Well guys, here we are in (can you believe it?!) month 4 of The World Race!! We have officially completed 27% of the trip and it is flying by way too quickly! With everything that is happening, I’m trying to absorb as much as I can from learning a new language, to trying different types of food, encountering different types of people and ministry, but most importantly, the ways I am encountering The Lord through it all!
My team and I arrived in Honduras almost a week ago and we are once again SO BLESSED by our hosts and our ministry this month. We are working with The Legacy of Hope Foundation whose mission is to provide holistic solutions for orphan care in Honduras. It’s an INCREDIBLE ministry and we’re so pumped to dive deeper into it. I’ll definitely be sharing more about this month as we get settled but for now I really want to share Nicaragua’s bittersweet ending because SO MUCH happened and I’ve been dying to share it with you guys! Nicaragua by far has been one of my favorites. God taught me so much this month but I think a blanket word to touch on all He taught would be “perspective.”
Meet Maria
She is the grandmother of Alejandra. Maria’s daughter, Alejandra’s mother, passed away two months ago. Alejandra’s father is an alcoholic who roams the streets and has another family he lives with, leaving Alejandra in the care of her grandmother. Maria takes care of Alejandra despite her financial struggles and health issues. We met these ladies evangelizing during our last week in Nicaragua and it just so happened that Alejandra’s 15th birthday fell on our last day there. In Latin American culture, a girl’s 15th birthday is a HUGE deal. Maria reluctantly shared with us how she doesn’t have money to pay for the extravagant party that typically accompanies this special birth year. When asked for specific prayer request, all Maria asked for was healing over her body and for family restoration. In our short 20 minute visit, we prayed, laughed, and cried with these women. The Holy Spirit was so evident in this home and after walking away, our team all had the same thought practically simultaneously; to come back and celebrate Alejandra’s birthday.
As Saturday approached, we made arrangements to have a translator come along with us so that communication could go farther than “Como Estas?” We also were escorted to town by a local to pick up a cake, pinata, and gift for Alejandra. The closer we got to arriving to their home, the more I was filled with excitement. Not excitement because of what “I” or “we” were doing. Excitement about what God was doing through us. He was using us as a light into these women’s lives. The Holy Spirit led us here specifically, for this specific purpose. Our translator kept telling us, “you have no idea the impact you’re making on this girl life” and all I could think was “she has no idea the impact God is making in her life.”
So back to that “perspective” word I dropped earlier. In the beginning of Nicaragua, I was heartbroken at the sight of how Nica’s lived. But if anything, God is teaching me not to be heartbroken because of what they don’t have materialistically, but for what they need spiritually. He is also teaching me not to be ashamed of my “privilege” because it’s not a shameful thing, even on The Race. It’s something to thank God for everyday, I think The Race has made it easier for me to see that more clearly.
So I encourage you to take a minute out of your day today to thank God for what he has blessed you with. It could be your home, your family, your car, your job, your health. It could be something huge and obvious or something as small as your coffee in the morning because regardless of the value of the blessing, it is a blessing nonetheless. I think as a society we get so caught up in wishing for what others have or what they are “blessed” with that we completely miss the blessings that are right in front of us everyday. I pray as the thankful holiday approaches, that we truly acknowledge the God given gifts we have in our lives. And to not wait until the end of November to express that thankfulness but to start now because as cheezy/overused as the saying is “everyday is a blessing” we shouldn’t overlook that. I love you all so much and I’m so grateful for the love and support you have in your heart for me and for others in your lives! You are truly a light and The Lord is using you in such big ways!
