Different

“Different is not wrong.”

This simple phrase has been resonating so deeply with my spirit lately, especially as I navigate life and ministry in Quiche’!

About everything about me feels “different” from the folks in my town.

Even in church, my worship looks a little different – I sign while others sing, my feet are more still while others dance, and yes, I often have earplugs in with the loud music!

And that’s okay.

I’m learning that different truly isn’t wrong.

For some, God speaks in the loud, vibrant moments of worship and prayer that bring forth loud weeping. For me, God speaks more often in quiet prayer and writing during still mornings alone with Him.

It’s very different, but it’s certainly not wrong. And I truly believe others experience this too!

Last week brought such a beautiful illustration of this truth.

The team led worship in the style of some of the local villages – a long, pulsing, keyboard-driven tune that wove through several monotone songs for over 10 minutes. It’s a style where I can’t catch any the words, even if they are on the screen, so I mostly just listen, pray, and observe.

And what I saw was profound: our brothers and sisters who grew up in the surrounding villages with this style were deeply moved, crying out and weeping. While our brothers and sisters from the town center, however, were quieter than usual; more still.

It’s not just this gringa who sometimes feels disconnected from how others are experiencing life- this happens to everyone in every culture.

Consider arriving at a hymn only church when you don’t speak that lingo- or a rock church when you are used to “I come to the garden alone”.

It reminded me how big God is. He, having created these majestic mountains that forever tower over us, is also so intimately close, speaking to each one of us in the language we can best understand.

How beautiful is it that we don’t all have to look the same, speak the same, and think the same to come to know this great God?


On a more tangible side, sometimes different is quite helpful.

In our case, being different has led to trust.

As we continue to provide vital prenatal care and nutritional advising in our town and surrounding villages, what strikes me is the growing trust people place in us, despite a deep-seated mistrust of local health centers and other medical resources.

This is monumental.

This is different.

In Guatemala, especially for our Mayan friends, discrimination in healthcare is a stark reality. Much more dramatic, discrimination against women in rural areas.

Patients often lack basic rights—like knowing their own medical information. We’ve heard far too many stories of doctors yelling, “I am the doctor, I know what’s best!” when asked questions, or of people undergoing surgery without ever being told what procedure they had.

The saddest of these what when a traveling Docter and friend had to explain that the surgery they had done on her and not explained was a complete hysterectomy. This was why she was not getting pregnant, and why she would never have children.

Because of this mistrust, we’ve met women who, in their entire lives, have only come down to town for their pregnancies, enduring disrespectful treatment at health centers just to get basic care for their unborn child.

This is why we focus on compassionate care.

And this is different.

Community midwives tell us they come to us because we take the time to treat every patient like a person, answer their questions, and share what we find.

Overcrowding at health centers pushes them to move faster. Seldom does a daily learn their baby’s gender in an ultrasound there, or receive education.

We recently met a man who brought his wife, and though she was silent (a common practice due to cultural norms in medical settings), he constantly spoke of her struggles and needs. He reiterated about five times that they trusted us. Only us.

This trust is a gift, and it fuels our mission to provide dignified, culturally sensitive care, reflecting God’s love to every individual. We are so grateful to be here, serving these amazing communities.

For our patients in Quiche; We continue to fight for the dignity of women and Mayan patients in a culture that often diminishes their worth.

Please pray with us that they would see that the “different” that they see us is Christ through our actions and that conversations about faith will open up because of this.

One Response

  1. This is well written Katie. Different is just different. Different calls and different missions. Same God using different people for His Glory. Amazing to see Him work.

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