October Update

I find it a little challenging to reflect on October, when November 1^st was one of the most miraculous days of my life, the day God brought our daughter into this world. Despite the challenge, there are many things we would like to share with you about October because we saw God at work in our community and in our own hearts.

We were incredibly blessed this month with 7 new friendships with individuals participating in the ministry World Racers. These 7 friends are on an incredible journey in which they go to 11 countries in 11 months to connect with local ministries. Honduras was their first stop and they spent the month serving Eternal Family Project Girls’ Home. Part of that blessing was shared with us as 2 of the team members cared for the toddlers at Eternal Family Project, they also cared for our son Thomas. Two weeks of morning childcare was one of the greatest gifts I could have received as we got ready for our baby’s arrival. 

The best thing about the group from World Racers is that they stayed in the dorm housing on the same property we live on so we got to enjoy being in community with them each day. A challenge that brought us much closer together was lack of water. Water and electricity are not so dependable in Honduras. Electricity may get turned off for a day or two by the city or we may lose it in big storms. The water on the property we live on is usually wonderful, but we have had a few times where it just barely drips out of the faucets or days where we have none. Well, October was no exception from water challenges. We had two weeks on the property of very little to no water at all. Since there is a private pipe line here, Marvin took over the responsibility of working on the water for us, the World Racers team, and Dennys and Yolanda’s family. This meant almost 2 weeks of long days, muddy jeans, and very little water to wash those jeans with. In the end, after a lot of prayer and hard work, the water filled the pipes to the property and poured out of the faucets. Now, after a week with no water this month of November, we have had 3 days with a good water supply. We hope it stays!

Our work with the Home of Blessing has continued and the final health class is done. In addition to offering education, we wanted to provide something tangible that could improve the health of the children and their families. We chose to provide chimneys to these families like we did in Marvin's village Las Flores a few years ago. To read more about the chimney project and its significant health benefits click here. Just like we did in Las Flores, we asked each family to donate 1 pound of anything in exchange for a chimney. These donations which consisted of sugar, oil, plantains, firewood, noodles, celery, tomato paste, etc. were then used for the meals at the Home of Blessing. As my pregnancy progressed this past month, Manuel and Josué took over the Saturday Bible class at the Home of Blessing. It has been so much fun to watch them take the initiative to prepare a lesson and make coloring sheets for the children they teach. The class usually has about 20 kids between age 7 to 9 years old. 

Another exciting thing this month was finally meeting one of the owners of the home we have lived in since January. Thank you John and Anna for your generosity and trust. We have enjoyed this home and property so much. It truly was the perfect start to our life in Honduras. We are now looking for another place to move to. This is challenging in a small community because there are not many rentals available. God provided once, and we know He will provide again. One of the amazing things about the home that we live in now is that it was furnished! We didn’t even need silverware when we moved in! Now as we get ready to move, we will need beds, kitchen appliances, chairs, shelves, etc. to furnish our next home. 

Manuel and Josué finished their school year on November 4^th! We are so proud of all the hard work that they have put into guaranteeing their success in high school. Not only do they study on their own without being asked, but they are content doing their chores and helping out around the house. Way to go guys!!! Something they really enjoyed this last month of school was a Christmas project. This project required creativity and lots of time to complete. Manuel and Josué both enjoy art and are creative in their own ways. They were both very proud of the final product and we are so proud of both of them!

Proverbs 16:1-3 says “To humans belong the plans of the heart, but from the Lord comes the proper answer of the tongue. All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord. Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.” As we moved to Honduras, we trusted the Lord with His plans. As we awaited the arrival of our baby girl, we trusted the Lord with His plans. As we get ready to move, we must continue to trust that the Lord will provide and show us His perfect plan for our next home here. God seems to be testing our ability to trust Him, but time after time proves himself FAITHFUL and certainly WORTHY of our trust!

September Update

I have a hard time believing that it is starting to feel like Fall in the states. As I communicate with my family, they tell me about the cooler days, and I am certain that I will soon see pictures of beautiful trees with red, yellow, and orange leaves. Here, the days continue to be very hot and humid. We are entering into the rainy season which currently means frequent evening thunder storms that leaving us with no electricity, but chillier mornings.  

I wrote last month about Josué and Manuel’s integrity and hard work they displayed during their exam week at school. We are SO thrilled to share with you this month that BOTH boys are on Honor Roll. To celebrate, we brought them home their favorite kind of chips and introduced them to Coke Floats. They are both worth celebrating, and we are so proud of them!

September is a month of celebrations in Honduras. One holiday celebrated here that we don’t have in the states is El Día del Niño or Children’s Day. We celebrated this day with the children at the Home of Blessing. We all went to a large park about half an hour from Peña Blanca and celebrated with games, a Bible teaching, piñatas, gifts, and tres leches cake. A lot of time and effort went into making it a special day for about 75 children, and despite the challenges we faced that day, it was definitely worth it!

The Home of Blessing health classes continued this month with teaching on respiratory illness and care of newborns. The moms had a good laugh as they watched me squat on a stool and cover my head with a sheet with a pot at my feet in order to teach about breathing hot water vapors to help loosen mucous. An opportunity also opened up for me to teach health classes to 1^st through 8^th graders at the bilingual school associated with our church. It was a lot of fun to play games and do an art project that will hopefully remind the students about how germs are spread, preventing cavities, etc. The following week one of the teachers had to go back to the states for a week for her grandmother’s funeral, and I actually got to teach 6^th grade Math, Science, and Language Arts for 5 days. This was a special time for me to be out of the house, and Thomas and Marvin had a lot of quality time together too. Marvin has been great at including Thomas in projects, and I have no doubt Thomas will be a talented, hard worker just like Marvin.  

Marvin, Thomas, and I were extremely blessed this month with the opportunity to go to a missionary conference in Siguatepeque. We had our own room at the conference center and didn’t do any cooking or cleaning for about 48 hours. A team from the states came down to provide childcare so that the adults could participate in worship, listen to the speaker, and pray with each other. It was such an amazing time to hear God’s word (in English) and fellowship with others who are facing similar challenges and joys as they serve the Lord in various ways throughout Honduras.

The Bible Study and Sewing Class with some girls from Eternal Family Project have continued this month, but will likely come to a close as my due date nears (November 8^th, just 5 weeks from today!). It has been such a privilege to get to invest in these girls’ lives and get to spend time with them each week. Marvin’s trips to support a home church on Tuesdays with our Pastor will likely also cease for a time since there is no way to get in touch with him for about 4 hours while he is in the mountains. We live an hour and a half from the hospital where I hope to deliver in San Pedro Sula. Please pray for our family and especially for the delivery and health of our baby girl as we await her arrival. Although, we face many circumstances that drive us to be fearful about what is to come, as we look back over the last 9 months of living in Honduras and our almost 6 years of marriage, we are confident in one thing- GOD IS FAITHFUL! So we are choosing NOT to live in fear but to celebrate each new day with FAITH!

“Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.  Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” -Hebrews 10:22-25