Be the light.....

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I have never crafted the last day of a mission trip, but if I were to do so, it would look exactly like this day did!  After a day of rest, we were excited to head back up to the children's home for a final day of work.  Full disclosure - I have learned this week that "excited" is a relative term that is measured differently by everyone.....

We gathered the tools and headed to the work site to join the guys.  They had made some great progress the day before and today we were starting a whole new section of the wall.  We immediately got to work not needing much guidance as, of course, we were now pros.  We divided up into small groups to tackle each of the tasks.  One of the neat things about these students is that there were no "clicks" this week.  Each time we broke into groups there was always a different mix and each group seemed to get along really well and have great conversations.

For me, this is the first time in Honduras where I worked on a build project at the children's home so I didn't really know what the difference would be.  What I discovered this week was the great relationships you build with the workers when you spend 3-4 days with them.  Today it was like showing up to hang out with 3 old friends, 2 of them not speaking English.  Though focused and efficient at work (trust me, don't be staring off into space when you need to be handing them blockas or mixing mescla), these guys are super relational.  We learned all about Edson and how he and his wife moved to the states for 3 years.  He shared his struggles at a young age and how he came to know Christ.  He would light up as he talked about his son Benjamin and how much he loved worship music.  Though fairly quiet, Ariel would pepper in questions about each of us; our work, our spouse and children, school and of course an occasional joke at our expense.  He was a really sweet man until he asked me if one of the students was my daughter.  Our relationship deteriorated quickly after that.

Angel, in my opinion, is the quiet giant of the 3.  Not really ever saying much, he would light up as he led worshiped and shared with us at lunch.  You could tell he was paying attention to every detail of us throughout the day as he would speak directly to those details during our time at lunch.  From remembering our backgrounds to what songs we said we liked while working, he is gifted in connecting with people and seems to have a passion for relationships that I pray to have a fraction of some day.  The experience with these guys is just another testament to the Honduran culture and the pride they take in being a light to the world for Jesus.

We wrapped up our day a little early as the children had a presentation for us before we left.  Believe it or not some (definitely not all) of us were disappointed to stop working.    We had hit our rhythm by this time and were sad to be leaving the guys.  We headed up to see the children and of course had a wonderful time.  They thanked us for our being there and for the work we had done.  They then challenged us to a couple of games included "hot cabbage" where we got to take on different challenges from saying Spanish words to the chicken dance.  (not a typo) After a relay race of frog hops and lunges, with them cheering us on, we closed with the children praying for us.  Though sad, this was one of the highlights of the day for most of us.

On the way home we stopped by Suzy's house to see some of the progress of her projects and to visit with her family.  She greeted us with ice cream sundays and we got to spend time with here children and play with the numerous animals.  It was great to see the work that had been done including a new guest house built out of the garage for 2 of her children.

After dinner, our final time together was a very special one as Suzy joined us at casa lamb and led us in worship and a devotional.  After a few songs with her playing the guitar, we read Revelation 3:8 and and talked about how God has prepared us to be the light of the world.  We listened closely as she talked about the struggles over the last 30 years as a missionary.   Through the MANY times of doubt, she would turn to this verse as a reminder that though we may not be moving forward in our calling, we are to stand strong in our faith and be the light of love we are called to do.  She shared with us how special St. Peters is to her and her family and how we have been a light for them.  With little Danny running around the room, she pointed out that had it not been for St. Peters, there would not be the light for him or her other children.  She also did a great job putting it into perspective that our calling may not be for some lofty mission like lamb or moving to another country to serve.  All the while keeping the clear message that we are to be the love and life of Jesus, she concluded with "There is a lot to be said for the love of one person".  That is where it all starts.

After Suzy left we concluded our time together sharing our highlights of the day.  Though the exercise was to share your HIGH (singular) of the day, everyone of us started with "well, I actually have 3...", most of us adding our time with Suzy as an awesome experience.  We then did a gratitude exercise where each member of the team had a sheet of paper with their name on it passed around and everyone wrote a word of encouragement or thanks to everyone else.  It was a great way to end the day with them taking their sheet home as a reminder of their team and how they all impacted each other over the week.

So here it is, the final morning.  I'm sitting in my special spot in casa lamb, where I have sat every morning I have been in Honduras, overlooking a small balcony over the courtyard.  It is a bitter sweet morning as I am excited to get home to see Lynne and get back to life, but sad that this week is coming to an end.  When I signed up for this trip to come along and help with a youth group, I didn't have any idea what to expect.  Honestly, I thought the trip would be different then before because I would have to be "on" and responsible to help lead the students.  Little did I know that this would be one of the greatest experiences for me in Honduras.  Ranging in ages from 15-17, these students are true lights to the world.  Admittedly, every now and then, I have fallen into the category of people who has a little bit of doubt for our future generation.  If we have a fraction of our society made up of kids like these, we will be just fine......