GAME DAY!

The morning began with many of us donning our orange and purple attire in support of Clemson University since they were playing Alabama for the national championship.  A little Gamecock/Tiger rivalry ensued as well, but Tigers outnumbered Gamecocks.  

The team worked on a cabinet to be used at the orphanage in the morning and afternoon.  Honduran lumber, equipment and supplies made the task much harder than one would expect.  However, with the help of Daniel, Mario, and Stanley the team was able to develop a good plan and nice start to the project. 

Some of us were able to spend a little time with the children at TQ, which always brings great joy. It's wonderful to see them grow as healthy, happy children.   There are so many in this country that are desperate for the basic needs that we take for granted in the U.S.  The children at TQ are thriving, and it is such a blessing that God sent the missionaries to care for them.  It is unimaginable to think of the conditions they would be in if not for TQ.

The team ate a little early in order to go to Mario's to view the big game.  We watched the game upstairs with several TVs surrounding us.  As surprising as this may seem for those of you that have been to Quimistan, it was cold!  Fortunately, we had jackets and blankets to keep us warm.  After a slow start, the Tigers came through in the fourth quarter to get the big win.  It was an exciting game to watch, made even more so, by witnessing the joy it brought to Sam and Roxanne.  

Day One

The day began with morning devotional and breakfast.  Not long after we loaded up the van, and headed to the sunday school at Tejeras.  When we arrived, we were greeted by the sweetest little children with arms wide open.  The children participated in their lessons enthusiastically, and then it was time for crafts.  The older children went outside first where my mom and I took pictures of them.  We brought along a sprocket that connects to our iPhones and prints out the pictures.  It was really something to see how much these pictures made an impact on them.  There were some shy kids at first, but when they saw the pictures printed out they all jumped in, swarming around me and my mom to have their picture taken.  Inside the younger children made airplanes and animals out of clothespins.  Then the older and younger children switched activities so everyone would get the chance to have a photo and make a craft.  The kids didn't even want to go in and eat until they got their photo, so we worked as fast as we could.  When all was said and done the children gave us all big hugs goodbye, and we headed for lunch.  After we ate, we loaded up again, and headed for Tranquilidad.  Here we worked on getting wood for a shelving unit, played with the children, and took a tour of their new home.  Next we drove back, and got ready for church.  Despite the fact that I couldn't understand what was being said at the service, I gained a lot from it.  These people were so passionate and faithful.  They held their hearts out at the altar, and that's something that we don't see a lot of back in the United States.  It was evident that God was working, and that they were truly grateful and devoted to God.  When the service was over, we made a quick stop to a grocery store, and headed back for dinner.  After eating, we sat in a circle and talked about the highs and lows (also known as "happys" and "crappys") of the day, and headed to bed.  Today was a good day, and I'm looking forward to what tomorrow holds.
Madison

Serving with Love and Laughter

Today, Monday, right after breakfast, our team headed to La Provenier Kinder. All the children gathered outside while we told the story of Jesus falling asleep on the boat while the disciples were afraid when a sudden storm appeared.  I told the story with an interpreter while our team acted out the story. The disciples and Jesus were dressed in Biblical times, and we made the story come alive with interaction from the kids (wind blowing, hand made rain sticks for the rain, and a water bottle for water coming into the boat). The children were very attentive and engaged during the Bible time. Our main focus was, "Jesus gives us peace." There was a time for kids to share things that made them scared, sad, or afraid. We shared with them that Jesus gives us peace in any circumstances. After the story, the children broke into four groups, and we rotated with a craft, color sheet, playdough, and game time (parachute etc.) We also help serve the children lunch before they left to go home. It was a very enjoyable time. I loved working with the craft group because the children all wanted to show me their excellent work. Thankfully, I was able to tell them in Spanish what a good job they had done.

Once we finished at the kindergarten, we headed back to the ranch for lunch. As soon as lunch was over, we went straight to Tranquilidad Foundation to continue working on the beautiful tables that Stephen and Daniel had started. We only had to build one more but needed to add another coat of shellac to the finished tables.  Some of us played with the children in the home and also on the new playground complete with swings, slide set, movable wooden letters, and a tire tower. The playground looks so good, and we are truly grateful our team was able to be a part of something that the children there will enjoy as well as the children that will be coming to Tranquilidad.

Dinner was yummy as always. We have three meals a day. The ladies in the kitchen take very good care of us and are excellent cooks. We are so grateful for Gloria, Leti, and Sandra. They are amazing, kind, and so loving to all of us.

Roxanne, our missionary decided to play a card game with us after dinner. She had never played before so we decided to teach her how to play Nertz.  All I can say is that we all laughed so hard that we almost....well, you know. It's hard to explain what happened but you can catch a glimpse of a video on Facebook with all of us dying with laughter. After a while, we continued to play but started speaking with an English accent. Proverbs tells us, "A cheerful heart is good medicine." I can tell you that all of us at that table got a wonderful dose of it.

-Shanda



The mission team from CRA just before Stephen left early to return to the US and work responsibilities.



 Jesus and his disciples.





So much fun to play with these precious children!

A House Divided

On this lovely Saturday morning after eating breakfast our team went in two different directions.  Part of our team went up to TQ to work on the playground.  The children really enjoyed playing on their new slide, swings, tire tower, etc.  The rest of the team stayed in the villa and packed book bags for the children at Tejeras.  We had about seventy book bags packed and full of school supplies.  That's a lot of school supplies!  We had lots of fun listening to music while we joyfully worked before the group at TQ returned for lunch.  After we ate our midday meal, the group split again and three of us stayed behind to work on the craft for vbs while the rest went back to TQ.  The few of us that stayed behind also worked on a "Feliz Cumpleanos" banner for Bessy, one of our cooks daughters whose birthday we will celebrate tomorrow.  The group that returned to the Hogar continued working on the tables for the playground!  I missed seeing the kids at the home today as they got to play on their new playground for the first time, but I loved seeing pictures of their smiling faces.  Thanks for praying for the health and safety of all our team members.  Everyone that wasn't feeling well is slowly but surely getting back to 110 percent!
Packing the book bags.

Trunks full of backpacks for the children at Tejeras.






A verse about God supplying for our needs was included in the bags.

All five enjoyed their first swing together at the "Area de Recreacion"!

Making something beautiful

Today was a productive day! One of the tables has been put together and will be stained and varnished tomorrow.  The chalk board on the porch area is almost done and Joel has had a fun time drawing on it as well as on himself!  The wind chime was finally completed and hung.  It was made out of things that we would consider "trash" in the US.  The cans were old rusted formula cans that were spray painted different colors and designs. The bottom five cans have all the children's names on them. The cans were hung by fishing wire and tied to bicycle rims and a fan cover.  It is a reminder to me of how God takes something old and broken and makes something beautiful!

  The table put together. 

The children's new chalkboard. 

 The cans with names of each child.

Trash turned into beauty! 

  

Please continue to pray for our health and safety as we are being the hands and feet of Jesus here in Honduras.

Love in Christ, 

Hannah 

 

And Then There Were Seven

    We started the day with a devotion from Stephen then, we hit the town running at 8:30. The well-members of the team headed off to the kindergarten to share with the children (through the interpretation of the story of Jesus calming the storm) how God gives us peace. We colored, laughed, crafted, and ate alongside the kiddos in the heat of the morning. At noon, the team departed for a scrumptious lunch back at the Villa.  After lunch, we proceeded back to Tranquilidad to complete the previously started projects (tire tower, wind chimes, play area sign).  In the midst of these tasks, enjoyed a restful afternoon playing with the children at TQ.  Around five we headed back to the compound for dinner and to check on our members not of good health.  Please pray for the continued safety and health of our team in your prayers!



Emma & Mckenna working/sweating on the sign
begun by LFUMC which will now read, " Area de Recreacion!".

God gives me peace!

The simple joys of play!

in peace, Emma & Mckenna 

2nd Work Day at Tranquillidad

Today we continued to work on the project we started yesterday.  Our four deep holes now have cemented poles that are awaiting the brightly colored tires.  The tabletops are beautiful even in their unfinished state.  Some of us rocked and fed babies while others started to make wind chimes.  In this beautiful setting only God could have designed and created and with His Spirit engendering peace and harmony, we had a small taste of the heaven to come.

This afternoon, we went to Tejeras and participated in the feeding of 70-80 children of all ages and their mothers.  A very simple meal was provided and these children ravenously inhaled it.  Rampant poverty and many medical needs were obvious but these children were thankful, sweet and are totally loved by our Father.  It is heart breaking to compare their needs with our plenty at home.

 A busy, thought-provoking day.

Tomorrow we will teach VBS and continue our projects.