Impacto wishes each of you a happy new year! We are so thankful for each and every one of you. You have been an impact in the lives of the people of Guatemala. As we count our 2017 blessings we are reminded how so many of you were a blessing in our lives. 

As one year ends and another  begins, many of you might want to start with a clean slate; but please don't clear your slate of all the blessings you received! 

We hope that you will continue to support us in the new year and that 2018 will see many new souls come to Christ! 

There are many things we can forget, but there are many things that stay in our mind forever. For example, " Does a young woman forget her jewelry, a bride her wedding ornaments? Yet my people have forgotten me,  days without number." Jeremiah 2:32. This passage motivates us to keep God in our minds always!

Deuteronomy 8:11-17 says, " Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. He gave you manna to eat in the wilderness, something your ancestors had never known, to humble and test you so that in the end it might go well with you.  You may say to yourself, "My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me." 

As we begin 2018, I would like to encourage you to take some time off of your end of the year activities and take a moment with your family to reflect on all the blessings you've received in 2017. There is a Christmas song (secular) called, "Count Your Blessings" and it says, "If you're worried and you can't sleep just count your blessings instead of sheep and you'll fall asleep counting your blessings."

Remembering what God has done for us is another way we can honor Him. That is what Psalm 103:1-6 says, " Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits -- who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. The Lord works righteousness  and justice for all the oppressed."

If you are reading this email before 2018 begins I encourage you to count your 2017 blessings. And, I pray and hope that 2018 will bring many more blessings your way.