These past two weeks of ministry have been an incredible experience. There were definitely some days where it was extremely hard to wake up at 5 am and stay motivated throughout the day, but overall I’ve learned a lot and had tons of fun along the way!
Every day our squad has been separating into our smaller teams and going to different ministries throughout Honduras to spread love and help with whatever is needed. One of the days- my team Love Story went to a small women’s ministry called Heart of Christ. We spent the day loving on young girls who were primarily victims of rape (some even from incest) and helped take care of their young babies while they were tutored on the property. Not only did I interact with a 12 yr. old girl who was breast-feeding her 1-month-old baby… but I also played with the some of the cutest 2 yr. old boys, who had their teenage mothers run away from the ministry a few months before. This was such a powerful ministry, because it not only gave these young girls a peaceful environment off the streets to live and raise their babies- but it also teaches them about love and how to have faith in not only God, but themselves as well.
Another day, my team went to a local, private school- The Loyalty School- for one of the days to help teach the children. At first I was nervous… especially because I only remember bits of pieces of my Spanish classes from High School and College, but it turned out to be such an UNEXPECTED FUN day!!! I never imagined I would be standing in front of a 3rd and 4th grade class- teaching about the process of photosynthesis or the difference between a peninsula and an island. However, I was so amazed at how excited they were to have us there. Their little faces lit up brighter than I’ve ever seen and I’m pretty sure within the first five minutes of being there- three girls had already made me the sweetest cards ever… such a blessing!!
One of my favorite experiences so far was actually last Saturday, when our entire squad went to a gang related neighborhood for the afternoon. Keep in mind: Honduras is the murder capital of the world. Apparently, this was an extremely bad area of town, where normally they charge “outsiders” money to even enter their property. On a side note- there are NEVER any “Gringos” (what they call us North Americans) that go there because it so dangerous. However, Tony, our ministry contact from Zion’s Gate, had worked out a special deal with some of the gang members to let us come for a few hours during daylight to bring toys to the children and simply play with them. When we pulled up to the dusty, dirt field- TONS of children came running towards our bus with the biggest smiles on their faces. There was probably close to 200 children. I was scared at first… especially because we were in a very dangerous part of town and North Americans had never even been on the property before. However, after getting out of the bus and picking up some of the little children, I experienced such a strong sense of God’s love and peace that I can’t even begin to put into words…and I knew everything would be all right.
Our squad immediately jumped in and created an atmosphere of guitars playing, dancing, soccer games, painting nails, jump rope, etc. We even had games going on for the little kids like “Duck, Duck, Goose” and “Red Light, Green Light” on the side. I felt like Santa Claus on Christmas carrying around trash bags full of toys to hand out. It was so awesome to witness their faces and reactions to everything- because it was very apparent that they had never experienced anything like this before. Some of these little girls had the prettiest faces and smiles I’ve ever seen. I just wanted to wrap my arms around each and every one of them.
The time flew by and before I knew it- it was time to leave. I was actually sad, because none of them wanted us to leave. This one little boy stole my heart. He kept coming up to me and asking if I would twirl him around. When we were all heading back to the bus, he walked me all the way there- holding my hand and right before I stepped onto the bus- he yelled “Pamela- Uno mas!!” So I twirled him around and kissed his forehead goodbye.
Even though we may never know the impact we had on those children that day, or on any of the children at these different ministries for that matter- I know deep in my heart that God is doing something amazing through our squad, here in Honduras. I’ve already learned so much over these first two weeks- but the most important thing has been the significance of trusting in God’s overall plan for not only my life, but with everyone around me as well. He is so strategic and there are absolutely no coincidences. Super cool to think about… and I only get more and more excited to see how God will continue working through our team on this journey 🙂
THANKS FOR SUPPORTING ME!!! I still need about $3,000 to be FULLY FUNDED. If you would like to donate – please click on the left tab “Please Support Me” to donate online or look at my “Support Letter” Blog for the address to mail in a check.
LOVE YOU!
Pamela
