Simple Piece of Candy

I had the most amazing day today! I had to share it in my blog

I suppose I should go back to when it started....I was trying to compose my prayer letter that will be sent out prior to my trip. This will be the forth letter that I have written & I was struggling to come up with something fresh and new. Below is how my letter started:

Estimados Amigos y Fmilia, (Dear Friends & Family)

When I arrived in San Padro Sula, Honduras in January of 2008 Pastor Yobani Alas greeted me with a hug & great excitement. Like you would greet an old friend who you had not seen in a long time. This is the standard for the people of Honduras. I recall Pastor Yobani asking me if I spoke Spanish & I shyly replied ‘no’. He then chuckled and said “We will teach you.” In the almost 4 years since my first trip to Honduras I am ashamed to say I have not learned to speak Spanish
( I know just enough to be dangerous) However, what I have learned is how to communicate through my heart. There is a joint love for God & for each other and there are no words needed to communicate this. Sure it is frustrating not being able to express what you want to say but it is amazing how you can get your point across without the words

This morning, in my frustration with not being how to find the words to tell my story & explain why I want to continue to go to Honduras, I said "Lord show me what I need to say" So I continue with my day & am thinking when I sit down again to work on my letter perhaps God will have inspired me.

Later on in the morning I went on my daily trip to the post office for work. Upon entering the post office I spot an older gentleman wrapping a package in a decorated padded envelope. I said to him "That is a beautiful package, I would like to receive one like that." The man turns and looks at me with a blank look on his face & I smile and point to the package and say "that is pretty" He then spoke in a thick Russian accent "Sorry no speak English".....so I smiled and said ok. He then pulled a piece of candy out of his pocket and handed it to me. I smiled and said thank you & as I waited for my turn in line I watched as he assembled his packaged. He then pulled the contents of the envelope out of the envelope and said "Bible" he proudly displayed a black hard covered book with what I assume was Bible engraved in gold (in Russian) on the cover. I gave him a HUGE smile and thumbs up sign. We then worked together to determine the best place to put the labels on the envelope. He left briefly to retrieve glue from his car to attach the labels & I continued on my way.

When I reached my car the tears were rolling down cheeks and I was so amazed at what had just occurred. It was just like in Honduras...we do not speak the same language but through simple acts of kindness the language barrier is broken and the love of God shines through.

I heard the answer to my prayer from a kind Russian gentleman I had never met, Amazing how God speaks, isn't it?

Not That Far

When I was in Honduras I remember looking at the moon and thinking "I can see the same moon at home".

Recently I was watching the sun come up over the Atlantic Ocean when I realized that we share the same ocean as Honduras. I looked up the actual distance and it is 1,500 miles from NC to Honduras but in reality it isn't that far away.

We all share the same love for Christ & are close in each others hearts, even when separated by miles, oceans, and time zones.

A Note from Kelin

I anxiously opened the envelope that contains a note from Honduras..of course it is in Spanish and I can't read it but I can pick words out here and there and I can imagine the smile of the one that sent it. (Thankfully I have a friend who can interpret it for me.)

Hi, how are you? I hope this letter finds you well with a lot of affection, hoping for the best in your life. Dee, I want to tell you that the photos you sent me are very beautiful. Thank you for the support that you have given us, and want to tell you that I miss you a lot and I need to tell you that I hope you have a good new year. Dee, thank you for everything and that soon we will start classes back up and that in November, I would like for you to come to my 6th grade graduation. I’m going to pray to God for you and I love you very much.

With love,

Kelin.

"God bless you always and I hope you come to Honduras soon, with love"

When I was there last April I met Kelin for the first time. She had been at the hogar for just a few months. She was a little shy the first day or so but we soon connected. She was very eager to learn English and we would walk around looking at things in the yard....I would point to a flower and say flower in English. She tried so hard to learn in such a short time. She was so anxious to be able to communicate with us, almost to frustration at times. The night before we left I gave her a teddy bear I had brought (unsure of who it would go to when I left the state but knowing by then who needed it) The next morning, as we were saying our tearful goodbyes she came to me to thank me for the bear. She was trying so hard to get me to understand what she was saying she finally took me by the hand and took me to her bed and showed me the bear. Through hand motions she told me that she slept with her bear last night and she loved it.

I am so anxious to return and sit on the porch with Kelin, walk around the yard and teach each other English and Spanish. She is another reminder of what God is doing in Taulabe Honduras.

Why Am I Amazed?

One of the reasons I started this blog was so that my family and friends can follow my preparation for my trip in December, as well as, to see how God is working in Honduras all the time!

As I am sitting here trying to create this entry I am giddy with excitement & smiling from ear to ear. He does it every time and I once again have to ask myself 'why are you so amazed?' He is so good and is constantly surprising me with His sweet goodness. I am always amazed, as if it is unexpected & I have never witnessed it before but the truth be told over the last four years I have marveled at how many time God has provided for me, team mates and those involved with our trips to Honduras.

Doesn't he do this all the time you may ask? Not just when one is preparing for a mission trip or involved in a ministry? Well of course he does but I think what happens is in our day to day lives (at least in my life) I tend to not completely trust him. (I don't go to him or seek his will during those routine times) That is one of the things that I have learned from the people of Honduras. They have so little but they have so much. They totally depend on God for everything. Honduras is the second poorest country after Haiti & the average person makes $900 a year!!!

So in my weakness and my lack of faith ....I am often blinded to his blessings, when in actuality it is I who often needs him more than the Hondurans. Even though as an Americans we seem to have so much we really have little!

I have submitted my application & release form for the trip & began saving for the deposit that is due September 18th. So the process has begun. Why am I so giddy and smiling? Like I mentioned earlier He did it again!!! I turned in my mileage log at work today & when I saw how much my reimbursement was I thought "that is nice we can use it for our upcoming vacation"....but after a moment I did the math and realized the reimbursement plus what I have saved was EXACTLY what I need (to the penny) for my deposit!

Thank you Lord for your goodness and your blessings!

And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.

2 Corinthians 9:8

Clothes Pins & Prayers

(view from inside of the hogar)

Recently, as I was hanging my clothes out to dry my mind drifted back to the backyard of the hogar. There are several lines stretching from fence post to fence post where the girls hang their laundry to dry. I recalled helping Paola retrieve her dried clothes, not talking but just working together. She would giggle when I would picked up the clothes that weren't hers. It became a game as I deliberately started selecting items that obviously did not belong to her.

As I pinned the clothes up on my clothes line in my backyard I began to pray for my friends that were hanging their clothes out to dry:

1) For God to send sponsors for the girls. The hogar is totally supported by the gifts of individuals (there are now 28 girls at the orphanage & it cost $4000 a month to operate the hogar.) This includes, food, electricity, medical bills, school, etc.

2) For guidance for the tias (nannies) as they love and care for the girls

3) To heal the scars and hurts that many of these girls have due to horrific living conditions.

These are just a few of the prayers that come to mind.

Please pray with me for these brown eyed girls that God will provide for their needs.

Called to serve

After the second trip I was hooked! I had Honduras in my heart & there was no getting it out. I have had people ask me 'why Honduras' and my reply is "because that is where God has drawn my heart" I truly believe that God calls us all to serve in various ways whether it is serving with the the nursery in your church, working at the homeless shelter in your neighborhood, or loving brown eyed little girls in Honduras, we all have a calling to show the love of Christ.

I returned to Honduras for the third time in April of 2010. Upon returning I was now a board member of Honduras Fountain of Life. HFOL is a nonprofit organization that partners with Fuente de Vida Ministries in Taulabe Honduras. HFOL's main ministry is the Hogar de Ninas (orphanage for girls). We also collaborate with Fuente de Vida to serve the people of Central Honduras through: mountain churches, a clothes pantry, medical clinics, micro economic projects, a school, and a home for widows.

Although we feel it is important to help with buildings of churches and feeding the poor it is more important to show them the love of Christ through building relationships. When I returned in April I was now returning to see friends, and those that I now consider part of my family.

Pictured above is Heidi, one of the girls that stole my heart in 2009. I was so blessed to visit with her again in 2010.

The Next Step

When left Honduras in 2008 I never dreamed in a million years that I would return again. In my mind it was a once in a life time opportunity. Over the next year I couldn't stop thinking about Honduras and the girls of the Hogar. I had fallen in love with one particular young lady named Johanna. I sent letters to her as a reminder that I had not forgotten her. That became a driving force for me & is still today...for the people in Taulabe to know that they are not forgotten when the Americans return to their homes.

In January of 2009 I was blessed to return for a second time. This trip I was part of a team that painted the the wall of the new hogar that was being built but more importantly than that I was able to continue building relationships with those I had met the previous year.

During the time that I had visited previously Johanna had to leave the hogar because she had turned 18. She had gone to live in a transition home and was going to school in Siguatepeque, about 45 min. away. Unknown to me it was arranged for Johanna and another girl, Lillian to come stay with the team while we were there. Life couldn't gotten any better. We went swimming, enjoyed laughs & even though there is a language barrier communicated through love.

Again, returning to the state I could not get Honduras off my mind. In 2009 I joined the newly formed board of Honduras Fountain of Life (more about HFOL to come)