First We Fish

His

After school on Thursday I was rocked by diversity. I taught third grade PE first of all which is full of enough personalities to entertain me for days. It was their final PE class, so they were a little crazy. Dodge ball was a bad idea! School got out at 12 and I went to lunch with one of my seniors and another friend who could give him some advice on playing soccer in the states. He went home stoked and motivated to pursue his dream. I left lunch at 1:30 and went to have a tour of the new multi million dollar golf course. I was blown away that something so extravagant could be less than a mile from people living in tin shacks with dirt floors. I then went back to my apartments and decided to take a motorcycle ride to the East end of the island. The East end is a 45 minute drive and very secluded. There are small indigenous villages of Garifuna island people and beautiful views. Within hours I had been in the midst of millionaires who "own" the island, soccer players who "run" the island, kids who "are" the island, Garifuna people who are rooted to the island, and teachers who are trying to impact the island. I get frustrated with the concentrated wealth here along side the ridiculous poverty. The rich are creating yet another private environment where people can come to hide from the poverty on the outside of their cement walls. The people who are in poverty are surrounded by drugs, violence and ignorance. They have a small opportunity to be educated but even then there is little to no room for upward mobility. Most of the students at my school come from wealthy families and are caught up in materialism and worldly success which makes it hard to get through to them. My apartment is right next to the power plant, in the hottest part of the island with one window and no A/C. It is not the most pleasant place but I have a roof, a bed and running water. It is easy to get bogged down in negativity when I look at everything around me and begin to analyze things but God wanted to remind me of his reality. As I drove the 45 minute ride back to my home in Los Fuertes and thought through all of this, I heard God say "This is my island and these are all My people." That millionaire who will play golf this week is Gods child, My students are his, the soccer coaches are his, Pablo, Jarvick and Bebe are his, the tourists are his, I am his and I am here for him.
There are crappy situations everywhere, Sometimes I want to close my eyes and run away but we are called to more. It would have been easy for Jesus to turn and walk away from the adulteress woman allowing her to be stoned by her accusers, but he stood by her side. He could have ignored the lepers or the blind but he touched them and made mud to heal their eyes. Jesus stopped for each one and truly cared for them. I want to follow in his footsteps and I am praying that he will help me to stay focused and motivated to do that. This is his island and these are his people.




"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'"

52 pick up

So I have been suffering a little writers block but here is a little catch up on my last couple of months here. Hopefully I will be able to write something with a little more depth later on.
I went to a good friend, Roberto's Wedding:


We celebrated cultural day at school. It was a big ordeal but really fun to watch. All the families came, the kids dressed up and we ate traditional island and Honduran food.



I have been swimming a lot, running has been rough on my feet and knees so this has been my outlet.


Went rafting (class 4/5 rapids) and spent the weekend at the Jungle River Lodge in La Ceiba. Very fun and relaxing.



Cleaned up trash from the ocean with the seniors. It was a early morning on a Saturday but a lot of fun. We collected 3 bags of trash; beer bottles, bags, and wrappers.


This is my last week of classes, next week we have exams (no PE or Bible exams this quarter), and I will be headed back to the states on June 16th. I will be home for 2 months then headed back here at the end of August. There are a lot of good things that have been happening and that God is allowing me to be a part of. I have started to get to a guy named Hobie on the island who works with drug addicts and people on the streets. He gets to know them and connects them with a group on the mainland called Teen Challenge. Also the boys have been coming over on time to work on their reading and it seems like every time they come over, there is a new one, haha. There are 7 or 8 now who come over once or twice a week now. I love getting to know these kids and am so excited about whatever plans God has for these relationships. We finished out the year with a few soccer and Volleyball games with one of the rival schools and went undefeated in everything. The elementary boys won twice and the girls volleyball won their match as well. Much love.

Beggin' for MJ

Its Sunday night, I am relaxing before the week starts and I hear the all to familiar call. "Harry!" "Hey Harry!" Paul and Jarbie are only supposed to come by on Mondays and Wednesdays now so that we can work on English, watch cartoons and eat pancakes. But here they are at 8pm on a Sunday night (thats late when you have to get up at 6am). I go outside and they are waving a DVD in the air through the bars of our gate. "Harry, can we watch it, can we watch it!" Come to find out the boys have begged for and saved enough money to buy "This is it" the Michael Jackson movie that came out like 2 days after he died. MJ lives up to his king status here in Honduras. Many things have shocked me here like the love of the people for Garth Brooks, the taxi's that have removed all the seat belts and door handles and the obsession with Bojangles. But nothing fascinates me like the way they cherish MJ, thriller and Billy Jean are like a life line that runs through Central America. Maybe this is true for the rest of the world and my eyes are just beginning to be opened to it. Regardless, Paul and Jarbie were about to pee in their pants with excitement. I felt like the grinch on Christmas but I couldn't let them start to watch their hard earned DVD on Sunday night. I wasn't ready to be moved by the music. We made a few PBJ's and I sent them on their way promising that we would watch part of it when they come over next to work on English. Incentives are great for productivity.

Doors

So a about a month ago now God made it clear that He intended for me to stay here another year. I was nervous, kinda stressed, and a confused about what to expect so I asked God to open some doors and give me some answers. God continued to tell me "one day at a time."
So some awesome things have happened since then. I got connected with a guy on the other end of the island who runs basketball, soccer and baseball leagues. Church just seems to be more fulfilling and is beginning to feel like home. Two great friends are interviewing to come work at the school next year. I got connected and am beginning to work with an organization that is infiltrating human trafficking on the island and is building vocational training centers here to train the locals for working in the resorts. Paul and Jarbie read a whole Dr. Seuse book last night, haha, huge progress from not knowing the alphabet 2 months ago. Good stuff happening!
The year is starting to wind down though, one more month of classes, then exams, then home for the summer. I am trying to figure out a way to make some money this summer that pays well, has no commitment and complete flexibility, haha let me know if you know of anything. I can mow your lawn, paint you house, pull weeds, change your oil, just give me a holler. The kids are getting antsy about the end of the year and the days are getting hotter. It was 97 on Tuesday with humidity that makes charleston seem like a dessert. We had to cancel classes for the day and cram the kids into our three air conditioned rooms. In this heat PE was a bad choice, but I am making it work. We got some wood this week to make ping pong tables. The plan is to set them up in the shade which will give us all a little break. I will keep ya'll updated on how things work out with our rigged up tables. Thanks for reading, I will update again soon! Have a beautiful day

La Isla

So I went back to the states for Spring break last week and had a great time with people I love. The time flew by and I drove all over the Carolina's but the time was blessed. Everywhere I stopped and most of the time in the car was quality. I had dinner with a few friends, had a solid time at the 1 dollar theatre, threw rocks with my nephew, went to Golden Coral with my Grandma, and spent good time with the rest of my friends and family on the coast. So while I was driving and making all these stops God revealed something to me that I wasn't expecting. Here Goes:


About 2 months ago I started having a feeling that God wanted me to keep an open mind about coming back here next year. I brushed it off and tried to ignore it because I know that I want to come back to the States. My time here is awesome and God is allowing me to be a part of some great stuff but I miss my friends and family. Anyway I didn't think much of it, I thought maybe God just wanted my obedience, to keep an open mind but I didn't actually believe he wanted to keep me here against my will. So a couple weeks after I got this feeling, I talked with my friend John who encouraged me to think about staying another year also. He was making the point that one year just kinda lays the ground work and if I stay another year, God will be able to build on what has already begun. I agreed with what he was saying but I still wasn't ready to receive it. Spring break came around and I was headed stateside to see a lot of ya’ll and maybe get some clarity on what I am supposed to do next year. The week was a blur of goodness so I will just hit a few points here. I am told by my good friend Kendall that she feels like I will be in Honduras another year, then I go to Charleston and met up with Doug (an older friend who has become a mentor to me over the past two years) who immediately began to tell me the importance of staying in Honduras for at least another year. Keep in mind that I hadn't talked to Doug about this at all, but this isn't the first time God has used him to speak into my life. That night I hung out with a few of the fellas, smoked some cigars and really got encouraged in what God was trying to reveal to me as I talked and prayed with my buddy Chris. 5 hours later, I woke up ate some breakfast and drove up to Myrtle Beach. On the drive I called an old friend who I did not get to see while I was in Charleston. I gave her a brief summary of what I do here in Honduras and told her that I now thought I may be here another year. She asked if she could pray for me and began to ask God to fill me with love for kids with no parental guidance. Again God was speaking clearly to me about the kids he has brought into my life here in Honduras. All this woman knew is that I love the Lord and teach PE here. It was very encouraging to have God repeatedly speak his will into my life through so many different people. I accepted Gods call to stay here for another year and I continue to be excited about what he is doing on this island. He is giving me a vision for the rest of this year and next. I see a solid Younglife style youth group being established that leads this community into fellowship and service. I see tutoring and mentoring the street kids in our community. I see more organized sports teams that allow our students some structure and discipline. I see Gods powerful spirit invading this island.

Recent highlights:
- More relationships being established with kids on the island who lack any supervision or guidance
- -Paul (13) and Jarbie (12yr) are coming over 3 times a week. We usually make pancakes and work on learning to read for about an hour. They now both know the alphabet and can read some basic words.
- I found out there is a baseball league on the other end of the island
- I am enjoying teaching more than usual
- Our first youth worship and movie night is this Friday

Jesus

"I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified" -1 Corinthians 2: 2

Most religions seem to portray God as having the same or similar characteristics that I believe he has. In Sikhism they see him in all creation when spiritually awakened. I would venture to say that God can capture anyone’s heart and captivate them with his creation. When this awakening takes place, that person will grasp and run with whatever belief system is close by. If I had grown up in India and was awakened to God’s majesty in the Himalayas rather than the Rockies, I may be running full speed in the direction of Nirvana rather than the cross. I was taken back by the beauty and vastness of Gods creation while he gripped my heart in Colorado and has continued to do so through the beauty surrounding me each day. I would have been running toward a dead end in India but I would have been blind to any other option because of Buddhism, Hinduism, or Sikhisms close proximity. Who is to say I can’t approach a Sikh or a Buddhist, allow him to keep his religion and his “God” or “Buddah” but offer him further enlightenment with the knowledge and revelation of salvation through Jesus, who most religions already acknowledge as a great teacher. God is God, but without Jesus, it can’t become personal. This would allow them to truly see with the “inward eye,” to have a connection with the God who has captivated them. These religions teach and enforce a standard of living and expectations to reach an inward place of achievement. What Jesus teaches is that the goal is not something we achieve within our own capabilities but something we achieve by connection with the creation and creative power around us. The only way to do this is to accept the help from the creator. The help is Jesus, he is our path, the bridge between us and God. The goal is unity between Gods will and our own, living in that unity is the challenge. Accept the gift, receive the spirit and serve with God. They already believe in the life if Jesus, but they need to know the rest of the story. He died, rose and sent his spirit. Once they know Jesus, God will handle the rest, through his word, through his body and through his spirit. We must connect Gods people with the creator that has captivated them.