Story time!!!
So on Wednesday afternoon of last week, myself along with my two friends; Victoria and Kel were walking down the streets of Chichicastenango, slowly making our way back to the police station where we were meeting the police for a soccer game.
On our way, as we were walking out of a shop, a man stopped us asking if we wanted to buy one of his homemade flutes. “No gracias,” was our common response as we continued walking by.
“Wait,” he insisted, “are you girls from the missionary group?”
“Oh you speak really good English,” we replied, surprised. “Yeah, we are with the World Race group, working with New Generation Church, do you know Juan?”
It turns out this kind mans’ name was Jeremiah; Jeremy for short, and he had connected with the World Race group that was here just before us. Knowing another group was coming after them, he had been looking for us so he could share his testimony.
We proceeded to sit down at a coffee shop and briefly hear the story of how God changed Jeremy’s life and continues to do so. As many people in Chichi do, Jeremy grew up selling goods on the street at the age of 5 to support his family. As a young kid selling on the streets, he was often terrified. He sold goods to tourists, and because he didn’t speak their languages he was often left feeling frustrated and confused.
Jeremy has an older sister and a much younger brother. Since girls cannot provide much for their families in this community, his mother was sick, and his father had left them when he was a kid, Jeremy was often left to make the money and take care of his brother.
He felt angry at his dad for leaving his family and for not caring about his sick mother. He felt overwhelmed by having to provide for his family. Growing up selling on the streets, he started getting mixed up with friends who introduced him to drinking and drugs.
Jeremy was going down a bad path and by all outward appearances his life was beginning to look and feel hopeless. By the grace of God, when he was about 15, some friends began to invite him to church. He got mixed up in what could be considered the equivalent of a youth group and he began to have Gods Truth spoken over his life.
When he was 19, he stumbled across a missions group who was worshiping at a local park. Jeremy was drawn to the worship and when a member of the missions team asked if anyone wanted to give their life to the Lord, the way he recalls it; his hand shot up.
Jeremy now puts his total faith in the Lord and the fruits of joy and faithfulness are written all over his life. The Lord prompted Jeremy to forgive his dad for leaving his family and they now have a relationship. Jeremy is still selling goods on the street, and the Lord has blessed him in it. He has a wife; Jackolyn, a daughter, and another baby on the way. His wife and mother have a spot in the marketplace where they sell their goods on market days.
Remember how I said Jeremy was terrified selling as a kid because of the language barrier? Jeremy now knows 5 languages; the local language of K’iche’, English, Spanish, French, and Italian. Dang! Jeremy never really went to much school, and has no other explanation for how he can speak those languages except that the Lord gave him the ability. I’m a testament to the fact that his English was impeccable!
Jeremy lives his life grateful for all that he has been given and hungry to share his story and the Truth of the Lord with the people he meets. To me, Jeremy’s testimony is a testament to Gods faithfulness and provision. I’m so grateful we stumbled into him, talk about divine appointments, people!
How many times do we miss someones story when we just walk by? Every time actually. We all have a story. Now if you stopped every person you ever passed and asked for their story you wouldn’t have enough time in the world, but keep your eyes open for the people He wants you to stop for. I repent for all the times God prompted me to stop, and I kept on walking. Oh the Kingdom I miss when I keep my eyes closed. Let’s keep our eyes open, people!
