Hello All,
I am happy to be starting a new year. I am back in Honduras following a great trip back to the States. It was so nice to be with family and to recharge. While I was in the States, Honduras held its presidential elections.The main two opponents were Salvador Nasralla and the current president, Juan Orlando Hernandez. As is usually the case in politics, nothing is simple. The Honduran constitution does not allow presidents to run for re-election. However, Juan Orlando with the blessing of some judicial officials ran again. When Juan Orlando first announced this--which was similar to the same move that former president, Mel Zelaya, made in 2009 resulting in his ousting--, I was surprised by the overall calm in the nation. I would've expected backlash in that moment, but the response was subdued. In an effort to beat Hernandez, the other two main parties joined forces. Salvador Nasralla became the major opponent, but he was backed and managed by Mel Zelaya.
When the election results were first being announced on a preliminary basis, it showed Nasralla as the winner with a steady lead. Over the next few days, no further announcements were made. Suddenly, it was released that the computer system used for tallying votes had malfunctioned, and when the system came back on, Nasralla was no longer winning. Rather, Hernandez had the steady lead. What ensued were weeks of mass protests and looting, commentary and observations by international election organizations like the European Union. There was evidence for concern that the election had been rigged or that there was some tampering. People were outraged.
All of this was going on while I was in the States. It was scary to hear about protests happening just the neighborhood down from ours and see the pictures of such widespread destruction from the protests and looting. It was unsure if I would be able to fly back or not mainly because international flights had been shut down in another major city, and protesters were often blocking the roads I'd need to return to my house. However, a few more events took place once again taking the situation in another direction.
First, in a very mysterious helicopter crash, Juan Orlando's sister was announced to have been killed. Just a couple of days later, the electoral body's authorities announced that Hernandez was the winner. Around this time, Hernandez' government announced a nightly curfew to prevent any more violence in the streets. It started as a 6pm to 6am ban on being in the streets, but it was amended a few times and eventually totally revoked. During that time, it was suggested by one of the international election observation organizations that Honduras should have an entirely new election--it is usually unheard of for this type of organization to make that kind of suggestion for fear of appearing to meddle. In an effort to get more international support, Nasralla met with the US State Department to present evidence of election fraud and ask for the United States' involvement and support. Because of the aid that the US provides to Honduras, the US government has a lot of pull over what happens here. The US State Department, however, decided to back Hernandez while many US Congress members were calling for new elections in Honduras. With the holidays coming on, things seemed to settle down, and they settled enough for me to return.
Since I've been back, there have still been protests, but they've mainly been in San Pedro Sula. There are still rumors of more protests and also rumors of what Mel Zelaya is doing behind the scenes, but so far, in being here, life has pretty much gone on as normal. It is unclear as to what is going to happen now politically, but Hernandez is set to take his position officially later this month, and it's expected to see some protests throughout our city and the nation.
Apart from that situation, life upon returning has reached a new rhythm. It is always very hard to leave my family, and I usually have a week or so where I have to emotionally adjust. But, I can say that I am slowly finding a routine and putting some new goals into place. I'm excited about that. It was very hard to find any kind of rhythm as a married couple because of getting sick and also because of my being in the US for a month and a half. Little by little, though, we're finding our pace and developing our life together.
This month is always busy as the Honduran school year is starting and because of yearly reports our non-profit here has to make for the Honduran government. It is still unclear as to how many students we'll be supporting this year in their education, but one young person we know we'll be helping is Estefanny, Josuan's sister. She is interested in attending a private school where she can finish two school years in a little over one year and graduate early. I'm excited for her. Over the years, Stef has matured greatly, and she's my best example of fruitfulness in my life. She loves Jesus and has such a personal relationship with Him. I look forward to see the amazing directions God has for her and her future.
Josuan did manage to finish ninth grade last year, and he is currently working for Raúl and renting his own room. We never know how long he'll be around or what he'll do next, but it's always a relief when he's off of the streets. Jorge is now living in a transition home run by the same organization that runs the orphanage where he lived all of his life. He is continuing his studies and has been reunited with many of his lifelong buddies. We also keep in touch throughout the week.
We will be starting our discipleship small group at our house this month and inducting our new board of directors. It's hard to believe it, but we've had the non-profit legally in operation for four years. God has been faithful even in our smallest beginnings. I am also making more of an effort to develop and use the gifts that God has placed in my life. Part of that has been starting WorshipU, Bethel Church's online course for better developing as a worshiper and worship leader. I've also been trying to write more regularly and reflecting more rather than just updating. I do that on a new blog site I've already posted here, which is benchchats.blogspot.com .
This is the first year in a long time where life seems clearer, and I can breathe with a greater sense of purpose. I believe that the foggy pruning years I've had for a while have been leading up to a season of blooming now. Thank you all for the continued love, prayers, and support.
All of My Love,
Sarah
When the election results were first being announced on a preliminary basis, it showed Nasralla as the winner with a steady lead. Over the next few days, no further announcements were made. Suddenly, it was released that the computer system used for tallying votes had malfunctioned, and when the system came back on, Nasralla was no longer winning. Rather, Hernandez had the steady lead. What ensued were weeks of mass protests and looting, commentary and observations by international election organizations like the European Union. There was evidence for concern that the election had been rigged or that there was some tampering. People were outraged.
All of this was going on while I was in the States. It was scary to hear about protests happening just the neighborhood down from ours and see the pictures of such widespread destruction from the protests and looting. It was unsure if I would be able to fly back or not mainly because international flights had been shut down in another major city, and protesters were often blocking the roads I'd need to return to my house. However, a few more events took place once again taking the situation in another direction.
First, in a very mysterious helicopter crash, Juan Orlando's sister was announced to have been killed. Just a couple of days later, the electoral body's authorities announced that Hernandez was the winner. Around this time, Hernandez' government announced a nightly curfew to prevent any more violence in the streets. It started as a 6pm to 6am ban on being in the streets, but it was amended a few times and eventually totally revoked. During that time, it was suggested by one of the international election observation organizations that Honduras should have an entirely new election--it is usually unheard of for this type of organization to make that kind of suggestion for fear of appearing to meddle. In an effort to get more international support, Nasralla met with the US State Department to present evidence of election fraud and ask for the United States' involvement and support. Because of the aid that the US provides to Honduras, the US government has a lot of pull over what happens here. The US State Department, however, decided to back Hernandez while many US Congress members were calling for new elections in Honduras. With the holidays coming on, things seemed to settle down, and they settled enough for me to return.
Since I've been back, there have still been protests, but they've mainly been in San Pedro Sula. There are still rumors of more protests and also rumors of what Mel Zelaya is doing behind the scenes, but so far, in being here, life has pretty much gone on as normal. It is unclear as to what is going to happen now politically, but Hernandez is set to take his position officially later this month, and it's expected to see some protests throughout our city and the nation.
Apart from that situation, life upon returning has reached a new rhythm. It is always very hard to leave my family, and I usually have a week or so where I have to emotionally adjust. But, I can say that I am slowly finding a routine and putting some new goals into place. I'm excited about that. It was very hard to find any kind of rhythm as a married couple because of getting sick and also because of my being in the US for a month and a half. Little by little, though, we're finding our pace and developing our life together.
This month is always busy as the Honduran school year is starting and because of yearly reports our non-profit here has to make for the Honduran government. It is still unclear as to how many students we'll be supporting this year in their education, but one young person we know we'll be helping is Estefanny, Josuan's sister. She is interested in attending a private school where she can finish two school years in a little over one year and graduate early. I'm excited for her. Over the years, Stef has matured greatly, and she's my best example of fruitfulness in my life. She loves Jesus and has such a personal relationship with Him. I look forward to see the amazing directions God has for her and her future.
Josuan did manage to finish ninth grade last year, and he is currently working for Raúl and renting his own room. We never know how long he'll be around or what he'll do next, but it's always a relief when he's off of the streets. Jorge is now living in a transition home run by the same organization that runs the orphanage where he lived all of his life. He is continuing his studies and has been reunited with many of his lifelong buddies. We also keep in touch throughout the week.
We will be starting our discipleship small group at our house this month and inducting our new board of directors. It's hard to believe it, but we've had the non-profit legally in operation for four years. God has been faithful even in our smallest beginnings. I am also making more of an effort to develop and use the gifts that God has placed in my life. Part of that has been starting WorshipU, Bethel Church's online course for better developing as a worshiper and worship leader. I've also been trying to write more regularly and reflecting more rather than just updating. I do that on a new blog site I've already posted here, which is benchchats.blogspot.com .
This is the first year in a long time where life seems clearer, and I can breathe with a greater sense of purpose. I believe that the foggy pruning years I've had for a while have been leading up to a season of blooming now. Thank you all for the continued love, prayers, and support.
All of My Love,
Sarah
