Right now I am feeling happy and healthy. I’m so thankful that I haven’t gotten really sick since starting the Race. If I could find the person(s) who invented probiotics, I would give them a hug.
Today (Sunday) is our day off and right now I’m in a really nice coffee shop in Quitche with some of my squadmates. Tomorrow, we start ministry in the hospital and my team begins preparing meals for the squad. On Tuesday, I may get an opportunity to visit a medical clinic further up in the mountains that serves indigenous Mayan people. I’m so excited!
One of the reasons why God called me to the Race was so I could be challenged in new ways. In Honduras, He gave me opportunities I never dreamed I would have.
On January 15, each of the ladies on my team got to share a testimony on the radio to over 250,000 Hondurans! Gracie hosts a Christian radio show in Honduras that focuses on offering hope and reaching victims of abuse. When she found out one of my amazing teammates, Nicole, speaks fluent Spanish, she asked if we wouldn’t mind coming to share some testimonies on her radio show and have Nicole translate. Even though I was so nervous I knew God wanted me to challenge myself, so I decided to share my testimony directly in Spanish. I still can’t believe I did that.
We decided on the theme “God is a Father Who Keeps His Promises” and we each had five minutes to share our testimonies. Gracie explained it’s normal for a father to be abusive and/or absent in Honduran homes. I hope God used my testimony to offer hope to people in Honduras, and anywhere else for that matter.
Here is a copy of my testimony, first in Spanish, then translated below into English. I hope it gives you some encouragement. Thank you for reading!
SPANISH TRANSLATION:
Me llamo Kelly. Soy de Los Estados Unidos en Carolina del Norte. Voy a hablar in español para todos.
Recientemente el Padre Dios me enseñó algo muy importante sobre sus promesas – y esto pasó viendo a mi propio padre.
Mi padre es un hombre bueno, Christiano y un padre maravilloso. Él ha proveo para mí, me ha protegio y ha perdono de cosas que yo hice mal. Mi padre no es perfecto, pero estoy muy agradecido de que él es mi padre. Gustaría casarme algún día y si lo hago, espero casarme con el hombre quien es como mi padre.
Aunque mi padre es un hombre maravilloso, su amor no se compara con el amor que he encontrado en el padre Dios…… Dios lleno el vacío que tengo en mi corazón y él es mi verdadero amor. Dios nunca me ha decepciono y él es un padre aún más maravilloso. Ha sido muy bueno conmigo.
La palabra de Dios en Mateo cinco y cuarenta y ocho dice que Dios es perfecto. Me he dado cuenta que si mi padre, que no es perfecto, ofrece para mí, me protege y me perdona, ¿cuánto más será el padre Dios, a proveer para me…. protegerme y perdonarme?
Así que, si mi padre ha proporcionado por mí, Dios el padre realmente me dará todo. La palabra de Dios dice en Mateo seis “Por eso les digo: no se preocupen por la comida ni por la bebida que necesitan para vivir, ni tampoco por la ropa que se van a poner. Ciertamente la vida es más que la comida y el cuerpo más que la ropa.26 Miren a las aves del cielo, ellas no siembran ni cosechan ni tampoco guardan nada en graneros. Sin embargo, su Padre que está en el cielo les da alimento. ¿No valen ustedes mucho más que ellas? 27 ¿Quién de ustedes, por más que se preocupe, va a añadir una hora a su vida?”Padre Dios es el proveedor!
También, si mi padre ha protegio a mi, Dios el padre me dará la mejor protección. En la palabra de Dios en el Salmo noventa y uno “Yo le digo al SEÑOR: «Tú eres mi refugio, mi fortaleza. Dios mío, confío en ti». Dios te salvará de los peligros escondidos y de las enfermedades peligrosas, pues te protegerá con sus alas y bajo ellas hallarás refugio. Su fidelidad será tu escudo y tu muralla protectora. No te atemorizará el peligro de la noche, ni las flechas que se lanzan en el día; tampoco la plaga que anda en la oscuridad, ni el destructor que llega a plena luz del día.”Dios es el mejor protector!
Por último, si mi padre ha perdono a mi, entonces mi padre celestial verdaderamente me perdonará. La palabra de Dios dice en uno Juan uno y nueve “…pero si confesamos nuestros pecados, Dios nos perdonará.” Así que, Dios no sólo nos perdona, pero también promete perdonar toda injusticia!
Así que, Dios me ha enseñado que no importa cuanto bueno es tu padre, Dios el padre es el verdadero proveedor, protector y perdonador. Gloria a Dios.
ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
Hi, I’m Kelly. I’m from the United States. I’m going to speak in Spanish for you all.
Recently the God the father taught me something very important about his promises – and this happened through watching my own earthly father.
My earthly father is a good, Christian man and a wonderful father. He has provided for me, protected me, and has forgiven me of things that I have done wrong. My father is not perfect, but I am so thankful he is my father. I would like to be married someday and if I do marry, I hope the man I marry is just like my father.
Although my father is a wonderful man, his love does not compare to the love I have found in God the father. God fills the void I have in my heart and he is my true love. God has never let me down and he is an even more wonderful father. He has been so good to me.
The World of God in Matthew 5:48 says God is perfect. I have realized that If my earthly father, who is not perfect, provides for me, protects me, and forgives me, how much more will God the father provide for me, protect me, and forgive me?
So, if my earthly father has provided for me, God the father will truly give me everything. The Word of God says in Matthew 6, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” The Lord is the ultimate provider!
Also, if my earthly father has protected me, God the father will give me the best protection. In God’s Word in Psalm 91 it says, “I will sayto the Lord, ‘My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’ For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.” God is the best protector!
Lastly, if my earthly father forgives me, then my heavenly father will truly forgive me. The Word of God says in 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” So, God doesn’t just forgive us, but he also promises to forgive all unrighteousness!
So, God has taught me that no matter how good your earthly father is, God the father is the true provider, protector, and forgiver. Glory to God.
