Krazy KFC

OK...so I admit it...we have a KFC in La Ceiba...and it is better than Popeyes. I know, I know a girl raised in the heart of New Orleans shouldn't say that...but it is a different world down here. What can I say?

Wendy and I hit the drive thru the other day to get a quick Twister (it is like a chicken wrap) on the road. When we got our order...they gave us the biggest cups I have ever seen!

"Silence brudurs, this is the biggest drink I ever had." (you must see Nacho Libre)

So I asked Wendy to take a picture of me and the Krazy KFC guy...after the Colonel died the marketing department went a little nuts-o with his image...check out the evidence on the wall behind me...jagged underbite, wack-o gleam in his eye...I guess he is crazy for chicken.

So here's to you Colonel...I think you are rubbing off on me!

Double Trouble

Alessandra, Alejandra and Christy

Yesterday was the twins birthday...Brenda's baby girls, Alessandra and Alejandra. They turned 2 years old and we had a big bash at Senora Marta's house complete with chicken and rice, cake and 2 pinatas!

Pinata Time! My fav is Christy in the pink shirt, bottom right

After the party I went over to Brenda's house to see the work being done on the kitchen. It was incredible. Brenda has such a heart to provide for her family...to make their lives better. She gave me a tour of the new kitchen...which is being built around her existing outdoor kitchen. Here is a pic of the work done so far...

Brenda in her kitchen...soon to be complete.

She told me that she only needs one more row of blocks on the top of the kitchen and then they can start doing the smooth cement on the inside and put up the roof. I am hoping and praying that all of this can be done before the rainy season gets in full swing and before I leave in September...which is only 8 weeks away!

I am so grateful to Brenda for sharing a bit of her life with me. I had a blast at the birthday party and I almost cried when I saw the kitchen...it has come a long way from a pile blocks on the ground.

Alessandra had a little too much party.

I think it will even make a grumpy twin happy!

Psalms 90:2

image by Daryl Brewton taken on the hike back from La Lucha

"Before the mountains were created, before you made the earth and the world, you are God, without beginning or end."

Two Worlds Collide

image by Daryl Brewton

This picture was taken a couple of weeks ago on our hike to the casillo (group of houses smaller than a village) of La Lucha. I love this shot because it captures the differences in society, culture, and even time.

Hand cut timber being carried out of the mountains on mules, as we hike in to serve the people of thier casillo. No other medical team has ever been to La Lucha. We were breaking ground that day. Going farther than we had ever gone, deeper into the jungle to let the people know that God has not forgotten them.

Who's desires do you desire?

I have been praying for the Lord to give me another verse to describe the next chapter of my life...the next chapter of this walk with Him. For the past few years I have held onto Matt 6:33:

"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well."

The Lord has walked me through so much with this scripture. He has grown my faith as I have watched this scripture unfold in my life. He has provided for me all the way, never leaving me, always faithful in His word...it has taken some time for me to really get the message.

Simple as it may seem... there was something in my heart that wouldn't fully trust that God would provide for me and keep me safe, but He is such a gentleman and He has stayed by me helping me trust Him through difficult times. Now...this verse is written on my heart. I know that it is true; I know that He is trustworthy and I know that He loves me.

So as God calls me deeper into relationship with Him, I wanted a new verse...a new marker of my time with Him. Something I can write down, study and incorporate into my life. I don't know exactly what the verse is going to be, but I do know the topic...desires of the heart.

I have come a long way in realizing that I need God in my life. I know that without Him, I would be lost. Now that I have passed through the valley of need, I have come into the pastures of want...I want God in my life. There is such a big difference between knowing that something is good for you and wanting it in your life (think about brussel sprouts and mustard greens).

Well, now that I need and want Him...and He is bringing me further into that relationship...He is calling me to want what He wants. I want my heart to beat like His does, I want to desire the same things He does, I want to live and breathe and move like He does. So I am asking Him to give me the desires of His heart...to make my heart like His...to give me a new one that is pure and holy and full of integrity.

So as you pray for me in the next few days, pray that God would develop this in me and the He would give me a scripture to hold onto so that I can use it to light my path. While you are at it, pray this same thing for yourself! Pray that God would change things in you and that He would be more real to you than ever before.

Wisdom from Curly Sue

Often times we take for granted the people we do life with....you know, the people in your house, in your office, in your inner circle. These are the people God has placed right next to you.

Have you ever stopped to wonder why they are there? Are you serving them enough? Are you praying for them? Do you give them more than just a casual hello? Are they hungry for words of encouragement?

Our God is all about loving and He uses us, His people, to share that love. What an incredible honor?! So what is love? How do we do it?

Anyone remember that old movie Curly Sue? The homeless father and daughter that travel around scamming people and end up falling in love with a rich lady. Anyway, there is a part in the movie when the rich lady is asking Sue how she knows her dad really loves her and she answers, "because he lets me eat first."

Wow...that says a lot when you know they didn't have food all of the time. But how can we apply that to our lives? We need to remember to put others before ourselves, we can't forget to love the ones we do life with. They are our cheerleaders, they are our support staff, they are our secretaries and our counselors. These are the people we should love the most outrageously. They should have no doubt that they are loved and thought of daily.

So, here is the challenge...love someone today. Someone that is close to you, someone that you dump on because you know they will love you anyway. Love them the way they need to be loved (not just a way that makes you feel like you did something). If you don't know how they best receive affirmation you better get busy figuring it out.

"...we love because He first loved us..."

Rogue Tick

It seems to me that I have a tick on the loose. We hiked through some pretty thick jungle on the hike to La Lucha and I have been itching like crazy!

Those of you who have had the pleasure of finding ticks, in rather embarrassing places on your body, know what I am talking about. Well I found one rather large tick right when I got back from the hike. Unfortunately it had already had breakfast, lunch and dinner on me, before I could track it down, but luckily it hadn't found a place to call home yet.

Then 2 days later I found 3 of the smallest ticks I have ever seen...like smaller than a tiny freckle. They had latched on by that point, but not before they covered my legs with little itchy bumps.

After my discovery I performed a thorough tick search, involving a full length mirror and I thought I was in the clear. BUT, apparently not; I am getting knew bites regularly so there must still be one on the loose.

I will find him...and I will kill him.

You hear that tick?

You can run...but eventually you will get too big to hide!

WANTED

Tick

Dead or Alive

Taking a Breather

So God knows what He is doing...how many times must we be reminded of this simple fact? When we scheduled teams for this summer, we scheduled a lot of them. How could we tell people "no"?

Although we didn't know what we were getting ourselves into...God knew. We scheduled 14 teams to come and serve with us in the span of 7 months, with many of them coming and going on the same day...uggg...yes we are a little nuts.

In spite of all that is happening this week in Honduras, God is making the bad work for the good of His people. After 3 weeks of teams we are all about to fall over dead, and the Lord heard our silent plea for help. Because of the rough political waters surrounding Honduras right now we have had to reschedule the group that was coming to serve with us, and although we are sad they aren't coming this week...we are breathing a sigh of relief.

Now we can rest and catch up on some of the other work that seems to be piling up in the office! haha...so 2 days of sleep are in order...now if I can just kick this cold I will be as good as new!

Happy Birthday

Here is a pic of my first birthday party in Honduras...and look...I am only 3 years old! haha

God did it again...

Yep, He did it again. He blew me right out of the water. I don't know who was praying for me today, but I could feel it.

I was really worn out after the hike to La Lucha yesterday. We made the 8 mile round-trip trek to host a brigade and teach the people there about the unfailing love of Christ. The village is aptly named "the struggle" because we crossed over 4 rivers and 7 creeks to arrive after a solid 2 hour hike.

We had another full day today putting the finishing touches on the Rio Viejo Kindergarten, which the group painted and decorated. We taught the kids about healthy foods and did crafts with them and performed the parable of the lost sheep.

At the end of a very long week, it was time to take the group to the sliding rock, which has become our favorite swimming hole. Needless to say...I was exhausted and all I could think about doing was laying on the tile floor and going to sleep. But God knew that I needed to be there, and I know someone was praying for me at that moment...asking God to give me strength to make it though.

Today at the sliding rock, I witnessed 17 people commit/recommit their lives to Christ at an impromptu baptism, two of which were Sam and Rachel Williams. I am so grateful to God for giving me the strength to make it today. Sometimes...more often that not actually, we have to suck it up and just obey...we have to sacrifice for the good of the group, and I am so glad I did.

It was the perfect setting, we were all commenting on how much it must have been like biblical times. Everyone just living in the moment and soaking up all God had for us.

Update

Hey guys, I just wanted to give you an update on the political climate. Here in Rio Viejo you would even know anything has happened...except that everyone is talking about it. Here is a good article, posted in the Wall Street Journal, if you are interested in reading a good, clear rendition of what is going on.

Please keep us in your prayers as we have groups coming and going for the rest of the summer and this is making travel a little more difficult.

Love you guys!

Whew...

OK, so that week went by in a blink! So much is going on here that time seems to evaporate. I will attempt to catch you up on what's been going on in my world...

Current events: Honduras is trying to navigate through a sticky political time right now. It seems that the current President likes his job so much that he wants to have it for his whole life. Today he is holding a controversial, door-to-door election to amend the constitution and change the 4 year limit on presidential terms. I am not a political buff any more, but that doesn't sound right to me. Honduras has only been a democracy for 8 presidential terms and now there is a potential threat to return the country to a socialist state. If you are burdened for prayer on this subject, please pray for this country...pray for wisdom in government officials, good judgment for the officials and the people and a spirit of peace to cover this whole situation.

Ministry Life: We said our good byes to the team from Lee University, and it was sad to see them go. They were such a fun filled group and we got so used to having them around. I hope that they made it home safely and that they will never forget their time in Honduras. I hope they are ruined for the mission field and that they have a different perspective of how people live outside of the USA.

We welcomed a new team from Alabama last night and we are looking forward to a 3 fold blitz of the area this week. Jubilee Church has bought an incredible team of medical personnel, construction workers and an education team to help us reach the schools in the area. I can't wait to get this party started!

Personal Life: I am learning to trust, trust, trust everything about God. Trust in His timing, His plans, His strength, His faithfulness...the list goes on and on. I see miracles every week. Some of them are radical healings that change people's lives forever and open their hearts to salvation. Some of them are practical miracles...like getting 30 boxes of food inside of a Nissan Extera. The miracle I am experiencing this week is a personal miracle...strength, supernatural strength.

There is no way that any of the HHIM team should still be standing. We are half-way through our season, with 5 teams behind us and 5 teams in front of us. Physically we are tired and worn out, spiritually we are being tested and tried...but God is ever faithful and He is filling us with hope and strength and faith like never before. We are being given fresh oil and new wine with every incoming team. God is showering us with His love and we are making an impact on this community for His glory. He is taking our 5-loaves and feeding thousands! He is stretching our time, giving us supernatural rest, and filling in the gaps for us where we fall short.

Praise Him!

Please continue to pray for us. Lift us up and keep us in your hearts and minds. There is a God in Israel and He does hear our prayers! Amazing!

Major Events

I have been in Honduras for a little more than 6 months now, and it is starting to sink in that I am living here. When I spent the holidays away from my family last year, it was a bit difficult for me because I knew exactly what I was missing out on...all of the family fun and the great food. But God showed up for me in such a personal and intimate way, that I knew I was right where I was supposed to be.

Monday is my birthday, and it is just another reminder to me that I am making a new home here in Honduras. I love it here; I love the work and the people I get to do life with. It just seems like little by little God is showing me that although life here is different it is no less rewarding. I get to spend my birthday with people I have grown to love and who love me back...just like I would be doing if I were in Louisiana...the people are just different.

I am so grateful for my family and friends, no matter where they are in the world. I wish I were a little bit better at maintaining relationships and I hope God will give me more creative ways to stay in touch, because I love all of you!

So right now I am giving all of you a happy birthday hug!

Things I did this weekend that I never thought I would do...

1. sleep inside of a tent inside of a building
2. put my deodorant on in front of a male non-family member
3. have some one tell me they found a tick in their private areas
4. hear some one say they were afraid of sleeping without their gun
5. participate in a 3 day clinic and see over 700 patients
6. take a 30 person team on a "modified camping trip"
7. drive a 4x4 truck full of people and supplies across 1 river and 7 creeks into the mountains
8. take allergy medicine as a sleeping aid
9. sleep on a blow up raft with a battery operated fan 8 inches from my face
10. have a candle light worship service in Spanish on the front porch of a school
11. go to sleep at 7pm because it was too dark to do anything else

This has been an incredible weekend! I have had so much fun, and been stretched and challenged in ways that can only happen when you are in the will of God. Thank you all for your prayers this weekend!