We all have dreams for our lives – things we want to someday accomplish or create. We might dream of having children, building up a business or traveling the world. Dreams are dear to us. They give us hope for our future and goals to work toward.
What if your dream was to just have a solid roof over your head for the first time?
That was Maria Zacarias’ dream for her family. Maria lived with her husband and their four children in a rural, mountainside community in Guatemala. Extremely poor, the family stayed in a tiny hut cobbled together from cardboard, plastic sheeting, old boards and other scraps they had found.
Life was difficult, but the family had hope. It was always Maria and her husband’s dream to have a sturdy home they could call their own, a place where their children would be safe from wild animals and the rain didn’t fall on them when they slept. They saved what they could, but it was never enough…
When Maria’s husband died three years ago, that dream for a safe home died with him. The family’s hope for a better future died as well.
It became a daily struggle just to buy food for her children. But by God’s grace, our ministry partner in Guatemala, Esperanza de Vida, learned of Maria’s situation and felt compassion for her. With the help of Cross Catholic Outreach and its benefactors, Esperanza de Vida made
Maria’s long-forgotten dream a reality by building a sturdy, cement-block home for her and her children!
When Maria received the keys to her new home, her first words were, “Thanks to God” for the miracle he had given them. Her dream for a sturdy home had become a reality!
May God also transform your dreams into reality and lead you to be a blessing for the dreams of others.
-Stephanie J.