FEBRUARY 2024

​Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.    Colossians 3:23

Dear Friends and Family
It appears Yeimy’s cancer is in remission.  She went for a series of tests in the children’s Hospital in Guatemala City in January.  All is well and she will go for another check up in July.  Praise God for his faithful answer to the many prayers for Yeimy.  It has been a more than 2 year journey with this family.

On a recent visit with Yeimy.January was a busy month for us.  Pastor training was in the first week.  The second week we hosted a Pastor retreat for the first two graduating classes.  They enjoyed it so much, the reconnecting with those whom they had studied with.  The third week we received a team from Canada and in the midst of all, Sergio resigned suddenly and advised us that due to certain circumstances, he had left the country.  If you could keep Sergio in your prayers as he is in a difficult situation right now.
We have relied heavily on Sergio for 5 years now.  He was our Q’eqchi’ interpreter, but much more than that.  He gave us valuable insight and guidance into the Indigenous culture among many other things.  He will be greatly missed.  
When we received the news, our range of emotions went from considering cancelling the Canadian team to seeing the Lord work out any problems we thought we might have, day by day as we reached out to the villages we would be visiting.  They still wanted us to come.  They said “we will work it out”.
Erick, who graduated from our last Pastor training was willing to step in as our Q’eqchi’ interpreter, and although he has never worked with teams before, he did an awesome job and the team enjoyed getting to know him, and saw his passion for sharing the gospel with his people.

It was a busy and full week for the team and they seemed to embrace every aspect of it.  We had 3 different groups on this team.  3 from the Gleaners.  3 from Fort St John and 8 from the Lavington Church.  It was beautiful to see the bonds of friendship forming within the group.  The gospel was shared in every village we visited and we saw a response from several people in at least 3 of the places we visited.  That was exciting for the team, and it fulfills so much of the purpose for why we are here and why we go.

​We did a few home visits with the team and one was to the home of the 3 disabled boys.  They now have fitted wheelchairs.  Although they can't communicate with words, they seem very aware of what's going on around them.
We believe the team had a glimpse of the beauty of the people and the country of Guatemala that has kept us here for so many years.  They were a big encouragement to us and we appreciate that so much.

The beautiful Rio Negro, where we visited the town of Rio Negro.

After the Film Jesus Film for Children and Erick shared the gospel, this sweet couple came forward with a very positive response to the gospel message, in the village of Secranil.

Visiting a local care home run by Q'eqchi' nuns.  Many of the people here have been abandoned by family.

Now that we have had a chance to rest up, we begin preparations for our February Pastor training, next week.
One of the last things Sergio did before he left was give a young man who had lost his leg in an accident our contact information.  This young man reached out to us recently and said that he had heard that sometimes we help amputees.  Just a couple of days ago we met with Juan, who, a year and a half ago was involved in a hit and run accident.  He was hit by a truck while on his motorcycle and left for dead.  Thankfully he survived, and has recovered from some serious head and facial injuries.  He also lost a leg above the knee.  We have helped several others with prosthetics over the past few years.  We would like to help him also.  He is 26 years old and he would like to work. So we begin the process of seeking out options for him.  The prosthetic specialist that will be working with him will see if part of his leg can be built with some of the prosthetic supplies we received in December on the container from the Gleaners..

Juan, who lost his leg in a motorcycle accident  a year and a half ago.Over the next little while we will be taking some time to seek the Lord in direction for our ministry without Sergio.  We would ask for your prayers for wisdom, direction and discernment as we move forward.  After our February Pastor training we will be taking a rest trip to Panama and then to an annual missionary conference.  We will be returning near the end of February in time for the March session of Pastor training and then will be receiving a team from Shiloh Baptist Church in Alabama.
Many of you have asked about my (Eileen’s) health.  I am feeling good and life carries on as normal.  I give all glory to God for that.  I know that many of you are praying for me and I am so thankful for that.  For the most part, I sense the peace and the presence of God, and even in moments when I don’t, the Bible tells me that He will never leave me nor forsake me.  Can’t imagine not having those promises to sustain me.
Thank you all for your support and prayers.
Denis and Eileen Nogue
Seeds to Harvest Ministries