Stepping into month two, Honduras, God has been showing off His goodness. After two long and gruesome travel days, God immediately began giving my soul rest by blessing me with some of my most favorite things.
After getting off of the bus, we had about a 10-minute walk up the mountain to our house. I was fully strapped down with all of my bags, I was exhausted and frustrated, but the thought of finally being home motivated me to push through.
Upon arriving to the house, the gate was opened and out came Molly the weenie dog. My mouth literally dropped to the floor out of excitement. Weenie dogs are my most favorite. I grew up with them my whole life. Not only is Molly a weenie dog, but she is also the same color as my sweet Lu. I can’t help but see home when I look at Molly. In that moment God spoke, “Aren’t I good?”
Before entering a new country we are told what ministry we will be apart of for the entirety of the month. We are given minor detail on what we will be doing and the likelihood of those details remaining the same is slim to none. Coming into Honduras, I knew that we would be working with a ministry called, Hope at Hand. Showing up to serve on the first day of ministry I was blown away by what I saw.
Hope at Hand is a ministry strictly for disabled people. Their ages range from as young as 7 years old to as old as 50 or 60 years old. Most of them have spent their entire lives living there and know nothing beyond the gates that surround them. Their stories vary, but their families dropped off most of them because they didn’t have the means to care for them, or were seen as an inconvenience. There are 6 different homes in this gated community with about 6 to 12 people in each home. There is one Tia (aunt), per home. The Tia’s tend to and care for the kids every need because they have no sense of independence or way of survival otherwise. They work for 24 days straight with about 8 to 12 days off. Most often times, they go about 6 months without pay. The Tia’s also have to manage the upkeep of the house all while being the mother of 12 kids. Talk about super women. A lot of the kids are wheelchair bound, paralyzed, unresponsive, locked in rooms due to schizophrenia, etc. As heartbreaking as it was to witness, my heart overflowed with joy knowing that I would get to love on, help with and serve this ministry any way I knew how to.
My whole life I’ve said, “I have a heart for special needs.” My desire has always been to travel and help people, but I never knew what that looked like or if I would every have the opportunity to do so. Walking into the home I would be serving with for the whole month of November, God spoke, “Aren’t I good?
Meet Milba!
She is my cuddle bug. All she desires is to love and to be loved. There isn’t a moment when she doesn’t want to be wrapped up in your arms. The moment you embrace her, she looks up and gives the sweetest little laugh.
Meet Juan!
He is my adventurer. Most days, he waits for us to walk in the door and before we can even greet anyone else, he jumps up, grabs my hand and drags me out the door. He loves all things outdoors. If he had the chance to walk around the facility for the 8 hours that we are there, hand in hand, there would be no hesitation. With Juan not being able to communicate through words, we have found our very own special way of communication:
Me: “Chhhh!”
Juan: “Chhhh!”
Me: “Chhhh! Chhhhh!”
Juan: “Chhhh!”
Me: “Fart noise!”
Juan: “Fart noise!”
Mind you, this goes on for hours and he never gets tired of it. Juan has the most precious smile and most genuine laugh.
Meet Nora!
She is my dancer. She sits in her chair quietly until she hears music. As soon as she hears a tune, she jumps up with the biggest smile, starts clapping and busts a move. I call her, faithful Nora because you can always count on her to be the life of the party.
Throughout my time in Honduras, God has been laying it on my heart to find my secret place with Him. Here is where I have found that secret place. This balcony overlooks the mountains. It is quiet, it is peaceful, it is where I see and feel God the most. A couple nights ago I was getting ready for bed and I heard a super loud BANG! I ran to this same spot and to my surprise, it was a firework show that was taking place downtown. I am a sucker for some fireworks. They are my most favorite. Again, God spoke, “Aren’t I good?”
I have quickly come to realize that this year is full of hard ministry days, missing the comfort of home, frustration, fear and most days questioning if I have what it takes to keep going. Through it all, Honduras will always be the place I’m able to look back on and hear God speak, “Aren’t I good?”
