Making a Difference in Guatemala

“The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name will be the only name” – Zechariah 14:9 

This is the verse that Madison Zeldenrust, a current Olivet senior, came across during her mission trip to Guatemala. It is also the verse that she believes best describes her experiences doing media mission work through Olivet. 

The Mission

Every year, students and faculty of Olivet Nazarene University bring their media skills to other countries around the world. In Guatemala in 2024, Olivet’s teams partnered with the Nazarene Church in Mesoamerica and took on the dual challenge of interviewing locals and teaching a media camp for those looking to use multimedia to build the kingdom of Heaven.  

The team began the trip exploring local areas and preparing for the media camp. They hosted multiple classes including social media, public speaking, and photography. The camp featured students of all ages and various backgrounds, including people from Mexico, El Salvador, and Honduras.  

After the camp, Olivet’s team traveled up a mountain to a remote village in the region, where they interviewed locals. The team wanted to help raise awareness of the region’s needs and raise money for the Nazarene Church in Mesoamerica.  

With the rapid growth of media throughout the world, Olivet hopes not only to prepare students for the future through offering opportunities to serve on mission trips, but also to empower locals in the regions served. Sources like Statista site that Mexico alone has an entertainment and media industry valued at around 30 billion dollars as of 2023.  

With such a large market, media in the Mesoamerican region has a powerful impact. Building up Christ-based leaders with multimedia skills is imperative if the local church plans to keep up with the growth of media in the region.  

Mission trips like Olivet’s Guatemala trip help train Christian leaders in local communities on how to best present their beliefs and values to others in the vastly growing realm of media. 

Madison’s Experience 

As the trip approached, Zeldenrust was excited and a little nervous. Partially because she did not know many of her peers on the trip, and partially because she spoke little to no Spanish. Regardless, she did not let this stop her from participating in one of the most foundational parts of her college experience. 

When it came to the language barrier and the lack of close relationships, Zeldenrust says, “It ended up not being a challenge at all.”

Throughout the week and a half long trip, Zeldenrust was given ample time to connect with her peers through activities and downtime spent together.

Additionally, Zeldenrust took the challenge of communication head on, embracing the differences in language. “We talked through Google Translate most of our conversations.” 

While Zeldenrust and her team faced many challenges throughout their trip, she recalls,“I think overall Olivet did prepare us well.”

In the end, she left feeling more confident in her ability to teach and communicate with others around the world. 

For another dive into Olivets Media Missions, Click Here.