Health and Hygiene
Hi everyone! We returned home this past Monday from being in Palenque and other parts of Chiapas for about a week. This all came about when Living Water received a request from a church in Houston, Texas. A few ladies from the church wanted to have health/hygiene training for some pastors at a local Bible college in Palenque, Chiapas. Since we are the representatives in Chiapas, we got the phone call. It was wonderful to get to meet the students who came from all over Mexico. We worked together with the team from Houston and presented a two day training class. We covered basic topics like; disease transmission, healthy/unhealthy habits, hand washing, nutrition, keeping water clean, and some lessons specifically geared for kids. The goal of the training was to give these leaders tools and ideas that they could use to educate the people in the villages/communities where they work. At the close of the training several of them mentioned ideas that they had for implementing this knowledge. We had a lot of fun with the training and want to thank First Presbyterian Church for inviting us.
From what we learned and saw first hand, this area of Chiapas is similar to other parts of Chiapas where we've worked in the past. They are mainly indigenous, live very modestly, have very dirty water sources and don't practice basic healthy habits. For example, one pastor that Gabe was talking to explained that in his village the people are so poor that they comb the lice out of their hair and eat it. We also know that the majority of them are plagued with sicknesses due to amoebas and worms. Which is to be expected because the water they drink, cook, and bathe with comes out of a seep hole or river that has trash, feces and other bacteria in it. We are praying about what and if there is anything God wants us to do further in this area. Please help us pray for direction.
When we left Palenque we headed down to San Cristobal de las Casas to see the Sanchez family. They are still standing strong in their faith. Even though it would be so easy for them to move to another town (to avoid further persecution) they believe that they are to stay put and continue on. Praise God for their faith and endurance. The Holy Spirit is truly with them.
After visiting them for a little while, we then made our way to Tuxtla Gutierrez to visit Gris. Many of you know our precious sister in Christ and are always asking about her. She is adjusting very well to living in Tuxtla and has already received a high honor from her students at the university. God has blessed her with the ability to succeed at whatever she puts her hands to. We miss her terribly, but are so happy that she is doing well.
Well that's all for now...we are preparing for our next trip to the coast of Chiapas sometime around the end of the month, first of April. I have to apologize that there are no pictures this time; we went off down there and forgot the camera, oops. I'll end with a scripture that I read this week that was really special to me. May the words of Jesus Christ encourage you today; "Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him." John 14:21
From what we learned and saw first hand, this area of Chiapas is similar to other parts of Chiapas where we've worked in the past. They are mainly indigenous, live very modestly, have very dirty water sources and don't practice basic healthy habits. For example, one pastor that Gabe was talking to explained that in his village the people are so poor that they comb the lice out of their hair and eat it. We also know that the majority of them are plagued with sicknesses due to amoebas and worms. Which is to be expected because the water they drink, cook, and bathe with comes out of a seep hole or river that has trash, feces and other bacteria in it. We are praying about what and if there is anything God wants us to do further in this area. Please help us pray for direction.
When we left Palenque we headed down to San Cristobal de las Casas to see the Sanchez family. They are still standing strong in their faith. Even though it would be so easy for them to move to another town (to avoid further persecution) they believe that they are to stay put and continue on. Praise God for their faith and endurance. The Holy Spirit is truly with them.
After visiting them for a little while, we then made our way to Tuxtla Gutierrez to visit Gris. Many of you know our precious sister in Christ and are always asking about her. She is adjusting very well to living in Tuxtla and has already received a high honor from her students at the university. God has blessed her with the ability to succeed at whatever she puts her hands to. We miss her terribly, but are so happy that she is doing well.
Well that's all for now...we are preparing for our next trip to the coast of Chiapas sometime around the end of the month, first of April. I have to apologize that there are no pictures this time; we went off down there and forgot the camera, oops. I'll end with a scripture that I read this week that was really special to me. May the words of Jesus Christ encourage you today; "Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him." John 14:21
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