Going to Guatemala!

I’ve been given the opportunity to travel to a small village in Guatemala called El Tizate, in early February, to design a modest school building for an organization that provides free education for children living in extreme poverty. Yes, this is Jay. Yes, that one… (Sheesh, is this that out of character? Don't answer that...)

I will be working with an organization called Engineering Ministries International (eMi), who gathers teams of architects and engineers together for short-term trips around the world for these types of projects. We will be going on behalf of a Canadian mission organization called Global Shore Opportunities, which runs the school and brings Canadian student groups down to do short term mission work building houses, teaching in the school, and doing community outreach in this small village.

This will be my first ‘mission trip’, and I’m fully aware I am not someone most people would peg as a ‘missionary type’. You’ve got me there. However, I discovered for myself around the end of my college years that the simple story of Christ, one I had long dismissed as childish and mythical, is actually true. I've been inexplicably accepted by God in spite of the continually growing list of reasons I shouldn’t be. In response to that, I’m simply called to love God and love others. I’ve been working out how to do that in everyday life in a variety of ways, but in the meantime this is one way I have discovered to use my training and experience to “love others” far outside my normal sphere of influence in a very practical way.

I am looking forward to the challenge of this project, as well as the experience of visiting the village and meeting the missionaries who run this school. However, almost immediately after I sent my paperwork, I started feeling the weight of doubt, anxiety, uncertainty, etc. that apparently always accompanies such trips. I realized quickly that I will need the prayers and encouragement of others to be successful in this endeavor; this can’t just be something I go off and do alone. If you are so inclined, I would greatly appreciate your prayers, specifically for our team's project success and safety, and the children who will be attending the school for years to come. Also, if you'd like to donate a few bucks using the link below, I'd really appreciate it. My trip costs are estimated at $1200, so truly anything would help.

My hope with all this, in addition to tangibly helping ensure an education for children with an otherwise bleak outlook, is to come back strengthened and encouraged to live life in a more missional way in my everyday life here at home, and to continue to work with eMi on future projects every few years.

I’ll most likely be posting a blog update after I get back to let you know how it all went! See the links below for more project information, and a donation link.

Thanks!
Jay Hoskinson


Project Information: http://emiamericalatina.org/projects/project_7069_EN.php

Donation info: https://emisecure.org/donate.html under ‘designate’, enter “Project 7069, Hoskinson”