To the absolute joy of my parents, I have stopped running around the coast of La Moskitia and come home. It is good to be back, even though the transition can sometimes be a little hard.
The Bible Study took off fairly well. Lorena got excited when I told her about and gave us a beautiful little spot underneath a mango tree to study. The core group started off small but some days we would have 7 or 8 youth coming, which was exciting. We had a few people who were seriously thinking about Christianity for the first time, so we started reading through Matthew to get a look at who Jesus really is. It was so exciting to see God creating this curiosity in youth who had not considered Christianity before or had already decided that it was not for them. It was also nice to see youth from the two different churches occasionally coming together for something.
Holy Week, or Semana Santa, is big in La Moskitia. The kids have the week off from school and the churches have daily services leading up to Easter Sunday, so most of them know when Holy week is even when no one can figure out what day it is today. :) They use the holy week readings (in Miskito) to tell the story of Jesus' last week before the cross just like we do in the Moravian church here in the states.
The youth of Cocobila wanted to do something special for Semana Santa, so friend and I got together to plan some songs and dances for the girls to do. I think we did about five songs and dances throughout the whole week. It was just a really good opportunity to spend time with the youth from Cocobila. I knew them, but since I lived in Belen it was hard to spend a lot of time with them before this. I also got to teach them Prince of Peace in Spanish which was fun. It is a beautiful song that sings out some of the names of God but is kinda intimidating if your singing it for the first time. They loved it though and did a really great job.
Right before Holy Week, our neighbors found out some horrible news. The man who lived there, who was a husband and a father, had chosen a lifestyle and career that was neither legal or safe. He had left for a trip to South America and had not returned. Not too much later a family member came to the house bringing the news that he would not be coming home. The news of his death was really hard on his family, but especially hard two of his young teenage daughters. Since they live nearby and are close to my age, the girls and I had become friends. The girls were not Christian, not having grown up in the church like I had, and I was. We had always been open about it and it had never gotten in the way of our friendship. But after their father died, they were hurt and confused and looking for something deeper in their lives. They did not like the direction their lives were going and made the decision to start going to church. I would come to their house before church in the morning/evening and escort them to church and back. I would sometimes even be the preacher for the night. That's when you start praying really hard about the words coming out of your mouth, that they are from God and speak love to his children. They even became 'the regulars' at our Bible Study. One day during Holy Week their mother surprised us with a visit and even asked Lorena to pray with her. I've called since I've been home but haven't gotten through to them yet.
Palm Sunday, the next door neighbor's two daughters and I actually caught a truck ride to Cocobila for the morning service. I know we all felt blessed and a bit more fresh getting to church not drenched in sweat from the hot walk. We walked into church tp find that some of the palm trees outside have donated their foliage in honor of this special morning. Then we got to singing Hosana, I wasn't the only one having problems. Once I realized the M's and W's next to the lines we were supposed to sing didn't stand for Men and Women but Waikna (men) and Mairen (women), the congregation had also figured out the general idea of the song and it was sounding pretty good.
On Thursday Cocobila and Belen gathered together for Holy Communion. Everyone came dressed in their white communion clothes, which I figured out after showing up to my first communion not in white. The service was beautiful and went from the morning until early in the afternoon. Sam Gray and Thomas Baucom had come in to Belen the day before so they called us up to sing (Sam, his wife Lorena and their two chilren White Man and Lea). Afterwards we went home and i got to dig into some Pizza Hut that Sam had brought in from Ceiba, which so makes up for not telling me about the white clothes for communion thing.
On Good Friday we went to Cocobila for the morning service, Sam preached. I ended up staying all day to go over the songs and dances for that night with the older girls in chior. Thomas came and played guitar for us while we sang. Since I invited Thomas to the service I felt that I should atleast translate for him when the sermon started. Well, the man preaching spoke rather enthuisiastically and his voice was distorted a bit by the speaker right next to us so..... the version of the sermon Thomas got that night might not have been exactly what everyone else heard, but it was definately interesting.
That Saturday was my last Saturday with my Belen children's chior. It was a great day though. The kids learned Redimido Soy (I've Been Redeemed translated to spanish by a wonderful bishop I know) so we spent the afternoon screaming at the top of our lungs. I then scrounged up what ever voice I had left to work with the youth choir on the song they had chosen for Easter Sunday.
Easter Sunday was crazy, wonderful but crazy. We stayed in Belen for the morning service, but that night there was a revival in Cocobila and my friends from next door wanted to go so we went together. But In between I got to go to the traditional church in Belen. Before leaving that night the girls came over to help cook dinner, I had told them we were eating American food that night. We had Moravian chicken pie and green beans that my loving parents sent down with Sam. So the girls and I cooked and cleaned up and headed over to church. Cooking with them was great, even tough they weren't as nearly excited about green beans as I was.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Time has flown by since arriving in Belen. In Honduras there has been a division in the Moravian church as a result of this in many towns in La Moskitia you will find two Moravian churches, one Iglesia Morava Tradicional and one Iglesia Morava Renuvada. This is true for both Belen and Cocobila, the towns that I am working in. It’s easy to stay busy preaching and visiting all the churches.
I couldn’t begin to imagine church in La Moskitia without music. Singing is such a huge part of life here. A missionary friend in Ahuas and I were talking one day about how Miskitu isn’t spoken, it’s sung. Whenever someone is excited about something they don’t talk about, instead it they sing about it. The language has a flow, a beat. Maybe that’s why worship is such an important part of the services here. Every Sunday we sing from La Vida Cristiana, a Spanish hymnal, and the Miskitu Hymnal, which has a lot of the good old Moravian hymns I’m used to hearing. In both Tradicional and Renuvada there are also songs called coros de adoracion, they are these beautiful sung prayers that fill your soul. They are short and simple but the congregations can go on singing for more than an hour. In the Iglesias Renuvadas, worship takes form in not only singing but in dance as well. I was baptized, raised, and confirmed in Southern Province Moravian Churches where dancing doesn’t really take place outside of the annual fall square dance. Although it took some getting used to, I have experienced some of the most liberating and beautiful worship here in La Moskitia.
Even the kids are involved; often they’re the first ones up front dancing. They’re unashamed to get up in front of the church to dance, jump and sing. We could all probably use a bit more of that unashamed attitude in worship. I’ve started teaching a group of young girls in Belen some new songs and dances, it’s basically a small children’s choir. There have been a few times when I’ve been surprised by these girls. When I was their age, I don’t know, I liked to sing and everything but I didn’t really have a clue what worship was. They just seem to have this genuine desire to praise God. We were going over one song, Yo Te Busco, and I told the girls it was ok just to relax and do whatever they felt like while we were singing. When they started singing, I turned to grab a songbook and when I turned back around one little girl in the middle had closed her eyes and raised her hands. It took my breath away this little girl worshipping. Maybe they don’t completely understand the words they’re singing or why they are singing them but that doesn’t bother them, they just come to worship.
Earlier this month, I went with some youth from Belen and Cocobila to a retreat just on the other side of the lagoon. People came from maybe 10 different towns to meet at this small camp called Sinai to fast and pray. We ended up arriving late and were only there for four days, the whole retreat lasted a week. It was economical and easy to pack for since we didn’t have to worry about food. :) We slept on the cement floor of the church and spent most of the day singing and praying and listening to local pastors preach. On the last night the service went until 3 in the morning. I know it sounds a bit crazy but it was a really wonderful time seeking God and praying for everything that's going on here.
The similarities between the youth here and the youth at home continue to amaze me. We’ve grown up in completely different cultures and situations but when it comes to following Christ we still all have the basic desires and struggles. Even though we don’t speak the same language or listen to the same music these common bonds allow us to identify with each other. Without them I would feel pretty lost.
Miraculously, the different churches have their youth services on different nights during the week so I’m able to go to all of them weekly. It’s a little different here than in Ahuas, it is a service for the youth but the adults and children come too. Which is fine but it makes preaching a little more intimidating. That’s right, I find preaching intimidating at times. It’s getting easier but it still feels weird preaching to full congregations and not just youth my age. The youth from both churches in Belen and I should be starting up a new Bible study this week. I’m really excited because the Bible studies are what I miss most from Ahuas. Plus it’s encouraging to have the two churches coming together for something.
I couldn’t begin to imagine church in La Moskitia without music. Singing is such a huge part of life here. A missionary friend in Ahuas and I were talking one day about how Miskitu isn’t spoken, it’s sung. Whenever someone is excited about something they don’t talk about, instead it they sing about it. The language has a flow, a beat. Maybe that’s why worship is such an important part of the services here. Every Sunday we sing from La Vida Cristiana, a Spanish hymnal, and the Miskitu Hymnal, which has a lot of the good old Moravian hymns I’m used to hearing. In both Tradicional and Renuvada there are also songs called coros de adoracion, they are these beautiful sung prayers that fill your soul. They are short and simple but the congregations can go on singing for more than an hour. In the Iglesias Renuvadas, worship takes form in not only singing but in dance as well. I was baptized, raised, and confirmed in Southern Province Moravian Churches where dancing doesn’t really take place outside of the annual fall square dance. Although it took some getting used to, I have experienced some of the most liberating and beautiful worship here in La Moskitia.
Even the kids are involved; often they’re the first ones up front dancing. They’re unashamed to get up in front of the church to dance, jump and sing. We could all probably use a bit more of that unashamed attitude in worship. I’ve started teaching a group of young girls in Belen some new songs and dances, it’s basically a small children’s choir. There have been a few times when I’ve been surprised by these girls. When I was their age, I don’t know, I liked to sing and everything but I didn’t really have a clue what worship was. They just seem to have this genuine desire to praise God. We were going over one song, Yo Te Busco, and I told the girls it was ok just to relax and do whatever they felt like while we were singing. When they started singing, I turned to grab a songbook and when I turned back around one little girl in the middle had closed her eyes and raised her hands. It took my breath away this little girl worshipping. Maybe they don’t completely understand the words they’re singing or why they are singing them but that doesn’t bother them, they just come to worship.
Earlier this month, I went with some youth from Belen and Cocobila to a retreat just on the other side of the lagoon. People came from maybe 10 different towns to meet at this small camp called Sinai to fast and pray. We ended up arriving late and were only there for four days, the whole retreat lasted a week. It was economical and easy to pack for since we didn’t have to worry about food. :) We slept on the cement floor of the church and spent most of the day singing and praying and listening to local pastors preach. On the last night the service went until 3 in the morning. I know it sounds a bit crazy but it was a really wonderful time seeking God and praying for everything that's going on here.
The similarities between the youth here and the youth at home continue to amaze me. We’ve grown up in completely different cultures and situations but when it comes to following Christ we still all have the basic desires and struggles. Even though we don’t speak the same language or listen to the same music these common bonds allow us to identify with each other. Without them I would feel pretty lost.
Miraculously, the different churches have their youth services on different nights during the week so I’m able to go to all of them weekly. It’s a little different here than in Ahuas, it is a service for the youth but the adults and children come too. Which is fine but it makes preaching a little more intimidating. That’s right, I find preaching intimidating at times. It’s getting easier but it still feels weird preaching to full congregations and not just youth my age. The youth from both churches in Belen and I should be starting up a new Bible study this week. I’m really excited because the Bible studies are what I miss most from Ahuas. Plus it’s encouraging to have the two churches coming together for something.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Last night, I got the opprotunity to preach for a culto de jovenes, or youth group, at a church near our house in Ceiba. I think it went pretty well. Since it was on Valentine's day I thought a message on love would be appropriate. It was a good group. this is one of my favorite churches here in Ceiba. It seems like I'm always here on Sundays so I've been to this church more times than the ones in Belen and Cocobila.
Culto de jovenes is one of the things I have enjoyed most during my time in Honduras. In Ahuas the youth group is temporarily without a leader but there is a YWAM, Youth With A Mission, group there right now and they been helpoing out. Its actually working out really well, several of them play guitar and we had been taking turns giving the message. This past thursday was my last culto en Ahuas. It was sad but a perfect ending to my time there. It's just such an amazing experience when so many youth get together to praise God and listen to his word.
Tonight I actually get to go preach at a Moravian church. They have their service in the evening. God's really opened up a lot of doors for me here in Ceiba. I'm only here for a few short days but they are jammed packed with stuff to do.
We leave in the morning for Belen. I'm really excited. I love working with the youth in La Moskitia, it has been one of the most incredible experiences in my life to be able to see God working in and through the youth here.
Please continue praying for me and that God will continue revealing himself to the youth of La Moskitia.
Culto de jovenes is one of the things I have enjoyed most during my time in Honduras. In Ahuas the youth group is temporarily without a leader but there is a YWAM, Youth With A Mission, group there right now and they been helpoing out. Its actually working out really well, several of them play guitar and we had been taking turns giving the message. This past thursday was my last culto en Ahuas. It was sad but a perfect ending to my time there. It's just such an amazing experience when so many youth get together to praise God and listen to his word.
Tonight I actually get to go preach at a Moravian church. They have their service in the evening. God's really opened up a lot of doors for me here in Ceiba. I'm only here for a few short days but they are jammed packed with stuff to do.
We leave in the morning for Belen. I'm really excited. I love working with the youth in La Moskitia, it has been one of the most incredible experiences in my life to be able to see God working in and through the youth here.
Please continue praying for me and that God will continue revealing himself to the youth of La Moskitia.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Feliz Dia de Amor y Amistad!
I’m sorry that it has been so long without any posts. Not being able to communicate with the outside world is something that comes with living in La Moskitia. When you think about it though, when you’re in such a beautiful place with so many wonderful people who needs internet?
For the past few weeks I’ve been working with the Moravian Evangelic Clinic in Ahuas. It has been nice to come back to some familiar faces. This time I mostly helped out with some much needed office work and fixing some problems with the clinic’s computers. Then after work every day I taught English, like the last time. However, this time I had more children than adults and ended up teaching two classes each day. I taught the children for 45 minutes and then the adults. It made for a longer day but it was well worth the time and energy. There was this one group of girls who really wanted to learn. Class started at five but every day at four, or sometimes earlier, I would hear them running through the clinic calling my name. People started referring to them as my children after a while. They were so much fun to teach. They learned the normal things like the alphabet and beginning vocabulary but what they really wanted to learn was worship songs in English. I ended up teaching them Do Lord, which they already knew in Miskitu. One afternoon while I was working they serenaded me from out side my office window with Do Lord and Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes.
I’ll never forget one Sunday, after walking home from a children’s church in the afternoon, I stopped by the house to wash my feet. I had just dragged a bucket of water to the front porch when Kari and Katy, two of the girls showed up. They sat down to talk for a while and when Katy saw me star to wash my feet, without hesitation she grabbed my soap and started washing the other foot. Here I am the missionary and this precious little girl is bending down to wash my feet. Thursday was my last night in Ahuas so we had a mini fiesta to celebrate the end of English class. We sipped on Pepsi whiled the girls showed their parents what they had learned.
On Sundays I went back to helping out with Sunday school and the two different children’s churches. The first children’s church is at Bethel Moravian, the church right next to the clinic. One morning we had to wait a while for church to start so I began going over what I had planned for the lesson that day. We were going to talk about how Jesus is our closest friend. I was thinking what a shame that Jesus is a Friend is only in English so a friend helped me translate part of it in Miskitu. :D
Then we were walking around looking for somewhere to sit and have class when my sandal broke. But it was perfect timeing because it gave us a chance to talk about how God’s love isn’t like sandals… If we use it every day it won’t wear down, break, or run out but grow stronger.
The second children’s church is in a neighborhood not to far from the clinic. These kids are always so excited to see us coming. We tell, more like act out, Bible stories for them, sings songs, and play games. The older ones even memorize Bible verses. One Sunday we were acting out the story of Jesus and the disciples in a boat during a bad storm and when we finished one of the boys, Jackie, told us that it wasn’t enough that they wanted to hear more of the Word of God. They never cease to amaze me. I think Jackie is going to be a preacher when he grows up.
Only one of their teachers is left in Ahuas now that I’m gone. The others have left to study in other cities. I was talking with one of the teachers today in La Ceiba, we were talking about how these kids need someone to love them. It’s something they want and need so badly in their lives, someone to show them the patient, perfect love of God.
I’m running out of time, I have so much more to say but I’ve actually been given the opportunity to preach at a church tonight so I need to go home and get ready. I should be able to post again tomorrow. Thank you so much for your prayers and support.
I’m sorry that it has been so long without any posts. Not being able to communicate with the outside world is something that comes with living in La Moskitia. When you think about it though, when you’re in such a beautiful place with so many wonderful people who needs internet?
For the past few weeks I’ve been working with the Moravian Evangelic Clinic in Ahuas. It has been nice to come back to some familiar faces. This time I mostly helped out with some much needed office work and fixing some problems with the clinic’s computers. Then after work every day I taught English, like the last time. However, this time I had more children than adults and ended up teaching two classes each day. I taught the children for 45 minutes and then the adults. It made for a longer day but it was well worth the time and energy. There was this one group of girls who really wanted to learn. Class started at five but every day at four, or sometimes earlier, I would hear them running through the clinic calling my name. People started referring to them as my children after a while. They were so much fun to teach. They learned the normal things like the alphabet and beginning vocabulary but what they really wanted to learn was worship songs in English. I ended up teaching them Do Lord, which they already knew in Miskitu. One afternoon while I was working they serenaded me from out side my office window with Do Lord and Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes.
I’ll never forget one Sunday, after walking home from a children’s church in the afternoon, I stopped by the house to wash my feet. I had just dragged a bucket of water to the front porch when Kari and Katy, two of the girls showed up. They sat down to talk for a while and when Katy saw me star to wash my feet, without hesitation she grabbed my soap and started washing the other foot. Here I am the missionary and this precious little girl is bending down to wash my feet. Thursday was my last night in Ahuas so we had a mini fiesta to celebrate the end of English class. We sipped on Pepsi whiled the girls showed their parents what they had learned.
On Sundays I went back to helping out with Sunday school and the two different children’s churches. The first children’s church is at Bethel Moravian, the church right next to the clinic. One morning we had to wait a while for church to start so I began going over what I had planned for the lesson that day. We were going to talk about how Jesus is our closest friend. I was thinking what a shame that Jesus is a Friend is only in English so a friend helped me translate part of it in Miskitu. :D
Then we were walking around looking for somewhere to sit and have class when my sandal broke. But it was perfect timeing because it gave us a chance to talk about how God’s love isn’t like sandals… If we use it every day it won’t wear down, break, or run out but grow stronger.
The second children’s church is in a neighborhood not to far from the clinic. These kids are always so excited to see us coming. We tell, more like act out, Bible stories for them, sings songs, and play games. The older ones even memorize Bible verses. One Sunday we were acting out the story of Jesus and the disciples in a boat during a bad storm and when we finished one of the boys, Jackie, told us that it wasn’t enough that they wanted to hear more of the Word of God. They never cease to amaze me. I think Jackie is going to be a preacher when he grows up.
Only one of their teachers is left in Ahuas now that I’m gone. The others have left to study in other cities. I was talking with one of the teachers today in La Ceiba, we were talking about how these kids need someone to love them. It’s something they want and need so badly in their lives, someone to show them the patient, perfect love of God.
I’m running out of time, I have so much more to say but I’ve actually been given the opportunity to preach at a church tonight so I need to go home and get ready. I should be able to post again tomorrow. Thank you so much for your prayers and support.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Home Sweet Home
I'm home for the holidays!
I didn't have internet access for last little bit so lt me catch you up.
Time in Ahuas flew by, I ended up working there for about three weeks. It was fantastic.
At the clinic, I learned how to take blood pressure and helped out taking temperatures and weighing babies. Interacting with the patients was always a blast, they were always willing to help me with my Miskitu. Shadowing Dr. Rudy on his rounds was one of the most exciting and enlightening parts of my trip.
My English class even got a hang on conjugating in present tense. I think they were one of the toughest groups to leave behind. They were so enthusiastic and definitely made my first teaching experience memorable. Class started at 5:00 pm honduras time (so really around 5:15-5:30) and 5:30 is when the electricity comes on. But there was a problem with our light, you have to rotate it until it lights up. Every night we would precariously stack two tables on top of each other and someone would climb and fix our light. All my students were older than I am but we had a great time.
The kids from sunday school were just about as hard to leave as my English students. There are two different Sunday Schools on Sundays. One is at the Moravian Church by the clinic during the moning service and the other is later in the afternoon outside in a nearby neighborhood. When I got back to La Ceiba, a friend of mine from Ahuas was in town and we got to buy Christmas presents for the second group. My friend took the presents back to Ahuas and will pass them out for us. These kids are so sweet and might not be getting much else for Christmas.
Before I knew it my time in Ahuas was up. We finally got a flight out on one of the mission airplanes that run out of the clinic. Finally, I was making my way to Belen. The plan for Belen is to work with the youth in Belen and some other surrounding towns as well as to teach an english class. However, with only one week in Belen we didn't really have enough time to get anything started. Instead I got to spend the time visiting the Moravian churches in Belen and Cocobila, another nearby town. I'm really looking forward to working with the ministers and youth there.
One of the projects they want me to help with is to make Spanish/Miskitu praise and worship songbooks for the youth. They really want to learn some new songs, so I'll be able to teach them the songs I learned in Ahuas.
I'll be going back in January to begin working with the youth in Belen and Cocobila. I'm also looking into working with the youth in a few other towns that are a bit further away.
I didn't have internet access for last little bit so lt me catch you up.
Time in Ahuas flew by, I ended up working there for about three weeks. It was fantastic.
At the clinic, I learned how to take blood pressure and helped out taking temperatures and weighing babies. Interacting with the patients was always a blast, they were always willing to help me with my Miskitu. Shadowing Dr. Rudy on his rounds was one of the most exciting and enlightening parts of my trip.
My English class even got a hang on conjugating in present tense. I think they were one of the toughest groups to leave behind. They were so enthusiastic and definitely made my first teaching experience memorable. Class started at 5:00 pm honduras time (so really around 5:15-5:30) and 5:30 is when the electricity comes on. But there was a problem with our light, you have to rotate it until it lights up. Every night we would precariously stack two tables on top of each other and someone would climb and fix our light. All my students were older than I am but we had a great time.
The kids from sunday school were just about as hard to leave as my English students. There are two different Sunday Schools on Sundays. One is at the Moravian Church by the clinic during the moning service and the other is later in the afternoon outside in a nearby neighborhood. When I got back to La Ceiba, a friend of mine from Ahuas was in town and we got to buy Christmas presents for the second group. My friend took the presents back to Ahuas and will pass them out for us. These kids are so sweet and might not be getting much else for Christmas.
Before I knew it my time in Ahuas was up. We finally got a flight out on one of the mission airplanes that run out of the clinic. Finally, I was making my way to Belen. The plan for Belen is to work with the youth in Belen and some other surrounding towns as well as to teach an english class. However, with only one week in Belen we didn't really have enough time to get anything started. Instead I got to spend the time visiting the Moravian churches in Belen and Cocobila, another nearby town. I'm really looking forward to working with the ministers and youth there.
One of the projects they want me to help with is to make Spanish/Miskitu praise and worship songbooks for the youth. They really want to learn some new songs, so I'll be able to teach them the songs I learned in Ahuas.
I'll be going back in January to begin working with the youth in Belen and Cocobila. I'm also looking into working with the youth in a few other towns that are a bit further away.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Ahuas!!!
So I've been in Ahuas for over a week now. It is really amazing what the clinic (above) is doing here. I've gained a huge respect for people in the medical feild and an even greater respect for doctors who work without electricity most of the time. The clinic does everything from dental work to birthing for people who don't have any where else to go.
There is a great youth group here thats kept me busy. God's blessed me with the oportunity to work with the youth on Saundays during Chidren's Church and at youth group throughtout the week. We've also started an English class 6 days a week for people from the community.
Right now I'm living with a nurse and her family close to the clinic. We had a tortilla making lesson last night that went fairly well. Only one of my tortillas ended up on the floor. There's a little boy there, the nurses son, he didn't like me to much at first but he's getting used to me. He's adorable, when we're at church he sings and dances along to the hymns eventhough he's only two.His favorite song has a part in it about jumping and dancing and clapping for Dios so we'll sing it at home for him while he jumps around. I think one of my favorite things about La Moskitia is the worship. Although I can't really understand them yet, I love the Miskitu hymns.
There's also a youth chior here that meets during the week, so I've been able to learn How Great Thou Art and Holy,Holy,Holy in Spanish. Last night we sang Christmas carols all night long. In Miskitu, Spanish, English and even Norwegian (There are a few missionaries here from Norway).
One of my friends here wanted to share something so I am going to let him type for a little while.
"It is really nice to have Leah here. She has been a great help to the work that we are doing here. Please keep her in your prayers. I know that God will continue to use her in a great way.
She has been doing numerous things here. She has taught the children, participated in a choir, got to know many people, taught English class, done some work in the clinic, got to know a monkey, started learning guitar, and numerous other things that she would probably leave out of the blog. We try to keep her as busy as possible. :) She is a great blesing to everyone that she meets here in Ahuas (Although, some children are a bit afraid of her. They sort of run away from her. It is not her fault though)."
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Church on Sunday was wonderful. First we went to a small Moravian church morning service. The one-room church was packed, there was not a single empty chair and a few people had to stand in the back. I got to meet a few more of Lorena's family members there, she has family every where... it's fantastic. :) Then later, after a nice swim in the river, we went to a nearby evening service. This church wasn't Moravian but I felt right at home. It was a beautiful service with a strong message and plenty of time for worship. One thing that struck me most about this church was that it wasn't a church, or at least what most of us think of as a church. There were no walls, only wooden beams and a tin roof. The sound of the Hondurans worshiping flowed out to the surrounding neighborhood. This church was not open solely in a literal since either, it was warm and welcoming and made a great effort to reach out to the community. They run two buses every week to provide free transportation for anyone who wishes to attend their service. Which is a big deal in a city where many people do not own cars and public transportation can become expensive.
A missionary friend of mine flew in from the US yesterday, so we spent most of the day together. He brought some letters and goodies from home (thanks to everyone who sent something, it really made my day!), including my USB cord for my camera. I'm putting all my pictures on facebook because blogger is having a some trouble uploading them. We spent a good part of the day doing some shopping for the medical clinic in Ahuas, they are building a small solar panel tower and my friend is helping the with the construction. I was able to act as a translator on our little shopping trip, which was exciting :D. We are both flying to the clinic tomorrow! I should be there for about a week, then I will make my final trip to Belen and stay there for the remainder of my time in Honduras.
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