Guatemala: Day 3 Reflections

Date Published

June 11, 2025

Home / Blog / Guatemala: Day 3 Reflections

Published by Calvin Seminary

Written by CTS Student Curtis Meliefste

During our preparatory meetings, Rev. Joel VanDyke described the situation in Guatemala using language from Genesis 1. The Holy Spirit hovers (or dances) above the waters of chaos, and Guatemala is a chaotic place; therefore, the Holy Spirit is on the move. 

This morning, we visited Puerta de Esperanza (Door of Hope), a ministry that works with children and families in the Terminal Market – the largest central market in Central America. Within the boundaries of this market, I say boundaries because this market sprawls six large city blocks, and over 5000 children live within the market. Over the decades, many families migrate to the market to earn a living, and they live within the market, usually above their vendor stalls. Door of Hope works with these kids because they are usually unattended while their parents try to earn a living. This ministry offers tutoring, educational reinforcement, preschool, and meals to these kids. Most importantly, the workers at Door of Hope love these kids and their families and treat them like humans. 

One worker is a young man named Charlie. He is from Indiana and moved to Guatemala City 4 years ago, and began working with Door of Hope when he fell in love with the kids and the ministry. He led us on a tour through the bowels of the market. The market is a disorienting place, and without Charlie’s guidance, we would instantly be lost. God called Charlie into the chaos to work with these families and love the kids. I asked Charlie what is needed, and he said that staff salaries are often what people do not want to support- they would rather send supplies or pay for meals, etc… but it is the people who work there that make the difference. 

In the midst of the chaos, we are discussing incarnational ministry; supporting a worker like Charlie is supporting incarnational ministry. While a ministry like Door of Hope willingly enters the chaos of the Terminal Market to help families escape the trappings of poverty, they also seek to treat them as image bearers when the community they inhabit is one of exploitation, abuse, and neglect. 

In the afternoon, we travelled to Viva Agua Colegio Cristiano (Living Water Christian School) and listened to a presentation about the school, followed by a musical performance by the students. Once again, chaos reigns in this place, both negatively and positively. To arrive at the school, we turned off a highway onto a dirt road and rambled through a forest filled with corrugated metal shacks and arrived at a cinder-block school. Many of the students live in this community, where dirt floors, corrugated metal, chickens, dogs, mud, and more chaos prevail. Within the walls of the school, chaos reigns again, but in a more beautiful way. The music program that the school runs is built on the teens teaching and mentoring the younger children. Yarrida (the teacher) stands back and lets the chaos operate while the older students organize the instruments and kids for the performance. 

Chaos is a constant in Guatemala City, both in a way that keeps people down and in a way that exposes the beauty of God’s creation. The beauty of our God is that His Spirit is working in all the chaos and using men and women like Charlie and Yarrida to love the children and families trapped in the chaos of Guatemala City. 

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