Heart of Service

“And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of [living] water,

that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither;

and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper” (Psalm 1:3)

This past summer several volunteers who had time off for summer break came from the States to help LTA on the property.  Most recently volunteers have come from local Belizeans who have seen the need for a school as well as the vision for LTA. 

Last Sunday a Belizean who has befriended all the previous volunteers of LTA constrained to help us on the property on his day off.  With his expertise in construction, property management, and landscaping, he was willing to do whatever work was needed.  During the course of the day, he made two separate trips to the property and supplied his own materials needed to complete the requested work. 

Today the first yellow coconut was planted on the property after reading Psalm 1 and praying with volunteers and workers.  One worker said, “It’s the first ‘Living Tree Academy tree’ on the property.”  Unlike green coconut trees, yellow coconuts can be harder to find on the island.  (We have been told yellow coconut trees don’t attract bugs like the green coconuts.)  One of our volunteers (who occasionally works with us) discovered a yellow coconut tree that was available to transplant and move to the LTA property.  With the help with others, he dug out the tree, transported it to the property, built a retaining box out of cinder blocks, and planted the tree with much care knowing that this tree will help supply coconuts to students and staff in the future.  “We plant and water but God gives the increase,” he said. 

We believe this heart of love and service which has been demonstrated over the past 6 months will be reflected on the Living Tree Academy campus for years to come.

Visiting Chetumal

Visiting Chetumal was productive in terms of learning the process of traveling to Mexico, however it is not a trip that representatives want to make on a regular basis.  First the sea was choppy therefore the hour and a half boat ride ended up taking two hours.  Then upon arrival to Mexico all passengers were greeted by the army with not a word spoken as they searched the luggage.  All the luggage was lined up (including personal items) as the dog sniffed his way down the line.  We then proceeded to the immigration office where we were informed we had to find a local bank and pay an immigration fee even only being there for one day (5 hours).  After that we were assigned a taxi driver who spoke only Spanish.

On a search for supplies we visited a local Sam's Club which was only a five minute walk from the terminal.  Everything was in Spanish but the environment was the exact same as you would find in the US.  We then stopped by a local hardware store to see what tools and supplies were available as well.  Our last stop was the bank where we spent almost an hour in line to pay the immigration fee.  Afterwords we traveled back to the terminal to wait for the boat to San Pedro - how refreshing it was to arrive in San Pedro! 

Boat to Chetumal

Chetumal, Mexico border

Dog searches luggage/bags

Taxi drivers await tourists

Checkout at Sam's Club

Inside Sam's Club

Mexican flag in the background

Waiting in line at the bank at Chetumal

Man sweeping the concrete with natural broom

Local Chetumal hardware store

Inside hardware store