United We Stand

Natalie and I just created our own handmotions to Relient K’s “Who I Am Hates Who I’ve Been”, completely in sync, completely on the spot. We’ve been hanging around Dr. Don too long. That or it’s just been a long day.

Yesterday was an off day in that we didn’t go anywhere—but we stayed around the house finishing up random projects that we’d started for Dr. Don. At night was Perspectives, the group hosted here on Monday nights for missionaries to discuss different articles on missions. It’s typically super interesting. They ask for our input but I never have anything of importance to say; I prefer to sit and listen to their insight. Last night Heidi brought up that she’d had a Bible study with some ladies and learned that only the Christians here are allowed to say “Dios le bendiga” (God bless you). This was something I didn’t know. Apparently this culture says that as a Christian you’re sort of supposed to say “Dios le bendiga” and if you say it to a Christian, they should respond with either the same or “Amen”. If you’re not a Christian, it’s like culturally unacceptable to say it. I had no idea! So interesting.

This morning we went to the school in Limeras (YES! Schools were FINALLY open!) and taught in two classes. When we pulled up to the school on the motorcycles, the classes started clapping and screaming. One of the missionaries here told us yesterday to be mindful of the fact that the people here see us as celebrities. We drive around on our fancy motorcycles and smile and wave and the people don’t see us as real people. It was definitely an interesting point to bring up. Our goal isn’t to like, be that typical gringo who brings freebies for all the little kids. Instead, we just want to be seen instead as catrachos. People that mix in well with the culture. People united in Christ. Tonight was a nice reminder of the idea of unity.

At tonight’s Alfa (youth group) meeting there were about 35 people gathered in the Rumbaugh’s living room singing together, and it really didn’t matter what language. I can’t really explain the feeling but it was peaceful and right. Then Dr. Don asked us to share in front of the group something we’d learned while being here. Let me tell you, trying to think of something worthwhile to say to a group of people my own age is difficult enough, but in Spanish!?! I tried my best to talk about that last verse in John, and about how huge God is and yet how He could love and care for sinners like us. I hope the things I said made sense. But, Natalie, Nancy (one of the Hondurans we’ve been able to hang out with), and Deybin all shared as well and it was awesome. Deybin takes care of some of the missionaries’ lawns—he’s about 15 and he’s been begging us to teach us English since the minute we got here. So many people here have shared the Gospel with him but he just never grasped it. Not until last Sunday night, that is :). Since then, he’s seriously become totally different. He has this joy on his face and he now says “Dios le bendiga”, something Heidi said she’d NEVER heard him say before that. He shared his new testimony tonight with everyone here. He probably talked more than all of us. Probably the coolest part about what he said was along these lines: “I would read the Bilingual Bible all the time because I wanted to learn English, but I never paid attention to what the words meant. But then one day I understood it.” He continued to say how he like, prays for his parents every night so that they’ll believe too and how he just feels so different. What a cool testimony to hear. I’m sure there was much more to it, but again, Spanish understanding was limited. But it was an awesome time and a great blessing to all of us.

This afternoon after our 4:00 class (Wow, glad my thought process is chronological), Natalie and I went up to the Fields’ house, missionaries that we’ve become good friends with—they are so hilarious. Dave is the head of IT at the hospital, and he and his wife Marinajo have two kids—Ben (7) and Mariah (12). They’ve been a big blessing to us and they invited us over for dinner tonight, along with another missionary family – the Tumlinsons. Dave kept asking us questions about our lives and what we want to do after college and stuff like that. Then somehow the topic of relationships came up and they had such insightful things to say. Then, at the dinner table, we got to talk about the ups and downs of living in Honduras and it was really neat to hear the perspectives of people who like, experience this. They talked about the challenges of the missionary life, how living far away from family and friends is so difficult, and yet if that’s where God’s called you, it would be disobedient to say no. It makes me wonder if this is something that I’m called to do with my life as well. But, for now I’ll rest in the fact that God will let me know eventually what I’m to do. We can put our trust in His plans because they are perfect.

Two more days left here at Loma de Luz. On Friday, Natalie, Amanda, and I will embark on our journey to San Pedro Sula, stay in an authentic Honduran hotel and fly out Saturday morning. Well… may these last two days be filled with joy and excitement as we get ready to begin a new phase of our summers.

Dios les bendiga,

Lauren

Tangent Alert! Tangent Alert!

This really has nothing to do with anything, but I LOVE the last verse in the book of John: “Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.” On Friday night we were sitting out on the beach, plopped on a log, looking up at the stars. The sound of the ocean was soothing and yet so distant. It felt like the waves were millions of miles away. Natalie, Amanda, Amy, & I were discussing how much we love the book of John, because its written so differently than the other gospels. The vastness of the ocean to my left then reminded me of this verse. I can just imagine piling high book after book and filling it up past the Cayos Islands and Roatan and beyond. And that doesn’t even make a dent. This is just one little beach in one little country in one huge world. And yet, if EVERY single thing that Christ did was recorded, it couldn’t even fill the earth. But why did the Gospel writers (well, technically the Holy Spirit, I guess) choose to include the stories about Christ that they did? My only conclusion is that they must be pretty darn important. They’re also just enough. The Gospel is so simple. It takes so little to accept God’s gift, but yet, it cost Him so much. Why do people fight wars over this stuff!?


In unrelated news, it turns out my class last semester on Microsoft Office actually paid off in life. I think I’ve now mastered any Powerpoint tasks that Dr. Don assigns me to.


Music recommendation for the moment: “The Love of God” by MercyMe. Look I even will include the link to it! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Xd4DXxMR3Y

“God sent His Son to win”,
Lauren

I almost fell asleep on the back of a Motorcycle

Benadryl has curious effects on people. While it works wonders to make you stop feeling itchy, it also puts you into this weird stupor where your body feels close to numb and your brain switches between hyperactivity and complete lethargy. I’m not sure where mine is at currently. Somewhere between the two I suppose.

A wise friend recently told me “Make the most of EVERY moment because you won't get them back”. I’m attempting to keep this attitude for the rest of the week. I only have five more full days here on this hillside. Five more days to teach eager hands. Five more days to be an encouragement. Five more days to tap into these peoples’ hearts and let them know that the only place they can find their joy is in the LORD. Of course I must remind myself of this as well. Jack Black in School of Rock so poignantly said “those who can’t do, teach”. Well, sorry Mr. Schneeeebly, but this is one of those times where you need to be able to “do” in order to teach. How am I supposed to teach a kid that Jesus is the source of their joy if I don’t believe it myself? Just something to think about.

Saturday we had the great joy and opportunity to witness a Honduran/American wedding. One of the missionary girls here married a local Honduran man and pretty much everyone from the missionary community and all the surrounding villages were there. At first I thought it would be weird because I don’t even know the girl, but it ended up being a blast. We helped Mrs. Rumbaugh (who was in charge of all the food) to serve plates to all of the guests. I worked side by side with Amanda, a Honduran girl named Gabi, and a couple other of the missionaries. We definitely had a lot of fun. After all the food was served and our job was done, we went out and “mingled” with the guests. The wedding was absolutely gorgeous- everything was set up so well. I spent most of my time talking to Deyni though. She left today to go back to Tegucigalpa til November, so it was good to be able to spend some time with her. We talked about the past week and I told her about the opportunity I had to get to talk to Francis on Thursday. Deyni told me how important it was that I did that, as little as it may have been. Apparently Francis had been hitting some rough patches in her faith and needs someone to be encouraging her. Deyni went on to tell me how so many times she feels like she’s constantly giving giving giving and never receiving encouragement herself. Part of me feels like the whole reason Natalie and I are here was to encourage Deyni, a girl who’s become such a good friend of ours. I don’t know, a lot of the time here, it feels like the relationships we’ve made are skin deep, especially with all the kids we meet who we only see like once a week. I think God gave us the opportunity to spend a lot of time with Deyni to actually get to know her and I think her friendship has been the highlight of this whole trip.
Pues, no tengo más a decir. While it is only five more days here, I guess i need to remind myself that it doesn’t just stop. There are spiritual battles to be fought at home too. Maybe He’s just equipping us now with the right tools in our missionary toolbox (to sum up the entirety of Dr. Don’s ministry in one line).

“But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God”- John 3:21

Uno, dos, tres, no otro dios,

Lauren

“Me Siento Libre”

I went yesterday with Dr. Don for what we expected to be an 8-hour day of teaching in the schools in Margarita, Rio Esteban, Bambu, and Rio Coco. However, we drove through Margarita and there was no one in sight at the school. We went down a little farther into the village and Dr. Don yelled to some kids “Por que no hay clases??” “Zelaya!!” Fantastic. The teachers union decided that they won’t have classes until Zelaya returns. We realized none of the schools we were supposed to go to would be opened, but, for the 50 millionth time we became missionaries and became flexible. Despite this, it proved to be my favorite day yet. After passing through Margarita, we went to the Bilingual School in Rio Esteban, which was the only one still open because it’s a private school. I recognized all the kids there from Natalie and my hike up to Las Ninguas our first week here. The kids recognized me too, and I was welcomed with screams and hugs. We taught the kids a few songs in Spanish and English and then I spent some time with a girl named Francis, chatting with her and teaching her English. At first though, we spent time practicing using the EvangeCard—basically like the Evangecube but slightly more efficient. Then, with as much confidence in my Spanish as I could muster up, I asked Francis about her faith. I asked if she was a Christian and when she became one. She said she became a Christian when she was 13—she’s 15 now. I then asked her if her life changed. Her response: “Si..me siento libre”… “Yes…I feel free”. I don’t even know if I understood that when I was 15. Here’s this girl in the middle of Honduras who has nothing but Christ, and she feels free because of it. She isn’t weighed down by all the extra crap in this world. She’s got all she needs. “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by the yoke of slavery” Galatians 5:1. Needless to say I quite enjoyed my time with Francis. Her favorite thing to say in English is “Heyyyyy” and like kinda bobs her head as she does it. Another kid of note at the school was a boy named Osher. I heard him being able to pronounce English really well, so I asked if he spoke English, to which he responded “Yeah I do” in like, the clearest English accent ever. It took me a second to realize he speaks English better than he does Spanish. It was refreshing.

After the Bilingual school, we drove around Rio Esteban, taking in all the sights (the pastor’s house, the high school… basically it haha) and we visited the mother of a woman named Mayra who works in the hospital. We sat in her yard for maybe 20 minutes talking about politics and what she thought of everything. She went to talk about how she doesn’t understand why so many people want to leave Honduras and go to America. She turned around and pointed at her small, beat up home, and said “what’s so bad about living here?” Life here is so much.. simpler almost. People are content with what they have. Fascinating.

Our next trek was to Bambu, where yet again the school was closed as expected. It was a beautiful drive though and I couldn’t help but be caught up in the beauty of everything around me. I was looking up at the mountains in complete awe and right at that moment, Dr. Don says to me “What’s God telling you”. Weird timing! I was reminded of Psalm 97, which I had just read the night before. “The mountains melt like wax before the LORD”. Can you even imagine?? These gigantic beautiful creations that could literally just melt away at one word from the Lord. If that’s not power, I don’t know what is.


Next stop was the coastal village of Rio Coco. I’d never been there so I was really excited to drive through. The school of course was closed, but we stopped very very close to the beach at a woman named Patricia’s house. Patricia is the director of the schools in Rio Coco and she’s a Christian. She seemed to be very impressed with my Spanish, even taking the time to pull me aside and ask me all about my life. They’re building a casita next to her house and if I was to come back here next year, she said I could live there. Hmm.. :). She was very hospitable and incredibly sweet. And also very eager to learn English as well.

Alas, there were still more adventures to be had yesterday. We went back to Rio Esteban and met in a church with about 6 people (ranging in age from 17-28) who Dr. Don plans on discipling. They’re interested in become missionaries, and Dr. Don is going to meet with them every week. We listened to a few of their testimonies and discussed different beliefs found in the village—different superstitions about childbirth and such. We also discussed what the drug trade looks like. A young man named Elvis said it’s very prominent on the north coast—mostly people selling. It was fascinating to hear about all this stuff. However, a couple minutes after Deyni arrived at the meeting, Dr. Don decided I should go to the pastor’s house and teach his daughter how to play guitar. So we hopped on the bike and went to their house. He dropped me off and drove away haha. So there I was with this little girl who didn’t speak English and a guitar. God was very gracious to me for the next two hours, giving me the confidence to talk to her (Carol) and her mother and like 5 of her cousins and I was able to understand everything they said back. It was wonderful. I taught them how to play guitar and how to sing different songs. They were so good! And I learned all about Carol and her family. She asked if I liked mangos, and proceeded to give me a bag of like 15 mangos from the tree above me. Carol was the sweetest little girl, we had so much fun. I had been there quite awhile and Dr. Don finally came back, only to find us in the back yard chatting and playing the guitar. I really wouldn’t have minded staying longer. The fact that these kids were speaking Spanish the whole time didn’t even faze me. What a blessing to get to hang out with them!

I don’t know what it was about yesterday that was so perfect. Maybe it was the fact that I felt so connected with these communities. Maybe it was the fact that I could spend time just speaking to people. Maybe it was the fact that God’s beauty couldn’t be avoided wherever I went. Maybe it was the fact that I could listen to a bunch of little kids in a random back yard leading worship with each other, using the skills I had just taught them. It’s days like that that remind me I’m here for a reason.

“Every blessing you pour out I’ll turn back to praise”

Con Libertad,

Lauren

"Are you challenged? Or are you changed?"

I think my understanding of life as I know it is changing. Last night at Perspectives, rather than going over the articles we'd read, we instead watched Revival: Hymn, something I'd never even heard of til coming here. Supposedly it's very famous. Last night i found out why. He talked about things I'd never even heard of before. Why was I never taught this stuff? Main point: The Lamb deserves the rewards for His sufferings. Say that a few times out loud. It's a monumentally different way of looking at missions and Christianity in general. And yet, it makes so much sense. Humanists, which is what most Christians are, see God as a means to an end. God granted me salvation so that, in the end, I can be happy. But shouldn't God be the end? Our happiness is only a byproduct of giving glory to God. Why should we do missions? Why am I sitting in a third-world country sweating constantly and and placing dirty fingers on guitar strings rather than sitting at my safe, air-conditioned home in New Jersey? Not because these people deserve a chance to hear about God. But rather because God deserves the chance for His people to know Him and worship Him and live for Him. He deserves it! He suffered and died for us and what does He get in return? Ten percent of our wages? He deserves us giving up our lives to serve Him. Once you realize that... well, it sort of changes everything.

Honduras, as usual, is wonderful. Hot and sticky, but wonderful. Strangely quiet without Liz and Julia, but still wonderful. Probably made even more wonderful because Amanda is now here!!Since writing last, schools have been cancelled so we haven't had much teaching to do. We did attend the weekly class in Margarita on Saturday morning which was awesome as usual. Nancy, one of the new workers at the hospital who Julia had become close with, came this week, and picked up the guitar extremely fast. And her english wasn't too shabby either. The 4:00 class in Lucinda is going well too. I finally know all of their names and some of them even break out in a little smile when they see me coming. But otherwise I think they think I'm a slavedriver. I question them about a million times "What day is today" and they give me blank stares until they realize that I'm going to keep asking, so they finally give in and answer. At about 4:30 we always head over to the smaller classroom to play piano/guitar with Mito and whoever else comes. Mito hasn't come in about a week, so we always find ourselves with about 7 or 8 little kids who can barely read but are so engrossed by our presence that they always come. We sing songs for about 45 minutes together and they belt every word, even when they don't know them. One girl, Darlene (or Stefani... I've never understood the two name thing), is 16 and has started coming every day to sing with us. She has a beautiful voice and her English pronunciation is pretty good. She invited Natalie and I to the youth group at her church on Friday night, as well as possibly to come over to her house on Sunday. The fact that these Hondurans actually want to get to know us and spend time with us is so awesome. Hopefully we'll be able to learn a lot about her life. The whole language barrier tends to make that a problem, but maybe we can like draw pictures or something.

Probably the highlight of the past few days was our adventures on Saturday after teaching in Margarita. We had originally planned to go to Rio Esteban to play in a beach volleyball tournament (Yes, try to picture that one) with a youth group from La Ceiba. However, with all the political stuff going on, the group didn't come. Dr. Don decided instead that it would be fun to go visit Deyni & Delmi's house in Rio Esteban. So Miss Penny drove Me, Natalie, and Lindy from Margarita to Rio Esteban, while Dr. Don was talking to a few people still in Margarita. We arrive at their house with open arms. Bictelia (their mother, whose name all this time i've been spelling wrong) and Walter (their brother aka Luis, again with the two names!) were extremely gracious in taking us in. Delmi was sick so she wasn't talking much but still had a huge smile on her face. Deyni arrived and we all sat around and chatted and made birthday videos for Dr. Don. Then Deyni decided we should go crocodile hunting. Yes. Crocodile hunting. So we run for like 2 minutes into this swamp-like area with the most incredible trees with roots like 5-6 feet high. Deyni says she's seen crocodiles there before and leads us in climbing up the trees to sit on a branch about 10 feet over the water of the pond. We didn't see any crocs, thank goodness, although we did see a dead dog in the water. Maybe a crocodile was close? Deyni then led us about 20 yards further to the beach! It was gorgeous and we all frolicked along in the sand/water. Deyni then turns to us and asks (in spanish) "What's blue with lots of little black spots?" We were all stumped by the riddle, so Deyni turns around and points over to the water full of people and says "The beach at Rio Esteban". I love people who speak Spanish with a sense of humor. Wonderful. After returning to Deyni's house, we chatted some more on the hammock (hamaca) and Bictelia cooked us a huge lunch. We drank the water (and took medicine today so that we wouldn't get a worm hahah). Her hospitality is still so humbling, what a precious woman. By 2:15 we had to leave because our only means of getting home was with public transportation. Honduran public transportation is a most amusing thing. It is simply a rejected yellow school bus from the States, decorated nicely inside with messages in Spanish, such as "Don't have a bad temper! Smile!". Natalie and I were of course the only gringos on the bus. It was quite the experience. We were dropped off near the missionary compound and I handed the man 30 lempira, about $2 for the both of us. Extremely efficient. We spent the rest of the day at one of the missionaries' houses having a 4th of July cookout. It was the weirdest thing ever. Everyone was decked out in their America shirts and I was just so confused. It certainly did NOT feel like 4th of July.

As for what the politics here are looking like now, I really don't know. We haven't heard much, it's been pretty quiet. There were rumors Sunday of Nicaraguan troops at the ready to help Zelaya return to the country, but that clearly didn't work. Zelaya was unable to land on the runway in Teguc and was directed to San Salvador. He was supposed to meet with Clinton today in DC I believe to work out "negotiations". The longer Zelaya is out of the country, the better. But, we're daily placing this whole situation in God's hands, praying that He'll get us out of the country safely when the time comes. There is still a curfew every night, although it pretty much changes every day. A government mandate was supposedly issued yesterday for schools to start up again, finally. So, we'll have work to do! We're going to the school in Balfate tomorrow morning, and then Dr. Don and I will be heading up in the mountains to the schools in Diamontes, Las Flores, and Satal. Should be an adventure. All of this for God's glory. He deserves it.

Por la gloria de Dios,

Lauren

PS for those of you interested in seeing many wonderful pictures, you can follow this link!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2037111&id=69103150&l=0b56e27f8c

A New Chapter

Yesterday began with news none of us wanted to hear-- "You girls might want to consider going home". With the political situation still unclear here in Honduras, and with Zelaya returning to the country on Saturday, there is a two-day window for guaranteed easy travel. The Rumbaughs presented the idea to us and insisted that we consult our parents on what they thought about the situation. They were simply unsure of how easy it will be to get out of the country in a few weeks. Dad instantly told me to come home, and I was naturally upset. Something was unsettled in me-- I felt like there was still more I needed to do here. Mom also said I should come home, but after talking with Mrs. Rumbaugh about the fact that the situation isn't urgent Mom changed her mind, and Dads as well, to which I am most grateful. Deyni and Delmi were here yesterday during all of this, and were sitting patiently on the porch wondering who could stay and who had to go. I went out and told them my parents said I could stay, and they screamed and clapped and were so excited. It was a great feeling. But soon, it looked as though everyone else would also be leaving. A giant pit accumulated in my stomach (no, not from the kidney stone, which praise the Lord I passed on Tuesday afternoon after going to the hospital) and I prayed and prayed that God would show me what to do. To stay here by myself or to go just because everyone else was too. I didn't want to be here alone and I prayed that God would show me clearly if He wanted me to stay. Two seconds later, Natalie's dad Skypes her and says they've changed their mind-- she can stay as well. Thank you Lord. When we are faithless, He always remains faithful.

So here I sit, after seeing off Liz, Julia, and Chris as they left for San Pedro Sula this morning. Three great friends that I love a lot and will miss dearly. And yet there's a reason I'm still sitting here. There's a reason Natalie's out in Rio Esteban today with Dr. Don. He still has work for us to do here. We all have different mission fields. God chose this one for us for now. And although parents, family, friends, and this entire country may fear for what is going to happen to Honduras in the next couple weeks, Psalm 12 gives me hope and peace.

"Because of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy, I will now arise", says the LORD. "I will protect them from those who malign them." And the words of the LORD are flawless, like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times. O LORD, you will keep us safe and protect us from such people forever."

While yesterday was an emotional roller coaster for all of us, we were able to spend one last night, all six of us, enjoying the beauty of God's creation and trusting in His plans for our lives. Liz got baptised last night in the ocean. A ton of people came and we all stood in a circle and I played Your Love Is Strong on the guitar. What a beautiful song to capture what every single one of us was feeling at that moment. "Why should I worry? Why should I freak out? God knows what I need". Then Dr. Don carried Liz out into the ocean as a symbol of her committment to Christ and His Kingdom. Beautiful. The rest of the night was spent enjoying delicious food (which I could finally eat!), making cookies, friendship necklaces (at Chris's dismay) and sitting under the stars, reflecting on the ways God has revealed Himself here. I count it as an incredible blessing to have been able to sit outside last night with Liz, Natalie, Julia, Chris, and Amy and sing It Is Well With My Soul at 1:30am. I think God was smiling.

So today starts something new. We're unsure of what lies ahead for Honduras, whether we'll have gasoline or food in a couple weeks, whether Zelaya's return will cause the UN to send in troops, or whether Loma de Luz will have the funds to operate. But we pray God's sovereignty over every part. He has a plan and it's exciting to be part of it. Maybe He needs us to add a few more praises in Heaven before He's done with us.

Pray for this country, for safety, for travel, and for hearts.

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

En Cristo,

Lauren