Expats

Being from another country has resulted in quite a few funny moments in our life here in Honduras.  And since Sarah would really like me to tell some stories on her siblings…..

….let me preface this by saying that this happened when Allana was younger, MUCH younger.  We needed to renew several of our passports.  This involved a lot of paperwork and traveling to a large city a few hours away to visit the American consulate.  We had been discussing going to see the Consul at the consulate to finish the paperwork. If we were unable to take care of business at the consulate, we would have to travel to the capital about 7 hours away to visit the embassy.  Allana, listening to this conversation, must have filed away the unfamiliar words “consul/consulate” and “embassy” to use in a future conversations.   Imagine my surprise a few days later when she asked in her sweet little voice, ” Mommy when are we going to see the imbecile at the embassy?”

Our youngest three children were born in Honduras and have dual citizenship.  This has occasionally been a cause for confusion in Josiah, Lydia, and Charity.  In 2012 when Obama was inaugurated for the second time, we were listening to the audio of the inauguration on the internet.  When the national anthem started playing the older kids put their hands on their hearts and faced the flag in our school room.  Lydia, who was 5 at the time, followed their example.  After a few seconds she looked around and saw that Francis (our Honduran “daughter”) was not standing and did not have her hand on her heart.  When she asked why, I explained that because Francis was not American she would honor the Honduran anthem instead of the American national anthem.  With a horrified look on her face, she quickly jerked her hand away from her heart and exclaimed, “But Mommy, I’m not American either….”

When we first arrived in Honduras, I didn’t speak much Spanish…basically just “Hi, how are you?”  type phrases.  One day while I was downstairs at the Bible school trying to converse with one of the pastor’s wives, Nathaniel yelled down from the window of our apartment that the washing machine was overflowing.  In spite of being 7 months pregnant, I took off running to the upstairs apartment.  When I finished mopping up, I went back downstairs to finish my conversation.  The pastor’s wife asked me what happened.  In my very limited Spanish and with hand motions I tried to explain that the washing machine had overflowed.  I knew it was a language fail when she listened to my explanation, looked at me for a moment and then said, “Well….maybe you need vitamins…..”

 

43 Jovenes!

Confession is good for the soul, so I’m going to be doing even better after this post.  Here’s my confession…I don’t always obey the first time I’m told.  I know, I know, that’s a really bad habit.  Just ask my children.  There are always consequences!

 

Five years ago I started feeling the need to start a youth class in our local church.  We had Sunday School, and there were young people that came, but we needed something more.  When I started getting the impression that the Lord wanted me to teach this class, I didn’t obey.  My first excuse was, “I don’t have time to take on anything else!”  Then when the impression got stronger, “But, Lord, you know my Spanish is still lacking…I just don’t feel comfortable teaching a group of young people.”  Still stronger…”They already have a youth leader and they have youth meeting on Sundays….”  I’m really embarrassed to admit that I argued for over 3 years!

Finally, I obeyed.

Our first youth class, we had 2 Schreckhise kids and one other young lady from the church.  Little by little others started coming. Today I had 45 in my class!  43 young people and 2 moms.  Just a little less than 2 years later.  If I started telling you all the stories of young people whose lives have been changed, of entire families who have been affected by the power of the Holy Ghost, we’d be here all night.

Is it because of me or my teaching abilities?  NO!!!  God already had a plan.

In a country where the median age is 22 (half of the population is younger than 22), there are young people who are looking for something real.  Something they can trust in a society filled with poverty, drug trafficking, and violence.  Something (I should say Someone) who can fill the emptiness in their soul.  Something more than ritual and religion.  They are looking for a relationship that lasts.

My job is to introduce them to the Lover of their soul.  To the One who knew them before they were born.  The One who has them written on the very palms of His hands.  What a privilege it is to witness the moment when they realize that  God is real and that He is waiting for them with open arms.  That He loves them with an everlasting love.  That He wants to give them a hope and a future.

I’m so thankful that during the 3 years that I argued and disobeyed God didn’t decide to use someone else. That in spite of my stubbornness, He was patient.  That He allowed me to be a part of reaching this amazing group of kids.

Now, bringing it home. If you’re feeling that there is something that God is calling you to do, don’t follow my example and argue.  Most of the time what God calls us to do will not be easy.  There will be lots of logical excuses. It probably won’t be in our comfort zone.  And it may not even feel safe….just remember, there is no better place to be than right in the center of His will!

JS

 

What I learned from the BOA…

I have a confession to make.  I do NOT hate bugs.  Actually, I am very fascinated by them. (Well, except for roaches.)

I know, I know…that’s not a very ladylike admission.  Here’s an even bigger confession.  I think snakes are amazing creatures as well. There is something intriguing about how they move. I’ve always thought they were interesting.  I don’t necessarily want to get too close, but they don’t bother me.  However, recently something happened to change my mind.

Some months ago, I went out to feed the chickens early in the morning.  As I was scooping out their food, I sensed motion out of the corner of my eye.  When I turned to look…there was a 6-foot-long boa constrictor looking back at me!  We were separated only by three feet of space and some chicken wire.

I could tell by the lump in the middle of his body that he (or she) had dined on one of my full grown chickens.  What to do???  I really wanted to dissect that snake to find out which hen he’d eaten.  I decided to call for reinforcements.

“Babe, there’s a BIG snake in the chicken coop!”

My gallant husband was more than willing to come to my rescue.  Until he saw the snake. “Whoa, that’s a BIG snake!”  He looked around for an appropriate snake killing tool.  The machete?  Too dull.  The limb cutting saw?  Too long.  The shovel?  That might work.

When he raised the shovel to hit the boa, it seemed to sense what was coming and moved it’s head back.  He hit it right behind the head.  What happened next was crazy…creepy… unbelievable.  The boa raised the front of it’s body a foot off of the ground and let out this loud noise between a hiss and a growl!  I’ve never heard such a chilling sound!

I suddenly wanted to get far away from that animal! It occurred to me that if that snake could, (if it were big enough) it would hurt me.  I thought of all the nights I had gone out to the chicken coop to gather eggs, never even bothering with a light.  How long had Mr. Boa been hanging around?

After we buried him (and no I was not able to dissect him…he was WAY too tough) my curiosity started working.  I couldn’t imagine how that boa had come into the chicken coop and eaten a full grown hen without the whole bunch of them starting up a ruckus. Normally when something threatens a chicken, they all (about 50 of them) start squawking like crazy.  I can hear them from inside the house and will go check to see what is bothering them.   How was it that I didn’t even hear a peep out of them that night?

We figured out that the hen eaten by the boa was a sweet little white hen that had taken to roosting all by herself.  She was a loner and preferred to avoid the company of the other chickens.  She was young and a little timid.  Did that have anything to do with how she died?

I started researching online about how boa constrictors hunt.  What I learned was that they move very, veeeerrrryy slowly until they are close to their prey.  So slowly, that their prey doesn’t pay them much attention.  When they are within striking distance of their prey, they hold their head very still while they bunch their bodies up like a giant spring.  Then in a split second, they strike.  They grab their prey with their mouth while they wrap that giant constricting body around it and begin to squeeze.  It happens so fast, their prey doesn’t even have time to realize what’s happening before it’s all over.

Immediately my mind came up with a spiritual analogy.  Satan is the enemy of our soul. We are his prey.  His desire is to destroy us.  He wants to take our families, our minds, our souls captive.  But sometimes he moves so slowly and carefully that we don’t recognize him for who he is…and what he is after.  He tries to inch closer without us recognizing his goal.

That “little” rebellion in our spirit, a door that is opened “just a crack” to something we know is wrong, letting our mind dwell on sinful “possibilities”,  allowing a little bit of unforgiveness, anger, and bitterness into our heart.  All of these things are tricks he uses to get a little closer.  He doesn’t want to do anything too alarming because we might run away…but if he can just advance a little bit at a time until we are within his grasp….

That’s why the scriptures are clear,

“Flee youthful lusts…” II Timothy 2:22

“Be sober, be vigilante; because your adversary, the devil…” I Peter 5:8

“Resist the devil…” James 4:7

“And do not give the devil an opportunity…” Ephesians 4:27

 

 

In a nutshell, I learned two things from my experience with the boa…

• Don’t underestimate your enemy.
• You are more vulnerable if you isolate yourself.

 

That little hen put herself in a vulnerable situation when she chose to remove herself from the flock.  There is safety in numbers.  “In the multitude of counselors there is safety..” Proverbs 11:14.  Don’t convince yourself you’re better off alone, that nobody really understands you.  Stay with the flock.  Hear the words of your spiritual leaders.  Heed their warnings.  Things that seem so small and unimportant to you can turn into a spiritual stumbling block.

Remember Satan is not your friend.  He would like nothing more than to destroy you. Don’t give him the chance.  Don’t even let him get close!

 

 

JS

Do you need a pinch?

For those of you who are acquainted with our family, you all know Sarah.  We say she’s the spark plug of the bunch.  She’s always full of energy, always talking.  And she’s always loved babies.  She loves holding them. She loves snuggling them.  She loves comforting them.

Her first introduction to baby care was when Josiah was a newborn. Sarah was three years old, and she loved taking care of Josiah.  She could calm him like no one else could.  She would rub his head, sing to him, talk to him, whatever it took to help him stop crying.

One day she was playing with baby Josiah while I worked around the house.  After a while I noticed something strange.  Josiah would cry, Sarah would calm him down, then he would begin screaming again.  After hearing the same pattern a couple of times, I stepped around the corner to see what was going on.  Imagine my surprise to see Sarah loving on Josiah to calm him down, then when he was calm….pinching him to make him cry so she could do it all over again!

Now, I’m definitely not saying that the Lord is like Sarah. Pinching us just to make us cry. But I do believe there are times when we get a little too comfortable.  A little too set in our ways.  A little too confident in our own righteousness.  So He just gives us a little spiritual pinch.

It might be something our pastor says.  Or something a friend calls us on.  It might even be something a stranger mentions about our attitude.  OUCH!  Those pinches tend to make us mad. They make us want to justify our actions. Or to point out a bigger wrong in someone else.

But those pinches have a purpose. They are to wake us up.  Make us grow a little more. Help us leave behind some spiritual immaturity.  Remind us not to get to comfortable, not to conform to this world.  So the next time you feel that little pinch, don’t get mad.  Grow up!

 

 

 

First Things First

Finally….the first blog post!!!!  What fun it will be to share with you (my family, friends, acquaintances, and future sons and daughters-in-law) the things that are happening here in Honduras.

This blog was born out of my desire to keep in touch with all of you, share thoughts about life, post pictures of events that are happening in The Pentecostals of Honduras, and keep you updated on the family farm (we have 17 new baby chicks).   Thanks to the many young people in my life who encouraged me to take a leap of faith into the “unknown” world of technology and showed me how to do it (stop laughing!).

On a more serious note, recently I was reading a book written by a missionary to India.  He posed a question something like this, “If you could spend your life doing one thing for God, what would it be?”  I began to ponder that question, and came up with this answer.  If I am only going to do one thing for God in this life, I choose to encourage every child and young person that I meet to have a “heart deep” relationship with Jesus.  Beginning with my own children.

In this day and age we don’t need shiny, plastic Christians.  We need Christians that love like Jesus loved, reached like Jesus reached, walk like Jesus walked.  Christians who do not have to live in their comfort zone. Christians whose only focus is not food, or fashion, or gossip. Christians who see the big picture. Christians who recognize that there is a world full of lost souls who need the hope that Jesus brings.  That’s the kind of “heart deep” relationship I’m talking about.

Now putting the question to you…

If you could spend your life doing one thing for God, what would it be?

 

JS