The team made it safely to Belize yesterday morning! After walking off the airplane they made it through customs and were welcomed to their first sights of Belize. We loaded up our bus, and headed to our hotel. After eating a delicious Belizean meal of rice and beans, chickent, coleslaw and plantains, the group was able to rest and relax.

Once all the other teams had arrived, we headed down to eat more food; however, this time it was a burrito buffet at Cheers. People took some pictures and enjoyed the Belizean countryside, then we loaded up and returned to the hotel for a meeting. Then it was off to bed!

Today starts our first day of ministry and we will be attending church at Calvary Baptist Church in Belize City!

Thank you for all the prayers!

Today we were able to lead Sunday school at Calvary Baptist Church in Belize City. It was awesome being "thrown" into it and being able to relate with other believers. After Sunday school we attended the church service and were able to worship our Lord with our new Belizean friends!

We ate a delicious lunch and then went back to our hotel for some ministry training. The training involved how to create and easy, meaningful conversation that can allow one to go deeper than just the surface conversations. We will hopefully be able to put it to practice throughout the week as we do home visits!

After a few hour break, we headed back into the city for dinner and the night service. This time our group led the service with Chris, Cindy, Kyle, Jeff, Sam and Robin leading worship with a few others. One of the other group members gave the message and it was really a sweet blessing to be able to worship with other cultures once again!

This morning we woke up, ate breakfast, and headed into Belize City. Once we reached Calvary Baptist Church we broke off into groups and went door to door inviting kids to VBS. We were also able to talk to people and get to know a little more about their lives, families, and the culture of Belize. Pastor Brown's wife then made us a delicious meal of burritos, french fries, salad and fresh fruit!

After lunch we started preparing for Vacation Bible School. Man, today was incredible! We had about 130 kids show up by the end of the day and it was awesome being able to sing, dance and praise the Lord with all the children! Cindy was shared the bible story and everyone else was involved in music, crafts and sports ministry.

The rest of the day we were able to relax and rejuvenate after the crazy first day of VBS. We are excited to see God work in the upcoming days!

Yesterday we woke up to a beautiful, warm Belizean day. We headed into the city where we began a few construction projects. A few of the men helped Pastor Samuel do more cement work on the floor of the church. Others were able to go to a house nearby and help re-dig a ditch so that the rain water would not flow into the house.

In the afternoon we were able to take a trip to visit Altun Ha; Mayan ruins that are nearby. It was a nice break to be able to learn about the Mayans, and climb the beautiful structures.

After a dinner at a nearby restaurant, we drove back into the city for our Youth Night. We were able to play some games, do a melodrama skit, and worship with the youth that came. Chris spoke on the prodigal son and the amazing grace our Lord gives us!

We came back exhausted yesterday, but we are ready for what today holds!

A few members of all the churches joined together to lead worship Sunday night.

We didn't know we would be having dental work done on us from young Belizean kids :)

As I am writing this we are getting a nice rain shower, and the howler monkey is howling. This IS Belize. Yesterday the team woke up and headed to a children's home, Dorothy Menzies, first thing in the morning. While there we were able to play soccer and basketball, get hair done, read stories, and just play with the children there. Many of them are either in foster care there or they are living there permanently. It was amazing to see how us coming in got many of them excited and how the kids enjoyed doing even the smallest and simplest things.

After the children's home we went back over to the church. Some were able to go to a nearby store to purchase school supplies for a few families, while others helped with jobs around the church. The afternoon unfolded into organized chaos as about 170 children showed up for VBS! Kids were packed in, jumping and singing along with all the songs. Everyone in our group had great energy which excited the kids even more.

In the evening the group led the church service. Christina and others were able to share their testimonies, and Jeff gave the message. Again, Chris, Sam, Robin and others were able to lead everyone in worship. We have all been enjoying the Belizean's passion for worship and many of us are hoping to take that back to the states!

Today will be the last day of VBS and our last day in the community around Calvary Baptist. Please pray that the Lords work will be done today!

The events of the day started with us heading to the church to start our morning ministry. Some did more cement work and others did small construction projects on three different houses. Jeff, John, Sam and a few others helped build stairs to one lady's house.

We then ate our last lunch at the church and prepared for the last VBS. Today was amazing! Over 180 kids showed up to learn about the Lord. Robin was able to act out the parable of the lost coin as Cindy read the story. Again, the kids enjoyed doing actions to the worship songs and making salvation bracelets!

As our last day wrapped up we said our goodbyes to Pastor, his wife, and the other members of the community. Tomorrow we will be heading out to Caye Caulker for a time of relaxation!