The Southside Guatemala Mission Trip

 The Mam are modern day Mayan Indians who live in southwestern Guatemala and parts of southern Mexico. At least 500,000 Mam live in Guatemala. They are divided into many groups, one of which is the Tajumulco Mam. The Tajumulco Mam, like other Mam subgroups, have little or no tribal identity. Rather, they identify themselves by their communities. The Tajumulco Mam live in the municipio (county) of Tajumulco, near the Tajumulco Volcano in southwestern Guatemala.

Mam-speaking Indians have lived in western Guatemala for at least 2,000 years. They were part of the great Mayan Empire of the first millennium A.D. Although the Mam were conquered by the Spanish in the 1500's, they were allowed to remain somewhat independent. In the 1940's, the Mam began migrating to coffee plantations in search of work. Today, the Mam remain second-class citizens in Guatemala, surviving as farmers or wage laborers.

Jeronimo, one of the local pastors, actually received salvation as a direct result of a mission trip that Southside took to the area. In his “former” life, he fought in the Guatemalan Civil War and after the war was over, he became a heavy drinker. It was at this point that God put Jeronimo in contact with a mission team from Southside.

During a disaster relief project, members from Southside reached out to his village after the area was hit by mud slides. The team gave out food, tin and blankets. After this the team was given permission to come back in and show the Jesus Film and share the gospel with them. Jeronimo was one of three who received Christ after seeing the Jesus Film that night. God used Southside, the compassion of God through the disaster relief project and the hearing of His word to bring Jeronimo to salvation.

Jeronimo is a modern-day Paul as he travels on foot around the villages in Mam country sharing the gospel, preaching at his home church, helping the local missionary, Gary Stone, to translate books of the Bible into his native Mam language.

On November 4, 2009 during a Southside mission trip, Jeronimo was falsely accused and arrested for murder; he spent 16 months in prison and was released on March 24, 2011. During his time in prison, he led 45 men to the Lord and many times during this ordeal he said, “If it is God’s will for me to remain here in prison, then I am ready to serve Him.”

Please continue to lift up Jeronimo as he ministers to his people and for his safety as he continually receives death threats.