The events of Friday, July 4th 2008 have permanently changed our worlds as our team knew them. We were witnesses to God's power, saving grace, and his desire to use common but willing hearts.

After the pageant Thursday, we had the opportunity to talk with each child about God and what they knew about him. We found that most said they knew God and Jesus but had not actually trusted him with their lives yet. We discovered that some wanted to have that personal relationship with God.

The amazing thing was, that a month prior to our trip God showed Georgia, in a dream, that there were some children at the orphanage that would want to be baptized. When we talked about it, we used the usual responses, "we can't do that, we aren't pastors" and "how are we going to bring that up to the children" etc... etc... But in faith, Georgia went to the bookstore and bought beautiful baptismal certificates to bring with us. We had them the entire two weeks and mentioned nothing to the children.



On Thursday night, we told the directors of the orphanage that we were going to offer a baptism for anyone who was truly interested. They spoke with each child separately and found out 13 of the children desired a baptism! We then discovered that one of the lovely adult kitchen workers we spent the week with, asked to be baptized as well. The directors began to cry when they found out. They told us she was the first employee of the orphanage and they had been praying for her for 15 years!



We were so overwhelmed at the awesome responsibility and opportunity we had before us. We prayed and asked God, "how and where do we do this?" He provided the answer right away. The owner of the orphange lives nearby in a large home and she had a sunroom with a hot tub. Her son is the pastor of Freedom House Church, Guatemala and he offered to assist us with translation.

Friday morning we piled 21 of us in a mini van (Guatemala style) and left for her home. On the way, I said to Georgia, "do you realize that right now, we are literally driving people into the kingdom of God!" It was an indescribable feeling. As if things couldn't get any better, Rebekah turned to me and said," Mom, I haven't been baptized yet, can I be baptized too?" And then Mel said, "I haven't had the opportunity yet either." We couldn't believe it! We were up to 16 people!

We arrived and the director prepared the children for the serious commitment they were about to make. Larry and I had the opportunity to get in the hot tub and begin to baptize each child and adult! It was simply amazing!! Their faces told so much, they were truly new children! After we were finished, one of the 8 year-old boys gave a testimony that before he was lowered in the water, he asked God to "deliver him from all evil". He said when he came up out of the water, he had "never felt so happy."

It was truly an honor to be used by God for the transforming of lives and to be part of a miracle here on earth. The Word says that "we cannot think or imagine the great things God has for us." This has been an experience that we will never forget.

God says "some plant, some water, some reap" (michelle version). We realize that it was not us who reaped but God himself. We also know that without all of you who sowed for us to come and reap the harvest, none of this would be possible. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for partnering with us and we assure you, you will have your reward in heaven.
We have left the orphanage with tears in our eyes as the kids waved in the distance shouting "adios". I know in my heart that it is not "adios" but "see you soon" even if it means not until we get to heaven.
We know now that there will be at least 16 more in heaven!!
See you soon.
Love,
The Ziners
Georgia
& Mel

Hi Friends and Family,
It has been difficult to get to a working computer the past few days and we have been busy all hours of the days. Tuesday, we went to visit some of the families in Zone 18. It was difficult to see the degree of poverty as bad or worse than it was last year. On the bright side, we were able to visit the family of a little boy that Georgia has been sponsoring the past year. He was so excited to see her, he was beaming and didn't stop smiling the entire time. She shared gifts with him and and his cousin and left things for his mother. It was wonderful for her to be able to follow through and have that time with him.

Wednesday, we spent the morning with the kids playing, hanging more laundry on lines and helping around the orphanage. Mel, Josh and the girls worked together to make an "American" meal for lunch. It was decided it would be meatloaf, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob and apples with cinnamon and sugar. They worked hard for hours and the meal was fantasic. Since this gave the cook and the kitchen help time off, Georgia set up the "Salon de Georgia" and invited the ladies to our room for manicures and pedicures. She served them coke, and gave them candy, both of which were big treats for them.


Wednesday, we boarded a school bus and took all the kids to the city to go to the movies. Their eyes were so wide when they saw the inside of a mall and when we attempted to go on an escalator, fear prevailed for most of the kids! Only two kids fell and one cried. The rest of the kids conquered the new adventure. Each child got a box of popcorn and a soda. It was so wonderful to see the joy on their faces just receiving popcorn. When returning, we found that Larry had made great progress on his tiling however, he came down with a stomach sickness and we found him in bed.

Thursday, we invited our friends to spend time at the orphanage helping with translating for our special event. We gathered all of the children and explained to them that they were princes and princesses of the most high king, Jesus Christ. After discussing that, we interviewed each child about themselves. We then had all of the girls come and have their hair done, make up done and their nails polished. We chose gowns for them and dressed them up. When finished, we gave each one a tiara. The boys all got crowns and ran inside to put their best clothes on. We set up an area for a Fundaninos pageant complete with background music. We invited local workers to come and watch while each girl was escorted by one of the boys. They had such a great time and they were all so beautiful.

Unfortunately, Larry is still sick and a nurse determined he is dehydrated so alot of poweraid was in order. He has had some antibiotics now and is starting to regain some strength.

We are planning a bonfire and marshmallows tonight however, it looks like monsoon rain is coming. The reality that we are leaving soon is setting in and the kids are starting to ask questions. I feel like I have connected with each child here in some small way and I will definitely not forget the love they give, even though that is the exact thing they crave.

We are extremely blessed to have had the opportunity to get to know them and to furnish them with so many material and spiritual things. Thanks to all of you, many needs have been met.
The house behind the kids in the photos is the new baby house which will provide them with much better living condtions. You guys are awesome, see you soon. The best day (tomorrow) is yet to come. Wait until you hear what is going to happen! Don't forget to check the blog tomorrow night. To God be the Glory.

Love,
The Ziners
Melody
&
Georgia

THE REST OF THE TEAM ARRIVES!

THE REST OF THE TEAM ARRIVES(YEAH!!!)

Saturday and Sunday were exciting for us with the arrival of Larry, Georgia and Mel. Our missionary friend, Tina, from Guatemala city picked them up and had us all back to her house for a dinner fiesta Saturday night complete with friends from Charlotte who run the ministry we visited last year.

Sunday we had a personal day with our friends. We drove to Antigua where we had authentic food in an open air market and we shopped for hours. Larry and Jose toured the ancient Mayan ruins which they absolutely loved. After a relaxing day, we made the ascent to the mountains for our return to the orphanage. Unfortunately,we stopped at Burger King on the way and Georgia became ill right away with stomach problems from a fish sandwich, and was in bed all day Monday. We prayed like crazy and she is doing better.

Monday, we greeted the day with excitement. Thanks to Mel, we had several crafts to set up and do with the children. They come running when they see us, wondering what fun thing they will do next(this is such a blessing). When finished, Mel brought out the huge bag of lollipops and immediately she was surrounded by niños. Needless to say they loved that!

Mel spent alot of time working with the babies and was a little (no I mean alot) frustrated with how they were being cared for. This is definitely something they need help with. They don't have baby wipes and only get a certain amount of diapers per week, so the kids are not changed when needed. They are changed on a schedule to conserve on diapers.

When Georgia was strong enough to get up Monday, she came to see the toddlers. A little girl, who looks alot like her daughter, was crying because a volunteer was checking her head for lice. When she found a live one, she yanked the little girl inside to wash her head with the dreaded medicine. Georgia, in her usual "big hearted" way, intervened. She brought the little girl to our room, and gave her candy and a new pink headband to wear when the shampoo treatment was done. The smile on her face over the plastic headband, took all of the pain away!
At the crack of dawn, Larry was up and ready to work. The new baby building was staring him in the face and he was anxious to get started with construction. The construction is being done by Orphan Resources International, from PA. When the project manager arrived, Larry was able to give him the $3,000 he raised for the completion of the house. The gratitude from the man was overwhelming and there are no words to describe how thankful we were to be part of bringing such a huge blessing to this orphanage. (Again, THANK YOU TO CHARLOTTE AREA SUBCONTRACTORS!!!!) Larry's first order of business was to lay about 2,000 sq feet of tile. With no kneepads he was hurting the whole way, but in his usual fashion, he cranked out a ton of it the first day. One of the oldest boys in the orphange asked right away to be his helper. What incredible work ethics these kids have. The US kids definitely lack in this area and we parents are definitely to blame. You never have to ask a child for anything more than once, and they WANT to help. They make a game out of picking up trash!

We closed the day Monday with perhaps one of the most emotional moments of our trip so far. We planned a "pajama party" for the kids to present them with the pajamas we raised from all of our sponsors. We gathered the kids together and the director told them that when they have a need, they pray and ask God for it and he hears. We called each child up to the front and presented them with new Disney pajamas. They were so ecstatic. When we were finished, several of them came up to the front and gave a short speech, thanking us for the pajamas. The real clencher was when Larry's helper, Geraldo, age 11 came to the front and asked to please pray. He told God he was "thankful to have a "family" this week, thankful for the people who sent us here, thankful for the fun times and mostly thankful for the provisions of new pajamas" Georgia started with the tears, then Mel, and then my heart was bursting and we were all humbled. We topped off the night with homemade popcorn and the Bee Movie, with all the kids in their new pajamas. Whew, what a full day. Thank you God!

Well, Tuesday, we are off for the day to ZONE 18 of Guatemala City,(the poorest and most dangerous). We are going with Hope for Guatemala, the ministry our chuch supports, to visit the families in the mountains that we helped last year. We have compiled "blessing boxes" filled with food, fresh fruit, supplies and few fun gifts Georgia collected. We will update you on this adventure tomorrow.

Love you all.

The Ziners

Georgia
Melody