Hello All,
As this last month marched forward, in the midst of normal routines, we were reminded of God’s faithfulness and provision.
When I last updated, Honduras was in crisis mode because of drought. I am thankful to be able to say that after weeks of rain being in the forecast but only some droplets falling, precisely on the night that we had purposed as a group to contend in worship and intercession for rain, it started pouring even before we started. It should be noted that all across Honduras people had been praying, including a group of missionaries who banded together from across the country to stop every night at 8pm to pray for the nation. And, as my mom’s pastor told her as many in the US were also praying, it did indeed break. Since then, we have had pretty steady rain, and our pila has continued to be full. The rainy season normally comes to a close around November, but I am praying that the rainy season will be a bit extended this year to make up for all of the drought. There will be repercussions with crops and the like that we will see next year, but as always, God showed Himself to be so faithful in this, and He will continue to be faithful.
Another area where God has been faithful in giving us a seed has been in Raúl’s citizenship. Business has been down since we’ve been back from the US, and money has been tight for me as well. As much as we want to be able to save for the list of things we have—especially for Raúl’s citizenship—we have actually ended up living off of savings for a few months rather than being able to bolster our savings. However, a beloved family member contributed $400 to Raúl’s citizenship fund, so that puts us that much closer to being able to start the process. Now, we’re at $2,100 lacking. God is faithful, and we will continue to do our best to be faithful in stewarding what He provides!
As I’ve previously mentioned, I have a great desire to get my master’s degree in Christian counseling via an online program. I am committed to not going into debt, so my next step in being able to save for that goal was getting an online teaching job. That way, all of the income from that job can go directly to tithe, taxes, and my master’s degree. I am happy to say that since I last updated, I applied and was hired by VIPKid, an online company that facilitates English classes for Chinese students. The application process was RIGOROUS, let me tell you! But, the job itself is going well so far. Generally, the first months can be slow monetarily because employees are technically independent contractors. Teachers open up their available slots for classes, and parents pick the teacher and time slot. As you can imagine, in a community of 90,000 teachers—some of whom have five years of being on the platform—it can take a wile for a newbie to prove herself. So, classes have been slow, but I do have a couple of students who have consistently signed up with me, and they are so sweet! Because the classes operate on Beijing time, sometimes the hours can be rough since they are either very early morning or at night, but the kids make it worth it! I am hoping to get certified in more areas through the platform to generate more clients. From what I understand, only 6%-10% of applicants actually get hired, so I feel like God provided this opportunity for me and is continuing to open doors for my future studies.
This past month, Esthefanny finished a semester and started a new university semester. It’s not always easy to balance all of the needs that she has for school in terms of transportation, materials, and the ongoing tuition, but I am proud of her perseverance. She loves her major of journalism and has been given a lot of unique opportunities as part of her major. As she continues, I look forward to seeing what doors God continues to open for her.
Faithful community continued for us in many forms. Every Monday night, we continue to have worship nights and to experience God’s presence and leading alongside those who attend. Every Tuesday morning, I continue to go to Bible study with fellow female missionaries. I had quite a few moments last week just marveling at God’s goodness in connecting me with these women. It’s a delight to have a space where I can be myself, where we can laugh and cry together, and where there is mutual understanding. It has truly been a lifeline for me, and I treasure the relationships that have emerged and deepened because of that Bible study. Wednesday afternoons, I continue to accompany my friend Lindsey in Ciudad España for worship nights and fellowship afterwards with Jen and her ministry family. It’s been special to be a part of the community that Jen has pioneered and built and to come alongside her and Lindsey with the desire to just be a supportive friend for what God is doing in that place.
One of the things that Lindsey and I have been processing together is just how important and what a blessing it is when we each find the role in ministry that we were meant for. I’ve been reading a book that studies the five-fold ministry, and I’ve been reminded of how God’s strategies and organization is infinitely wiser than whatever we tend to come up with as humans. And, along with learning, I have been reminded that God gives us such grace to operate in trial and error even within ministry. As I look back on my last eight years here in Honduras, I see so many false starts and so many times when I thought that ministry would play out a certain way, and it didn’t end up even coming close. Yet, I have continued to take risk, to learn, to open myself up to God’s correction and leading, and while I still don’t know that I have narrowed down any kind of five-year plan or step-by-step clarity, I do feel like God has seen my loyalty with eyes of love. It is in the same way that a parent watches as their child tries to put a puzzle together and turns the pieces around in circles or grabs different pieces trying to get them to fit. Even as I sometimes struggle with the embarrassment of past attempts that have failed, He looks on me with kindness and joy because, through it all, I am learning. Through it all, I have kept taking risks, kept giving Him my best, and have stayed willing even when nothing seemed to be going as I wanted it to. While my hope for the future is to finally find some kind of sweet spot where the vision moves forward, the right people are in place and in motion, and the resources are provided, at the end of the day, the condition and motivation of my heart are what He’s most concerned about. If I have been faithful in the small things, I trust that He will be able to entrust me with greater things.
I continue to teach two English classes—one on Thursday nights and one Saturday afternoons. As I have a full plate, I sometimes ask myself how much longer I should continue to teach English classes, but it all comes down to the students. When I have people who are eager to learn and who make the effort to do so, I want to go the distance with them as much as I can. Watching them learn is a blessing to me!
In a little over three weeks, I will once again be headed to the States. My brother is getting married, and since I was already going to be spending on a plane ticket and making the trip, I wanted to spend the holidays with my family. (I so missed spending the holidays with them last year!) When I left the US in August, I wondered why exactly God would have me once again in a position of rest or perspective change so soon. Now that it is fast-approaching, I get it. The word that God gave me for this year was “abundance,” and this year has been true to that word. I’ve experienced an abundance of community. An abundance of opportunities. An abundance of learning and connecting the dots. An abundance of healing from the compassion of others. And, I have an abundance of new questions moving forward! With a new job and new responsibilities, and trying to figure out new ways to balance my time, I welcome the opportunity to take a leave for a bit in the cold of West Virginia. There’s a special kind of silence that is possible when I’m cozy in my parents’ home that doesn’t happen for me in the day-to-day here in Honduras. I want to steward that time well.
As we continue to pray, here are a few things you can be praying with us:
1) For continued rain as long as possible.
2) For God’s provision – that God would provide for Raúl’s citizenship expenses, for our plane tickets whenever we have to return for a visit to the US next year, and for the money for my master’s degree in whatever ways He sees fit! This also could include that God would provide me with a full teaching schedule with VIPKid and more consistent clients.
3) For grace and wisdom in community and ministry -- We want to love others well and be brave enough to have open communication and to be able to navigate relationships with grace and with honor. As we consider many new ministry opportunities, we also want to do so with a posture of humility and with God’s wisdom. We want to whole-heartedly wait for His strategies because they are better than our own.
4) That God would speak to me, teach me, and lead me during my time in the US – whatever that looks like and whatever that ends up meaning.
5) For my brother’s upcoming wedding and marriage – It’s a new season for my family, and I am so excited for all that God has for my brother and his fiancé. I love my future sister-in-law, and I always want to be a vessel of blessing to their lives. My family is one of God’s greatest gifts to me, and I ask that God would show us as a family with extending branches, how we can serve Him together and fulfill the callings that He has for each of us.
All of my love,
Sarah
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