Fear

Another thought from the book, "To walk on the water, you got to get out of the boat." The single command in scripture that occurs more often than any other is God's most repeated instruction..."FEAR NOT." It has been stated that verses in scripture with "fear not" in them numbers 366 times. Is it possible that God uses this term so often because we as humans are tempted to avoid doing what God askes us to do because of fear? Fear will sink us faster than anything else we feel. I t disrupts our faith and becomes the biggest obstacle to trusting and obeying God. The way we live is a consequence of the size of our God. The problem that many of us have is that our God is WAY TOO small. We are not convinced that we are absolutely safe in the hands of a fully competent, all-knowing and ever-present God. If we wake up in the mornings with a small God then we live in a constant state of fear and anxiety because EVERYTHING depends on us!!! When human beings shrink God, they offer prayer without faith, work without passion, service without joy, suffering without hope. It results in fear, loss of vision, and failure to persevere. So...tonight lets all vow to Fear Not! Believe in our mighty God and WORK with service, PRAY in faith, PROVIDE service with a passion and even in suffering....NEVER loose HOPE!!!! In these difficult days remember not to let anyone or anything steal your JOY!!! Have a blessed weekend and for those of you who know Julie Westbrook.....PRAISE GOD!!! :)

Lessons from Eve

I am home still sick this AM with a head and chest cold. I tried to get up and go to worship but I am still pretty weak. So....instead I sat down with my contemporary christian music on, read from my Bible and worked on my weekly lesson for our small group. We are doing a workbook on Women of the Bible. The first lady of course would be none other than EVE! :) A few things were brought out about Eve in this lesson...first that she was made from Adam and in God's image, she was Adam's helpmate and companion in all things, and then of course she is blamed for the first sin. It seems it did not take long at all for God's creation to become selfish and self-centered!! Seeing how good the fruit looked to their eye, ignoring what God had said, and listening to the crafty tempter led to the first sin. Soon afterwards, Adam and Eve covered themselves and tried to hide! How many times have I done the same thing?! Let the temptation take over and selfishly thought how much better "I" would feel if I just did or did not do this or that? Then when all is said and done, tried to hide what I had done or did not do? Knowing nothing is ever hidden from God...but still tried to hide it from others. How many times can we see in our lives or in the lives of others where hidden sin has a ripple effect for generations to come? Just as Adam and Eve's sin affected mankind forever....the same is true of our sins. My sin does not just affect me...it affects those around me also. I have seen in my family and many others where one's sin affects many for genereations to come. Even those sins we seem to classify as the "small ones" will have that ripple effect. So...today I plan on placing this thought into my memory and learn a lesson from Eve. My actions today could possibly have that "ripple effect" on my loved ones for years to come. I WANT to choose love and loving those around me takes ACTION on my part. So today I ask for forgiveness for those times my actions were self-centered and they had an affect on others I love. I also will pray for strength in fighting this self-centeredness and trust more in God's mightiness. I am certainly no different than the first woman God created and I want to learn a lesson from EVE!

Focusing on Jesus.....our HOPE

Another interesting thought from the book I read while in Honduras was on HOPE. In the account in Matthew of Peter walking on the water, Matthew seems to want us to understand something very clearly. While Peter's mind was focused on Jesus, he was empowered to walk on the water. But when his focus shifted to the storm, his fear short-circuited his ability to receive God's sustaining power. Trust held Peter up...but fear sank him! Just as Peter, when we have lost our HOPE, TRUST OR CONFIDENCE, we are also SUNK! HOPE is the fuel that the human heart runs on! HOPE is what prompts a young couple to say "I do." HOPE is why humans keep bringing children into a fallen world. HOPE is why there are universities and hospitals. The story of nearly every powerful character in the Bible is the story of HOPE!! Abraham, Moses, David, Joseph, and Job...just to name a few. In today's world with a poor economy, lost jobs, debts increasing, stress everywhere, wars taking our loved ones and when it seems everyone is out for themselves, it is often hard to remain hopeful. It takes a constant focus on Jesus to empower us also to continue on sometimes. When we are looking to Jesus instead of down at self, we will find that, in him......all is possible. Without that focus...we are filled with fear and doubt for the future. Or we trust in our mere human wisdom that we have and that often leads to the failures we encounter. So it is my daily prayer that I will keep focused on the one that will always hold me up in the daily "storms of life." It is HE who will sustain me....... not anything I can do! In HIM lies my HOPE!!!!.

God is Working!

BJ'S Buddies, our small group, met again this past Monday evening for the first time since we returned from Honduras. This is an awesome group of ladies that I have grown to trust and love. No matter how tired I am sometimes on Monday evenings, after a Monday at work.....these ladies can lift my spirits and remind me why I am there with them. This Monday was no different. Many people were on our minds this Monday evening as we discussed those we needed to especially pray for. One special request was for a friend of ours that is a part of our "family" at the Belpre church. Her name is Julia. We all knew she had not been feeling well but were contemplating what we could do to help her out in a tough situation. We quickly decided we just needed to go visit first and see what was needed. So we arranged a time to meet last night and all went together. We were there only a few minutes when we told Julia we needed to get her to the ER right now. Julia has many concerns....but I think she knew it was time to go! So we got her to the car and took her to CCMH ER. It did not take the ER nurses long to realize that this lady needed some immediate attention also. Julia is now in the ICU with about 50 pounds of extra fluid on her and in critical condition! She is only 45 years old and needs the prayers of all of us. They are talking now of taking her to Pittsburgh for better care of her heart and lungs. So.......in ending today......all I have to say is NEVER doubt that God does not have a plan!! I do not think it was "by chance" that we went to visit Julia last night. God was in control and guided us to our friend's door last night. I am soooooo glad we listened! :) Please pray for healing for my friend, Julia. She has now been diagnosed with Pulmonary Hypertension......not an easy disease to combat. GOD IS MIGHTY!!!

Worshipping God

I am a bit under the weather today with the "crud" as I choose to call it, and did not go to "worship" this AM. Instead I am sitting at home reading and doing my own solitude type of worship to God. Have we ever wondered why God insists that we worship him? Another book I read in Honduras touched on this and I will share with you what that author shared in the book. We are asked to worship God not because God's ego needs us to, but because without worship, our experience and enjoyment of God are not complete. We worship God not because he needs it, but because we do. I need to worship because without it I forget that I have a mighty God beside me and I live in fear. I need to worship because without it I can forget his calling and begin to live in a spirit of preoccupation. I need to worship because without it I lose a sense of wonder and gratitude and plod through life with blinders on. I need to worship because my natural tendency is toward self-reliance and stubborn independence. In worship we declare that God is real. In worship our perception of reality is changed and sharpened. In worship I remember that reality is more than what I can see and touch. In worship I acknowledge that I look at a shrunken God on a regular basis, and worship reminds me to magnify him....because he is a Mighty God! So.....yes I NEED to worship my mighty God because being of this human species he created, I can sooooo quickly forget that he is there beside me each step of the way! So.....no matter where you are today....take some time and "worship" our God....because we NEED to!

Stuck in a cave?

While in Honduras I had the time to read a few books. One of them was, "If You Want to Walk On Water, You Gotta Get Out of the Boat. " I would like to share some thoughts that I felt were important in my life and hopefully in yours as well. Sometimes there seems to be no way out of the "CAVES" that life places us in at times. We may feel we are in this dark, deep bottomless hole or cave with NO way out. ALL seems pretty hopeless! In those times all you can do is find refuge in God. As you do seek this refuge, you will come to learn that God knows all about caves, because Jesus suffered just like us and for us. Jesus understood that sinking feeling. Jesus began his life in humble ways. As an adult he lost his status as a teacher, his safety and security. He lost not only his best friend, but all his friends, in spite of his teachings and warnings. His life too was endangered. But his failure grew even worse. He was taken to the cross and crucified. All his dreams, and all the dreams he inspired, appeared to die with him. What started as a shining success appeared to end in failure....TOTAL failure! As he carried his cross to be crucified, it would seem that ALL was lost....there was NO HOPE!!!! And then they put his body in the cave. His body was there for three days but they could not keep him there! They forgot that God does his best work in caves! So....what kind of cave are you in right now??? Maybe a lost job, a lost marriage, a child who has disappointed you, or financial loss? Sooner of later we all have those moments in our lives, when we find ourselves in a cave. So when your time comes....just remember that God does some of his best work in caves. Allow God to take the reign and guide you through the darkness of the "CAVE" you are in. There is HOPE...there is a light and God is it. God is mighty and if you allow him....he will be there and pull you through anything that life can throw your way. I know...because he has done this time and time again in my life. :)

Home Sweet Home

After three hours sleep last night because I was "wired" after I got home, we got up and went to church this AM. I understood this service! We then grabbed a sandwhich and went to the grocery store to collect a few things we needed and came home. I then cleaned and bleached out the garage where our dog and one cat were while we were gone, due to the weather and picked up some large limbs.....again due to the weather! :) It was soooo good to see friends at church again and catch up on everyone. I then went through the mail, paid those dreaded bills and we did laundry. Tonight I am hoping to finally sleep and get back into my routine at work again tomorrow....and life goes one. It was also good to talk to my kids and mom again and just hear their voices! Missed them while I was gone. :) So....my life will not be as exciting now...just the usual daily stuff....but I will continue to add to this blog as the "spirit" moves me. Have a blessed week and remember to make a difference to somone who needs you this week! Sharon

Thankyous!

It is now 3AM and I am home in my own bed but cannot sleep. :( So....just wanted to say thank you to a few people that made this trip possible and so interesting. First of all Connie and Mark Kaufman who braved the snow and ice and fed our border collie and four cats. As many of you know...it is not easy sometimes getting down into our place or out of it in the snow and ice and they came each day and fed and watered them in the freezing temps....thanks so much. Then there is Lisa, Anita's daughter, in Columbus that took what Anita calls the "demon dog." Our sweet little yorkie! :) She had him for two weeks and he is not always the easiest dog to deal with especially in an apt with lots of noises! Lisa also took us to the airport and picked us up tonight....so Lisa...thanks soooo much!!! What would we do without you? Then there is Karen and Dorian who shared their little apt with us at the orphanage and put up with us for two weeks. They also translated everything for me and were kind enough to direct me to the dames restroom! :) Among other things...they could have been tricky if they so chose! :) Others would have! :) As I said before, I admire the sacrifice they have made in Honduras and although I KNOW it is hard at the goodbyes and Karen misses home and family alot.....she is doing a terrific job there. Then there are the Tindall's who were kind enough to arrange to build a house while we were there so we could experience that and also let us tag along to the dump with them last Wed. So for the experiences they allowed us to share with them...I thank them also and appreciate the sacrifices they make on a daily basis. For Jenn and David who met us at the airport with the five brothers...thank you also...they are always a special treat for grandma Anita! Then there is Ashley and all the workers at the orpahanage.....all dedicated and hard working people. There was more than a few tears shed as we said goodbye to them as we left. Just sweet, sweet, ladies. Then there are the kids and all the love and hugs they share. SOOOOOO many issues with these kids...but loving on you and hugging is not one of them. It has been a rewarding two weeks and I look forward, God willing, to going back again someday. SO thanks to all of you who made this trip possible in whatever way you did! God Bless! Sharon

We are nearly home!!!

It is after 11PM and Anita felt we needed to stay at Lisa's and finish this story....so here I am too. It was a sad day in Honduras. First we said our goodbyes to the ladies at the orphange...one of which had made us something and gave it to us this AM with tears in her eyes. Then we said goodbye to the kids and we had tears in our eyes, I gave Pamela , the one that had surgery on her foot, my watch as I hugged her goodbye. Now I need to pick up another one soon before I can take any pulses at work!!!! :) So...I came home from HOnduras minus one camera, one watch and a finger nail file!! :) We gave the helpers a little gift as we left and again we cried. Then Karen and Dorian took us to the airport.....WOW!!! Anita and I were nearly blubbering as we pulled away from Karen and Dorian.......The Honduran workers at the airport just looked at us and shook their heads....I just said....I love Honduras!!!!!! :( With Amanda and Karen....and leaving them....it just never seems to get any easier....it seems to get harder....maybe we are just getting to be old sentimental women! Anyway...it is hard to leave them so far away. The flights were good...we had to set separately but I was able to meet some new friends on the way home! I read "The Shack" again on the way home and still loving it. :) It is just a book that I felt I needed to read twice to grasp all it said....even if it is fiction! Well....I have been told I have to GO!!!!! So I will make this a short one so I can get out of here and head to Vincent. Hopefully the rest of the trip is a good one also. Have a blessed day!

Last day In Honduras

Today began as a slow day. I awoke at 5Am and finally pulled myself out of bed at 6AM and spent a few hours on the web while everyone else slept. I was cold here. I was wrapped up in my pj's, shirt and a blanket and still cold not get warm. At home I would turn on the electric heater, the gas fireplace or the furnace.....but down here you do not have that option. It remained very windy yet today. At 8AM I went back to bed to get warm and not sure I ever did but I did manage to get another 1/2 hour sleep. Then I got up and just stayed indoors most of the morning reading and blogging some thoughts from a book I had read this week. I will share them at a later date. I think the fries or something from yesterday attacked me and I have had a bit of a GI upset today...so I just ate some leftovers from last night. We are now getting ready to run into Taguc and do a few things before we leave and take Karen and Dorian out to dinner. Hopefully we will be able to hang on to our belongings this time! Well.....we are back from Tagus now and I will finish this blog...the last for this trip! :) The pics are of course one of Dorian and Karen at the restaurant called "onions" in english. It was a mexican restaurant and the food was good. Different from El Rancheros though and I could not read the menu at all! Karen had to tell me what all of it said. To make matters worse I was not even sure which restroom to go to and had to go back to the table and ask them which one was the ladies and and which was the gents. I had no idea what caballeros was!!!! I thought damas was probably for dames but I did not want to chance it. You can imagine how Dorian laughed at me when I went back to the table and told him I wanted to make sure I did not enter the one with the urinals in it! :) The other picture is of a huge flower arrangement at the restuarant. We then went to a mall...a rather large one in Taguc...It was packed being Friday evening! Everything was a mess in town...It took us forever to get through town. As usual there were people, buses, taxis, and cycles everywhere! We had placed our leftovers, which were alot, in a box and handed them to a couple men that were sitting on a street corner. They were thrilled to have our leftovers! At the mall we went to a huge store that was similar to our super walmarts. It was by far the nicest store I have seen here. The mall was huge and had all the usual stores in it. On the way home we only met three cows...one of which was standing across our lane of traffic and did not budge! So Dorian slammed on the brakes and went around it. So...now we are back at the apt...trying to get things together and our last blog out. We fly out at 1:30 PM tomorrow from Taguc....so one more trip there and then I am done with that town for awhile! :) Hope you all have a wonderful w/e! God Bless! Sharon

More pictures from today

These are some pictures I also took today. The first is of a newer house they are still in the process of building near to the orphanage. The 2nd pic is of another house just down the road. Everyone places their clothes on lines outside the house and some just on the barbed-wired fences that surround the house...right next to the dirt road we all travel on. I am sure they are covered with dust by the time they are dry...but you see it everywhere you go. The next pic is of a pulperia, or small convenience store, that sits down the road also. There are many of these around and but noone is allowed in them.....you stand at the bars and tell them what you would like and they hand it out to you. The next picture is of a new catholic hospital that is a few miles down the main road from the orphanage. It was built about a year ago and is now in operation. It is not a huge place and does not do major surgeries and things...but it is good to have it so close. As everything else....it is walled in with guards standing at the gates at all times. The last picture is just an orange tree we saw today across from the pulperia. Anita fixed french onion soup tonight because that is what Karen wanted....first time either of us had made it but it actually was pretty good. We also had Dorian show us again how they fix rice. It was good also. Dorian and Karen have a bible study to go to and I am just going to chill out the rest of the eve. There is actually one channel down here that has CSI and Shield on it in the eves in English!!! I have not hardly watched TV at all for 2 weeks now and I have not really missed it at all. I have enjoyed reading instead! I will catch up on LOST though when I get back to the states. I tried to watch it online down here...but for some reason I can only get 3/4 of it to play....so after 3 attempts, I gave it up! So goodnight for now......I need to bundle up...it is getting cold here again tonight and the wind is still going 30 -40 MPH!!!! No wonder houses down here have rocks on top of them to hold down the roofs!

Learning new things done in very old ways! :)

Today has been a full day thus far. We began our day not wanting to get up and get dressed because it was a bit on the chilly side. The wind is still pretty wicked here right now but the sun is out and other than the wind it has been a beautiful day! The ladies that work here and many in town wear tobaggans on these days and many had them on today! I even saw some in the village with winter coats on. Anita and I did begin the day with our jackets on. Now I am just back to slacks and a shirt. After we pulled ourselves out of bed we dressed and went to a nearby ladie's house to watch her make the corn tortillas. She makes them from scratch and cooks down the corn into a paste and then makes the corn flour out of it somehow. She has a little press that she uses and she makes about 150 plus of these each day. She sells them to the orphanage and the kids love them. It was interesting and yet kinda sad to see that they are two generations probably behind us in how they do things here. Also sad to see how little they had in their home. One raggedly couch and a few old pictures on the wall. Old woooden chairs. The rooms were separarted only by a large drape of some sort with mattresses on the floor to sleep on. I am sure Delma is considered middle class here. This girl is about 26 and was raised by her grandmother and still lives with her to take care of her now in her older years...although she has a house of her own nearby...but she rents it. She works here at the orphanage also and makes one dollar per hour. (six dollars per day) Anita tried her hand at making the tortillas but quickly decided she did not want to do this for a living! :) We then went back to Ojojona, a small village next to Santa Anna, and went back to the pottery place that we had went to last year where the little girl was burned so badly. We asked the mother how she was doing now and she said that she is doing well....she of course has a scar from it, but did well without apprarently getting an infection. :) It was good to get the report. I bought a small vase there that was hand painted. It is neat just to watch them as they sit there and paint these ceramic pieces with such ease. We then came back to the orphanage and helped Terri Tindall put prices on some of the candles and things we got last week.......more of the pewter stuff is to come tomorrow and we will price them and get them into the store here on the grounds also. Along with each piece sold is the story of the starfish that is the major theme here at Casa. Most of you know the story but for those of you that do not I will place it on here now....... The "starfish story" tells of a small boy that went to the beach one morning and found that a storm had stirred the ocean and washed up 1000's of starfish. The little boy immediatley began to throw them back...one at a time! An elderly man walked by and asked him what he was doing. The boy explained and the old man told him that he could not make a difference. The boy looked at the starfish in his hand and told the man, "It makes a difference to this one!!" So....that is the story behind Casa de Esperaanza, the orphanage. Sometimes with all the thousands you see each day in this country and so many needy people, one would have to wonder if what I do ever makes a difference. But for the one you reach out to, feed, build a home for,or give a simple smile or hug to....it made a difference to THAT one! :) So.....the store here at the orphanage is full of candles, pottery. jewelry, etc that all are in the shape of stars that reflect this story of making a difference........one person or child at a time! :) We may never know what the tiny "seeds" that have been planted here will do.....God is mighty though and I am certain the seeds will grow! The pictures I have included are those of the lady, Delma, at her house making the tortillas. One is as she is preparing the corn to be pressed, one of Anita "attempting" to press it correctly, :) One of her "stove" and then the two of them baking them on the stove. She flipped them after about one minute by hand usually and stated she never gets burned. She does this alot! The last picture is of an" outside oven. " It is just a large cement dome shape that they heat up with a wood fire. The cement apparently absorbs the heat and then they remove the wood and flame and let the oven do the baking from there. Karen said Delma uses this when she prepares chickens or larger meats for the churches dinners, etc. Otherwise she just uses her wood stove. So......as I have said before...we are EXTREMELY blessed in the USA. As bad as our economy is right now....I cannot see any of us reaching the poverty level that these people have here....yet they are a content and happy people. We all could take a lesson from them....I am certain! We then came home from all this and ate rice, tuna salad and french fries with the orphans. I asked Anita how they did their fries.....and her response was deep fried but I really DID NOT want to see the grease....so I took her word for it and did not look! :) My mama did not raise no fool! :) I ate them all though. :) So......in ending....lets all take a lesson from the little fellow with the starfish......make a difference for even the ONE!!!!!

OK.....I finally got a bit chilled today in Honduras!

It has been another quiet day here in Honduras. Karen worked most of the day and Dorian was taking his college classes again. Anita and I read and did a little with the kids. We shared more of the candy we had brought them today and their faces really lit up! Doris, the 12 year old slow one, had a "melt down" this Am and we are not really sure what happened. Apparently this is the first time she has reacted quite like this. She screamed for mommy....wanted to be held and then did not want to be held and then just sobbed. By the time lunch rolled around, she was ready to eat though and seemed OK again. Past stuff I would imagine...but she does not communicate and cannot seem to talk much....so it is hard to guess at this point what she was feeling at the time. We ate lunch at the orphanage again and they fixed us potato salad, rice and grilled chicken....it was good. I have read most of the rest of the day and tried to get what little sun was out there. It has been very windy here now for 2 days and the dark clouds are now moving in and it looks like rain. I had to just come in and put a long sleeved shirt on because I am actually getting cold! ( I know you all feel bad for me! ) I took some pictures of Karen and Dorian's apt today. One is the shower head I have spoken of with the electric line into the head that heats the water. (they do not have water heaters here) The other is of their living room and Karen's cross wall. I also took a picture of Karen working with some of the kids with their studies and then one of Anita and Delcia, one of the sweet ladies that works here. She is a sweetie. Always soooooo pleasant. But like most women in this country....has not had an easy life! So...that about wraps up today. We are going to eat now and then I think I will shower and get my PJ's on with LONG pants....I am cold! :)

A quiet day at the orphanage

It has been an uneventful day here at the orphanage. I am just posting a few pics we have taken. One is of Doris...the 12 y.o. who is mentally very slow at this point. She strutted around in this dress and acted like a princess this particular day. She acts as if she is still in the infant stage. At age 12 and weighing probably 100 pounds...she likes to crawl up in your lap and be held and rocked like a baby!! She clings to someone nearly all the time and just wants constant holding. I assume it is what she really lacked growing up in the home she did....she was very mistreated and neglected. She did not even know what a spoon was when she came here and apparently still has trouble even doing some of the simplest tasks such as dressing herself. Anita and I watched the children this AM while Karen had to go to the school to register them and Doris and the Deaf girl, Rosita, were the two that challenged us the most. Rosita is just VERY stubborn and will test you to your limit. Of course it is hard to communicate with her...but she understands plenty. She just refuses to do what you ask. She understand NO....but will do things anyway.....needless to say....she got a bit of a time out when Karen got back home. One picture is of Dorian in the outside church baptistry and then the other of a middle class home here in Honduras!!! Yes....we are blessed in America. This afternoon then I just sat in the sun more and read. I am enjoying catching up on reading I have not had time to do lately. Anita and I then also discussed some future plans and where we feel we should go from here. Her dream has always been a soup kitchen of some sort and some non profit organization. We have done women's groups for many years and are presently doing a woman's bible study group...but is there more yet we could be doing....I guess that is the question today. There is soooooo much NEED in the world.....at home as well as places like Honduras. What can we possibly do to make a difference and "be a light in a sometimes very dark world?"

God Uses Adversity!!

A friend of mine emailed this to me today and since the name of this blog has to do with HOPE in our lives.....I thought it might be appropriate to just post it here!
God Restores Hope
When adversity strikes, do you feel panic or trust God? Don’t overlook the fact that He is a restorer of hope: “The Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning” (Job 42:12). God gave the apostle Paul an entirely different ministry in Rome. As a result of his ministry in prison, the gospel spread throughout Rome. New Testament churches were strengthened and encouraged, and Paul had the opportunity to preach to people who never would have heard about the unconditional love and forgiveness of Jesus Christ. We should never seek to put God in a box. Paul knew something about the ways of God. He was walking in step with His will, and his ministry was broadened in ways that he never dreamed possible. God sees what we will never be able to see. He infinitely knows what will happen in the future. Suffering prepares you by training you to trust God and know that He is always at work in your life.
We don’t look alike. We don’t act alike. We don’t dress alike. We have different tastes in the food we eat, the books we read, the cars we drive, and the music we enjoy. But there is one thing we all have in common: We all know what it means to hurt. Tears are the same for all of us regardless of our religion, race or age. When life hurts and our dreams fade, we may express our anguish in different ways, but each one of us knows the sting of pain and heartache, disease and disaster, trials and sufferings.
So if you want to smile through your tears, if you want to rejoice through times of suffering, just keep reminding yourself that, as a Christian, what you’re going through isn’t the end of the story – it’s simply the rough journey that leads to the right destination.
“Hope is like an anchor,” someone has said. “Our hope in Christ stabilizes us in the storms of life, but unlike an anchor, it does not hold us back.”
Hope is a wonderful gift from God, a source of strength and courage in the face of life’s harshest trials.
· When we are trapped in a tunnel of misery, hope points to the light at the end.
· When we are overworked and exhausted, hope gives us fresh energy.
· When we are discouraged, hope lifts our spirits.
· When we are tempted to quit, hope keeps us going.
· When we lose our way and confusion blurs the destination, hope dulls the edge of panic.
· When we struggle with a crippling disease or a lingering illness, hope helps us persevere beyond the pain.
· When we fear the worst, hope brings reminders that God is still in control.
· When we must endure the consequences of bad decisions, hope fuels our recovery.
· When we find ourselves unemployed, hope tells us we still have a future.
· When we are forced to sit back and wait, hope gives us the patience to trust.
· When we feel rejected and abandoned, hope reminds us we’re not alone – we’ll make it.
· When we say our final farewell to someone we love, hope in the life beyond gets us through our grief.
Put simply, when life hurts and dreams fade, nothing helps like hope. Hope – isn’t merely a nice option that helps us temporarily clear a hurdle. It’s essential to our survival.
Remember, if God brought His Son through the most painful trials and back from the pit of death itself, certainly He can bring us through whatever we face in this world, no matter how deep that pit might seem at the time.
We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:18
It is not the greatness of my faith that moves mountains, but my faith in the greatness of God.
Dream great dreams, great principles, renew your hope, but above all, like them, believe in the Christ who alone can give total meaning and an ultimate goal to your life.

More Pictures of the House

These are the pics that Terri Tindall sent us that we could not get at the end of the day since we ran out of memory on the camera. The grandmother is the one in gray, the mama in pink, sister in blue and then the two kids and brother. Tonight we just watched a movie (in English) and relaxed some!

Making a difference.... one nail at a time!

These are some pictures of the house we built today. We are using Karen's camera and ran out of memory card near the end....so Terri Tendall will send us the final pictures later. This is the lady and 2 children and sister that we built the house for. Her mother and grandmother live in a brick house right next to this one....but it looks very old. The house we built costs about 1100 dollars to build with lumber, nails, and tin roof. The homes measure about 16 x 16 and sometimes house about 8-10 people!!! Some of the lumber left alot to be desired....but this is Honduras. There we actually just 10 of us working on the home and a couple older man from the states ,that work with World Hunger, that wanted to watch us. They are maybe going to be sending beans and such through the Torch ministry to help feed some here. We ladies did not have to dig the post holes but we did do most of the nailing of the four walls and floor. My "achey brakey" back is telling it tonight and I have a blister the size of a dime on my right thumb....but other than that I am good! :) Anita smashed one of her thumbs with the hammer but other than soreness she is good also. It is such an honor to work at this and see the joy in the eyes of the children and momma as they watch the house be built. When we finished the children ran into the house and just screamed and ran around for the longest time. As we were leaving, we all joined hands with the family and grandma and prayed a prayer of blessing over the family and the home. Each of them hugged us and thanked us. I had taken some candy with us and passed it out to the kids as we were working and even momma's eyes lit up. :) Prior to us building the house for them today....this momma and her kids and sister all lived in the tiny house of stone beside this with her brother, mother and blind grandmother. So this will give all of them more space! We got to the site around 9Am this morning. It is very close to the orphange actually and fortunately was on level ground. So many of these homes are built on hillsides....so God was good again and knew I would not do well on a hillside made of solid rock! :) We worked non stop.....but had the house done and was home by 1PM!!! Amazed me! Right now we are just waiting for Dorian to get home and then we will eat and just chill out for the rest of the day. Anita fixed pork chops and scalloped potatoes and then we will also have the green beans fixed the other day and fruit. A good meal after a long, hard day. It smells good baking. :) So...another day is nearly complete here in Honduras and it has been a good one. Hope you all have a blessed day also.....ALL of us can make a difference in someone's life each day. Challenge yourself to do it!

More Fun with the kids!

This is Maryuri (pronounced Marjorie) She is one of the youngest here now and is the one always in the playpen for a time out. :) She is rotten! But like all the others...she loves to be held and loves her hugs! The other picture is of the kids raking up and playing in a grass heap....like we used to play in leaves. They played in this Sunday afternoon for about an hour and had a great time. They built tunnels, jumped and got very dirty! :)

These are just a few pictures from the church building and then a picture taken from one of the ladies houses that goes to the church here. This house is very nice inside compared to so many who have hardly any furniture or anything in what we would consider a shack! God is good! The church building with only block and cement floor is very upscaled to most dwellings in this area!

Sundays in Santa Anna

Islept the best last night I have slept all week! :) I actually slept from 11PM until 5 Am without waking up and then went back to sleep.....I usually do not sleep well away from home. If you want to read a funny blog...click on Terri Tindal's blog and read about her night terror!!! It was funny! Last eve Karen, Anita and I watched Marley and me. Karen was told she was buying another DVD and when she got home it was a poor copy of Marley and Me. Of course I cried! So sad! Tonight some of us are going to watch the super bowl.....go Pittsburgh.... and have pizza even! I ate a fahita again for dinner today and taco chips....so I am definitely not starving down here. I looked at the weather at home and it looks like it should be clear flying by the time we fly back home on Saturday! :) Get all that ice and snow out of there before we get home, please! :) I did not understand a word of the sermon again this AM....but it is always an experience there with all the children. The attendance seemed to be down a bit this AM...with nearly 50 there. All were women and children except for one man from the neighborhood. Most households down here do not even seem to have men in them. We also had the "church dog" that wonders in and out during services and then he sunned himself outside the door after he had checked us all out again. :) We placed our Honduran money in the collection but I really have not much of a clue what we put in....all I can remember is that a 500 dollar bill here is about 35 dollars. It is neat to listen to the children here sing at the tops of their lungs! They really enjoy singing. Doris is the one that clung to me this AM...she is Monica's older sister only much slower than Monica at this point. Apparently her mother kept her and she is soooooo far behind in her development! She is probably 12 but when she came to Casa she could not bathe or dress herself. She was not even correct in the way she went to the bathroom I guess. As she eats...she still mostly eats with her hands and eats very quickly with her head over the plate and seems to gulp it down without even chewing....it seems she feels this is her last meal. She wants to sit in your lap all the time and be held like a baby. At first I guess she just walked around with her head down and had no idea how to hug or accept affection.....now she seems to crave it. She seems to love music, however and will "dance" to any music playing. So maybe music will be a key to helping her learn. She has only been here maybe 8 months and has come a long ways. She now dresses herself and is doing many things. She cannot talk very well, however. It will be interesting to see how far she advances in the upcoming year. Rosita, the deaf girl really seems very bright. There are times I would swear she can hear....but I think it is just the signing and lips that she is reading...but she seems to understand alot. They are in the process of teaching her sign language and spanish and english signing is entirely different....so as I have said before...nothing is ever easy here. Pamela's foot seems to be healing well yet. I am praying this surgery really makes a difference for her. Well...I am going to try to watch LOST on the web now and then I will just read more. Leasurely day here....getting my body ready for helping build the house tomorrow! I am sure tomorrow will be a full day and a tiring day! But one I look forward to! I will try not to cut off an arm with the chainsaw or break my foot again! :) The pictures I posted today are Doris and I at church this AM and one of all the kids at night watching their nightly movie before they go to bed. Have a blessed day! :)