Considering we’ve just begun our fourth month on the race, I thought I’d do a bit of a recap of what’s been happening over the last month or so and what my team and I will be heading into for month four ministry.
This month my team has indulged in many trips down the hill to our local tienda to buy the essentials: Oreos and popcorn. We quickly made friends with Leslie, the owner of the snack shack just down the hill. Our team had the opportunity to minister to her one day when we went out to evangelize, and were able to pray over her and her family. She is a truly kind soul.
We took advantage of our free time this month (especially in the last few weeks as we only recently were allowed to leave the school due to riots surrounding the presidential election that recently occurred) digging into The Word, playing music together, reading old novels from our childhoods, laughing and growing closer with each other. Although our “days since we last left the mountain” count got pretty high at one point, i’m thankful that we have been forced to be around each other, even when we might be tired of it or bored. Times like these have forced us to find enjoyment in the little things and provided us with tons of time to grow in the Lord.
God’s reminded me that I don’t have to live in past sin and regret, something i’ve been struggling with in the past week or so. The Lord has already forgotten my sin and forgiven me so there is no reason to live in regret and shame. Psalm 23:1-3 “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.” He makes me new.
I’m honestly appalled at the lack of showers we took this month. Our whole team (6 girls) combined took under 20 in the span of a month. And although that’s extremely gross, sitting in our sleeping bags, in sweaters eating freshly microwaved popcorn was a lot more inviting than cold bucket showers, leaving you feeling only slightly cleaner than before…
As I think about my future and start to apply for schools the Lord has put a general intro year program at Bible college on my heart. Ive noticed lately i’ve felt the need to plan. Make a plan for next year and the few years following. I know the Lord is ultimately in control of my future, still I find myself making all these plans for the future. But yesterday He spoke to me through James 4:14-15: “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, ‘if it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” I know that the Lord has plans for my life and that His plans are better than anything I could plan, I just needed a reminder to give up my future to Him.
On Monday we switched ministry with the other team we’re living with. I’m officially a grade 1 teacher, for 5 little munchkins (Jefferson, Danny, Arianna, Dana and Rachel). They are absolute cuties and I already know that my heart is going to break when I have to say goodbye in a month. Despite the language barrier, God has come through and reminded me that nothing can get in the way of the Lord, he will work through us and allow us to minister to Honduran munchkins. Sharing a classroom with Iris has been less challenging than I expected. Although her pre K kiddos are pretty crazy and can get kind of out of control, I’m glad we get to work through it together. Combining her endless energy with my endless repertoire of camp songs, we’ve been able to make it through the hectic moments, managing to make fools of ourselves for the nuggets.
As my final fundraising deadline approaches (23 days away) I only have $1000 left to raise! The Lord is definitely teaching me to have patience and to rely on Him, even when it would be easier to breakdown. I want to thank everyone who’s followed my journey thus far and those of you who continue to support me through your prayers and encouragements, it means the world to me, knowing I have so much support.
So that pretty much wraps up my first month of Honduras, stay tuned for more updates and lessons learned while living in the mountains!
