Should I go on a mission trip to Guatemala this summer?

Question

It's with my youth group, and I was wondering if any one knows if it's cool over there.

Answer 1

As to whether or not you should go is something that only you can answer. First of all, I strongly suggest that you consult the Lonely Planet web site: www.lonelyplanet.com and read up all you can about this Central American country.

Secondly, check out or buy a Lonely Planet travel guide book for this country too. The information contained therein is truly remarkable. I am assuming that you are quite young - no insult - and inexperienced in international travel. It is wise to be going there with a guide and a group as I would not recommend visiting this country alone, and especially a female(?) at your age.

Do be prepared that Guatemala is a very, very poor country and Americans are viewed as being rich which makes tourists targets for thefts and rip-offs. Keep a watchful eye on your surroundings at all times as you cannot afford to be unattentative.

The huge difference in cleanliness standards will probably be quite shocking, and always take/carry with you your own stock of toilet paper. Toilets there - and throughtout all of Central and South America for that matter do NOT handle the paper and
CANNOT be flushed down. A basket for your used paper will be on the floor nearby. Also, they do not have hot running water. Showers are usually equipped with a very scarry device that heats the water as it runs through the head. Electrical wires dangle above - so do not touch them, and do not change the temperature switch while the water is running.

Since I have no idea where you will be staying for your mission, the standards there will still be very different from what you are used to....as will be the food. But this exposure will broaden you immensely and give you a far greater appreciation for what you and for what most Americans take for granted.

DO NOT DRINK THE WATER or eat any salad or fruit washed with the local water either. Without a doubt, Guatemala will be a shock for you. The country has huge jade deposits and jewellry and sculptures made out of jade are beautiful and economically priced as well.

The standard dress of the indigenous people are very colorful and can be purchased. These hand-embroidered poncho-like tops are exquisite and many travelers use them as wall hangings.

So do some research. A visit to the Tekal National Park is well worth it to see the Myan ruins. You can also whizz across the canopy for about $35.00 and private tour companies offer these services.

Hope this helps......Sandy

Answer 2

I think it's really cool that you are considering going on a mission trip. From my experience, you shouldn't be basing your decision on whether or not to go on the weather or how it is like in that country. You really need to talk with your parents, youth pastor, and really keep it in prayer. Some of the mission trips I have been on have been the best experiences of my life. If a trip with your youth group doesn't appeal to you a lot, log on to www.globalexpeditions.com and check out some of the trips they have. I have been on 4 trips with them and love it. I am either going to Australia or Europe this summer...all the trips look and sound so amazing it's hard to decide. I wish you all the best in your decision and God bless.

Answer 3

Whether or not you decide to go depends on a few things.
What is your purpose? Spending time with your friends away from your parents? Self-enrichment? Doing God a service?

Weigh out the pros and cons
1) You could get hurt really bad if you do something contrary to the rules laid out.
2) It could be a learning experience.
3) Doing God a service outside of His will never wins any points with Him. Is it possible to do something for God and it not be pleasing to Him? Sure is!

In Mark 7:6-8 (King James Version) the Bible states, "He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. 7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. 8 For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.

Many people go to church and worship Him in vain because they do not come the way He wants them to. It is important to go to church with a true desire to know His will for your life and take home what you've learned, talk to Him about it and do your best to draw closer to Him.

I know a young lady that was about 19 years old and went with her uncle on a missions trip to the Honduras. She had some tremendous experiences there. A woman handed her baby to her. The baby had been ill for a long time. The young lady and had no idea what to do and that is exactly what she told God while she was holding the crying child that lay limp in her arms. But she believed that God is a healer and something happened to that baby. When she gave the child back to the mother, the mom spoke with great gratitude because her baby was not crying anymore and was not limp anymore and was not sick anymore. That trip changed her life. Life's trials and friends and peers no longer have the power over her that they used to have. She now has faith in God that takes her through everything, no matter how foreboding it seems to be.

I would not go the Guatemala on a missions trip if I were you unless I have prayed about it and really believed that it is God's divine will for me to go.

I have experienced His permissive will where He permitted me to do something because I thought I should or because I wanted to and the results were disasterous. Yet, He knows how to take bad things and use them for a a good ending and I thank Him for that. I pray that He gives me wisdom and grace to ALWAYS seek His divine will for my life. I don't want His permissive will anymore. And I pray that you also seek His divine will in everything that you do. God bless you.

Answer 4

you should go, it's eye opening seeing the way other people live in other countries. I think it's a great oppurtunity for any person to get out of their shell and see things around the world that they would not see otherwise. it will be a great expeirence as long as you go with a open mind

Answer 5

You should go. Seeing how the rest of the world lives is an enriching experience most Americans would benefit from, but few bother with.

Answer 6

if it's "cool" haha. Its a poor country. You wont find life as easy as here. But then u'll realize somethings are taken for granted. Go, there and learn something.

Answer 7

Why don't you leave those poor people alone -- they've had enough religion oppressing them since the Catholics arrived a few hundred years ago and forcibly converted them.
Now you want to go down there and thump your bible and give them yet another religion that will again do them no good at all? You'd do a lot more good by donating the money you'd spend on a "mission trip" to a school there.

Answer 8

Yeah you should go. Once in a lifetime opportunity

Answer 9

Absolutely, but I think u should talk it over with your parents and pray about it.

Answer 10

Don't go if you are going there to push your beliefs on someone else. If you want to give them food, give it freely and not in exchange for their souls, They have their own beliefs. These people are not animals in a zoo for you to go and observe their primitive ways and then you go back to your comfy life at home. Hasn't cristianity brought enough problems to these people?