Ps.128:6 Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children...

It's a new day that the Lord has made! On Saturday, I received the news that my new great-granddaughter made her entrance into our family. Yeah! She's a few days early, but all is well. She's beautiful! So I have seen my children's children's children! Of course, not all are of age to do so at this time. So there are more to come at a later date. Praise the Lord for all.

So we are entering our fifth month of lockdown. I wish they would open it back up to one day a week instead of one day every two weeks! So crazy! I haven't been to the physical church for this same amount of time. One day, it will be back. Until then, I just keep up my communication with the Lord and naturally, I still read his word everyday first thing of the morning. He has a plan for each of us and I remind myself everyday to give him thanks for all things as he said to do. Thank the Lord that I have learned that my life and the things that happen to me are in his hands and not mine. He has the control and I just have to remember that. 

I'm thankful that Becky can now drive up here to visit me. When this all first started she wasn't allowed to do that. And of course, the buses from here to anywhere are not running. So her visit helps keep me "sane".  And my pastor and his wife usually come for a visit every two weeks on their day out.   And I try to stop by their house on my day out for a short visit. 

So what am I learning? More patience and trust in the Lord. I'm thankful that I live in a house with front and back yards and not in an apartment. I need space! I've thought several times about a jail cell.  There's not much space in one of those! So I have a lot to be thankful for because things could be a lot worse. I thank the Lord that they are not.

The young man comes every Monday to cut my yard and to take care of the flowers. He's such a nice guy. His six year old son usually comes with him, but he didn't come today. Evidently he touched some kind of tree that he's allergic to and his father said he looks like a Chinaman! So funny. So that gives me another person to talk to. Thank you Lord!

I really do miss my students. One comes on her day out sometimes. I help her with her English and she helps me with my Spanish.  I do a Spanish course online, and I do well. However, it's another story when I don't have a real person to talk with in order to practice. But this too shall pass. 

Grace and peace to you all.

A house divided against itself will not stand Luke11:17

Wow! I can't believe the things I'm seeing concerning my country!! How horrible! And people bowing their knee/knees to a movement? And renouncing their color? Really? To whom you bow your knee, the same will be your master.  I will bow my knee to only one and his name is Jesus Christ.  He made me the color that I am, and  I will not renounce him nor my parents. And isn't it strange that the people that these groups are supposedly defending are the same ones destroying their communities?  Oh but it's not the peaceful protesters; it's the anarchists. Really, why aren't the peaceful ones doing something about it?  The other ones are among them and they see them. Why aren't they calling them out? And no police? Remember that the next time that you need help. There are bad people in every group. There are bad cops, teachers, preachers, parents, children, etc. Does a few make all bad? Even Jesus had a devil in his small group. 

And fear? That's the biggest tool that the devil uses. And now they want to track everybody just in case you might have or come close to someone who has the virus. Wake up people! This is called control. And speaking of control, I wrote an email to a friend the other day comparing this movement with a couple in the 60's and 70's. And guess what? They wouldn't send it. It was blacklisted! I wasn't saying anything bad. I was just comparing them. Free speech? Only if you speak their words. 

So now the world is following this movement. Hum. A house/nation divided will not stand. Good time for the enemies of the US to come in, yes? And for those that want to make this country a socialist country, what don't they move to a socialist country? They surely wouldn't have the riches that they do if they would move there. When I  asked my students to volunteer to do a problem on the whiteboard, there was always someone that would volunteer a friend. I told them, no you cannot volunteer another person. So these representatives that are calling for things that are not American, why are they not doing it first so we can see how it works?  

Paul said there would be perilous times in the last days. Well, here we are. What are we going to do? Jesus warned us that it would be so and for our hearts not to be troubled. Well, my heart was sorely troubled last night and this morning. Praise God that when I called out to him, he delivered me from all of it. We will be tried and tested. We aren't any better than the true Christians that went before us that lived in dangerous times. Jesus said that he who shall endure to the end shall be saved-Mat. 24:13.

I pray that God's children will be the light that we've been called to be.

Grace and peace.

Mat.14:22-32 Walk on water!

In the last week or so, there have been two people that have told me "to hang in there" concerning the pandemic. This statement was their parting "talk to you later." So I shared the reason that I don't like this phrase with one of them. Several years ago, I was told by my boss that I couldn't work in the district where I had been a teacher for ten years.  I was shocked beyond belief. Why? I was never given a reason or an answer to that question. In the ten years there, I had never received a bad evaluation, had no problems with parents, students, or even my coworkers. And all of a sudden, I was told that I couldn't work in that district anymore. I won't go into all the details or name people because it isn't necessary. But one morning, one of my coworkers said,"Hang in there, Beverly." I turned the corner to go to my classroom and I said to the Lord, "Lord, I don't want to hang in there. I don't want to hang by my neck, fingernails, or toenails because you die." Immediately, in my mind, I saw Peter walking on the water, and the lord said,"Walk on water." I knew exactly what he meant. Peter was doing fine until he took his eyes off the Lord. When he looked at the wind, he started to sink. He took his eyes off the Lord and began looking at the problem. Jesus said that he would NEVER leave nor forsake us. And he isn't a man that he should lie. I had no idea why the people did what they did at that time. But in the end, I went to a different district and my pay went up $6000 a year. The Lord turned what was meant to destroy me into a blessing. I liken it to the situation with Joseph and his brothers. They meant Joseph harm, but God meant him good, and the people that caused my problem lost their jobs in the end. 

Walk on water. Keep our eyes on the Lord. Remember his words to us. So this pandemic. Hum. God's word tells us in many places to give God thanks for all things. So I can thank him for this problem because I know that he has a plan. He doesn't always tell us why he allows things to happen the way they do. We are supposed to live by faith in him. So I say thanks Lord. I've never had a time where I had nothing to do or nowhere to go, etc. I can do whatever I want today in my house or my yard. Talk about a total rest! Oh, yeah, there have been days that have been so boring! But as Paul said, learn to be content in whatever. Praise God that we have food, clothes, etc. Have people died in this? Yes, and it's difficult and very sad. But if they died in the Lord, we will see them again. That's a living hope that God's children have. And jobs? If we're children of God, he will supply us with every need including a job, Phil.4:19. We are supposed to be lights to the world, to people that don't know the Lord. How can we be, if we don't live above the problems that surround us?

Many have been beside themselves because they can't attend church services. If church services are the only thing that keeps them safe, spiritually speaking, I'm concerned for them. We, the people, are the church, not the building that we go to every week. Do we not understand that whatever is going on in our lives that Jesus is right in the middle of it with us? I don't like it when I hear Christians pray, Lord be with us. Well, where else is he? He said he would be with us even to the end of the world. Emmanuel means God with us! 

So God has a purpose for allowing this pandemic. And maybe it's meant to make people stop and think about their lives. What are they doing and what really are the important things in their lives? It's time to think about what are we doing and where are we going. I asked my 9th graders one time to think about two things:what do you believe and why do you believe it? Don't tell me but answer this for yourselves. I think that it's time that we do the same thing. And in the meantime:Learn to walk on water for God has a plan and it's a good one.

My God takes of me.

I am so totally amazed this morning. I know that the Lord is my provider, protector, healer, everything. I know that he is with me all the time even when I do dumb things. Like this last week. I broke the plastic water tube that comes up out of the ground from my water supply. I was watering my flowers, yanked to hard on the hose and the pipe broke off a couple of inches above the ground. Ugh! Now what do I do? I turned off the water. But I have to have water in my house. What to do. I had nothing to cover the broken pipe. Haha! A whiteboard marker fit perfectly in the hole. PTL! I will ask Wil to fix it after the quarantine is over. So this morning, Franklin and his little boy came to cut the grass. He hadn't been here for two weeks. He had had other things come up that he had to attend to and therefore couldn't take care of my yard. 

Probably ten or so minutes passed and who should appear at my gate?  Wil. He brought me some eggs from his hens. That really blessed me because the woman that I usually buy them from hasn't come for a couple of weeks due to the quarantine. So I showed him my pipe and asked if he could fix it after the quarantine was over. He kind of giggled when I told him how it got broken. He told me he would come tomorrow. Then he looked at it and asked me for a saw. Ok. I thought he would need to buy a connecter, but he said no. I showed him the different kinds of glue that I had and he chose one. He then asked for matches. Ok. So he squirted some glue on a rock, set it on fire, put the broken end of the pipe over the flame turning it. Ha! He put glue inside of the hot pipe and put it on the broken part of the pipe sticking out of the ground. Wa la! Totally fixed! 

I have so much admiration for this man. I've known him for 10 years. He works for the man that owns the house where I lived for seven years.  When his last son was born, he asked me what names  I liked.  I said Samuel because Samuel is my favorite prophet and my dad's middle name was Samuel. The reason this even came up was because when the baby was about two weeks old, I had asked him the baby's name and he and his wife hadn't named him yet! So they named him Jordan Samuel which doesn't sound as good in English as it does in Spanish.  So Wil is my buddy! If I have a problem with things of the house, he is always there to help me. 

And have I talked about the animal that was between my ceiling and roof? That thing kept me awake so many nights. So one afternoon, after I asked a friend of mine to tell him, he came with bananas and rat poison. Three nights later, I had an awful smell in my bedroom. That lasted for about a week. It wasn't really strong, thank the Lord, but I did sleep in my other bedroom. 

The Lord takes care of me in every situation. There's a song in Spanish that says that exact thing: Dios Cuida de Mi. His promises are real, and I praise him everyday for being my Savior. 

I hope that the people who read my blog know Him for the God that He truly is.

Mat.24:7...and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes in different places. Verse 6...see that you be not troubled:

Well, here we are in a pandemic, coronavirus.  How interesting. I think Jesus mentioned that in his discourse on his second coming, etc. It's interesting also to me that so many Christians are in fear. Really? It tells me that they don't know the Word very well. Of course, here in HN, not many read their Bibles.  And that's sad. If you don't know the word, how can you stand on it? Timothy tells us that God hasn't given us a spirit of fear, but love, power, and a sound mind. Hmmm. 

I told my pastor that I was standing on the promises in Psalms 91. There are more promises there than there are verses! And what if I get it? Well, then there's James 5:14-15, ah, but I couldn't do that due to the safety of others. Well, then, I'd stand on Isa. 53:5 and 1Pet.1:24. And what if I die? What if I do?  I'm going to see the one who saved me and filled me with his spirit many years ago. But then I hear the words, " Oh, Beverly, you have lived many years and you are old." Oh, yes I have, and yes I am!! There's only been one time in my life when I prayed that I would not die, and that was when my first husband died and left me with four minor children. He was 31 and I was 27.  I didn't want any other person to raise our children. And God answered my prayer.

I think because we Christians know that we have eternal life, we don't really deal with our own demise when it comes. Many are not ready to meet the Lord. Why not? We sing songs about wanting to see him, and we cannot unless we die. Interesting. I've thought about my own death and my funeral for more years that I can count. I've thought about the different things that I want or don't want at my funeral and how they would affect my kids. Most of them know what I want and what I don't want. But the Lord will help them when the time comes. I had a friend ask me last week where I was going to die. I looked at her and said, "Do I know?" And then we both started laughing.  My youngest son tells his siblings that, "Mom's going to die in Honduras." Only the Lord knows where and when unless he has revealed it to my son, and I don't think that he has.

So now we are in our homes mostly. There are very few people out in town here. My friend and I were going to go to Tegucigalpa tomorrow, but the buses have all been canceled, so that takes care of that. I enjoy the peace and quiet! I live about a city block from the highway and there's not much noise coming from that direction.  I think about all the people that are always on the go. They must be going out of their minds with what to do. Airports, schools, churches, etc. are closed here, too. One student of mine works in a hospital, and she emailed me to let me know that she was not coming to class until it was truly safe to do so. Good choice. 

I have prayed that God would use this pandemic to speak to people that don't know him, and if possible they would be saved.  And HE knows how to get their attention. 

This, too, will pass. But the world is not going to get better. In fact, it's going to get a lot worse than it is now.  Are we believing and standing on our Savior's word? Do we trust him with the plan that he has for our lives even though we don't know what it is?  I hope so, because he is our only hope.

Mat.24:6 And you shall hear of wars and rumors of wars:see that your heart be not troubled...

So here we are a few days into 2020. Amazing! I remember being a kid and thinking the year 2000 would never come because it was just too far away. That goes to show how much I knew! I haven't written for a long time. That goes to show how much that I like to write. So to bring things up to date.

I spent my favorite holiday, Thanksgiving Day, with the missionaries that are here. It was really nice to see them all agin and to meet the new ones. Christmas was as usual. Not a lot happening there. And since the schools are on vacation until February, there wasn't anything happening there either. But I have spent more time learning Spanish. I've had a turnover with the students that come to my house. One of my girls that I've had for 4-5 years comes no more. She's getting ready to move to Choluteca with her family. I really do miss having her. However, the Lord has put a couple more in her place. My pastor who  knows some English is coming, and another lady who works for a German company is coming to increase her English because she's going to Germany next month for a conference. And a friend that teaches Spanish to foreign people that are here in HN for different reasons has started coming to increase her English. It's so funny because all of her foreign students can speak English.

I've started reading through the whole Bible again. I'm now in Jeremiah. I think that many who declare that we are Christians are in the same place as was the people in Jeremiah's day. We go to church, sing, and pray but not much is changing in our own hearts. Is the Lord our first love? Do we keep his commandments? So many here do not follow the commandment of tithing, healing, etc. They want financial blessings but they don't believe the promise that God gives with the commandment. And Hondurans as a whole hate reading. I'm amazed that the things I learned as a kid and take for granted is a thing unheard of here. All of God's commands come with a blessing and a condition for receiving that blessing. But people think as long as they go to church and hear the word everything is ok. Nothing could be farther from the truth. God said if we search for him, we will surely find him. But we don't want to search. We don't want to read his word. We would rather read other books about him. We want the pastor to tell us everything and he can't. He doesn't have the time and he isn't God. God wants a personal relationship with each one of us. I'm so thankful for his presence in my life. I'm so thankful that I'm never alone and I don't have to fear what's coming today or tomorrow because he is with me and will do whatever is needed. I'm so thankful that I know he is always watching me. His word says that his eyes are upon his people all the time. My heart breaks for those that don't realize this. They may be able to quote scripture perfectly, but at the same time not have that personal relationship.
And now with the things concerning the US and Iran. Jesus said there would be wars and rumors of war, afflictions and tribulations. He also said in the same breathe-let not your hearts be troubled because all these things must come to pass. So many here have so much fear all the time about everything. And now I hear they are afraid of World War 3! If so, what are the people going to do about it? The one thing for sure that we can do about it is to make sure that we are ready to meet the Lord. Now that scares a lot of people even Christians that I've talked to. Didn't Paul say to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord? And we sings songs about wanting to see him, yes? So what is the problem?  One big problem that I see is that no one wants to think or talk about dying even though the Bible says that we all will. Of course, most don't want to die, but that doesn't change the fact that we will. I went with my pastor's wife last week to pray for an elderly woman. And bless her heart, she's ready to go home! And you think, well she's lived her life, and that's true. But Psalms says that my times are in God's hands. I can't die until he says, "Come home." And you can't either. But we need to think about these things and be ready whenever. Anyway, the US and Iran. Appeasement is not peace. It's slavery. I thank God that the Iranian general was taken out. I pray for our servicemen and if it be their time, I pray that they are ready to meet the Lord. This world will never have true, total peace until Jesus comes. And He is our peace now. He promised his people peace in whatever circumstance  we find ourselves in. He is our protection, provider, healer, counselor, ever present help, and whatever else is needed in our life. God help President Trump and his cabinet to do what needs to be done for our country and our allies. And give thanks to the Lord that He is there to help our Christian brothers and sisters that are in Iran and the other countries that are in that region. In so many places the Bible tells us to give thanks for ALL things. Do we do it?
Grace and peace!

Just a thought

The other morning as I was reading my Bible, I looked up and saw a hummingbird outside my window feeding on the flowers of an aloe vera plant. I watched him for several minutes and began to think about the creation of this little fellow. How wonderful and perfect are the creations of God. I thought about the creation of man again. How God formed him out of the dust of the ground. Can you see this man lying on the ground formed of dirt? As little girls, some of us used to make pies from mud. Perfect little images of the real thing. So here lies this perfect form of the image of God. This clod of dirt; perfect in every detail inside and out but still just a big clod of dried dirt. And then God himself breathed into the nose of this big piece of dirt. And what happened? This dirt became flesh and blood! How did that happen? When you and I make something of dirt or metal or whatever, it remains what it is. We can't breathe real life into it. Even our babies have to take their first breath whether it happens automatically or the doctor breathes into it's mouth or nose. How awesome the true God really is! So as I was thinking about all of this, AI came to my mind. Who in the world would want artificial intelligence? Even the word artificial should make us turn away. But we so much want to be God and in control that we will do whatever it takes to be like Him even though we will never be able to be so as a human being. There is only ONE God. So men are desperately trying to make things that will obey whatever they say. How vain and arrogant! Anything that man makes needs maintenance. They break down and have to be repaired. So when this AI needs to be repaired, who is going to be the repairman? I personally don't want to give control of my life to these things. And the people that are trying to develop all these things with AI don't have perfect intelligence. They have faulty understanding in a lot of things. I used to hear that two heads are better than one. That may be true in many instances, but sometimes even the two are not perfect in their thinking. Think about the times that you listened to someone else who you thought knew more than you and it turned out to be the wrong thing to do. So now we turn our own minds and bodies over to something created by imperfect men? The original sin-I want to be God: I want to be in control of my life. We are on such a dangerous path. And we are so lazy! We want everything right now. We listen to the lies of the world. There are even people in the congress that are saying the world is going to end in 10 years. Really? Well if that's the case, we better be preparing ourselves to meet the real God because we cannot remove all the pollutions that we've made in ten years. And why are these AI people not studying how to remove and prevent all these pollutions if they are so intelligent? And who is in control of the  AI?  Men that produced them? So if we accept and use this AI in whatever state it be, are we not giving control of our very lives to whoever created it? 

2Tim.1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but power, love and a sound mind.

Wow! What a week we had two weeks ago. Our friends from Coffeyville came to build stairs to the second floor of our school in San Pedro Sula. They didn't get to do all that they wanted due to the rain. This is the rainy season here. And it's still very hot in SPS even when it's not raining. There were some new people that came and Becky and I were so glad to meet them. We were also very glad to see some old friends! What a blessing from the Lord. And we were able to hear Pastor Randy preach again. That was really special for me. A message was given by one of the ladies about the people having fear. Many came for prayer against this tool of the enemy.  This and unbelief are tools that Satan uses against the people of God. I think one of the saddest stories in the Bible is the story of Jeroboam. God gave him a promise about ruling the ten tribes of Israel and he didn't believe it. He feared the people would return to King Rehoboam king of Judah. He who made Israel to sin is always written after his name. How sad. And it's true for God's people today. If we let fear and unbelief rule us, we will not fare any better than Jeroboam. And it's sad that here in HN, the people have such fear of so many things even those that claim to be Christians. And it really saddens my heart.

The group loved our food. Becky and I believe that Honduras has the best food in all Central America. Yes, we are prejudiced, but after eating in the other countries, it's true!!! 

We were able to visit the new warehouse here for Envoy of Hope. What a blessing for not only our schools but also the other schools and places here in Honduras that Convoy helps. God bless those that are part of this ministry.

We went to Copan to see the Mayan Ruins. It rained all the way there. I was praying that the rain would stop when we got there. And sure enough, the Lord answered that prayer. I'm sure that others were praying the same thing. And after we left, it started raining again. Some of the ladies suffered from car sickness. Let's face it. Kansas doesn't have mountains and lots of curves like we have here. So bless their hearts for enduring the trip there and back since it's about four hours each way. And we had a couple with stomach problems. Most groups that come usually have some that suffer with stomach problems. Even the groups that have a lot of strong, tough guys miss a couple of days of work due to the problems experienced with the digestive systems. It's usually caused by the change in the diets. Americans are not used to eating beans, rice, and corn tortillas everyday nor the vegetables that are standard fare here, and the coffee is not Folgers or other American brands. Even the weather is different. I was home in August and I never sweated one time. I sweat here everyday! So it's a total change for the body. 

They said that the trip was worth it all. They enjoyed hearing some of the history about Copan and seeing the ruins. Our guide was Mayan and was very proud of his heritage and he spoke good English.

At the school, some of the ladies had a good time visiting the classes and talking to the teachers and the kids. Since it's a bilingual school, they all used English. Although Vanessa was able to use her Spanish at different times at school and in the other places that we visited. Jane held a get together  with all the teachers. She gave gave them different tools and strategies for teaching in their classes. And then they had a very good time of sharing cookies and punch. The teachers that teach the Spanish classes don't know English very well, so Vanessa translated for Jane. It was great.
We were sad to see them leave but at the same happy to return to our houses in Tegus and Valle. Hopefully we will be on their list to come again.
Grace and peace to all!

1Thess.5:18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

So here we are in October for a few more days. The end of another year is fast approaching. How time does fly, so it seems, and one generation passes on to another. I often think about how many children God has. When you think about the beginning with Adam and Eve up until now. How many must He have! Of course, I get fairly selfish at times thinking about me as his daughter. Which, of course, I am. But how many more are there? One day, we shall see.

I have been going to our schools in Tegucigalpa to help our teachers that teach English. It's so sad that they aren't teaching the kids to speak in English. One of the 9th grade classes absolutely despises the class. When I asked why they didn't like English, they gave the learned response of "It's hard." One boy said that the teacher didn't teach it. I had to agree with him. She translates a lot into Spanish instead of helping them understand the lesson. And this class, I spoke only in Spanish to them. I reminded them that they had to have some classes in English when they go to the university. They also had a better chance of a better paying job here if they could speak, read, and write English. After speaking about other things, I told them that God had a plan for each of their lives, and that it was a good plan. After the class, the teacher told me that it was a good motivational speech! Well, the Lord is a good motivator, right? It's sad here, because the teachers teach exactly how they were taught-memorize and regurgitate. There's no thinking involved. Just rote memory. But I'm believing the Lord to guide and show me what to do and how to help them. I know that he will. If he's called me to it, then I can do it through him. 

The first week in November we are going to San Pedro Sula with a team from Coffeyville.  It will be good to see them again. While they are working on the school, I will be with the teachers. I will also go to two other towns near there to see how our English teachers are doing in their classes. I hope that I hear our students speaking some English!

It has rained the last two nights really hard. I put out my bucket and a one of my five gallon jugs to catch some rain water in order to wash my hair. Yep, the water coming into the house is a little dirty. It has been worse, and it's not too bad, but... With all the money, etc., that comes into HN, I wish someone would help with the water systems. However, I thank the Lord for the water that we do have. Sometimes, I think of times when people bathed, washed clothes and dishes in the streams and rivers. And there are people, in some areas here, that still do that. I'm thankful that I'm not one of them. But if I were, I would do what Paul said.  Give thanks in all things. So that takes care of that!

I bought the book "The Wonky Donkey" when I was home for my students to read.  I was glad when Carlos started laughing when he was reading it because I knew he understood it. Of course, he didn't really know what country music was, so we went on line so he could hear some. And yes, Doug, I am thankful for my computer for this reason!!!(love you). I thought that there's no such word as wonky. Boy was I wrong! It has the same meaning in both English and Spanish. The Spanish word is chueco.

So we both are learning new words in Spanish and English. That's good thing! We need to keep learning new things as long as we live. Right?

So now, I must get off of here. A student will be coming shortly.

Grace and peace to all.

Gal.5:1 Stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ heath made us free, and be not entangled...

Well, here we are in the last week of September. I haven't written since June as my friend Barbara reminded me when I was in the states in August.  Oops! So I will start from today (9/21) and work backwards. It's Saturday and I'm waiting for my milkman to come! I haven't had good, pure milk since August, and I miss it terribly. Well, that's not exactly true since I froze a quart before I left for the states. We have not had a lot of rain and I was told that there isn't a lot of pasture for the cattle so therefore I haven't gotten any milk. Hopefully I'll get some today.

Yesterday was my 75th birthday. I can hardly believe that I've lived for three fourths of a century! The Lord has been so good to me. I thank him for good health, a sound mind, and His continual presence in my life. Those are so vital for good living. So about yesterday. My good friend Martha came Thursday and said that she was taking me to Tegucigalpa for lunch on Friday (yesterday) for my birthday. So I went to her house and saw that pastor Dago was going with us. No problem. Then I learned that Becky was going to join us. I thought that was very unusual for her to invite herself to have lunch with us. No problem. Then as we were walking to the bus, Gene, one of the storekeepers that speaks English hollered happy birthday to me as we were walking by his shop. And then he told me to come over. I did, and I asked how he knew it was  my birthday and eventually learned that Becky had told him. I thought man, she's really busy! Anyway he gave me a pound of the coffee that he raises. So on to the bus Pastor, Martha, and I went. When I asked Pastor and Martha where we were eating, he told me at PIEDAD, the name of our schools. I thought, what? So I asked him if we were going to Macuelizo where I had taught for eight years. He said no and I finally understood that we were going to the office. I thought that we were going to meet Becky there which would be strange.  I still didn't get it! Well, lo and behold, when we arrived at the office there were the teachers from my school, two administrators from two other schools, office staff, and others. I was totally surprised! I really was. I saw the biggest gold balloons of the number 75 that I've ever seen in my life!!! The food was excellent as were the people that were there to celebrate with me which of course I hadn't planned on doing. Becky totally out did herself. It was wonderful.
So I returned here on the fifth of September, and a group came from Paola, KS on the seventh to paint the school. What a group! Pastor Andy asked me if I remembered him from the first time that he was here. Ah, sorry, but no. I will definitely not forget him again :) Anyway, the group painted the outside of all three schools. What a job they did. It was wonderful spending time with them at the school, during supper time, and then devotional time after dinner. They also painted the big round tank (water?) outside the kindergarten. What a difference that made in the whole area. One of the ladies, I think, said that maybe that would encourage the neighbors to paint their houses. That would be something short of a miracle. One of the ladies is a podiatrist and she helped some of the women with their feet issues.  They also held a tea for the teachers and painted nails, etc. What fun!
I also invited my student, Carlos, to come practice his English with the group. Well, he came and practiced with the guys. He also took a brush and helped them paint!  He's such a good guy. It's important for him to talk to others that speak English besides me. He thanked me later for the opportunity to do so. And the guys talked about whatever with him. What a good God we have.
I was in the states for a month. What a peaceful and restful time. But I have to admit that the last week was a little difficult because I heard my "bed" calling my name!! I was ready to come home. But the first two weeks I was in IL with my youngest daughter. We always have fun especially when we do a marathon of movies or whatever. It usually goes for a day or two depending on what's going on. However, this time we watched the TV series Blacklist.  Well, I had seen a couple of scenes down here and decided not to watch it. When we started from the beginning, that changed the whole mind set! We ended up watching ALL 5 seasons and then I paid for the sixth! Definitely hooked! So guess what I'll be watching on Friday night here. So much for the marathon. We always go shopping, of course. Hah! But this time I already had what I needed at her house. I had forgotten what I bought a couple of years ago when I was there. So I definitely didn't spend much money. Thank you Lord! My great-granddaughters have really grown. I couldn't believe it when I first saw them at the airport. They're starting seventh and ninth grades. And the little one will begin first grade. Crazy! But life does go on, yes?
So  my youngest son came from KS to go with me to celebrate my brother and sister-in-laws 60th wedding anniversary. What a happy time. I was able to see nieces and nephews that I hadn't seen for a while. We were also able to spend the night and visit with them before leaving the next morning. What a great time it was.
My last two weeks were in KS. My youngest son and wife were in Hawaii. So my daughter-in-law and I spent a lot of time together. This was Gary's wife. Many years ago in IL, the people at church used to call us Ruth and Naomi. So that gives you a glimpse of our relationship. Jenna, Gary's daughter, had to work but she made sure that we went to a special coffee shop. It was really good. Thank you, Jenna! I was able to spend time with one of my pastors and his family. I asked him if he would preach my funeral, whenever, and he said yes. Thank you Bryan. Of course, the big question for my kids is where is Mom going to die? Of course, Doug always tells his siblings that Mom is going to die in Honduras. He doesn't know!!!! Only my Father knows that.
And I was able to visit with friends. A couple of ladies are in the nursing home but we were able to go out for lunch. I love doing that with them. And I was able to visit others while eating out with them. We do love to eat, don't we?
So now, I leave for Panama this Thursday and come home on Sunday. It's a workshop for teachers and whoever else. When I return, I start visiting the teachers that teach English in our schools. What a mess it is here. The teachers use different books published by different publishers. The biggest problem is that they don't understand that these books are written for kids that already know the English language. These kids have to go to school to learn to read and write the language that they already speak. Not so, here. Therefore the teachers have told me that the parents get angry when the workbooks aren't finished at the end of the school year. And the government has said that the schools have to teach English. Many of the Honduran teachers can't explain the meanings or pronounce the words correctly.  But they try. And there are some schools that are truly bilingual and they do a good job. They are also expensive. And the kids in our schools don't speak the English that they are learning. So hopefully that will change. When the kids start learning English in kinder and continue, they do very well.  I have bought books that are made here in Hn that teach English, but they have so many mistakes in them. So unless the teachers here recognize the mistakes and correct them, they are not good books to use. So I ask for your  prayers for me in this area. And I thank you for them.
What else? I have cable of course since I have to do most personal business online. So after a few days of not receiving the TV stations from the US, I called the office in Tegucigalpa. I finally asked to speak to a person that speaks English. After I explained the problem, he said a repairman would be sent out today. So we'll see what takes place. Also, I woke up this morning to find out that I have no water. Oh, boy! The last time that this happened, I was without for almost two weeks. So glad that I was born when I was and that I know how to live with just a little water. So after the repairman comes and goes, I need to go to the store for some bottled water. It comes in five gallon bottles. A friend told me at church yesterday that her family hadn't had water for two months! Welcome to Honduras!! But the Lord knows and will take care of us. It has rained really hard for the last couple of days especially at night. So that is a good thing. We are supposed to be in the rainy season, but so far it hasn't lived up to its name! Hopefully, it will change real soon.
I learned yesterday that a singer from Guatemala died in April. It really hit me. I guess it's because I learned this song that he sang. In English it says that I'm not enslaved by fear. In Spanish its title is Ya No Soy Esclavo, talking about not being enslaved to fear. The Lord has delivered us from fear if we are his child. 2 Tim. 1:7. And if we understand that His Spirit is with us all the time 24/7. He said that He would never leave us or forsake us. What ever is happening in our lives, He is right in the middle of it. Nothing happens to us without his permission. And it happens for our good not our destruction. If only his people would believe what He says. I learned a long time ago that people only do what they believe. God help us to know and believe what He says. But I'm learning that most people that go to church don't read his word for themselves. How sad is that? How do we really know him when we don't know what he says in the context that it's written? Ok, I guess that I've said enough, but it really bothers me. I hope that all of you that read this blog has a personal relationship with our Savior  and that you read his word for yourselves. He has so much to say and to share with you. So with that, I really will stop!
Love, grace, and peace to you all from our Father in heaven.