On the surface “The Day of the Dead” in Guatemala seems like a festive celebration as cemeteries are flooded with families. This tradition traces its roots back thousands of years to the Aztecs and the Mayans. Originally it was a month-long celebration and was so deeply rooted in their culture, that even the Spanish conquistadors couldn’t get the people to stop celebrating it. Through the influence of the Catholic church this tradition was condensed to a three-day period surrounding All Saints Day.

Today, “Dia de los Muertos” is a national holiday in Guatemala. They believe that the “veil” between the dead and living is thinnest on November 1^st. Thus, families congregate around the graves of their diseased loved ones. They decorate their graves with lavish flowers and decorations. Often the entire family sits around the grave and eats lunch in hopes to communicate with them.

Cemeteries are also filled with elaborate and magnificent kites that sometimes take months to prepare. They are meticulously made with light weight reeds, bamboo, tissue paper and glue. It is a spectacular sight. These kites all have messages attached to them as another attempt to connect with deceased family members.

As they leave the grave site, many believe that their loved one’s souls will follow them home and will stay with them for the night. The next day at noon their souls will return to the grave as the veil between the living and the dead returns.

What saddens my heart about this beautiful family tradition is what it reveals. It reveals the God given deep longing to connect spiritually beyond ourselves. Unfortunately, the ‘Christianity’ brought to South America hundreds of years ago was void of a direct connection with God. It breaks my heart as I see so many people here still desperately longing to connect spiritually.

Jesus actually came to set us free from sin and religious traditions. He came and broke the veil that separates us from Him. Christians now have the incredible privilege and joy of being able to have a deep connection and friendship with God. We have the Holy Spirit inside of us who is transforming us to become who we were created to be. There is nothing more exciting and fulfilling than hearing God’s voice and having the courage to follow His lead.

Ephesians 2:10 is one of my favorite verses. “We are God’s masterpiece created in Christ Jesus to do good things that He created in advance for us to do.” This truth inspires me to tune into hear God’s voice so that I don’t miss the good things God has already prepared for me to be a part of each day! This makes every moment of everyday exciting.

I long for everyone to be able to have the incredible joy and freedom of knowing Jesus. The people here in Guatemala are beautiful. I just pray that God will help use the traditions that they have as a bridge to open their hearts to a real relationship with Him.

ps. We got the opportunity to be taught how to make traditional Guatemalan kites with  reeds, tissue paper and glue. It took a lot longer that we had expected, but we had a lot of fun.

.