Farwell To The Abnormal

Sitting in the airport waiting to leave and come back to the states. Sorry mom and dad, but I honestly don't want to come home. I don't want to go back to the normal. Now that I know about this place ad these people. How could I ever desire to leave? I'm leaving a little piece of my heart here in Tegucigalpa, Honduras...and I'm okay with the Lord doing that to me. Heart break brings out compassion. Adios to those that I met this week. Adios to the precision children who stole my heart. Adios to Mark and Lori, who inspire and interest me so much. Adios to the country that has changed me profoundly. May I never forget the things I saw and experienced here. Never ever. Goodbye Honduras. Hopefully I'll see you again. Thank you to all those who supported me in getting here. You served so many people and blessed me on the biggest way.

Evan

Saturday, March 17

Last day in Honduras! I absolutely cannot believe it. This week here has flown by and all the stories with it. We didn't get to build Abraham's house today because we could not get in touch with who owned the land next to his house, so we got to build a house for a family of 5 in Cataluña next to where we built a house for the family of 13! We were fortunate enough to have a lot of workers. And I actually made it through the whole build unlike last time! haha. It was so emotional again looking into the family's eyes after we built the house. As Mark said, it never gets old, and I can definitely see that after only building 2 houses. Abraham seemed very disappointed about his house, but the people here have such a great faith and seem to be so patient and know it is God's timing for everything, just like today. It's a faith I want and need to learn more of. I have absolutely loved this trip and wouldn't exchange it for the world! It's been such a blessing to get to be with these guys and serve the people here, all with Mark's guidance help, and overall with God and his plan. I am already thinking about coming back! I'm still also processing it all - I know a part of me will never be the same coming back, truly seeing poverty and touching and smelling it. I hope any and all reading have been encouraged and have had their eyes opened, as I definitely have. Again, it is not for guilt's sake or for my sake or anyone else's, but only glory be to God with his great plan and wisdom and love. And to his son Jesus, who is the cornerstone of everything - literally every breath we take.

Humbled, blessed, and filled,

-Barrett

Sunday's Photos 2

Classic.
Terry learned how to use a chainsaw. Terry like chainsaw. Terry cut a lot with chainsaw.
He was just posing. Not working.

Saturday's Photos

Matt and Evan working the roof.
Front side with Ben on the roof

Saturday, March 17

Cannot believe it is the last day. It has flown by and been an unbelievable week. We sure don't wanna leave!

Got started early again. Washed all our clothes for $4! Folded and everything. Wished they could help me in Auburn! Mark decided it would be easier for us to follow him in his truck. So, I drove the truck. Driving in Honduras was quite the experience. It is totally chaotic and lanes don't exist. However, there is some sort of understood organization to the madness and you pick it up real fast. We went to get supplies from the warehouse for the build!

We drove to Abraham's place to build and Mark had the classic, "Welcome to Honduras" phrase ready when we got out. Something fell through, the land wasn't ready, and he did not have 100 percent proof that it was his land. He was quite disappointed, but quickly said that it will happen in His timing. What faith. Most of us would give up, complain, or do it ourselves. Their faith is truly faith and much greater.

Since there is always a need, we went back to the community by the dump where we built on Tuesday. We built for a sweet older women with 4 children. They had been renting a house and had NO idea we were coming. They had been patient for over a year after asking Mark. What patience to see God's faithfulness. A few other Gringos joined us: Theresa and Ilene. They were a joy to work with. Theresa literally had every meal planned out. She had a morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, and lots of different drinks. It was awesome. She made an amazing tuna salad, then chicken and beans, and delicious cupcakes to wrap it up.

The build was awesome and we had a great group. Since we had time and the effort, Mark took extra time to make sure every detail was exact as possible. So, the house went up fast. Got some great pictures that I will attach in a few minutes of all the guys working very, very hard to give this lady a brand new house. The women in the community were amazed and some were balling crying because of the gift of the new house. To us, the house would mean nothing. To them, it means a whole new opportunity. And it was all in the name of Christ. None of it was us.

We then drove back to the warehouse unloaded and Ben got his chance to drive in Teguc. It was an experience to say the least. He did well though.

We went to La Creperia to end the trip. It was unbelievable. The desserts were the best part. We got Crepe Belga, Chocolate Divino, Banana Foster, and Blueberry Crepe. They were incredible. The owner of the restaurant came up and kept thanking us over and over and over and over again for helping her people. She was very appreciative and sweet as can be. We all talked about our experiences and Mark led us in further discussion kind of debriefing the whole trip. It was truly a blessing.

We leave tomorrow morning. Mark said thank you for giving up our spring break to serve. We didn't give up anything. We wanted to be here. Two people have houses for their families and do not have to worry about having a roof over their head. A home for orphaned teenage girls has a durable floor that will last for years. Mi Esperanza has a whole new storage place to expand and allow more women to break the cycle of poverty! What we did paled in comparison to the amount the Honduran people taught each of us. Each of them has a story. Each of them is made in Imago Dei(Image of God). Each of them special children of God. When Jesus spoke of inviting folks to the banquet, these were the people that he wanted to include. What a beautiful illustration of Christ's unconditional love for us. I am thankful to be a part of something so much Greater than myself. Humbled and blessed. Thank you for the prayers/support/reading/everything. Todos Dios. Todos tiempo. (All God. All the Time.)

En el nombre de Jesus.

Drew

Friday's Photos 3

The trench for the wall!

Friday's Photos 2

Nino!
Named it the Barfmobile. Saw us at our lowest of lows and highest of highs.
Super Jugos Smoothies!
The motley crew
Benjamin with a cute nino

Friday's Photos

Evan holding Jesus's hand
View from the Jesus Statue
Melvin y Joni
Isbill playing with the ninos!
Huge spider.

Friday, March 16

Today we had the chance to start breaking rocks to build a wall for Yoni and Melvin and their family! (Yoni is 21 and has been virtually raising the rest of his siblings since he was around 14). It is to keep them safe from their house flooding in the rainy season. Yoni is an incredible young man and has had so many opportunities to go astray where he lives, yet has been so loyal to his family and thankful to Mark and all that he has been given in his life. He loves learning to speak English and teach Spanish and we got to talk a lot together today back and forth, it was awesome! Yoni and Melvin (who is 15) broke rocks at a rate probably ten to twenty times quicker than we gringos were capable of! haha. But they were very gracious and showed us how. It was crazy - we used hammers/mallets, metal points/punches, sledgehammers, and steel rods. As Terry called it "Flinstone" style. We also went to the Jesus statue here in Tegucigalpa overlooking the city with a beautiful view. My battery is running out so I'm going to keep it short but I am so thankful for another day here, to be able to serve God by serving Yoni and learning so much from him and his family and his story and attitude toward it all. I can't believe it's already Friday! Tomorrow we're building Abraham's house and I am very excited for it.

-Barrett

Friday, March 16

Today, we got started early! We picked up a new vehicle and drove out to MonaLoa to Melvin's house.

We were building a retaining wall for Melvin's family to keep his house safe from the river due to his proximity. We basically had to bust rocks and dig way down. It was a lot of work, but a lot of fun. Once again, Melvin and his brother, Joni showed us the best way to bust the rocks. They were incredibly knowledgeable on useful skills and efficient. Even with busting rocks, they knew the best way!

A little bit of background on why we were even building the wall. Eric Connell, Mark's son, said he would buy soccer cleats for Jonathan Martinez, Melvin, and Joni. Joni said he did not want cleats, but he wanted the money for his cleats to go towards building a wall to protect his siblings. When Mark told me that story, I was humbled and blown away. Such an act of selflessness when he has so little. I am so consistently inconsistent with everything including my relationships with my brothers and sisters in Christ. To see loyalty on that level and unconditional love was such a glimpse into His love for His people. I was honored to be able to help Joni. He worked along side us all day. He taught us Spanish and in turn we taught him English. He was very patient, spoke slowly, and worked with us when we could barely convey our ideas.

Joni decided we could not finish the wall today because it would take some special engineering because all the water. So, we then went and got some souvenirs. Then Mark took us to a great smoothie place called Super Jugos. I walked in and the man started speaking really, really fast. Mark wasn't in there so I did the best I could. He was telling me that they couldn't serve any smoothies because they had no straws. I told him, "The Gringos don't care about straws; we just want a smoothie por favor!" So, we finally got some and they were delicious: fruit, milk, ice, and lots of sugar.

Headed up to Villa Gracia and figured out we are no longer alone up here! There are a few executives here from Aguazul (big water company in Honduras since everyone has to buy water) and some more Gringos from Nashvegas. Ate a delicious meal prepared by one of the sweetest ladies on earth and headed to the Jesus statue.

The Jesus statue overlooks the south part of the city and is simply stunning. Mark always points out that while it does look like any US city the darkness hides the pain, suffering, and poverty. Jesus's backside is to the dump. Mark's son pointed out that the people at the dump must think that Jesus turned his back on them both physically and spiritually. Thank the Lord that He is faithful. He PROMISES us He will never forsake us, even in hellish conditions at the dump. What a reassuring promise.

Building day tomorrow for Abraham! Very excited and humbled to be apart of His work and allow a family to have a place to stay that is safe and will provide some relief!

Drew

Thursday Update

I don’t know who reads this because a lot of it is redundant from other people’s posts. But, this is my (Terry) perspective of today.

Today was a pretty incredible day. It wasn't extremely physically demanding like other days but it was eye opening to see the stark reality of the Hondurans. We started by going to the grocery store to buy sandwich ingredients for 300 sandwiches that we would take to the Tegucigalpa city dump. Mark sent us into the grocery store by ourselves, which was quite a learning experience. After we made the sandwiches we bought 300 tangerines and 300 bags of water and with a loaded van we made our trek to the dump. The dump is where about 300 Hondurans live among the garbage waiting for new trucks to arrive to find anything of value. The majority of them sniff glue to alleviate their hunger and because glue is cheaper than food. The pictures truly don't do justice because pictures don't have a taste, smell, or filth. As we arrived I really couldn't believe that people like this existed in our world. Most of them were high on glue and covered their face with a ski mask just to protect themselves from the filth and bacteria. The crazy thing was the see the dogs, vultures, cows, flies, and humans all scrounging through the trash searching for the same things. We stayed for about 30 minutes handing out sandwiches to the mob of “untouchables.” As we left, I was filthier from the 30 minutes we were there than from the work we had done during all the previous days. I can truly say that my eyes have seen the depths of poverty.

After we left we went to Mona Loa (a local slum village) and handed out school uniforms to the kids and then played footbol with the boys. Soccer was matched up gringos vs. Hondurans. We were hanging with the 10 year olds but when the guys closer to our age came we didn’t score another goal.

Today was great just seeing the faces that we came down here for. For me (since I don’t speak Spanish) I can’t love them with my words only with my actions. And while this has been a humble blessing, I haven’t seen the reality of the Honduran life. Today was an opportunity to see that, and it was a real blessing.

Most people wouldn’t consider this a vacation but it has been the perfect retreat from the student life. And while I love being a student, I have learned a lot about the world by getting away from the American dream life. The great lesson that God has been teaching me is that each day is a gift (Psalm 118:24) and we haven’t been given tomorrow or next week. In light of this, God’s grace has a new value and new motivation.

Tomorrow we will be building a retaining wall for our new friend and brother Melvin. Please pray for sustained joy in Christ.

-Terry

Thursday, March 15

So I was down yesterday (again) in recovery phase from catching the bug. Much needed. The rest of the guys went out to a home for teenage girls and mixed and poured concrete - very very tough manual labor - not quite quikrete like it mostly is in the States! Today (Thursday) we visited the dump, had a chance to hand out school uniforms for boys and girls in a village named MontaLoa (spelling?) and handed out some school supplies and finally got to play some el fútbol with the kids there! I’m too tired and overwhelmed to describe it all in great detail, but the day was packed with so many things. We bought enough bread, meat, cheese, oranges, and snack cookies to feed 300 at the dump, as well as water. We made the sandwiches and headed out. No amount of words will ever be able to capture the dump. The smells, the faces of the people there (all wore things all over their face to prevent all the nasty dust/sun/bacteria/everything you can imagine in a dump out the best they could) are fresh in my mind. They literally almost rioted trying to get food - it was nothing I could ever imagine. As Mark said, the humans, vultures, cows, and dogs there are literally equal - all scavenging to stay alive. Most of the people there scavenge for anything they could possibly make money off of. They go so hungry they often huff glue to get high to make the hunger go away. We were all completely taken aback and I still truly haven’t processed it all and not sure if I ever will be able to. No human should have to live this way. Somehow through all the confusion and brokenness and complete devastation, all I have the power to say is God is in control, somehow and some way. As Mark said today, seeing and even reading these things we shouldn’t feel guilty to the point where we can’t carry out daily life but we shouldn’t walk away walling it all off either (truly once you’ve seen it you know of this - you can’t unsee it), but we should genuinely ask ourselves how we can examine our lives and make changes, definitely pray, and do what the Spirit leads us to do. Going out to MonaLoa was wonderful! All the kids in the village ran up with their mothers (who had mothers) and we were able to give them shirts, pants, and skirts for school uniforms they need! This is all thanks to a generous donation and made possible through the women of Mi Esperanza ministries. The looks on the faces of the mothers and children were so wonderful to take in. What a blessing to be able to take part in. We also handed out school supplies AND got to play el fútbol (soccer) with the kids on a dirt field! It was so much fun, but they took us gringos to school on the field (and every one of them was probably 16 or younger), some playing in sandals! These people continue to amaze me at every corner. I said I couldn’t type much but already have haha. What a blessing of a day, through the ups and downs! To God alone be the glory - it is the only way I can explain any of this and connect the loose ends of what we have experienced and will continue to. Pray for the people here to have their physical needs met with spiritual needs (Jesus) being the center of all. Pray for each of us to examine our lives in each of our contexts and the way the Spirit leads. Pray for realization and grace that God has come to dwell within us to give glory to Himself, through the sacrifice of Jesus! (How crazy and mind-blowing is that?).

No me gusta el vómito,

-Barrett

“Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Romans 7:24-25

Thursday's Photos 5

Melvin!
Each of them are made in Imago Dei (Image of God)

Thursday's Photos 4

Proud mother!
Food for around 300 people at the dump

Excited nina
Love the smile

Thursday's Photos 3

School Supplies!
Ben sucking wind playing futbol
Dillon passing out some school supplies!
Nino
Ben doing work!

Thursday's Photos 2

Look at that smile!
Isbill (fashion stylist)
El Heife (The Boss!)
One of the most humbling experiences: playing Gringos v. Honduranos. WE lost.
The dump

Thursday's Photos

New school uniforms via Mi Esperanza and a generous donation!
Vultures, cows, dogs, cats, and humans fighting for leftovers of trash of a 3rd world country


The back of the van where we served the food at the dump

Thursday, Day 5 of Honduras

Disclaimer: To any one reading this I ask that you also go look up the song "10,000 Children" by Dave Barnes because it perfectly describes the emotions felt by many of us today.
Our day started off as usual (minus anyone being sick and unable to go with the group) by us eating breakfast and leaving with Mark to go out and start it up. Mark had told us last night we would be feeding people at the dumps today and from his voice and many warnings from Drew and Ben we all gathered that it was going to be a pretty emotional and eye opening experience. Drew even described it to me as a "hell on earth" type of place, needless to say I was a little nervous about our visit there.

Around 9:30 or 10:00 we all took an adventure into a super market to buy enough meat, cheese, bread, and cookies for 300 people. We piled our goods onto the conveyor belt leading up to the cash register and waited to see what the grand total would be. It rounded out to be about 2600 limps (or 126 dollars). 126 dollars to feed 300 people...pretty unreal to think about when one meal for us back home for far less people can cost that. We then traveled to the warehouse and made our sandwiches, bought some tangerines and water and made our way to the dump. All morning the group had been praying for strength throughout the entire experience and we were all pretty unsure of what this particular Honduran experience would hold. Again, nerves.

Arriving at the dump the stench is the first thing that hits you, the smell is simply unreal. Not so much nauseating but it's certainly something you take notice of. The smell didn't hold our attention long though, because as soon as we got to the top a sight laid before us that I'm positive I cannot describe in words. Cows, vultures, dogs and people all scrounging through filth and trash searching for anything of value. Piles of looming trash all around and here and there there would be a person laying down to take a rest. As we got closer I began to see how the people working in this place were dressed. Most had on long pants and shirts, some sort of make-shift mask and sunglasses to block out the bacteria filled dust that is constantly blowing around in the air. Mark told us that many people here "huff" glue because it suppresses their appetite because food is simply so hard to come by or buy. So the sandwiches we were giving them were a much needed meal.

We had a game plan in action before opening the van's doors...but nothing prepares you for what was to come. We pulled up and all but two of us got out to pass out water bags. People (men, women and children) immediately swarmed to get their share of food and water. This is the opportunity I really got to see around and view my settings. The dump is like Drew said, "hell on earth." There seems to be no hope in sight. Starving animals and people are walking around desperate for anything at all, the closest thing to hope is the city off in the distance; and for most that's just a reminder of the life they will most likely never have. People crowded the van and those of us giving out water and were definitely pushing to get their food, but honestly I cannot blame them. If I hadn't eaten I would probably be even less behaved. Everything happened so quickly it was almost impossible to process anything happening around us at the time. I don't think (for me at least) anything set in until we had left and were sitting in the Texaco parking lot talking with Mark afterwards.

Mark talked with us about the injustice of the situation we just witnessed. How man and animal were on a level playing field and how children were climbing through filth to find valuables. He said asking why wasn't really a solution to the problem, but simply asking how we ourselves as individuals can change to make it even a little better. Small changes grow to bigger ones. I began to try and process this...without much luck. I became frustrated with the fact that I (as do all the other guys here with me) want to fix the problems we just saw. We don't want to see those kids younger than us suffering in ways that are honestly unfathomable to us. Mark began talking about verses in the bible that talk about walking in the light verses the darkness. He said that he believes it doesn't have to do with sin and no sin, but rather knowing and not knowing. He said we could no longer say we were in the dark about the dumps here...because we now know. As we started back I turned my iPod on and immediately started listening to the song mentioned above. I began questioning and asking God, "Why can't we do something to fix this? This isn't fair? Why do those kids deserve this yet I live in a land of luxury back in the United States?"

As I vented I heard the chorus saying: "Only love can save us all." "Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love." 1 John 4:8. That's when it hit me like a ton of bricks. We, as sinners, as Christians, as humans cannot change anything. Only God can bring about change. Luckily He chooses to work through us and bring about motivation for us to change our habits to help situations. But for there to be true change we have to rely on the Lord to be it. All I can do is talk...I'm not math or science major...and Paul Fox knows I don't do well in history at Auburn University. I'm not super intelligent. I am no athlete (as the guys will tell you after watching me attempt to play soccer today with the Hondurans after passing out school uniforms). I am not super strong in my faith. And I certainly don't have a strong immune system as we saw the first three and a half days here in Teguc. But, that's all okay isn't it? When we are weak, He is strong. And I'm coming to terms with this. When I can't do anything to change an unfair situation, it is only in the Father's hands. As we decrease He infinitely increases. And we should be okay with that. Something I'm learning while here is that it's not necessarily about our talents and passions that God uses. That's much too selfish. We should (and I am still struggling with this) desire just to be used by Him for His glory. I'm not sure if any of that rambling makes sense? It hasn't even fully processed in my own mind to be truthful. All I can say for sure are these two things: Honduras is and is continuing to change mine (and the guys here)'s hearts in a big way. And God is God and that's all we need to know. Continue to send your prayers for they are well heard and needed. I cannot wait to share this entire experience with anyone who will listen. All the little things I feel like we can do, will certainly be suggested.

Missing my family, friends, Dr. Pepper and Momma G's nachos,

Evan

Wednesday's Photos 2

Terry and Melvin going to get some tools!
Windmills were everywhere were we went. Another country along with Honduras invested in putting these in to help generate electricity. They were huge! And it was very windy.

Wednesday's Photos

The home!
Finished product!
MIXING with the Hondurans laughing and watching.
AFTER THE TILE BUSTING
BEFORE

Wednesday, March 14

Sorry for not posting yesterday. Two reasons: we were worn out and Honduras decided to cut off the power at Villa Gracia last night.

Yesterday morning, we drove out to Santa Ana. It was Mark, Dillon, Ben, Terry, Matt, Evan, Melvin, Melvin's sister Oneda, and myself. Barrett stayed back to recover another day, which was much needed for him. Mark Tindal, not exactly sure how to spell it, does a lot of work in that town. It is about 2 hours south of Teguc. It was beautiful. We met Jonathan Estrada (he and his brother Luis work full time for Mark) and the day began! Me, Terry, and Melvin headed over to get some tools and a dump truck unloaded a whole load of dirt and gravel, which in Honduras only means one thing: mixing cement.

We were breaking tile on what will be a home for teenage women who were taken by the Honduran equivalent of DHR in the US. So, orphans, ones with dysfunctional families, etc. From now till the end of summer, Mark Tindal will be working on making the place livable for the ladies coming in.

We would be mixing cement and Jonathan, Melvin, and his sister would sit and laugh at us at how slow and inefficient the Gringos were. Jonathan would reach out his indicating he wanted the shovel and be twice as efficient in half the amount of time. It was amazing. We mixed about 7 or 8 loads. One load is a lot of work. However, we got 3/4 of the porch done and it was looking good!

It was very hard work, but very rewarding. You learn to respect the work ethic of the Honduran people because they do that labor every day to earn around $300 a month. Amazing.

En el nombre de Jesus,

Drew

March 13 - Tuesday

(Drew posted most of this in his post - If you're going for brevity read his haha. Either way!)

So, I’m a little late posting this because I have been the most recent victim of the bug that’s going around all the guys since we got here (I blame Drew by the way - it was him first). Yesterday, Matt, Terry, and Ben stayed back because they weren’t feeling well and were trying to recover. Isbill, Drew, Dillon, and I headed out with Mark yesterday morning and rode to a town on the outskirts of Tegucigalpa to build a house for the family of 13. I was so excited for it and felt the anticipation on the ride there. When we arrived, the family ran up and was waiting on us to see the wood delivered by the wood truck. They were all smiles. Poor Isbill had to stay in the van because he wasn’t feeling well at all still from being sick before. Around 3 other Honduran men and an 18 year old boy, Daniel - a former gang member trying to turn his life around - and younger boys in the family also helped build. We measured off the foundations of the house and Mark squared it all off and we all began to dig holes for the 4x4 posts to be the corners of the house. About 15 minutes into breaking into the ground with posthole diggers and large metal rods (name escapes me now), I was feeling pretty dehydrated and extremely tired and light-headed. It was a really hot day with no cloud cover. I proceeded to go to the van to try to cool off and shortly thereafter lost all of my breakfast and any liquid in my stomach. I decided it would be best to stay in the van and let the other Hondurans, Mark, Drew, and Dillon do the work because I would be absolutely no help and probably would do nothing but get even more sick, to the risk of having to cut the build short to take me back.

While we were in the van for maybe around 5ish hours, between vomiting and “passing out” from not feeling well, Evan and I talked. We both were extremely disappointed that we couldn’t help build and agreed that we basically felt worthless and were even using some of the bottles of water that the builders kept coming to get. I cannot lie, I even had at the forefront of my mind “God, why have you brought me here to feel like this?” “These people need a house and here I am sick as a dog, feeling terrible, I should have stayed in the states if I am going to be like this.” Of course, my “pain” and sickness did not help my mindset. I would go back and forth between this and between knowing, as Romans 8:28 says, that God works for the good of all those that love Him. While staying in the van trying to find some comfort for what seemed like 2 days, I looked up and the basic wooden house with a tin roof had been erected and the finishing touches were being put on. Other community members were gathered around watching. Mark came to the van and asked if Evan and I wanted to come pray with the family, if we were able. We went inside their fresh new home, with the kids running around with smiles on their faces and the mother/grandmother smiling in what seemed thankfulness and joy. She was thanking Mark for the house and from my little Spanish knowledge, I understood him basically say, “This is not anything that we have done on our own, it is God and the glory belongs only to God - ‘sólo a Dios’ - only to God and ‘Todos Dios. - All God” We all linked hands, builders and family, and Drew prayed in English followed by Daniel in Spanish. At this point, I began to weep, trying to hide it for some reason. It all rushed and hit me at once. This family of 13 with no home - no home or place to call their own, no shelter - now had one of the most basic of all needs. You can think of it all you want but it is never the same until you see the looks on that family’s face, see what they are living in, and the overarching joy in such dire physical circumstances. I looked at my friends, Dillon and Drew, who were sunburned and worn out and who had worked so hard to provide this family this wonderful, simple gift; I looked at Mark, who lives among the Hondurans and does this on a daily basis for the people of Honduras, giving the glory only to God; I saw Daniel, a former gang member, praying over these people. Nothing but complete joy and humility and thankfulness ran over me. What a beautiful picture!! I felt God taught me a lesson yesterday - even though I knew Romans 8:28 in my head I had the chance to truly experience it. I was there for a purpose, even if I had dug part of one 2 foot hole for 15 minutes. I had the chance to witness God’s wonderful work through our group (including the Hondurans) in all of our lives, and the chance to participate in prayer as a group for this family. I don’t even know what to follow up after this besides to God alone be the glory - he intertwined each of our lives for His glory for His purposes. Sólo a Dios.

Eternally forgiven sinner by an eternally GREAT God,

-Barrett

“For we know that God works for the good of all those who love him, who have been called according to HIS purpose.” -Romans 8:28-29

Tuesday's Photos

Some of the ninos we built a house for today!
Dillon with one of the ninos!
5 of the 13 ninos
House site!
This is a house site from two years ago. Just wanted you to get an idea of what the houses look like. More pics to come!