Destino del Reino: A Work of Faith

Destino del Reino, Destiny in the Kingdom. What a story! What miracles! I first "met" Rhonda Jackson a month or two before leaving for Honduras. Surfing the web, looking for an orphanage in Honduras to visit, I came across Destino's website. As I began to read Rhonda Jackson's story and testimony I knew I had to meet her and see what God has done and continues to do through her. I'm not going to retell her story, but please, please go to her website Destino del Reino and read it for yourself. I guarantee you will not be disappointed.

The home and school she has built is about 8 miles out of Seguat and then 2 miles off the main highway on a dirt road. It is a beautiful setting. Very peaceful. Rhonda was sitting on the front porch visiting with the father and step mother of one of the children she calls "hers" when we arrived. Rhonda has, at this time, 18 children living with her. We use the word "orphans" quite often, but in reality most of the children here in Honduras and Central America who are in homes are not orphans. In general, these kids have one or both parents living, but because of poverty, health, alcohol, drugs etc. they abandon their children or leave them to live with a relative who can't feed them either. When Rhonda takes a child in, the parents must agree not to ask for them back. They are allowed to visit from time to time. I met all of her children...and they are wonderful kids. Happy, smiling, willing to talk, romping around the yard with each other and the dog.



Rhonda with some of her children



Future Jr. High Building

 Besides the home, she has a school with 300 students, grades kinder to 6th. She is in the process of constructing a junior high building and is in hopes of having a gym some day. She only takes kids who have no money to pay for school. Her buses run 5 days a week picking up the kids. She feeds them lunch and provides uniforms for them. The school itself, is immaculate, well constructed, and well supplied. There are classes in Spanish and English. This gift of an excellent education to these children is priceless.

Upper level of the school



Kinder classroom



As I walk with Rhonda around the grounds I realize that with out a doubt she falls into my category of ordinary people who are doing extraordinary things because of their faith. It is absolutely extraordinary what she has accomplished in 12-15 years. She would correct me here, "No, it is what God has accomplished through me. I'm just crazy enough to believe God, His promises and His Word." And she does. She points out miracle after miracle, talks freely of those who are coming to Christ and of the future dreams she believes God has given her for the land and the children. If I were to write the Book of Hebrews, the 11th Chapter today using present day examples of men and women who live by faith as evidenced by their actions, Rhonda would most certainly be in that chapter. Rhonda, your faith is a living example to all of us. Thank you.

Heb 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (ESV

Cows in the Outfield

We celebrated Jon Olvera's birthday on Friday. His wife Trish, Mark and our teachers went to the farmers market and purchased everything we needed to make baleadas, pupusas, frijoles and the different types of flour for the tortillas. Our teachers, and several of the women working here, helped us make everything. It was quite a process, but well worth it! Following that I went to an orphanage outside of Seguat that I have been so excited about visiting since before we got here. I can't wait to tell you about this place!

Saturday was a beautiful day. The sun was warm, the evening cool. I guess that describes just about every day we've had so far. We did sleep in a bit. My brain was fried and I was completely exhausted by Friday evening. Barbe's surgery, sleeping at the hospital and Spanish classes...my operating system just wouldn't process one more verb.

We started the day by joining a number of the folks here at SEBCAH out in the bean field. The seminary has quite a lot of unused farm land and Travis and Julie Hester have been working at turning some of it into bean fields in order to supply the seminary's kitchen with organically grown beans. It was good to see people socializing as we worked our way down the rows together. Thanks to everyone for their help, including the Fogals and their group from California. I love your excitement about being here!

Later that afternoon we took all the kids from SEBCAH and went to the baseball/soccer field near La Escuela Bilingue where Julie teaches. Baseball is not played much here, soccer being the national sport, but Travis has been coaching the boys from SEBCAH and some of the boys from the Bilingual School every week. This was the first game. Everyone had a lot of fun and it was amazing to see some of the kids really begin to "get" it. As you can see from the photo, some of our outfield consisted of cows. One of the boys hit a home run sending the ball right under one of the cows noses. As the outfielder ran to retrieve the ball I could see he was nervous. Being the jokester that I am a couldn't help myself. I yelled, "!Cuidado! es un toro". (Careful, it's a bull!) We all had a good laugh as he pulled up short and carefully inched forward. The teams ended the game with a prayer huddle. Travis is doing such great job with the kids. Keep up the good work Travis! I'm really hoping you'll put together a men's softball league. LOL

SEBCAH vs Escuela Bilingue 2/18/2012

Special thanks to all those who donated uniforms and equipment. It couldn't have happened without you!
Photos courtesy of Julie Hester

Meet the Nelsons

I don’t know Tim and Julie or their life story all that well, but I do know that they are a family that has chosen to live their lives in a different way than the majority of Americans. Tim’s parents were missionaries here in Honduras. He grew up here, speaks Spanish fluently and is very comfortable in the culture.  Not that he “fits” in, after all a 6’5” blonde haired giant is hard to miss in a country where the average male is 5’5” (a rough est.). He and Julie met at Moody Bible Institute and were married several years later.  After graduating Moody they continued their education, Tim in architectural drafting, Julie as an LPN. After working only a few years in their chosen careers, they felt called to fulltime foreign missions. CAM placed them in Costa Rica where they lived until coming to Honduras several years ago. Tim is a gifted administrator and enjoys using a lifestyle approach to discipleship. Julie is “Aunt Julie”. Her's is the house all the kids want to hang out at. They both have the gift of hospitality and enjoy using it. 

While Julie and I were waiting for Barbe to come out of the recovery room following her emergency surgery, I had the opportunity to interview her. One of the first questions I asked her was this, “In your most honest moments have you ever regretted your choice to live life as you have, giving up the careers, the two story house and 3 car garage with all the toys and moving to a foreign country?” Without a moment’s hesitation, she replied, “Not once, not ever”.

I asked her to define what success or a successful life meant to her. She thought for a moment and said that for her it would be this, “A successful life is having done all that God has asked of me.” I think that may be the best answer I have heard.

When I ask about her children, Julie’s face lights up. Both children are living with grandparents in MN and attending college. She misses them, it is obvious. Both are graduates of the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace  program. Both are interested in returning to missions after college. Julie says that both her children have world views that are different than the kids they are attending school with now. Superficiality seems to be the word that comes up most often when they describe what they most dislike about American culture. Does she have any regrets about raising her children in a foreign country? Again, a resounding no!

There is a great paradox that exists (in my opinion) most of the time with American missionaries. From what I have seen in my travels, most American missionaries live quite well, often far better than most of the lower class in America. But, to put things in context and in all fairness, they often live far below the level they could be, if living in the US. In Tim and Julie’s case, if they had continued pursuing careers in the US, I’m sure they would be bringing down $200,000 or better a year. Here it’s probably a quarter of that. The paradox is this: While living poor by US standards, they are living rich by the standards of the country they serve in. Julie recognizes this paradox and has had to come to terms with it herself. I asked her what conclusion she had reached. “We have learned to enjoy whatever God has given us and to be content with that.” Currently they are living in a small duplex on campus, having just moved out of an efficiency apartment. One of the things I really appreciate about them is that even though a larger house was available they chose not to take it. Any comments or opinions on the subject are welcome. It is certainly something I have wrestled with personally as I look at my life and the future.

Always prepared to pick up and move, I wanted to know what they take with them. Most of the time it is easier to sell or give away household items and start from scratch on arrival in the new country. However, there are a few things like pots and pans received as wedding gifts that are both useful and filled with memories that travel with them. A few pictures, games, toys and of course Tim’s books make the list as well. Their philosophy has always been to leave any place they leave better than it was before. Isn’t that the Boy Scouts motto too?

Well, there is much more I could tell you. As Julie said, to every question I asked she responded with a story. I asked her if Tim were here, what would he say to sum up all my questions. She laughed and said that Tim, who loves his life here, would say, “Just suffering for Jesus”.

Valentine's Day in Seguat w/video

Our teachers, bless their hearts, (that's not what we were really saying) decided we Gringo men probably needed some help with Valentine's day. I guess they must think we lack Latin romanticism. They decided as part of our "schooling" we needed to sing a love song in Spanish to our wives as a surprise. So with only a few minutes to practice and a few sneak peaks at Rabito on You Tube, we gathered at our house and as you can see by this video...made complete fools of ourselves. Fortunately, our wives seemed to enjoy it. The teachers then made each of us say something mushy to our wives, in Spanish of course.

Please enjoy the Honduras Spanish Language Institute Men's Choir as they sing Pacto con Dios.

If you have trouble viewing the video directly from the blog, please click the following link to view on You Tube. HSLI Men's Choir, Valentine's Day Production 

 Afterwards we had "tres leches cake" and visited for awhile. 

Seriously though, thank you "Maestras" for your help. Thank you also for the fun you bring to the school and for your patience with all of us tongue tied, Spanish lacking, mispronouncing, grammatically incorrect, improperly conjugated, crazy Gringos. 





The Conspirators









Mercedes: Her Story, part 2

Her Story

I want to tell you a little bit about my life and how I came to know and trust my life to God.  I had begun attending church, but for the first two years the changes in me were very small. I was trying to assimilate the life in Christ, but I had not turned my life completely over to Him. Then something terrible happened. My husband disappeared. That was more than seven years ago and we still don’t know what happened to him. It killed me totally. Inside I felt as though I was a coffin. I felt this way for over a year. At one point I almost gave my son up for adoption because I felt as though I couldn’t care for him. But, I saw how much he needed me and slowly I began to live again. During this time I realized I had two choices. I could either walk away from God, blaming Him for all that had happened, or I could hold on to Him even tighter. I chose the latter. Over the next several years I spent hours praying and fasting. Slowly I began to see and to trust in God. He returned life to me. I learned to forgive people, to fear the Lord and to have a real love for Him. In my opinion these are the beginning principles for power and real life with God. I am employed in God’s Kingdom, serving Him in the area of evangelism at the church, Christ is My Rock. While I take charge of His work, He takes charge of my son, my life and my family.

I asked Mercedes if she is ever discouraged. She said, “Yes, sometimes, but not for long. I just begin singing praise songs to Jesus and soon my discouragement passes.” Her peace and contentment is obvious. Her trust is also evident. How so? Let me share this story from her life.

Mercedes is an excellent teacher. Several years ago she worked for the Peace Corp here in HN teaching their volunteers Spanish. (I want to put this in the proper context. Mercedes is a single mother, in Honduras with NO government support available. Steady work here, especially that pays enough to live on, is very difficult to find.) The Peace Corp offered her and several other teachers a permanent contract at a level of pay far above the equivalent Honduran wage scale. I think most of us would have accepted the offer on the spot, seeing it as God’s blessing on our lives. Not Mercedes, she asked for time to pray about it. After 3 weeks she came to them and declined their offer. Shocked I think is the word used to describe their reaction. Why, they wanted to know. This is a permanent contract with a possible visa. These are her words. “After seeking God’s will, I knew that he wanted me to learn to trust Him completely and I know if I take this job my trust will be in the Peace Corp.” Not taking the contract meant losing her job. She went for a year after that with no work whatsoever. And she looked, everyday. During that year, somehow, they always had food on the table. For her it is a miracle. She tells me that it was during this time she truly learned to trust God. She spent many afternoons visiting people in her neighborhood, talking to them about the love of God. Eventually she found work in an orphanage.

Note: One month ago, the Peace Corp pulled out of Honduras leaving those who chose the “permanent” contract, without a contract.

Mercedes continues to live in Comayaqua. She is fortunate to own her own house. It is small, but it is hers. She is very active with her church. She volunteers each Saturday at the church to help children who are having difficulty in school. Three nights a week she and several other people visit in the neighborhood near the church and have lead many people to Christ. Because of this, the church is growing by leaps and bounds. On Sundays there is standing room only.

James (2:17) tells us that faith without works is dead. He then goes on to give examples of people who believed God and lived their lives accordingly. Mercedes is a living example of this.

Mercedes: Her Story

I began this part of my Quest, this searching for people of great faith, several years ago. I had great expectations of encountering some of these people here in Honduras. That is one of the reasons I am here. I have not been disappointed. However, I never imagined that one of the first would be my Spanish teacher. Allow me to introduce to you a woman of tremendous faith, trust and confidence in Jesus made evident by her words, life and actions.

Mercedes

Mercedes was born in Cerro Azul, an aldea in Central Honduras. She says it is a beautiful place located within the boundaries of a National Park. A rushing river splits the town in two. Hills surround it and outside of town is a waterfall of great beauty. It is some 15 minutes off the Pan American Highway. Her father and mother have very little education, but plenty of natural ability. Her father for many years has been the lead Councilman (rough translation) of Cerro Azul and a coffee grower. He is well liked and respected by all. Her mother has an entrepreneurial spirit and has done well buying and selling food and agricultural items. 

None of her older siblings continued their schooling, but Mercedes wanted to go on to college. She attended Instituto Leon Alvarado, graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Social Promotion. During her time at college she met and eventually married Jairo. They have a son, now eleven, they also named Jairo after his father.

Several years after meeting each other they began attending church, but only superficially. When their son was five years old, her husband disappeared. No trace, no indication of unhappiness, no word from him since. As Mercedes tells me her story, tears begin to trickle down her cheeks, she is still devastated. So is her son. They both miss Jairo and not knowing how or why are probably the most difficult things of all now.

I asked permission to write her story here. When she agreed, I asked her to write down what she would like me to say about herself. The following is what she wanted to express. I have taken the liberty to reword her writing while at the same time attempting to retain her expressions and thoughts. I have added some additional aspects of her life to the story. Because of the length of this page I will continue her story tomorrow.

Urgent: Prison Fire in Comayagua

Early this morning a prison in Comayagua, 30 minutes from Siguatepeque where we are, caught fire. Over 300 prisoners are assumed dead and possibly 500 or more have escaped. These are really bad guys. Your prayers, not so much for us, but for the many innocent people who may become victims of these escaped men with nothing to lose is appreciated. Click this link to read The New York Times article.


Two of our teachers live in Comayagua. Cindy and Mercedes w/son Jairo. We offered to let them stay with us tonight if they would feel safer, but they both said they thought it would be okay. Pray for their safety tonight.