Wednesday

What a beautiful day yesterday was! It's hard to beat a day like that. Now we are back to the heat, and I am OK with that also. Yesterday was another good, busy day. One of the things that happened yesterday was the placement of our billboard, pictured above. It is across the highway from CVS in Mitchell. We are curious to see what it will do for our business.

Our theory is that many people drive highway 37 from Orleans, Paoli, and south to work in Bedford and Bloomington. Most them probably have never been to downtown Mitchell and don't know what's there. Seems like most people like a thrift store, so we are hoping that, once people know about it, they'll take the time to stop on their way home from work. We'll see...

Yesterday I had some good study time, a good run, and a nice meeting with 7 other ministers from Churches of Christ. We gathered at Bedford for a time of eating, sharing, and prayer. It was encouraging and enjoyable. It lasted longer than we thought it would. Imagine that! ha ha

After a quick trip back to my office, where I tried to squeeze a few things in, I took off for the bus barn. They needed a driver for Junior High cross country. I try to help out with this sort of thing as a part of "living for the sake of others." It was fun to watch the kids run. I used to help coach JH cross country, so it brought back lots of memories.

Today is going to be another interesting day. I am going to start with a run that will include speed work. Then I have a meeting with a couple in their home, a little office time, then another meeting with someone, followed by another. We have classes tonight at 7, and a couple of young men are going to be baptized. Good stuff!

Better get going...

A Response to Suffering

I really like Reinhold Niebuhr's Serenity Prayer. You can see why it's so popular. What strikes you about it?

The line in this prayer that strikes me is this:

"That I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him forever in the next."

I will settle for "reasonably happy," in light of all the suffering and injustice in the world. Seems to me it would be irresponsible to be totally happy, while so many suffer so many things! What do you think?

No Pain No Gain

While running yesterday I was thinking about suffering. [OK, you non-runners can make jokes at this point.] I was actually coming down a big hill, cruising into pleasantly warm sunshine on a pleasantly cool morning. It was a very enjoyable hilly 5 miler, but I was thinking about suffering.

We don't care much for suffering, especially the kind that makes no sense or seems so unnecessary. It leads to frustration, disappointment, and anger, if we are not careful. Maybe there is another way to look at it? Maybe regardless of its source, we should see suffering, even its "light" form of frustration, as an opportunity to grow in our faith, to grow in our trust in God.

The Bible sure speaks a lot about suffering. Google it. There is a passage that came to me yesterday while running. It's not surprising it came to me, since I am getting ready to preach through 1 Peter. Here's what came to mind, 1 Peter 1:6,7, which talks about the glorious future, when all will be made right.

In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

The refiner's fire! It has to do with making gold pure, burning out the impurities. That's what trials are supposed to do with/for us. Sounds painful! And it is! I literally laughed out loud when I thought about it. We complain about stuff and how hard it is. Well, of course it is, and it hurts, because it's fire! Duh! Then I thought about pruning, as pictured in John 15. Having stuff cut off hurts! See a pattern here?

None of this new, but I need to be reminded. Maybe you do too?

Being Where the Action Is

I was talking to Greg D. yesterday morning at church. He's a state trooper, and part of his responsibilities are to work at the Indiana State Fair. If I understand him correctly, his job is to be there and oversee several officers who are out and about at the fair. I think his job is primarily to be there and available -- in an office, at a desk.

The night of the terrible stage collapse he left his desk/office to go check out the concert. Then the unthinkable happened; the stage came crashing down. Evidently Greg was one of the first people involved in rescuing people from the disaster. I was talking with him yesterday about that. He made the joke, "That's what I get for trying to get in free to a concert." I made the joke back, "You should have stayed at your desk in your office." I immediately thought about that statement and then made a serious follow-up comment. "It's risky being out amongst the people. Things happen."

That thought has really stuck with me. Life would be so much easier if I didn't know about all the problems people face/struggle with. I wish I didn't know about child abuse, murdered children, marital difficulties, divorce, addictions, and all the other frailties are a well-known part of human existence. It would be easier to stay in an office somewhere.

It would have been easier for Jesus to stay in Heaven, but "he emptied himself" to come here. Read Philippians 2. He became one of us to help us, and it was incredibly painful for him. He entered into a messy world full of messy lives, a sinful, fallen world. Coming here eventually cost him his life. But it shows us what love is and what service is. And the road to death ended in Resurrection. In this world we will have trouble--almost more than we can handle at times it seems--but there is the hope and the promise of Resurrection.

Get out of your office, and leave your desk. There is work to do. Open my eyes, Lord.

Monday Monday

That old song "Monday, Monday," by the Mammas and Pappas, jumped into my head this morning. It can leave now if it would like. Please. ha ha

I hope you had a good weekend. It sure was beautiful weather. This is my favorite time of the year and my favorite kind of weather. I like the cool mornings and evenings and the warm days. My favorite month is October when it all hits its peak. There is no better time of the year to run and ride.

Running is going well. I moved up to 24 miles last week. I could have done more but I am trying to ramp up carefully. I will probably do 30 miles this week. I missed my 30 mile bike ride last week, due to some conflicts, but I hope to get it in this week. I did do some speed work last week and hope to do more this week. It is a crazy, crazy goal, but I would like to break 20 minutes in the Persimmon 5K. I have run right at 21 minutes the last 2 years, right in the midst of marathon training, which doesn't focus on 5K speed.

I am going to try do a little more specific 5K speed work this time, and I think that will help me with my other crazy goal -- to run the Monumental Half marathon in 1.34.59. I don't know if I can reach either one of these--they are pretty lofty--but I want to give it a shot. I'm not getting any younger. People keep reminding me of this.

We had a good fund-raising dinner for Honduras at church last night. Our work there seems to be going well. I miss being there and look forward to going back.

Good morning! Hope your week has gone well. Mine's been fine, I suppose. I guess if you measure a week by productivity, then it's been pretty good.

We are working on celebrating our 5th year of the ReGeneration Store! It's hard to believe that it has been 5 years. Five years ago we were working hard to clean up our building and get everything put in place for our opening, which was right around the Persimmon Festival.

To help us celebrate our 5 years and to try kick up our business to a new level, we are getting a billboard sign. It may be up as early as Friday. It's going to be across from CVS in Mitchell, high above the big sink hole that fills with water during heavy rains.

We also now have a presence of Facebook and Twitter. Here are the links to those pages. Please "follow" and "like!" We are going to use social media to promote sales and events and to tell bits and pieces of our story.

ReGenStore on Twitter

ReGeneration Store on Facebook

Today I am preparing my sermon, "Give Me Your Eyes," based on Ephesians 1:18. I like it and feel like it is coming together well. I have a couple of other things to do "out" today, but I am also smoking 8 pork shoulders for Sunday night's Honduras fund-raiser. Tomorrow I am going to smoke 12 chickens. Whole lot of smokin goin on!

Like Adventure

I like weather, and I especially like extreme weather. Call me crazy, but I like big snow storms, extreme heat, severe storms, tornadoes, and hurricanes. I don't like people getting hurt or property being destroyed. What I like is the raw power of weather.

I would love to do the tornado chasing thing, but the cost and the related divorce would be too expensive. I really want to see one live, up close and personal! The same is true for a hurricane. I would like to find a safe shelter to ride out a Cat 5, staying outside as long as possible. I had lunch with Pat A. yesterday, and he would like to take off for the coast to experience (ironically named) Irene. Probably can't do it this time. Maybe some day.

Give Me Your Eyes

Tuesday a.m.

The boy pictured above works at the dump in Tegucigalpa. He was very friendly and playful and kept posing for pictures. It's hard for me to imagine what his life it like.

Yesterday was a good day - the first day of establishing a new routine. I started with an early morning 5 mile run. I chose a hilly course, from Spice Valley to Bryantsville and back. There are long hills coming and going, and of course I do them in both directions. Good workout! I love the weather at this time of the year. The cool mornings and evenings make the warm/hot days enjoyable.

I had a few meetings yesterday, and they all went well. When I was finishing up one meeting in the afternoon with prayer, I sensed that someone was in the hall. Sure enough I looked up and there he was. A short heavy-set man with a beard. He looked poor. He was wanting to know if the food pantry was open. I told him it was closed for day but would be open tomorrow.

He then asked me if I was the preacher. Yes. He asked me if I had been to...he tried to get the word seminary out. I finally completed the word for him. Yes. He then wanted to know the date that Jerusalem fell. I told him 70 by the Romans and 586/587 by the Babylonians. This excited him. He then wanted to know about the Muslims in Jerusalem and the Crusades. He then wanted to know what languages Jesus spoke.

It was unexpected and bizarre conversation. I enjoyed it immensely. He was concerned that his pastor was wrong about some dates. I suggested that God was probably more concerned about the way we are and the way we live. He then told me this, "I'm really trying to get things right in my soul. That's what's important, getting things right in my soul." As he said this he pointed to his heart. I told him I agreed.

I walked him to the door, and he left. I hope to see him today. Interesting job I have.

Here we go

So here it comes! Life the way it's going to be for a while. Last week we said good-bye to Rebecca and then to Luke. Both are now at Lipscomb and begin classes today. This is Luke's last year, and Rebecca is beginning her college journey. I'm so happy they are there.

This has been an unusual summer, and I'm now ready for some kind of routine. I'm not exactly sure what it's going to look like, but I ready for it to develop. I'm not teaching at OCU-B this fall. I was asked to teach "Faith and Reason," a philosophy class, but I missed out because the initial contact was while I was on vacation. I did not take my computer and did not check email for 10 days. My lack of response was taken for a lack of interest and someone else was asked. I am really OK with that and consider it Providential.

Ben had a good football game on Friday. He played on special teams and did his part well. He was supposed to play JV ball tonight, but the game was cancelled. We did not have enough eligible players. Oh well.

Running and riding is going well. I am down to riding one time a week, a nice 30 mile loop through Amish country. I ran north of 20 miles last week for the first time since May. I plan to carefully move my running miles back up to 30 miles a week while on my way to 40 mile weeks before too long. Not getting injured is the key to it all.

Enough for now... Thanks for stopping by.

Landing is fun!

Landing in Tegucigalpa is quite an experience! The airport is surrounded by houses and businesses, and the runway is very short. Pilots have to have special training to land there.

Thursday a.m.

How's it going? I'm still in an adjustment mode -- kinda strange time. Rebecca's not here but Luke is, and Lester was around yesterday. But I know when it all shakes out, Ben will be our only child around. This reality will be experienced in 2-3 days. We are looking forward to more focused time with Ben. In the meantime it's one day at a time and no routine. That's all good.

Sunday I am going to discuss the book that I've pictured. This is not the kind of book I usually read, but I had so many people asking me about it, telling me I needed to read it. So I read it. It's a quick, easy read and very interesting! I'll tell you what I think about it on Sunday.

Yesterday I had a busy and unusual day. Since Lester was here, I went for a 5 mile run with him. We had a great time and a great conversation. I'm so proud of the young man that he is. Then Lester and Luke did some remodeling work in our basement. I stayed out of the way, in my office, working on some things. They did a great job.

We joined Kedra and Ben for lunch in town. Ben was 16 yesterday! After lunch I went to the nursing home for a visit, did some work in the Store office, had a meeting with a billboard guy (Store is going big on advertising!), and then went to Bedford to meet with a lady who is dying of cancer. Following that I had a meeting with some of our Honduras folks. Then I helped out with our Wednesday night kids' program. Kedra brought me a bite to eat in the middle of all that.

Today is going to be another different sort of day. I have several unusual things going on. My post-summer routine will begin on Monday! While I look forward to the next few days, I am ready for a routine.

Time Keeps on Slipping into the Future

Don't feel much like writing today. We took Rebecca to Lipscomb Monday and got her all moved in, and then we spent the night with Earl and Rebecca Lavender. We came home yesterday afternoon.

Saying good-bye to Rebecca Monday evening was so hard. I am fighting tears just writing this. I know millions of people have done similar and worse things millions of times, but... I am going to miss her around here. I couldn't be happier for her, however. She is in a wonderful place to learn and to be further formed into a wonderful Christian woman.

Ben turns 16 today. Wow.

Lester came in last night and leaves this afternoon. He is in his 4th of 10 rotations to complete his pharmacy training. He graduates in May, and so does Luke. Probably the same day - one in Indy and one in Nashville. Luke leaves Saturday morning.

Time keeps slipping into the future.

Another view of our work in Honduras

From one cornfield to another

Settling Back In

So far this week has been one of slowly moving back into a routine - the summer routine and then the real routine of the school year. Kedra went back to school this morning, and Ben starts back on Monday. Time is filled with swift transition.

It's hard for me to get our Honduras trip out of my mind. It was so good! Sunday I am going to talk about it some before settling on some thoughts about the dump in Tegucigalpa. I've thought and talked about it a fair amount, but I have a few more things to say. I believe it is the most disturbing place I've ever been.

Biking and running did not happen in Honduras. I knew I wouldn't bike, since I didn't take my bike. Mr. Obvious here. Running? Well, I thought I might, but I had my suspicions I wouldn't. I knew the place where we were staying made it very difficult. I did get one one mile run one day at the farm. I ran to see if our van was waiting for us. He had to park about a half mile from where were working. Running at 5000+ feet is challenging! We also noticed it working as well.

Since I've been home, I have run twice. They were both pretty good. Today I am going on a 30 mile bike ride. The weather should be helpful. I want to catch up with some friends while riding. I plan to keep biking twice a week, while running 5 days a week. I am really looking forward to ramping up my running miles.

Sunday I am going to talk about the shoes pictured above.

How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 10 + Summary

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 10 + Summary

(Click on photo to go album)

Sorry about the delay with this report. I was really out of it yesterday after getting home at 2 a.m. After getting in bed, for some reason, restful sleep did not come. Last night I slept great, so I am functioning much better today.

Our trip home was uneventful, which is exactly what we wanted. Everything went smoothly. Before we left for the airport we had a nice breakfast and communion together. While we were meeting/eating, one of our house recipients came by. She wanted to express gratitude to us. Her mother works at the mission house. Four generations were represented, since she brought her daughter and grandmother.

Now I will try summarize our trip. I hesitate to do this, because I’m afraid I will leave something out. With that caveat, here goes: We

• Built 4 houses, which changes dozens of lives for the better.
• Built 1 church building for the church in Guajire.
• Bought and distributed more than a ton of food. Some recipients had none.
• Visited Hospital Escuela, passing out goodies.
• Worked 2 days at The Farm @ Zambrano, constructing and cleaning up things.
• Provided some medical care through our nurses.
• Worshiped with Honduran churches on Sunday.
• Passed out large quantities of clothes in 2 villages.
• Unloaded a container of rice.
• Worked at the dump to supply food and love to ones that Jesus would describes as “the least of these brothers and sisters of mine.”
• Did a “Princess Day,” which brought abundant joy to young girls and beyond.
• Witnessed a wonderful baptism in Gaujire in the context of building a house and passing out food and clothes.
• Revisited a house we built last summer in memory of Harrison Conley, taking them food and introducing them to Harrison’s granddaughter and great granddaughter.
• Renewed and strengthened relationships with many Hondurans, moving toward fulfilling our vision of working with the same people on an ongoing basis.
• Played with hundreds of children, including the ones living at Casa de Esperanza
• Survived bad water!
• Experienced changes lives - ours and theirs.
• Glorified God by living for the sake of others.

Thanks be to God for his amazing grace! And thanks to all of you for your prayers.

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 9

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 9

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Day 9 - our last work day! On this day we took 2 vehicles that eventually ended up at the same place. We all started out going to Casa de Esperanza – the children’s home that Marc and Terri Tindall run. It’s a neat place. The kids are clean, well-behaved, and obviously well-loved. Terri has a small store that has lots of locally made items. She sells these to help support the children. This is where we did our primary souvenir shopping.

After our visit to Casa, one van went Moaloa, a neighborhood in Tegucigalpa where we have built several houses in our previous trips. One of those houses was built in memory of Harrison Conley. Denise and Hannah Ingram, Harrison’s granddaughter and great granddaughter, wanted to visit the house and meet the family. I wanted to do this but was concerned that we would not be able to find the house. Thanks to Beth’s good memory and the help of a Honduran we found it! It was really good experience.

Following the visit to house, our van made our way back to the farm where we worked last week. The other group was already there and busy. We had planned for a backhoe to be there to do lots of digging for us. We were going to do the clean-up work after the backhoe dug. Unfortunately the backhoe did not show. We found plenty do. We help build some seed boxes, built a chicken tractor (know what that is? I didn’t), made a gutter, worked on their compost processor, and a bunch of other things. We are very impressed with this farm project. You can read more about it HERE.

We enjoyed a nice meal together. Marc brought us ice cream to enjoy afterwards. We shared thoughts about the trip, along with lots of words of encouragement. It was a perfect way to end an amazing trip.

Now we travel home.

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 8

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 8

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Our 8th day here, Friday, was spent primarily in our adopted village of Gaujire. There we built another house, passed out much needed food and clothes. One of the ladies of the church enthusiastically thanked God when she received the food bag, saying, “Thank God, I did not know where we were going to get food today.” She is the lady with the three handicapped children.

This same woman, Maria, has two other daughters who are younger and are both fine. They cannot afford to go the school, which is a typical Honduran problem. The main obstacles are school uniforms, shoes, and supplies. Our ladies, the day before, went shopping and bought all the needed clothes and supplies. Maria and her daughters were so excited and thankful to receive these items.

We had two super-neat things happen yesterday. First, the little church at Santa Anna, where the majority of our group worshiped last Sunday, presented each of our group members with a small piece of pottery on which they had written a note of thanks. Some of the their members came over yesterday morning to present these. Each of them spoke heartfelt words of gratitude.

The second really neat thing that happened yesterday was a baptism in Gaujire. Maria’s sister was baptized, re-enacting the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. It was really wonderful to watch. The whole church family and others from the village gathered around to watch. A man who had lapsed from his participation in the church community asked to be restored. He was. These things reminded us of God’s grace, who we are, and why we are here.

We left some of our folks in Gaujire passing out food and clothes while the rest of us revisited the houses we built a couple of days ago. We took them some mattresses that we sent on our container, as well as some food and household supplies. The 75 year old lady, Anna, was so grateful. We took her quite a lot of food. She had none the day we built her house.

Each evening after supper we gather to sing some, talk about the day, remind ourselves of why we are here (read Matthew 25:31ff), and pray together. Our team has had remarkable unity. It has been a great trip!

On day 9 we will revisit the farm. Some of us will make a trip to visit a house we built last summer. We appreciate your continued prayers!

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 7

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 7

(Click photo to go to album.)

Today was another great day! We spent the day in the beautiful little village of Lepaterique. Some of us built a house and some of us did a “Princess Day.” Then later in the day we all helped pass out clothes and food.

Lepaterique is quite a drive from where we are staying; it takes about an hour and a half to get there. The drive is over mountain roads, where we almost hit 6,000 feet! It is stunningly beautiful. The village is quaint and full of wonderful people. There is a Church of Christ there, and we center our work through them.

Today we built a house for a single mother with three young children. She is a member of the church and was so grateful for her new house and a few other things we gave her. Through tears of joy she expressed heartfelt gratitude to God and to us for being his servants. It feels so good to see and hear this!

Most of our ladies invited the girls and the women of the village to the church building for a princess day. They fixed the girls and women up by doing their hair and nails. The girls then got to put on a fancy dress, and while in the dress a picture was taken. The pictures were printed by Steve Gilstrap on his portable printer. These photos become prized possessions for people who rarely have pictures of themselves. Our ladies also did a few things with the boys, including giving them a hat.

We have had an amazing trip thus far. I feel that this has been the most productive trip we have ever made. We are staying out all day and working hard. Several evenings we have barely made it back for supper, which is at 6.30.

Everyone is doing OK. We’ve had an unusual amount of minor tummy trouble this time; 11 out of 15 have had it. We think that we have had bad water at the mission house. We have switched to drinking bottled water purchased at the store. Several are on Cipro, so we should all be OK soon.

We have a couple of exciting days ahead! Please keep praying for us.

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 6

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 6

(Click on the picture to go to the album.)
Sorry about not posting last night. We lost internet connection, so there was nothing we could do. Yesterday was our 6th day in the country. It was another great day in Honduras.

A trip to the dump in Tegucigalpa is one of most disturbing, unsettling things that most people will ever experience. That’s what we did yesterday. This is my 3rd trip to the dump, but it still is shocking.

We arrived in time to be a part of a time of preaching and worship that some Honduran church does each Wednesday. When we arrived a young woman, who apparently works and perhaps lives at the dump, was speaking with passion, clearly telling the story of Jesus. I was struck by her mismatched sox and her very dirty, worn-out shoes. Then Paul’s words, borrowed from Isaiah, came to mind:

“How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

To those listening and understanding the message, her feet had a beauty that can only be spiritually discerned. After she finished, to enthusiastic applause, a man took over and made an appeal. Several of the dump workers came to the center and were surrounded by many others, including some of us. They all prayed. Then they asked us to sing, so we sang “Jesus Loves Me.”

It seems such a strange juxtaposition - the good news of Jesus in seemingly one of the most helpless, hopeless places on Earth. Yet that is the nature of Jesus and his message, and those who worshiped yesterday were praising him from the heart. I am pretty sure Jesus would have spent some time in the dump in Tegucigalpa.

Following the worship we supplied beans, rice, water, and tortillas. They were all passed out in the name Jesus. I was pleased that our entire team mingled amongst the people, shaking hands, giving hugs, providing smiles. Marc Tindall has done a great job of establishing a presence that enables groups like ours to do good in a short period of time.

Here is what I wrote back in February:

Around midday we went to the dump to help feed the people who live and work there. Marc Tindall prepares food each week and is building relationships. He tries to speak to each man who lines up for food, shaking their hands. The dump is indescribable. I think it is the most disturbing thing I have ever seen. It is certainly the most disturbing place I have ever been. It’s nearly unbelievable. I wanted to weep but couldn’t/didn’t.

From the dump you can see, off in the distance, the back of the famous Jesus statue that overlooks Tegucigalpa. Some have said it appears that Jesus has turned his back on those who live in the dump. Forgotten. Unloved. Uncared for. It’s not true. Many care about those folks and many are striving to help them. I saw it clearly today.

I felt helpless/useless at the dump. Totally. I shook a few hands and gave a few hugs. Behind the filth and the face masks are image-bearers of God, dearly loved by him. It seems to me that many of these folks long for touch; perhaps to touch someone, to connect with someone, who lives in a world far beyond theirs. Hope?

The sights, the sounds, and smell are so striking at the dump. Surprisingly, you hear a lot of laughter. Some seem very happy. There are lots of smells, as you can imagine; it is a garbage dump. There are lots of smouldering fires. A word that Jesus uses fairly often, the one we translate “hell,” is a Greek word that points to a smouldering trash dump outside the city of Jerusalem in his day. It was a horrible place, a place to avoid. The dump in Tegucigalpa is some kind of hell.

I am so thankful that people are working to rescue these folks from hell. The school across the road is an amazing ministry, as is the regular feeding. All kinds of folks are trying to do all kinds of things to help these people escape this present reality. We met some of the children of dump workers today. They are sweet and beautiful. If not for the school, then I think they would be up on the hill looking for scraps of things to recycle and perhaps for some things to eat along the way.

The Jesus statue may have its back toward the dump, but his people are looking at it squarely in the eye. Thank God.

Around midday we went to the dump to help feed the people who live and work there. Marc Tindall prepares food each week and is building relationships. He tries to speak to each man who lines up for food, shaking their hands. The dump is indescribable. I think it is the most disturbing thing I have ever seen. It is certainly the most disturbing place I have ever been. It’s nearly unbelievable. I wanted to weep but couldn’t/didn’t.

From the dump you can see, off in the distance, the back of the famous Jesus statue that overlooks Tegucigalpa. Some have said it appears that Jesus has turned his back on those who live in the dump. Forgotten. Unloved. Uncared for. It’s not true. Many care about those folks and many are striving to help them. I saw it clearly today.

I felt helpless/useless at the dump. Totally. I shook a few hands and gave a few hugs. Behind the filth and the face masks are image-bearers of God, dearly loved by him. It seems to me that many of these folks long for touch; perhaps to touch someone, to connect with someone, who lives in a world far beyond theirs. Hope?

The sights, the sounds, and smell are so striking at the dump. Surprisingly, you hear a lot of laughter. Some seem very happy. There are lots of smells, as you can imagine; it is a garbage dump. There are lots of smouldering fires. A word that Jesus uses fairly often, the one we translate “hell,” is a Greek word that points to a smouldering trash dump outside the city of Jerusalem in his day. It was a horrible place, a place to avoid. The dump in Tegucigalpa is some kind of hell.

I am so thankful that people are working to rescue these folks from hell. The school across the road is an amazing ministry, as is the regular feeding. All kinds of folks are trying to do all kinds of things to help these people escape this present reality. We met some of the children of dump workers today. They are sweet and beautiful. If not for the school, then I think they would be up on the hill looking for scraps of things to recycle and perhaps for some things to eat along the way.

The Jesus statue may have its back toward the dump, but his people are looking at it squarely in the eye. Thank God.

Here is a video I shot in January 2010:

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 5

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 5

(Click on picture to go to photo album)

What an amazing day! I think it may be my favorite day in Honduras ever. We built 2 houses, but there is so much more to the story than simple construction More about that later.

We had 4 team members who were not feeling well today: Curt and Beth and both Hannahs. They are doing better now. Even though they could not go out in the field today, they were able to make a very significant contribution to our work. They assembled our food bags, which makes us ready for Thursday and Saturday’s distribution.

Our team is really making me proud. Everyone is working hard and doing so well. We are getting a lot of compliments on our work ethic and how we are going about things. Today, with the help of some Hondurans, we set a record for house construction: 2 hours and 1 minute! It was crazy fun!

We built 2 houses today and changed a bunch of lives. The first house was dedicated to Steven Gaither. We constructed it for a young mother and her beautiful little daughter. They had been living with other relatives in very cramp conditions. We had to wait a long time on the lumber, but the construction went well. It was so rewarding to watch the dedication of the house and to hear the prayer of blessing in Spanish.

The second house, like the first, was out in the country. We built it for a 75 year old lady named Anna. Anna and 6 or 7 others were living in a little house literally made of sticks. It had a few pieces of tin over the top. Inside there was one bed, and it had a piece of plastic suspended above it to keep the rain water off of it. There is no way that they would be able to stay dry during the hard rains. The house was probably 10 by 10 feet.

We built her our typical 16 by 16 house. Compared to where she was living, she moved into a mansion this evening. She was so grateful, and we were so thankful to be able to partner with God in this world to make a difference. It so humbling and rewarding. We plan to go back to take her some food and clothes. When we went into the old house, there was no food there at all. We also plan to take some of the mattresses we shipped.

I love being here, and we appreciate your prayers and support!

Honduras Summer 2011 Day 4

August 1, 2011

I learned a new Spanish word today - Lodo! It means mud, and mud was the theme of the day. We made our way out to our focus village of Guajire. Guajire is 5400 feet above sea level. Today the rain clouds were making their presence known. It is the rainy season here, but the rain usually falls in the afternoon and evening. Today it started in the morning.

Our mission today was to build a church classroom and another house. A team from Nashville worked with us today. They were planning to build the house; we were going to build the classroom. Things often change in Honduras, and today was no exception. I’m not sure how it came about, but we ended up putting the two building together, making a 16 X 32 structure which is now going to serve as a new church building. The church has 50 adults and 40 children.

The build was very challenging. Mud! The main road was so muddy that we had to park about a half mile from the building site. The lumber truck also had to leave all the lumber for two houses at a great distance from where it was needed. The boards are heavy! We started carrying them in, and then suddenly life got much better. A pair of oxen and a cart showed up. First they pulled the lumber truck up the muddy hill, and then, making multiple trips, hauled the lumber to the work site.

The build was fairly slow, due to the mud and other challenging conditions. It rained on and off during the day as well, slowing us further. It was a great experience however. The best part was meeting members of the church. One of the founding members of the church has a few children. Three of them, later in their lives, have developed some kind of neurological problem. They are wheelchair or bed bound. The woman has remarkable faith and joy in the midst of all her struggles. She touched us all.

I left the build site before it was completed. I went to help unload a container full of rice. That was quite an experience and quite a workout! I got back to mission house after 7 p.m., and the rest of team got back at the same time. They were actually detained by the police for about 15 minutes. The police stopped their van and told the Honduran driver that all the gringos need to have their passports. It was a bogus statement designed to get some bribe money. It did not work. The policeman gave up after a little while. This kind of thing is not uncommon.

Steve and Riley did not feel well today and stayed at the mission house. I think they are OK now. We missed them out in the field today. Tomorrow we are planning to build two houses. Keep praying for us please.