Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Day 6 - Ziplines, Shopping and alarm clocks

Today has been a fun-filled day and has been one of anticipation and relaxation. We are all excited about coming home but have thoroughly enjoyed the times by the lake, playing with the kids and walking around Antigua. It is often a mixed feeling on the last day. You begin to feel comfortable in your surroundings and begin to truly appreciate the pace of life here but even still you miss things from your home. 
Today's activities have sent us off the right way back to the States. We began the day with a final time studying scripture and looking at truth from Romans 3,5,6. Coach Mitchell has really shined in the times he has led our studies and has communicated the truth of scripture with a simplicity and passion that has challenged and encouraged everyone. 

After finishing our group study, we headed down to the elementary school at  Eagles' Nest to listen to their devotional and have them pray for us before we left. 

We were able to tell them bye and let them know how blessed we were by them and how evident it was to see God 's blessing in their lives through the growth of Eagles' Nest. After the devotional, we headed down the mountain to the lakeside zipline course. 


The zipline did not disappoint and the guys had a great time hanging out and seeing all of the amazing sites while going through the zipline course.



After the zipline, we headed back up to Eagles' Nest for the final time to collect our bags and head down to Antigua. Pedro and Felis were great hosts, as always and we were glad to help them with the few projects we had a hand in. This has become a valuable partnership for both of our groups as we spend time working diligently but enjoying all of the surrounding landscapes and getting to focus on our team off the court. I hope we can continue to go back frequently and rejoice with the Patlans as their ministry grows in new ways. 

After leaving Eagles' Nest, we then rode the 2 hours down from the lake to Antigua and completed our final journey of the trip that doesn't involve an airport. Once in Antigua, the guys took to the streets to find bargains in the markets and a quick lunch. Of course, after they returned they were eager to show off the soccer jerseys and other merchandise they had bought and compare negotiation notes. 

For the final act of our Guatemalan adventure, we were able to sit down for a nice dinner and enjoy our last night in Antigua. The food was delicious and our guide, Carlos, has been invaluable with suggestions and ideas while in his hometown of Antigua. The guys are mostly in bed already because we have a 3:30 am wake up call to be at the airport no later than 4:45-5:00am tomorrow morning. This has been a great trip filled with many memories. Our team has grown through so many different experiences and encounters and I hope we have encouraged and served the people of Guatemala that we have come into contact with this week.

We are all sad to leave such an amazing place with such great people but we are also eager to get home. We should arrive in Jackson around 5:00pm tomorrow and it will make for a long day but we are excited about seeing our families and friends.

Adios Guatemala 
Viva Mississippi

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