It was very hot on the Sabbath afternoon as Berny Leonardo stood with the family and friends of the baptismal candidates on the bank of the Machaquilla River in NE Guatemala. The candidates were very happy to pose for a photo to mark the day they became members of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
As he watched the service, Berny thought how this small service added to the hundreds of souls who have been baptized as the result of th
e evangelistic work in the Peten region by Water for Life. He realized again how the delivery of clean water to a village opened the hearts of the people to the truth of Gods love and how they readily accept Bible truths.
Berny thought back to how the work had started 12 years ago in Peten when Water for Life distributed Bible Study DVDs and players in the region. Cain (pronounced Caeen) and La Laguna are small villages several miles west of San Luis. Years ago there had been a little church in La Laguna, but not much of the congregation remained until the DVD ministry increased interest.
Water for Life drilled one of the first wells in Cain and held evangelistic meetings there. It was awkward through the translator, but each night there were a few more members attending and some visitors. At the end of the meetings, WFL placed a Bible worker in the area to continue working with several families. The interest grew in the area and there were baptisms in response to the Bible worker’s efforts.
Berny thought about how the Upper Columbia Conference and Amazing Facts made mission trips to the region and built churches and how Water for Life assisted and provided vehicles, equipment and coordination to make these projects successful. He counted more than 14 churches constructed over the years by volunteer church groups.
In one region in the area, the efforts were so successful that most members of an evangelical congregation became convinced of the Sabbath and are being baptized.
Berny thought again how these six beautiful young people from Cain have given their hearts to the Lord and were being baptized into the church. He bowed his head and thanked the Good Lord in heaven for the blessing Water for Life has been to the people. Souls saved for the Kingdom.