Below is a statement - sent out on Feb 11, 2010 - regarding 6:8 Ministries' recent decision to leave Guatemala:

in the last week, we have received countless emails and phone calls regarding 6:8 ministry's decision to leave guatemala. 

we have been waiting for the dust to clear before addressing it.  due to the growing concern that many of you have expressed for our family's safety, we feel the need to go ahead and respond. 

in addition, we realize that many of you who will be impacted by 6:8's decision were introduced to 6:8 by our family, and we feel we owe it to you to share our perspective. 

on a personal level, we want you to know that we are doing great.  thank you for your emails and phone calls expressing your concern for our safety.  it certainly reminds us of how loved we are!

on the safety front, a couple of recent things happened that heightened our awareness.  however, neither of them fall into a category of "unexpected" or "unusual".  we feel no less safe than we did when we moved here, or at any point since we have lived here.  in fact, the things that we witnessed during our first 6 months living here were much more serious.  if anything, up until recently, we have had to fight against the illusion of safety, as daily life has become considerably more comfortable.

6:8 made the decision to end their operations (hosting mission teams) in guatemala based on safety concerns for their teams.  we understand and respect their concerns.  we did not know about this decision until after it was made, and did not have an opportunity to share our thoughts during the process.  given that opportunity, we would have stated our belief, that with standard precautionary measures taken, the area of guatemala we live in remains a safe place for teams and families to visit.

some of you have changed your plans to visit us or have asked "is it still safe?".  i imagine even more of you are wondering the same thing.  we can only give you our opinion...  which is, that nothing has changed and our village remains a safe place to visit.  traveling to guatemala definitely brings certain risks that require consideration, and we do not intend to downplay them.  precautions must be taken, and we have always taken that seriously when hosting family, friends, and visitors.    thankfully, we have never had an incident, and neither have any of our friends who have been hosting teams for many years in guatemala. 

for those of you who were introduced to guatemala and/or 6:8 ministries through deepStream, and who have ongoing connections and ministry initiatives in this community, we want you to know that we are seeking God as we believe he has a perfect plan for your efforts to continue.

for now, we will continue to wait and see what happens regarding the timing of 6:8's pull-out from guatemala, and we are praying with excitement that once the dust settles, God will begin to reveal what he has in store.

we continue to love and support our friends at 6:8 ministries as they continue their efforts in costa rica. 

with love,

brock johnson & family
www.deepstreamguatemala.com