Out of the Mouth of Babes

If you are my friend on Facebook, you have probably seen some of the funnier things my three year old says. He makes me laugh all day. It's because he talks ALLLLLL DAY! It may be partially my fault, seeing that I have a speech pathology background. This translates into monitoring when he was producing plosives, glides, and now sibilants alongside of single words, two word phrases, multi-word phrases, sentences, sentences with conjunctions and so on.

Needless to say, we have been having child-like discussions about moving to Honduras. He does say some funny things. He recently asked if he could have a camel when we move to Honduras. He also talks to Asher about being "missionary kids" and how they will "love on people and share with them about Jesus being their friend." My favorite conversation was recently when he asked me if he could see a picture of "Honduran kids."

This is what I showed him:

Jacob's response: "OH MOM! They look JUST like me! They look like kids!"

While I don't know what he was anticipating, his response blessed my heart. As a mom who worries about her children's culture shock and how these blonde haired, blue eyed children will be received by other children, I exhaled a sigh of relief. I prayed that we would all see each other as the Lord sees us. Because I am certain He looks at the heart while man looks at the outward appearance. (1 Samuel 16:7)

Throwback Thursday: Michelle's favorite song

My sweet friend, Ashley and her brother, Chris introduced me to Brooke Fraser about 5 years ago. Ashley told me I had to listen to this song, Albertine and I immediately fell in love. It was on the heels of our trip to Uganda and it summed up how I was feeling, "Now that I have seen, I am responsible. Faith without deeds is dead." I thought I would share it with you (because it's stuck in my head for the day now! And who can resist belting out a song with a beautiful alto voice?). Click the song title to see the video.
Albertine
I am sitting still, I think of AngeliqueHer mothers voice over meAnd the bullets in the wall where it fell silentAnd on a thousandth hill, I think of AlbertineThere in her eyes what I don’t see with my ownRwanda
Now that I have seen, I am responsibleFaith without deeds is deadNow that I have held you in my own armsI cannot let go till you are
And I am on a plane across a distant seaBut I carry you in meAnd then the dust on, the dust on, the dust onThe dust on, the dust on my feetRwanda
Now that I have seen, I am responsibleFaith without deeds is deadNow that I have held you in my own armsI cannot let go till you are
I will tell the world, I will tell them where I've beenI will keep my word, I will tell them, AlbertineRwanda
Now that I have seen, I am responsibleFaith without deeds is deadNow that I have held you in my own armsI cannot let go till you are
And I am on a stage, a thousand eyes on meI will tell them, AlbertineI will tell them, Albertine

School Supplies for 467 Students!

Our team in Honduras is a busy one!  On Saturday, they handed out school supplies to 467 students.  The school year starts in February and without this help the students would not be able to go to school.  So many generous donors from the States made this possible!  We are excited to participate and can't wait to get there!

To see a short video, click HERE

Puerta de Esperanza

This week our team in La Ceiba, Honduras opened a home for moms and their babies. Our teammate, Shannon Innes had a vision to fulfill a serious need in Honduras. Puerta de Esperanza, translated Door of Hope, is a home where these teenage mothers and their children can escape the streets and gain hope, love, and guidance.

Click to see a 2 minute video on the home:

Puerta de Esperanza

Confession: I'm a Hoarder

Does anyone watch A&E's show, Hoarders? I have three shows I religiously watch on Hulu and this is strangely one of them. I am just mesmerized! I have a hard time turning away while totally repulsed. I also have a innate desire to go organize ALL of it. Weird, I know. I may have OCD. So, I bet you are surprised as I am to find out that I too, am a real life hoarder.

I didn't find this out though until we were called to move to Honduras. The night Adam came home and told me (Michelle) that he felt called, I laid in bed (8 months pregnant and awake anyway) mentally cataloging our entire house. What in the world would HAVE TO move with me. I only came up with four things. Dying to know, aren't you? KitchenAid mixer, food processor, pressure cooker and immersion blender. The rest I had mentally sold, given away, or trashed.

And now it has come time to start that process of selling, giving away, storing, or trashing. And that's when I discovered I am a HOARDER! There is sooo much stuff here and I used to pride myself on being a minimalist. "I don't need all the baby gear, don't desire the latest and greatest of technology, don't buy a lot of stuff ." WRONG! Just stepping into my closet causes hyper-ventilation. Looks like Target may have gotten the best of me. And it's not about getting rid of it. It's the sheer amount of stuff.

So I started with the obvious. . .shoes. Donated 18 pairs. Failed to mention I still have about 25 pair. Eek! So I guess along with my confession, I am asking you to consider what in your closets could you purge? What need could you fulfill for a "neighbor"? All that cute girl clothes I bought for Asher? I found a friend who is actually having a girl. What could you do without? What could you stop purchasing to put that money towards someone who could really benefit from it? And I am not pointing the finger, trust me. I am asking myself the same thing!

Check out Matthew 25: 35-37!

Cross-Cultural Training

I am not a soccer fan...yet.  But to effectively relate to people in Honduras, I must become one.  In Honduras, soccer is life.  It is THE sport, THE entertainment & THE social gathering.  I won't be able to avoid the topic so I am learning to love it.

On Saturday, my good friend, Jeff took me to University of Phoenix Stadium to watch USA vs. Venezuela.

For 90+ minutes neither team scored (a typical objection of non-soccer fans).  However, it was actually a very exciting match.  The US team took 19 shots on goal.  Jeff (an avid player and fan) continually fed me soccer strategy, player info, and general enthusiasm for the game.  This all built up considerable suspense.  Then, with regular time expired and nearly 7 minutes of stoppage time played, the US prepares for a corner kick.  Jeff informs me that, "this will probably be the last play of match."  It was.

Check it out:

 

What an ending!  Sure makes it easier to understand and appreciate this game that is the passion of Honduras.

Thank you Jeff!

Big Changes

Last week, Adam resigned from his job and this week we started building our support team!  Here's a random list of the fun things we did this week:

*Purchased many stamps, labels, envelopes, and much paper!
*Prayed a lot
*Michelle showed Adam her mad labeling, envelope stuffing, stamping skills
*Sent out our first 100 letters
*Prayed some more
*Adam filled Michelle's inbox with lots of "to-do" emails
*Michelle prayed for patience
*Added a handful of monthly supporters! (PRAISE GOD!)
*Wrote some thank you notes
*Prayed thanksgiving
*Adam started making phone calls to set up coffee, lunches, dinners to share our passion for Honduras
*Adjusted our home budget
*Prayed, prayed , prayed

Overall, we had a great first week and we feel encouraged and excited!  The Lord is good ALL THE TIME and all the time, GOD IS GOOD!  Please continue to pray for this process as it is a huge change in what we do daily and is definitely stretching our faith (which is such a good thing!)!

Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. 

1 Chronicles 16:³⁴