only have praise and thanks in my heart for all God has done in my life, in my team, in the brothers and sisters in Quetzaltenango, and in all those who are in any way involved in urban church planting.
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