Being "home"

Being home... What does that even mean? Yes, Valdosta is where I left from to go to Honduras, yes this is where my church home is at, and yes I am getting to see lots of friends and family while I am in Valdosta. But bouncing from couch to couch, invading people's houses and personal space, and living out of a suitcase barely sounds like home. I've also been told home is where the heart is and mine feels like it is split in 2 and in separate parts of the world. As discouraging as this sounds, as I thought about it I became encouraged. The encouraging part is that Jesus promised this!

In Luke 9:58, Jesus challenges a would-be follower by saying, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head."

This verse reminds this would-be follower that the path of following Jesus is not easy or comfortable, THAT THIS WORLD IS NOT JESUS' HOME! and therefore as followers, NOT OUR HOME! That nothing is permanent or eternal in this world, it is all given to serve that HE may be more known. And when we focus our hearts and minds on heaven and being kingdom minded the things of this world, like having a place to call home, begin to grow strangely dim and fade away.

So my flesh could easily find a reason to pout in this. But this morning in church I was reminded of a verse, 1 Corinthians 10:31, that says, "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." and this verse checked me. Everything we do has a motive, but is out motive rooted in serving and glorifying self or God? Thank yo Lord for conviction and I pray that it does not stop there but my conviction is turned into action that refines me inti the blameless daughter you are calling me to be.

AP
John 3:30

Never the Same Day

Just to validate this blog, let me give you an intro. I wrote this blog on Wednesday and it is Saturday night and I am just now finding time and energy to post it. Whew! Praise God for the work.

Frequently when I talk to people they will ask “so, what does your typical day look like?” or “what do you do in a normal day?” My response is the only thing typical about any of this… my response is something like “ha! No day is the same around here.” Then I go on to try and explain some of the things our days around here consist of.

Sunday morning before church me, Mrs. Pam, and Natali sat down and looked at each with the thoughts of wow this next week is about to be crazy! We took a deep breath and started out the door for church saying we can do this! So we got to church and then the Pastor of our church, Pastor Ricardo, lets us know of another thing going on this week.  The church that sponsors us is from Ohio and they were sending a team down this week to do a medical brigade. They were bringing dentists, nurses, dental hygienists, and pastors. They need our girls to be translators. Let me just take a side note and tell you how much this blows my mind. These girls will never understand how amazing this is. They are 12 years old on average and translating for doctors who are giving medical attention to their local community. These girls have gifts that they don’t understand and are glorifying God in ways that I cant even do. Praise God! So they needed 2-3 girls to translate on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. AHHHH!!! This just added to the craziness of the week.

So Monday we carried 2 of the girls to the church to translate and the rest went to school as normal (not to mention Ben is in the States so me, Mrs. Pam and Nat have been having to switch off covering up at the school teaching classes). That afternoon me and Mrs. Pam had to take the Patrol to la Esperanza because it is acting a little funny and needs some maintenance. So I followed her in the white truck. Since I have been here I have been learning to drive a stick shift and whew it is no joke learning to drive a stick in the mountains. So this was my first time driving all the way to town by myself. All is good. The truck is safe and sound back at the farm.

Tuesday 3 girls went to translate at the church and we carried all the girls who have coughs, dental situations, and little sicknesses to the church as well for the team to give them medical attention. The rest of the girls went to school. Tuesday night we normally take the big girls to church but this week we took everyone because the team was doing something special. We got all the right cords to plug our ipods into the cd player on the bus and the girls were so excited (maybe as excited as Mrs Pam) to be able to jam out on the way to church. It was a good time. So church was very exciting. There was a big turn out from people that had come for the medical brigade that the team invited from the community. The Pastor from the team preached and the team did a time of prayer and it was very refreshing and uplifting. One of the girls got saved! It was amazing and totally a blessing to be a part of. It had been a very long day and exactly what the staff needed.

Wednesday was a very exciting day! Mrs. Pam carried 3 more girls to translate for the medical team. She also had to carry another girl to get some more extensive dental work done. Natali has been doing Mailbox Club lessons with Yahsi, a community near the farm that we have to hike too. It is one of the schools that the farm does a lot of ministering to. Today was the first graduation that this ministry has done with any of the mailbox club lessons. Natali, me, and some of the girls hiked to the school carrying bibles for gifts, candy, and a cake. Yes I just said that we hiked with a cake and it made it there without being dropped once. These girls know how to hike. The graduation went great. For many of them this is the first Bible they have ever had. It was very exciting! So now we are laying in the grass on blankets hanging out and listening to music while girls play games (sweet time) because the electricity was out when we got back to the farm, which means cold showers and no one is jumping at that. The medical team that supports the church we are going to is coming to the farm this afternoon to visit and hangout.

So let me tell you about the rest of our week. Sunday we are having a quinceanera for 3 of the girls that are turning 15.Thursday, tomorrow, we are having a half day of school so that we can clean the church and the kitchen and everything because we are having company and for the quinceanera. We have to go to town and buy shoes for all the girls to wear, grocery shop for the quinceanera, pick up the girls rings that they get at the quinceanera, pick up the patrol, etc. Friday is always a half day of school and will continue with plans for this weekend. Saturday a team gets to the farm. Sunday is the quinceanera. Monday Mrs. Pam’s daughters will fly into Honduras. That afternoon we are going to have a bridal tea party for one of the girls who used to live on the farm and she is getting married the following weekend. Tuesday we will breath!

So as for the typical day… there isn’t one. But our prayer every morning is that God would fill the day just as he sees fit and give us the strength to get through the day and be reenergized and renewed by him. God is good and will give us nothing that we can’t handle with his strength. Although some days I feel like he gets way too close J

I leave in one week to head back to the States for my first visit. We have to leave the country every 3 months to renew our passport. It is wild to think I have already been here for 3 months. It has flown by and at the same time I am becoming so used to this life that it feels like I have been here so much longer than that.

P.S. Today (Saturday), we got a new girl on the farm! She is 11 and gorgeous. The day has been full of the girls taking her in and showing her around and just loving on her. This makes the family 24 girls now. :) God is good! Be in prayer for all of the adjustments that this will mean for this beautiful little girl.

AP                                                                                                 

John 3:30