Sunday, October 16, 2011 – 1 John 1:5-7

At Bible study this week, we did a little “dynamic”. We went into the library, and I turned off all the lights. I told the girls to go find their favorite book. These were their reactions:

Girl 1: “Ay no- it is too dark. I’m scared. I’m not going.” And she walked outside of the library and sat back in her chair.

Girl 2: “What do you want us to do? We have to find our favorite book? How will we do that? What?” And she gave up, went back outside, and sat in her chair.

Girl 3: She walked to the books, grabbed a book, and came back. “Here is a book,” she said. “It is not my favorite, but it is a book.”

Girl 4: She walked to the books, wandered around for a little while, and came back, empty handed.

Girl 5: She walked to the books, carrying her slice of watermelon left over from dinner, and stood there for a while eating. Then she came back and sat down.

Our lesson for the week came from 1 John, the verses that say, “This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him, yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”

God is light, he is truth, and if we know him, then we will walk in darkness no longer. As I gave the girls an order to go get their favorite book, so God gives us an order: to let our light shine before men, like a city on a hill (Matthew 5:14-16). Sometimes we have the same reactions as my Bible study girls had. We see the darkness, and we get scared. We don’t go, and we don’t do what God has commanded. Or, we hear God’s command, but in the darkness we get confused and indecisive. We don’t go because we are indifferent to our calling. Or, we go, but we do what we want- we follow a version of God’s command. We put our own spin on what he would have us do. Or, we go, and wander. We are in darkness, and we can no longer see the way. Or, sometimes, in darkness, we do exactly what we are not supposed to do. We sin, break God’s commandments, and ignore what he has called us to.

I know this is a stretch to make comparisons, but at least that night in Bible study, it came out so clearly. When we choose the darkness, not one of us can fulfill the command God has given us, mainly, to be light.

At any moment, the girls could have asked me to turn on the lights, and I would have. But they didn’t ask, and so they remained in darkness.

Year one comes to a close...

Sorry, I forgot about May!

So, it is now June 8, 2011, and in one week (on June 15th) I will have been in Honduras for one whole year. In some ways it went fast, and in some ways it went slow! But either way, it was wonderful- difficult, challenging, tiring, but wonderful=) Some thoughts...

HONDURAS LESSONS LEARNED (in no particular order)

1. It is not as easy as it sounds. Whenever I used to say, "I am going to go to Honduras and teach English for a couple years and help at the Hogar", it sounded so simple. But, I had not considered the trials of teaching, the heavy schedule, the emotional situations that I would encounter, or the cultural differences that would make everything just a little more difficult. I think that if it were not for the Lord constantly reminding me that He has compassion on us even when we are ridiculous, I would have lost my patience a long time ago. But in our weaknesses Christ was gracious to forgive, thus, we move forward in his strength!!

"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." 2Corinthians 12:9-10

2. It is easy to be a talker and not a doer, even on the mission field. Sometimes I have lists upon lists and talk after talk of how things need to change or how someone else needs to learn something or how we need to teach this or that. And it gets so frustrating, especially when I do nothing about it. I have learned that you cannot expect people to understand overnight, and you cannot ever expect them to understand if you don't talk to them. We must communicate and teach and live lives that help people understand, not just make lists of all the areas where we are struggling.

3. I have a long way to go to be competitive at soccer here. I don't think that requires an explanation... I probably have a long way to go to be competitive at soccer back home, too.

4. Mangos are the best fruit ever, but their peel contains an oil that is in the poison ivy family. Thus, if you are allergic to poison ivy, not a good idea to eat mangos. But, if you just can't resist, have someone who is not allergic to mangos put them in chlorine water for 15 minutes, and peel them, and you are good to go! (Thanks Ashley...don't know what I will do without you next year!!)

5. God is good, and He provides just what we need, when we need it, so that we can proclaim His glory and work for the good of His people! There are so many examples of this, but the most recent is this: my parents needed to buy a very expensive medicine for one of their babies, who has a weak respiratory system. They were able to buy last month's medicine because they ended up with extra money in their budget. They weren't sure about this month's, but yesterday, one of my friends and fellow teachers from school gave them $100 from her dad's Sabbath school class! How amazing is our God?! We worry and stress and plan and plan, but really, we just need to have faith in God our Provider.

"See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dress like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is cast into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?" Matthew 6:28-30

It´s Summer in Honduras!!

Trip to San Lorenzo

In Honduras, the thing to do during Holy Week is bañar (literally translated, that is "to bathe" but we bathe more than just once a year). Bañar, is actually the word used for swimming. So, in the weeks leading up to Semana Santa, people don´t ask "What are you doing for Semana Santa?" Instead they ask, "Where are you swimming in Semana Santa?"

"Isla el Tigre" -- We climbed that!

On the boat over to the island.

So, for Semana Santa, which was also our spring break from school, Ashley and I started by going to San Lorenzo, Valle, Honduras. This is in the south of Honduras, bordering the Pacific Ocean. We were each able to scratch something off our bucket lists-- Ashley climbed a volcano, and I swam in the Pacific Ocean!! It was an awesome vacation-- perfect mix of relaxing and adventuring. Very hot and sunny, too!

The Pacific Ocean!!!

"Bañar-ing" with Buen Pastor

After returning to Comayagua from San Lorenzo, we went swimming with my parents and the Buen Pastor moms and babies. (The Misericordia women had already been swimming with their school). We went to a small waterpark outside Comayagua, and had a great time. The girls did waterslides for the first time, splashed around, and got to be teenagers for a day. Javier, Alexandra, and Tatiana went with us, and they provided lots of laughs (see below!). We were all thankful for a fun day where the girls could get away and play around and just have fun.

Alexandra, our most mischevious and "traviesa" did NOT like the water...

I think it stessed her out, judging by the early nap with Papi (which she can say perfectly--we are still working on "Emily")

We are thinking this was Javier´s first time in a hammock-- he is completely stiff, and has a look of terror on his face. Definitely not relaxing the way your are supposed to in a hammock!

Las Alfombras -- My first time!

Comayagua is famous for its Semana Santa alfombras (carpets) and processions. Ths was my first time being here for the Easter week celebrations, and it did not disappoint. The carpets are made of colored saw dust spread out in the streets.

A beautiful design in the street...

The Holy Family on carpet...

Easter Sunday!

Interesting cultural difference is that here the biggest celebrations/activities are on Thursday and Friday of Holy Week, not on Sunday. Easter morning in church we talked about the importance of Sunday--without Sunday and the resurrection, death would have won. Praise God that Christ was and is victorious over death!! We read the scripture of Good Friday and the Resurrection, and I love part of what the speaker said-- He posed the question, "Why did Jesus ask God, `Why have you abandonded me?´" The answer: Jesus asked this question so that we wouldn´t have to. Jesus took my sins, my separation from God, and suffered the consequences so that I would never have to. He bridged the gap, for me and for you, and we can live full and eternal lives with our Creator and Father, who will never abandon us. Praise be to God!

Precious.

Ashley and me with the orange tree (or orange tree??) outside our house.

Cinderella story?

I remember studying in my cross-cultural communication class that a typical American´s mindset is very positive. We say and believe "You can do anything you put your mind to." We read books to our children where a train trying to climb an impossible hill says, "I think I can, I think I can," and he does. And, we sing and love songs like, "I believe I can fly/I believe I can touch the sky." We hold fast to the American dream, that anyone, through perseverance and education, can "make something of themselves".

I remember discussing that, amidst American prosperity, it is easy to have a positive view of life. However, when you transition to look at the rest of the world, that kind of idealism is difficult to find. Poverty, war, sickness, and other difficulties have their effect on the personality of a society. It has been my observation here in Honduras that, even among the wealthier people, education is not necessarily considered to be of great value. I have been in situations where an adult will encourage a child to copy off the Internet, copy from a classmate, or, the adult will simply do the work for the child, instead of "setting high expectations". You don´t hear a lot of Cinderella stories, where someone through education was able to rise above the poverty. In fact, most of the stories that even come close typically end with, "And then they left and went to the United States."

But here is a good Cinderella story...

On March 23rd we celebrated the graduations of two university students from the Hogar--the Hogar´s first two graduates ever. The university program has been around for about six years now, so it is safe to say that this was a long awaited day.

Many of the university students have not done well in college: they struggle to make good grades, struggle with the social pressures of university and of that stage of life in general, and have had to drop out of the program for one reason or another. Others get to university, realize the difficulty level, and decide not to continue on in their education. The perseverance and desire to keep moving forward, which are necessary to continuing in education, have not commonly been displayed.

These two students overcame many obstacles, some too painful to mention, in order to get to graduation day. No doubt their lives would have looked very different if it were not for God´s grace and his work in some very key people. Before these graduates were even born, God was working in Mami Carmen´s life (the woman who started the orphanage), Linda and Chema´s lives (the parents where the boys live), and the lives of countless others--staff memebers, board members, donors, padrinos, friends, family members, etc. -- so that this day could be possible.

My favorite part of the story is why these graduates say they were able to do what they did. I have been to my share of graduations in the United States, experienced my share of graduation parties, and read my share of graduation cards, all of which point to the graduate as the person to be praised and celebrated. But this graduation was not about "I did it, I did it, I made this great accomplishment." These students, when asked to speak at a small graduation party we had afterwards, were quick to recognize the work of God in their lives and the blessings he had given to them through others. It was encouraging and eye opening all at once, to realize that these students were not graduating because they had embraced the American dream and American value of education more quickly than their peers. They were graduating because God had made it possible, God had given them an opportunity, and God had given them the strength to acheive their goals. They thanked God, and with tears in their eyes, thanked the people that had surrounded them and helped them move forward. They talked about wanting to be an example for the other young people and children in the Hogar, and how they want to give back to what has been their family all their lives.

My prayer is that I would let this sink in and change the way I live my life here. For example, with my own students and with the students at the Hogar, that I would not be pushing education or perseverance on their own, but that I would be teaching about God and about how he makes all things possible.

Thoughts on Luke 8:26-38

A link to the passage... http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%208&version=ESV

In this passage, Jesus cures a man who was demon-possessed. Scripture says that the demons, with Jesus' permission, come out of the man and enter into a herd of pigs, who proceed to run off a cliff and drown in the sea. When they realize what has happened, the people of the city beg Jesus to leave them, because they are afraid. The cured man, however, begs Jesus to allow him to go with him. Jesus says, instead,

"Return home and tell how much God has done for you."

I find two things odd about this story. (That isn't true. I find MANY things odd i.e. a herd of pigs running off a cliff...) But, there are two things that have had me thinking. Jesus is met with two requests from the human characters in the story. The people of the town ask Jesus to leave, and the healed man asks if he can go with. Now, if I am Jesus, I am going to say "No" to the townspeople (because they need me), and "Yes" to the man (because he knows I am the truth and can learn a lot from me). The real Jesus has another plan: missions.

Jesus does not force himself upon the townspeople, the 'non-Christians'. He does not fight his way into their city. He humbly steps back. But note that he doesn't abandon them. He sends into their midst one of their own, a Gerasene (what a name!) who has felt the healing power of God. This man, who wants to leave and go away with Jesus, is given the command to go and tell what God has done. Although it would be good for the man to be with Jesus, what is great is that he go and proclaim the good news.

This is missions. God uses his people to go into dark places, to tell all that he has done for us, that others might also believe on His Name. It would be much easier if we could accept Christ as our Lord and Savior, and go directly to heaven to be with him and skip the suffering of this world. But that is not God's calling... if it were, everyone else in the world would be left to suffer on their own, without the hope of Christ. Jesus sends this man away with a command... to return home and tell how much God has done for him. Jesus left us with a command, too. "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you."

Catch up...

Favorite Moment of the Week: Today Ashley and I were at the Hogar helping the kindergarten kids learn how to read (which can be frustrating no matter where you are!). So, it is hot and we are tired and we are trying to figure out what each group of kids needs to practice, when we hear a loud "Haappy BEARTHDAY to joooo!" We both turn to see 3-year old Roberto sitting in a desk, wearing some crazy-big zebra print sunglasses, "reading" a book with a birthday party picture on the page. Precious.



I am not really sure what to write about today... so much has happened since the last time I wrote! October, seriously? But, I made a New Year's Resolution to "blog" more often, and considering as it is January 21 and I am just now writing my first blog post of the year, we all see how well that is going!

Thanksgiving was great...a Honduras classic, if you will. Just as we started to serve the meal to a room full of 35 people, the electricity went off! I will forever remember Thanksgiving 2010 as the year I ate my turkey and potatoes in the dark, with a spoon (ran out of forks), from a bowl (ran out of plates), sweating like crazy (no lights=no fans), holding a crying baby (she didn't like the dark). BUT, it was an awesome time... we shared about the history of Thanksgiving, why we celebrate it, and everyone went around and said what they were thankful for. That tradition became more meaningful to me this year... I feel like when I said "I am thankful for my family, for my job, for the opportunity to be here", I really meant it.

Christmas and New Years were really fun, too. The BCM group from Western Kentucky University was here for New Years, and we all enjoyed the "midnight" fireworks (midnight is in quotes because it is really like 24 hours of fireworks!). We went back to school on January 3rd, and God has blessed me with new patience and endurance. I am really enjoying teaching, and I feel like I am starting to get a hang of it.

Favorite Bible verse at the moment is Psalm 121:1-2... (In Spanish, because it says mountains... in English it just says hills, but here we have mountains, so I like the mountain part...)

A las montanas levanto mis ojos.
De donde ha de venir mi ayuda?
Mi ayuda vendra del Senor,
Creador del cielo y la tierra.

When I get up in the morning and look out my window, the mountains in the distance are just beautiful. I love thinking of this verse because I remember that God will help me, sustain me, through each day. I give thanks knowing that He will walk with me in each step, in each class, in each difficult situation that presents itself.

One more thing... we have started a Bible study with the older girls at the Hogar. Our theme is "Why?" We had each girl ask a why question about life, about God, about the Bible; and we are going through each week trying to answer them with scripture. We have met twice so far. Pray that is would go well and that the girls would gain a thirst for scripture.

Tidbits, to suffice for my lack of blogging=)

As I type this, Ashley and I are sitting at Dunkin Donuts working on school stuff. It is eerily similar to evenings at Panera or Barnes & Noble or Spencer’s during university, except this time I am grading and not studying. Things are very different on this end of the education world—my respect for teachers has increased exponentially in the last two months. Planning lessons, writing quizzes, determining how to grade those quizzes, wanting so bad for all of your students to understand everything, but having to accept that not all students are willing to do their share in order to do well… it’s a tough job! But teaching vale la pena (meaning, it’s worth it!).

It has been entirely too long since my last blog post. Here we are. I thought I would share a few tidbits of life here. Some are entertaining, others are more like prayer requests.

~Tidbit Number One~ I teach a dance class at the Hogar on Wednesdays, and I have now taught absolutely every dance that I know to these girls. They keep asking me for a new one, so, on our day-off from school last week, I spent about three hours in my room watching “High School Musical Dance Along” on YouTube in order to learn the dance to We’re All in This Together! (Unfortunately I don’t remember all of it from my BCM days, haha).

~Tidbit Number Two~ Last night we went to a wedding reception, and Vanessa, one of the girls from Misericordia, who has Down’s Syndrome, was a bridesmaid. She looked like a princess! Half-way through the reception, I saw her standing outside, arms crossed, looking very angry. I asked her what was wrong and she just shook her head. One of the staff from the Hogar told me, “Emily, she is jealous.” I said, “Jealous? Why?” The staff member motioned her head towards the window, and inside the reception, Vanessa’s groomsman partner (a teenage boy who also has a mental disability) was dancing with another girl. I looked at Vanessa and asked her if she wanted to dance with me. She grinned and nodded her head yes, so we went inside. Within two minutes Vanessa had left me, cut in on the other couple, and was dancing happily with her groomsman. PRECIOUS.

~Tidbit Number Three~ (Necessary background information: the mascot of Comayagua is the Burro, or Donkey. People from Comayagua are sometimes called “Little Donkeys”. YES.) At school on Thursday we had a Honduran Culture Night. All day at school, the students had been preparing and decorating and practicing. The last period of the day, as I was monitoring the chaos, the gate opened and a donkey was brought in and tied to a post in the courtyard. Random, I thought, but I was assured that it was part of the culture night. In the evening, the students came dressed in traditional clothing and each grade performed a traditional dance. We ate traditional food from all the different departments (or states) in Honduras. Unfortunately, we had quite the rain storm in the middle of the fiesta, and everything had to be moved inside. In between some of the dances, Ashley and I walked outside and the donkey was still there, this time tied to a soccer goal. Reading this it does not sound that funny… but it was a donkey, inside our school, supposed to be a representation of Honduran, and specifically, Comayaguan culture. And all it did was stand there tied to a soccer goal in the middle of a rainstorm. It was funny to me. And then I found five lempira.

~Tidbit Number Four~ (The serious one) Things have been … complex … lately. I have found myself really questioning what missions are supposed to be. What does it really mean to care for orphans and widows, or the poor? What if someone doesn’t want help? Or doesn’t believe that they need help, but we know they need help? Or what if they want so much help that they don’t want to do their part? Do we “give to all who ask of [us]” if it is just crippling that person? Is it mine to decide what is crippling someone and what is helping them? Should I believe any and every story of need? Where does our giving intersect with being good stewards? Another subject… How do we determine God’s will? I knew, my parents knew, Ashley knew, that we were supposed to “go”; that we were supposed to be here in Honduras. But what now? If I was “called” here for one thing, is it possible that God would change that thing now that I am here? How does His will for us progress? Or is it more that we are slow to understand His will and that he is gradually opening our eyes to see? Complex, right? Basically, how do we obey God in the gray areas of life?

I wish I had the answers to that mess of questions. All I have is this (the passage from church this morning): Habakkuk 3:17-19.

Though the fig tree does not budand there are no grapes on the vines,

though the olive crop failsand the fields produce no food,

though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls,

yet I will rejoice in the Lord,

I will be joyful in God my Savior.

The Sovereign Lord is my strength;

he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,

he enables me to go on the heights.

I praise God for his word and how he speaks to us. For Habbakuk, (which, fun fact, in Spanish is pronounced "a-ba-COOOK"), everything was failing. When things are failing, when we are failing, it is easy to question our purpose. A farmer with no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls probably wonders why on earth God called him to be a farmer. And YET we rejoice in the Lord. He is still our Savior, he is still sovereign, and he is still our strength. =) =) =)