Hello All,
Though the political situation remains up in the air in many respects, I have been mostly unaffected. The only encounter I've had with protesters was about a week ago when I was on my way home from giving an English class at night. I was alone in the car and was on the only stretch of main road that leads from the city to my home. Suddenly, traffic was at a standstill as a burning tractor trailer stretched almost entirely across the road. There was yelling and various men with rocks and covered faces commanding control of the streets. But as God is always faithful with me, He provided a quick solution. There was another route to my house through back roads, but I would've had to turn around to go back into the city and go by back roads through a sketchy neighborhood. I've done it before, and it wouldn't have been a problem except for the state of traffic. I called my husband trying to figure out what to do. He no sooner mentioned calling our friend Alex for help when Alex suddenly knocked on my window. He told me to follow him as he was going to ask the protesters to let me through. He has a special kind of favor on his life in dealing with certain populations of people. And, they did let me through with no problems. So, the concerns in coming back to Honduras that I was facing in December have really been pretty unnecessary and minimal.
January and February are always hectic months for me as we have to file reports with the Honduran government to account for our non-profit's activities. And, February is when the school year begins. So, my days have been full of registering kids in school, buying school supplies, and doing the non-profit's banking. This year, we will be supporting Estefanny as previously mentioned. She will be studying in a private high school where she can complete two school years in one. In addition to Stef, we will be helping Kristian, a 19-year-old who is from our neighborhood. He comes from a family with quite a few children and limited resources. Raúl has known him since he was very young and actually gave him Sunday school classes. He will be studying in the same private high school where we've had Josuan previously. Since it is also our desire to nurture young people in their interests and in their callings, we are also supporting a young man named Brayan from our neighborhood. He plays drums in his church, and music is his passion. His desire is to be able to use that passion to serve God in ministry and missions. So, we will have him studying in a music conservatory to better develop his gifts. Antonio, a young man who we supported last year who graduated from high school, plans to continue his studies with some vocational computer classes to prepare to start university this year or next year depending on when they accept new students. The current plan for Toñito, as we call him, is for him to come live in the room we rent and work with Raúl as he studies. As we've done for others in the past.
The small group in our home is going well. Each week, we eat dinner together and take some time to talk and laugh. We also discuss a biblical or ministerial topic and pray for missionaries. This month, we've been talking about boundaries and how to guard our hearts in healthy ways. So far, we've been able to get closer to some of the people in the group and make ourselves more available for giving some of the young people advice.
In the mean time, I've greatly been enjoying a missionary women's Bible study. We're studying the book, Emotionally Healthy Spirituality, by Peter Scazzero, and the time I spend with these ladies is life-giving. It is so nice to be around people of the same culture who are serving in similar ways and can understand many of the same difficulties. I've made new friends through this group and feel so welcomed by them. Raúl and I actually watched the Super Bowl with a new friend and her husband. I was encouraged to see how well Raúl got along and was able to connect with her husband--a North American. Hopefully, that's a relationship that can be developed more in the future. I think it'd be such a good thing for Raúl to have a male friend from my culture who is also in ministry. It's amazing the difference that community can make to my overall morale and viewpoint. In being able to belong in these two groups, I am also better embracing who I am and how God made me even when that is different than those around me.
Raúl's green card is still in process. We're still waiting on the approval of the first step, and there is no deadline in sight for when it will finally come through. But, there is nothing more we can do but wait.
Personally, I feel like this season is one of preparation and stabilization. I am enjoying the journey and value even the small ways that we move forward in life and in ministry, knowing that the obedience we display today will determine our fruitfulness tomorrow. And, right now, my heart's desire once again is just to love well each person God places in front of me even amidst my own smallness.
All of my love,
Sarah
