May 16, 2004
By Jack Price, Bob Neff, Jim Pierce, Jim Hamilton, Rosie Bartels, & Bob Rockford

Jack Price

Several of those who went from Crossroads Church to Guatemala recently will join me in this community sermon arising from the experience of that mission trip.  The message is titled The Faces of Faith and speaks to the reality that there is a lot of going and coming in faith.  In fact, the journey of faith seems more of a coming and going travel than a trip that leads to a specific destination.  We meet God in the comings and goings of life.  In John 14: 23-29, Jesus talked about coming and going in God, as John’s gospel talked about his leaving the disciples and the Holy Spirit coming.  Maybe we can consider that the journey of faith, the journey that is our home, is at least as much a coming and going journey, a wandering in the wilderness, as it is a cross-country pilgrimage to the Promised Land.  God’s peace lets us living in the various tensions of our lives, always in the hope of what God is working in us and with us to bring into reality.  The faces of the faithful provide both challenge and encouragement on our journey.

Bob Neff

This was my second trip to Guatemala and each trip has blessed me in a different way.  Our visit last year was during the rainy season, and this year’s trip was during the dry season, or so we’d been told.  It hadn’t rained in over a month before we arrived.  …Well, it rained at least once every day while we were there!  To us, this was just a small inconvenience, but the people of San Luca, it was a blessed of much needed rain.

We arrived just before Holy Week, a time of great importance in this mostly Catholic country.  The church in San Lucas is over 400 years old and before we left, on Palm Sunday, we were able to attend the early mass there.

The church was very full so I had to stand in the large open doorway, just outside the church, with about forty or fifty people behind me.  Of course, the service was in Spanish and the only words I understood of Father Greg’s homily were Jesus and Minnesota.  Well, my mind and my eyes started to wander to the people around me.  One older man taught me what real worship can look like.  He was, I am sure, dressed in his best clothes to attend church; yet each time in the service, when the congregation would kneel, without hesitation he would kneel on the wet, muddy stones of the church patio.  What were probably his only good clothes were unimportant in showing his love for God.

Jim Pierce

            The young man, Gregory Schaffer, had made his decision for his life career, finished his education, and settled into his choice as a parish priest in Minnesota.  Set for life, he thought, but then his bishop began talking to him about a position in Guatemala.  There was a vacancy that needed to be filled in San Lucas.  He wasn’t interested.  But then the bishop began to apply more pressure and finally Father Greg, as we know him, reluctantly agreed to serve two years and then return to Minnesota and the parish priesthood there.  That was forty-three years ago and he is still in San Lucas.  His commitment became a calling.  Only eternity will show how much influence he has had on the lives of the people there as well as across the world as he works to spread the gospel in so many tangible ways to everyone he comes in contact with.  He has influenced my life, and many of yours as well, as he tells the stories of need and asks, “Will you help?”  -- the face of faith.

            The second face belongs to a twelve-year old boy who, every afternoon as soon as he was out of school, would grab his box of wares and hurry to the street corner right up the street from where we lived.  As we passed by, he would show us his personalized ball point pens in various colors and designs and any name you wanted on them for the low price of ten quetzals – about $1.27.  I would buy two made to order and go on to the dining hall to eat.  In about ten to fifteen minutes he would show up at the door and get my attention so I could go out and get my pens.  This went on every evening until we were ready to leave.  On Sunday, as we were leaving, he came to the church, shook my hand, and told me goodbye.  I have a twelve-year old friend in San Lucas and my family has personalized ballpoint pens – another face of faith.

            The third face belongs to Rudy, a three-year old boy that I met as he sat on the steps of the side door of the church singing.  I couldn’t understand the words, but he had a beautiful clear voice that fascinated me, and a smile that would melt the polar ice cap.  Steve came up carrying his guitar and started trying to find what key Rudy sang in, and then accompanied him as he sang more verses.  They stopped and Steve interpreted for us.  Then, Rudy went back to singing right on pitch and still smiling as he finished singing the song about how he learned to swim from a fish and sing from a bird.  We all went away with our own hearts singing from the gift this little boy gave us as he shared his own gifts and talents – a face of faith I will never forget.

Jack Price

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.  I do not give to you as the world gives.  Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” (John 14: 27)

Life is lived in tension.  The peace Jesus gives us enables us to live in the tensions of our lives by faith.  Jesus’ peace is not a matter of feeling warm and fuzzy, at least not most of the time.  In fact, being in Jesus actually brings us stress when we settle into comfort zones.  It provides us conflict, challenge, crisis, and opportunity.  Jesus’ peace reassures us in our fear, provides hope in our despair, and brings healing with new possibility to our human condition.

Life is a challenge for all of us.  To live together as the family of humanity, as a particular human family, and as a particular community, or family, of faith, in the tension of conflicting beliefs, tastes, ways of expression, and stages of development will occupy most of our energy and attention if it is to be done effectively.  Partnership missions, such as with Guatemala, provide a way to live that truth out both within and beyond our congregation.  Being in partnership helps us recognize the gifts we have to give and those we can receive.  Our partners challenge us in our lifestyle, values, and commitments.  They provide for us invaluable lessons in human tragedy, human joy, and the work of the Spirit in the world.  Partnership ministries reveal the tensions of our lives.  Jesus’ peace enables us to live and grow through those tensions.  The ability to live in the tensions of our lives is the gift of God’s peace.

Rosie Bartels

My Guatemalan Mistakes or – What I learned the hard way in Guatemala

One of the reasons I decided to go to San Lucas Toliman Guatemala was that I heard a voice.  It was a strong voice.  And I listened.  But I don’t think that voice came from someone with a tax/accounting background.  I probably should not have gone during tax season.  I was stressed out and tired before I left.  But what I learned from this is that maybe my life is too busy – maybe I should adopt a simpler life style so that I am not so stressed.

Some of my new found wisdom was not quite so profound.  Like – Don’t eat refried black beans for breakfast and drink Guatemalan Gallo beer in the evening.  I won’t even go into the consequences of this action.  Of course, some of you will say that I didn’t have to go to Guatemalan to learn that.

I also learned that you shouldn’t look too closely at the dishwater.  One evening we filled the dishwashing tubs with water before we ate and saw “things” swimming around in it.  Well, we knew it would be okay because we would add bleach and strong dish soap before we washed the dishes.  The disturbing thoughts came later when I remembered that our shower water came from the same place as the dishwater – the lake.  Thank God – and Johnson & Johnson - for antibacterial soap.

One day we had the pleasure of crossing the lake (Lake Atitlan) to visit other towns on the lake.  We rode a rather old boat across this lake – without life jackets.  I really thought we should have life jackets and, of course, said so.  Bob Rockford asked the boat captain – who replied “In Santiago Atitlan”.  But we didn’t get life jackets in Santiago, which was our first stop.  I found out later that we did have life jackets onboard – they were just in storage on the boat.  But what I really learned was that my traveling mates cared about me.  Three of them assured me that I would be fine – they reminded me that we could see the shoreline and I should be able to swim that far.  And if not, they would get me to the shore as long as I didn’t fight them.  I gave them permission to knock me out if necessary. 

From this I also learned that you can leave the USA with 5 friends and 5 strangers and return with 10 friends – not to mention the ones left behind.

All this lighthearted education aside - I did learn one very valuable lesson.  From the time I was told what it would cost - $550 for airfare and $100 to be given to the mission to cover our room and board – I felt like a freeloader.  And while we were in San Lucas my math skills showed me that we were only “working”, actually working, about 4 days out of the ten we would be there.  I again expressed my opinion that we were freeloaders.  When I did more math in my head to calculate what we were paying per day for the nice room and 3 substantial meals per day I “knew” freeloader was an apt description.  My mind was changed on Thursday evening at a faith sharing meeting.  I didn’t change my mind on my own – it took a long term volunteer to help me.  He told me I shouldn't think of myself as a freeloader but to think of it as an investment in me – San Lucas mission made an investment in me.  Quite a responsibility – one I hope I can live up to.

I also found that photos are two dimensional and that you just can’t take enough of them,  but that life in San Lucas is four, five, maybe even six dimensional.  I took a photo of these smiling girls (Anna Louisa and Maria) but you don’t know why they are smiling and you can’t hear their laughter.  I took a photo of the market but it doesn’t capture the smell of the dried fish.  I have a photo of some of the abundant flowers that grow there but you will miss the fragrance of the flowers.  I took a photo of a colorful, proud rooster but you can’t hear him crowing loudly at 4:30 in the morning.  A photo of beautiful Lake Atitlan won’t make you aware of how unsafe the water is.  I have a photo of an older barefoot Mayan man pushing a generator in a wheelbarrow on the rough cobblestone streets but you won’t have a clue as to why he is pushing that wheelbarrow or for how long he pushed it.  I also have a picture of a young man with a guitar and a small boy singing but you cannot hear the music. 

YOU – YOU - have to go yourself to experience all the dimensions of San Lucas.

Some will ask “Would I go to Guatemala again?”  Absolutely – just not during tax season.

Bob Rockford

Story about Father Greg (on the recording)

Jim Hamilton

I was touched by many faces in Guatemala, especially those of the children such as this young girl.  But the face of a woman named Dinora was the one that I connected with throughout the week. She is shown in this next slide (has red ? on her blouse). She is confined to a wheel chair because she doesn’t have the use of her legs. I was told that she mostly sits at home alone each day and struggles with depression. When I first saw her face she appeared sullen. But once the machines were running and we were trying to figure out a way for her to operate a machine using the movement of her torso is when I saw determination in her face. On the last day as she practiced running her machine with her body movements, I saw a hint of a smile. I left, convinced that  she would soon be sewing because she now has something to invest herself in, a way to be out of isolation and to be productive. And what I got was the profound privilege of being a part of this transformation.

As a result of this powerful experience, I came back with a new vision. From this initial startup sewing center I want to now expand this to 100 machines that could be spread around the many small villages near San Lucas. This kind of network of individual sewing centers is how Father Greg envisions the future for what we at Crossroads have started. neither Bob nor I don’t know how we will do this. Clearly, this will require big $ from corporate type donors. And it will require a team of people to put together a professional presentation package. So we are looking for volunteers with expertise in fund raising, in PR. I invite you to consider joining us or perhaps you know someone with skills in fund raising who may be interested. My request is that each of you feel free to call me with questions or suggestions. 

Jack Price

Revelation 22: 3b-5

“The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in [the New Jerusalem] and [God’s] servants will worship him; they will see his face and his name will be on their foreheads.  And there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.”

To live in an uncomfortable peace, in the very middle of the conflicts and tensions that pull at human beings and comprise the human condition, is to live in the reality of God’s new creation.  Through our involvement, both prayer and action, we become God’s partners in allowing this new creation to emerge, from invisible to visible.  Committing ourselves to live this way allows us to catch a fuller glimpse of God’s face (God’s true nature) and marks us with God’s name (identifies us as God’s). 

Trusting this truth is what the scripture passage means that “the Lord God will be [our] light.”  Let us live and walk by the light.  Let us live and serve in the Spirit.