Doctors & Dentist & Ultrasounds

Last week was a busy week. We hosted a team from Trinity Pres. in Harrisburg, PA and another from Grace Community Church in Mobile, AL. Both of these teams came with medical personnel. So, we decided to put them all together, then separate them into two other teams - a medical team and a non-medical team.

Both of the teams worked in La Fe as well as in Armenia Bonito. The week was different than all of the rest of the teams so far and required the long-term team to work together a lot to make sure everyone was where there needed to be at the right time. It was fun to switch things up a little and work in different capacities from normal. I got to translate for a doctor and help with construction in Armenia Bonito as well as be a part of the work in La Fe.

The 'big event' we had in La Fe was a medical clinic on Monday. We normally do medical clinics, but it is usually our teammate Erin who is the service provider. This past week we had 3 general doctors seeing patients as well as a dentist who pulled teeth and an ultrasound doctor. It was a huge success and a huge blessing the the people in La Fe! Together, the doctors saw over 160 patients and they all received the medicine they needed as well as prayers for their physical and spiritual health. Through this event, Ashley and I were able to meet some more of the community and share with them why we are here in Honduras.
 

The dentist numbing a patient.

She got to see her healthy baby!

The awesome docs working together.

Mary praying for Elizabet

The Waiting Room

Beach, Columns, & Flyers

This morning we said goodbye to the team from our home church, Covenant Community Church of Scottsdale, AZ. It was great to have them here alongside us this past week. The worked their butts off and had great servant hearts.

On Wednesday morning, they took 15 kids from La Fe to the beach. It was about a 15 minute ride in a bus, but only one of the kids had ever seen the ocean before. The kids absolutely loved playing in the sand and waves and of course playing with the gringos. We provided each of the children with a burrito and an apple and some water while Ashley shared the message of who Jesus is and what He did for each of us! In the afternoon, they worked around the dorm facility they stayed in and poured concrete for a patio.

Playing in the sand

La Fe kids after a morning at the beach

Thursday was a long day full of construction in the morning and handing out of flyers in the afternoon. We mixed concrete and poured the concrete into the forms for two 10 inch X 10 inch X 15 feet columns that will be used to hold the electrical lines in La Fe. Next Monday we are having a HUGE medical clinic (3 general doctors, a dentist, and and ultrasound doctor) so we had the CovCom team help us spread the word by handing out flyers to each household in La Fe. After dinner on Thursday night, we all (the long-term missionaries as well as the 2 teams of short-termers) played indoor soccer for an hour. All in all, it was a long but worthwhile day.

OSHA approved??

The construction crew

On Friday we took a 'rest day' to hike into the Honduras rainforest and take in some of the beauty of God's creation. It was a great time for Ashley and I to hang out with the member of the team.

Creation reveals His majesty

We SO enjoyed having this team here. They were an encouragement and brought us news and love from our home church body.

A taste of Arizona

Most of you know this, but for those who don't, Ashley and I lived the first four years of our marriage in the Phoenix, AZ area. Ashley had actually lived there since the summer of 2002. In all of that time, our home church there has been Covenant Community Church in Scottsdale, AZ (Cov Com).

For the fourth summer in a row, Cov Com has sent a short-term team to Honduras. Ashley and I were a part of the first team and the Lord used that trip to open my eyes to full-time ministry here in Honduras. The team arrived in La Ceiba on Sunday afternoon and have been busy ever since.

Monday morning before we went to La Fe

Yesterday was their first opportunity to visit La Fe. We hosted a medical clinic that saw 40 patients and finished the construction project our first two teams worked on in the morning. In the afternoon, some of the team helped with the last portion of the clinic while others got to visit with some of the families of La Fe. During these visits, three or four people went into a home in La Fe and talked for awhile about what life there is like. It was an eye-opening time for many that had the chance to go.

Hannah helping out at clinic

Today, the team dedicated the morning to playing with and loving on the kids of La Fe. They had some crafts to work on and taught about how Jesus is the Good Shepherd and we are His hopeless sheep. In the afternoon, they started the next construction project - building columns to support the electrical lines.

Eric reading to Tito

We are so glad to be spending time with friends we have known for a long time as well as some teenagers that we didn't previously know. Both Ashley and I are thankful to be able to love the people alongside members from our home church.

It's Been Awhile

So, I haven't blogged for quite some time. I have some good excuses and some others that aren't so good. I cannot go back and write so I will give you a (short) recap of our last few weeks (They have been busy).

From June 16-23 Ashley and I visited the USA and got to spend quality time with our families. We attended a family reunion (Ashley's dad's family) for a few days and also got to see Ashley's parent's new house and spend some time with my family as well. All in all, our trip was great but short. We had a lot of fun catching up with brothers and parents and aunts and grandparents and we had the privilege to meet 3 nephews/nieces for the first time. We spent time with 35 different relatives!

1 of 3 nephews & 5 of 5 nieces

Seeing family was much needed. I know I was missing them a lot and was feeling the weight of the time apart. I am so glad the Lord gave us this opportunity. The only drawback is that know I may want to spend time with them even more that I did before we saw them. It was great to talk and laugh with our family!

When we arrived back home after this trip, we had a 14 person short term team waiting for us. So, we jumped right back into ministry and long hours. The team from Raleigh, NC was a huge help to our ministry and we are thankful they could come and love the people of La Fe last week.

That brings us to this week. It is a week in which our team has zero teams. This is a much-needed break for our team since we hosted five teams in the last four weeks. So, this week is much quieter and slower paced. We will host five more teams in the next three weeks.

We are thankful for this week of partial rest. We have much to do, but are making sure we mix in a healthy amount of rest into each day.