mission trip

Dominican Republic 2004

We are headed on a mission trip.

Yes, we are missionaries going on a mission trip.

We are blessed to have the opportunity to serve a team from my home church and going to Forgotten Children's Ministries-  http://forgottenchildrenministries.org/

I am thrilled to spend a week with some of my oldest friends. Many of the very same people were on the very first mission trip I made to Dominican Republic.

I am excited to serve along side them in a ministry so dear to many of their hearts.

I am excited to serve with another ministry right here in Honduras

 (even though it seems countries away.)

I am excited to see ministry from a different view(as an outsider)

I am excited to love on kids.

I am excited to see Grace love on kids.

I am excited to see what the Lord has in store for our week.

Sometimes, I feel like being a missionary you get into survival mode. You do what you have to do every day while growing very accustomed to the fact that there are: malnourished children living on the next block, child prostitutes walking the street in front of your house at night, prisoners whose families have no food, children who are not in school for lack of a uniform, and women and children who are abused because that is "love".

It all becomes "normal every day life."

I am pray that I NEVER grow accustomed to these things.

I hope to glean some wisdom of those who have been doing ministry for years. While taking a step back and looking at ministry as an outsider and remembering the real reason we do it. I pray the Lord would use us to accomplish whatever His will for the week is.
With an added bonus of hanging out with friends!

Our week in pictures

This past week and a half has been a busy but great time for us.

 So many exciting new experiences.

 I have too many great pictures to not share

 I apologize for this picture overload!

We had a group from Mississippi visit the Kasaubila Feeding Program.

We went on an outreach day to the village of Palkaka with Reach Out Honduras.

We prayed with families, delivered hygiene bags, and gave out worm treatments.

We joined Reach Out Honduras for a food distribution and prayed with families.

We had a group from Texas visit the Kasaubilia Feeding Program.

We had an impromptu baptism night.

Daniel Paul was dedicated at church.

Our boxes of donations I packed while in Alabama finally arrived.

We went with a family to a nearby village called Laka and distributed school supplies and saw the medical clinic.

This 170 students go to school in this classroom. 1st-9th grade

This clinic serves 14 villages and does not have any medicine.

 The people came waiting thinking we would have medicine.

Possible

This month the kids are memorizing Luke 18:27

 "What is impossible with man is possible for God."

When I think about that I seriously just sit here in awe.

really in awe.

If anyone would have told me as a 20 year old girl that within a year l would be living in a  3^rd world country and torn between motherhood and finishing school.

I would have said IMPOSSIBLE.

But with the Lord all things are possible.

I look at these children’s faces.

I look into the eyes of a little boy who really gets it. I see a fire in his heart for the Lord that can set all of La Moskitia on fire.

Some say IMPOSSIBLE a little boy who can’t afford school could change La Moskitia.

 I say with God all things are POSSIBLE.

This month 2 other missionary couples brought a team to the Kasaubila Feeding Program for their outreach day.  The kids were so surprised( I did not tell them before) when a big group of gringos showed up not once but twice.

If a few months ago if someone would have told these kids because of Jesus some Americans are going to come and visit you. That because of Jesus a little girl named Riley would ask for all gifts from her birthday to go to kids in Honduras so they would have toys to play with.

They would have said IMPOSSIBLE.

But because of Jesus these kids have sponsors in the States and they have toys to play with.

The majority of the kids in our program live in or have been approved to receive Habitat for Humanity houses.

A few short months ago these same kids dreamed their biggest dreams to have a house. A house that did not fill with water when it rained. They dreamed to have a house they could leave for a few hours without fear that everything they owned would be gone when they returned.
Some might say IMPOSSIBLE especially in this economy that an organization would build 40 homes in LA MOSKITIA.

But, with God ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE.

Memory Lane

I took a little trip down memory lane yesterday when I saw Daniel Paul playing

 in this little seat at House of Hope.

I remember almost exactly 2 years ago Grace played in this same seat.

Summer

With "summer"(it is always summer here) come

lots

and lots

of friends I would consider family.

I met most of these friends while living at the House of Hope.

Most of them come back  once a year to volunteer at House of Hope.

 Even though I have spent no more than 3 weeks with any of them we share a deep bond that feels like lifetimes of friendship.

Summer with friends brings:

boat trips to villages to deliver school supplies

Evangelism Outreach Adventure day walking through outlying villages

Worship, Bible Studies, Fellowship IN ENGLISH

A group spending a Saturday with the Feeding Program Kids

A trip to serve with my home church at Forgotten Children's Ministries in the city

LOTS OF SWIMMING and vasitos( frozen milk)!

Here are some pictures from this weekend taken by my awesome neighbor Laura!

We went to the beach for her son Aidan's 12th birthday.

In case I have not told y'all enough- I am so thankful for the Waits family! 

(check them out for yourself I promise you will love them as much as I do)

This was Daniel Paul's first time to go swimming.

Daniel Paul loved playing at the edge of the water in the sand.

After about an hour he was worn out and took a nice long nap in the hammock.

Grace my little water bug swam not stop for 3 hours.