Still Finding Reasons to be Thankful

I spent Thanksgiving a little differently this year, and I am really thankful for the reasons why.  This year I was in Honduras (which you will know if you have looked at my blog and/or Facebook any time recently!).  I flew down to Honduras a few days before Thanksgiving, and after a few days in the capitol city, Tegucigalpa, I went out to Escuela El Sembrador with my field director, his wife, and one of our fellow missionaries.  

Being back at El Sembrador almost didn't feel real.  As we turned down the road to the school it felt very familiar.  As we drove through the school I saw that it was still same place, but that four years had past.  The year I was there was the beginning of a project to beautify campus, especially with plants.  Driving up to the school I saw how those tiny plants had grown and now provide shade and beauty.  School is out for the year, so most of the students were gone (a few such as the graduates were around).  

That evening was our celebration of Thanksgiving. The missionaries and volunteers went into town for a Thanksgiving feast, albeit a rather non-traditional one.  We had onion rings, French fries, plantains, salad, beef, chicken, sausage, and course, tortillas.

As I looked around the table that night I couldn't help but think of how thankful I am for the people that I will be working with.  We all come from different places, and we aren't related, but we are family.  We are all God's children, and that's the most meaningful bond I can think of.

After supper we went back to El Sembrador for dessert.  This part wasn't traditional either.  People who work at El Sembrador and their families came over to one of the houses for cake and ice cream. A lot of people have big Thanksgivings with lots of people, but this was over 80 people!  And it was cake and ice cream, not pumpkin pie.  But once again- it really felt like Thanksgiving because the spirit of the holiday was very much present!

I started a blog actually on Thanksgiving to write down just how thankful I am, but I couldn't finish it because I just couldn't put into words how much gratitude I have in my heart, and I can't even begin to count the reasons.  Words still haven't come, and the reasons remain uncountable, but I have share just how thankful I am.

I am so thankful for:

Friends and family- thankful that God has put you in my life.

Purpose and direction- I didn't know for a few years where God was leading me, and I am thankful that He has begun to show this to me.

Those of you who support me. - whether in prayer and/or financially- I couldn't follow the call to go to Honduras without you.  I will never be able to tell you "thank you" enough.

The team of people I will be working with in Honduras - both missionaries and Hondurans.  You are my friends and family too, even those who I am just getting to know or haven't even met yet.  I'm thankful for you!

God's provision-  God meets my needs.  I may not be able to go on shopping sprees, but God has certainly provided.

But what I am most thankful for is Jesus.

Over 2000 years ago God sent a tiny baby to change the course of human history.  Holding nothing back, God sent us His only Son, wrapped in human flesh to become the sacrifice needed to make us right with God.

Because of this I see Thanksgiving day as sort of an "opening day" of Thanksgiving season.  Isn't the birth, death, and resurrection of Christ the ultimate reason for thanks?

Last Full Day

I'll have a few hours here tomorrow, but my trip has pretty much come to a close.  Today I was able to see what my friend Gaby Umbaugh has been doing.  A month ago I posted a notice on Facebook that I was collecting blankets and hats to send to Honduras for a project called "My First Warm Christmas".  Today we went to hand out some of the things that were sent.

In the morning we prepared sandwhiches to bring to people in the hospital.  In the children's ward there are families who have spent their money getting to the hospital and do not having any money for food and lodging once they get there.   For families in this situation there are no choices.  They sleep outside even if it is raining and very cold.  If they have no money for food, there is no choice but to be hungry.

So we made sandwiches to hand out to the children and their families.  We handed those out, along with Christmas themed activity books and some Gospel tracts for the parents.

After that we went to the maternity ward to hand out the blankets, hats, and clothing that has been donated.  Many of the women who come to the hospital do not have things like blankets, clothing, and hats for their babies. (Yes, Honduras gets cold, especially this time of year!).  There were many women, but thanks to the generosity of many we were able to give something to help all who needed it.

The Last Few Days

There is SO much I am looking forward to telling you about the last few days, but right now I have so much running through my mind that I will wait until after I am back to share it with you.  However, I do want to keep you updated and share some photos with you.  I spent a few days at Escuela El Sembrador.  My time there was wonderful and I was able to be at the graduation and find out more current information about what is going on at the school.

I came back to Tegucigalpa (the capitol city which has been my "home base" for the trip) yesterday afternoon.  This morning we visited a ministry to children in Tatumbla.  The kids sang, recited Bible verses, played a game, and then they had Sunday school.  And they had a meal after Sunday school.

Day 3: Los Pinares and Roca Fuerte Kids Club

The first place we visited is a school called Academia Los Pinares.  The mission of Los Pinares is "The mission of Academia Los Pinares is to inspire and prepare students to be responsible to God in heart and mind through authentic, oustanding, bilingual education offering U.S. and Honduran accredited curricula from a Christian Biblical perspective.”  WGM is one of five missions who are involved with Los Pinares.  Many of the students of go to Los Pinares do not come from Christian homes, but their families send them to Los Pinares because of the excellent education.  This creates a wonderful opportunity for ministry!

In the afternoon we visited the Kids Club at Roca Fuerte Church. 

Day 2: Project Manuelito

Today we went to Project Manuelito in Talanga:

Project Manuelito is a ministry of Amor y Vida (Love and Life) Church. It works with children who live on the streets of Tegucigalpa, and provides them with a home and an education, but more than that: teaches them about God's love for them.  

I spent time out there in 2009 (about a week if I remember) and I visited there more briefly in 2010. It was wonderful to see the ways the ministry has grown and to see many of the same children.  The Honduran school year has ended, but they were having review sessions, so I was able to peek in on a couple of those, and one of the girls gave me a really good tour.   

I may not have felt particularly tired yesterday, but today the wave of exhaustion has hit.  At least it did so on the ride back from Manuelito!  I have already heard and spoken more Spanish in the last day and a half than I have in the last four years!  I can certainly tell that I am rusty, but I have been able to understand and communicate all that I have really needed to so far.

Day 1:Arrival

Arrival might not seem like much for a day, but trust me...it is.  My day began at 2:15am when my alarm woke me.  By 1:00pm I was in Honduras.  Thank you all so much for your prayers!  My travel went without a hitch!  Both flights were on time, and immigration and customs were a breeze.  I even met a couple of interesting people on the way.  God has really blessed me.

I was picked up by David and Debbie Hawk, Laura Griffin, and Kelly Solheim.  I spent most of the day talking and laughing and catching up.  Supper was typical Honduran food- beans, rice, tortillas and cheese (Yum!).

I am still running on adrenaline, but I need to get to sleep soon because tomorrow I will have a full day- we willl be visiting the Manuelito Project!  My plans for the trip are mostly the same, but they have changed a little, so things will be a bit different than I had previously written.

Learn more about where I will be visiting tomorrow: The Manuelito Project

In Less Than Two Weeks....

The closer I get to going, the more excited I get!  Even though it's still too early to pack I've been trying to get things together so that when it comes time to pack I won't forget anything or be running around like mad trying to get everything together.  I wrote a letter telling you more about my trip, and it should be on it's way to you in a day or two.  I've also been working on a special letter that I will try to get back to you as soon as I can after I get back.

And I've been looking for ways I can share my trip with you, both while it's happening and when I get back.  Check back here soon because I'll be telling you how you can keep up to date with what is going on!

3 Fun Facts About my Trip

1) I'll be flying into and out of Toncontin International Airport in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.  The runways are shorter than most international airports, and surrounded by mountains, which makes landing their quite difficult (and often impossible if it's been raining hard).  Here is a video someone took of it.

2)  There could be 50 degree temperature difference!  It's hard to say what the weather will be like in two weeks but right now it's 25 degrees Farenheight here in Oklahoma, but it's 72F in Honduras.  

3) It is just over 1600 miles between Tulsa, OK to Tegucigalpa.  Looking at my schedule, I will be travelling 450 miles in Honduras (and in reality I think it will definitely be more because that only accounts for the major trips to visit ministries, not for day trips to visit ministries in Tegucigalpa.  So....that's  1600 miles each way, and 451 miles in Honduras...and that means that I will be travelling 3850 miles in 8 days.