As I’ve said before, this month my whole squad and I are in Valle de Angeles, Honduras doing ministry at an orphanage for adults with disabilities. We don’t typically find out what city we’re going to and what type of ministry we’re going to be participating in for the next month until a week or two before we leave for the next country. When I found out we would be working with adults with disabilities, I was excited but not sure what to expect.
To be honest, our first day of ministry at the orphanage was hard. Most of the residents were non verbal, so it was difficult to communicate with them. A lot of them also are in adult diapers, so I realized I would need to get used to smelling certain smells. Up until this point in my life, I hadn’t been a part of a ministry that I wasn’t completely pumped about. I knew this would be different. I knew God had something to teach me through these people. I knew these people deserved love and my heart was filled with sympathy for them, but I wasn’t sure how I was going to be of help to them. I began praying for God to grow my heart for these people; so that I could see each one of them as He sees them.
My squad was separated into our teams and we were each assigned to a house where 10-15 residents live. We figured we would be helping the tias (what they call the house moms) with chores around the house and a bunch of other projects, but this wasn’t really going to be the case. Each day, my team and I wheel/walk the residents out to the big porch on the front of the house and mainly just sit with them, scratching backs and letting them lay their heads on our laps. There aren’t any set things to do with the residents, so we began bringing little activities we could do with them. We brought nail polish to paint the girl’s nails and face paint, which was a hit. It always warmed my heart when these small acts would put huge smiles on their faces, but I had some concerns. 1) Were we really helping them since all we were doing is mainly sitting with them? and 2) Was God growing me in some way through this ministry? Through many different means, God emphasized the verse, “Be still and know that I am God” to me. All God wants us to do is to trust Him and allow His power to shine through us. When we’re obedient to Him, that’s when He’s best able to work through us. Once God showed me this, I was able to relax and just love on the residents. It’s evident that God’s light is shining onto the residents through my squad and I. God has also definitely grown my heart through this ministry. I went from not wanting to be around the smell of pee to changing diapers, from not knowing how I was going to relate to the residents to now knowing each of their different personalities and quirks.
My hosts this month gave a talk in the beginning of the month and asked us, “Are you doing life FOR God or WITH God?” If we’re doing life FOR God, that’s pointless because He actually doesn’t need our help. He created the universe, so He doesn’t actually need us to get things done for Him. He just wants us to do life with Him. David, one of my hosts, described it like this: when he was a little boy, his dad always took him along to fix things around the house. Did his dad actually need a little boy’s help? No, but he wanted him to help because he wanted to spend time with him because he’s his son. That’s how Jesus feels about us. He loves us so much that He wants to use us to accomplish His purposes on this earth because He created us to be in relationship with Him, but He doesn’t NEED us. So that made me think, “Am I doing life WITH God?” If you’re doing life with God, then you’re following HIS lead. Instead of making your OWN plans and letting God be a part of them, you’re relying fully on God to guide each and every day for you and following what He has planned for your life, not what you have planned.
We have two more days of ministry and then we’re off to El Salvador (country #3) on Wednesday! Thank you all for following along on my journey! If you have any questions feel free to comment below 🙂
