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This Greatest Treasure Found Under Tons of Trash

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"There's a joy to them, that smile is so contagious." Missionary Dana Craft describes how his church, Nuevo Amancer, is changing lives in Guatemala's largest dump site.

Noema is one of thousands of men, women, and children living in the biggest trash dumps in the western hemisphere. She's surrounded by garbage and heartbreaking poverty but she has a joy that lifts her above her circumstances.

Noema spends her day sitting in a dusty corner, selling chicken to support her family. But she hardly makes eye contact with her customers because she is too busy reading the tattered Bible laid open in her hands.

Meanwhile, her six children join the more than 500 families who scour the 40-acre mountain of trash searching for items to sell, hoping they don't lose their lives in the process.

Unlike many others, Noema and her family no longer see themselves as victims of poverty or the violence that marks her community. Today, they live as a light for the gospel in her community. 

The transformation took place after Noema heard the message of Christ in a church plant in the dump. Now, she knows the Lord and she disciples and shares Jesus with her neighbors.

All she needed was someone to introduce her to the gospel, and that someone is Dana Craft.

Planting Treasure in Trash

Craft is an American-born missionary who told CBN News he spent years running from God's pastoral call.

It wasn't until he took several mission trips to Guatemala and suffered serious health issues that he finally answered the call. After graduating from seminary, he and his wife, Damaris, moved to Guatemala in 2012. 

It didn't take long after seeing the fractured lives of the dumpsite workers that the Crafts decided to plant the treasure of the Gospel in the midst of miles of trash.

Their church plant, Nuevo Amanecer, became a beacon of hope where there was none before. 

Fighting Spiritual Deadness, Violence

One of the biggest struggles Craft and his wife face is the confused spiritual condition of the Guatemalan people. They profess confused versions of Christianity that mix false beliefs with cult-like practices.

"Guatemala has become the most fertile land for the David Koreshes and the Jim Joneses," Craft said. "The Guatemalan people have an innate love for Jesus, but they don't know Jesus. There are no deep roots in theology and they are easily led astray."

The Crafts decided to combat the confused spiritual condition of the people by teaching them to learn the Scripture for themselves. The church grew rapidly along with the people's knowledge of the Bible.

"We started giving two or three verses to the people who came to the church. Incredibly, despite their conditions, they learned the verses," Craft said. 

The church faces deeper problems, fostered by the desperate social conditions. The people are under the constant threat of violence from drug users. 

"Glue sniffing is an epidemic because it is very cheap. We see the boys at the dumpsite always sniffing glue," Craft said. "The glue causes a violence, an evilness that even alcohol, cocaine, or any other drug, provokes."

The men and young boys who get high off of glue go into violent episodes of rage and have waged several brutal attacks on members of the congregation. 

However, despite these challenges Craft says there is hope.

"Thankfully, the graciousness of the Lord sustains us with incredible beauty," Craft said.

Hope Now and for the Future

There have been many victories since Nuevo Amanecer was first planted.

The people have grown in their faith and just last year over 150 young people came to a youth event to hear the gospel and commit their lives to Christ.

"The people have smiles. They are located physically in the dump but they have been liberated. That's nothing I can do. That's the Holy Spirit. They now have joy and smiles that are so contagious," Craft said. 

The congregation has grown so much that Craft is in the process of building a community center to minister to the more than 500 families living in the dump site.

"This Anglican Community Center of Guatemala will house a variety self-empowering projects," Craft said. 

The impoverished people who attend the community center will learn how to produce soy milk and sew clothes to sell for income. They will also receive clothing and basic medication.

The Crafts also plan on opening a seminary in 2017 called Academia de Teologia Reformada (Academy of Reformed Theology), to train priests, pastors, and missionaries 

"The whole point of this endeavor is to better equip the soldiers of Christ," Craft said. 

A United Effort

Although there is hope for the future, there is still work to be done. Craft is calling on the international community of Christians to be a part of what God is doing in Guatemala.

"First and foremost, pray. Pray for our physical and spiritual protection," he said. "Any donation will also be useful. To say these people have nothing is an understatement." 

As the Crafts continue to say "yes" to God's call for them to touch the Guatemalan people, the residents of the dump now have smiles on their faces, and the treasure of the Gospel in their hearts.


 

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About The Author

Emily
Jones

Emily Jones is a multi-media journalist for CBN News in Jerusalem. Before she moved to the Middle East in 2019, she spent years regularly traveling to the region to study the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, meet with government officials, and raise awareness about Christian persecution. During her college years, Emily served as president of Regent University's Christians United for Israel chapter and spoke alongside world leaders at numerous conferences and events. She is an active member of the Philos Project, an organization that seeks to promote positive Christian engagement with the Middle