Discipleship Program Report - October 2008
***This report was written by our Discipleship Program coordinator, Miguel Angel Guarcas***

We greet you in the love of our Lord Jesus Christ and in the name of all the discipleship groups that make up the group Búsqueda de lo Alto (Searching for the Most High) in Guatemala.  It is truly a pleasure to be able to share with you the great blessings that our God is doing in each life and in each place where people are working in this program.  In Tzancaguip San Antonio, the brothers are excited because they are learning more about the Word of God, exploring great truths in the Bible that they had not discovered before.   Although they read the Bible when they were in church meetings, they had never dedicated time at home to study.  Brother Ronaldo shared with us that the discipleship course is changing his life.  The group continues to work together; although new ones come and others move away, we continue with our discussion group.

Also in Xetinimit (pronounced Shayteenymeet), we are seeing the results of the discipleship program.  When I arrived in this place to present the program and we began to fill out forms about their families, I noticed that several of the church leaders were not legally married to their wives.  I did not feel that this was correct, so I asked God to give me words to speak with them without offending them or discouraging them in serving God and the church.  It really is a serious problem.  I decided to speak to them on this subject, explaining to them how we can better serve if our family relationships are more orderly.  In this way we can give a good testimony to people who do not know the Gospel and to the young people who are not married.  Thanks to God, they are understanding the Word of the Lord. After some of these meetings, Brother Julio came to speak with me and told me that he and his wife had decided that they wanted to do what they had been learning in the Bible.  They wanted to get married legally and in the church after having lived together for more than two years.  Both of them wanted me to come and celebrate their wedding with them in the church.

Only God and studying His Word as we do in discipleship class can change the heart of the people.  When we apply it to our lives, we can serve better in the church and be good examples for others. 

The great day of the wedding, so awaited by them and by me, arrived as planned.  I just thank God for ASELSI and you and this course for allowing me to be part of this great blessing.

It is a great blessing for me to be able to work in different places because each place and each brother and sister in Christ have different needs.  But the most wonderful thing of all is to see God working in their lives, molding them with His Word each day. 

We have experienced many beautiful things and have given the glory and honor to God, just as when we have experienced difficult things.  For example, to arrive in one village, we found the road in a very bad state because we have had so much rain that in almost the whole country there are times when we get stuck in the mud.  Many times the road committees force us to pay high fees for each vehicle that passes for them to be able to fix the roads.  Even through these trials, God has never left us.  He has been faithful to our ministry and we believe He always will be. 

I am ready and willing to continue seeing the work of the Holy Spirit that is changing lives in different places through this ministry of discipleship.  We are grateful to God for the privilege of having it here in Guatemala.

Now we have 8 discipleship groups and there are 146 people learning more about the Word of God.  Amen!