Cars, Kids, Christ

Sharon and I hope you are truly well. One of my students recently told me, “Teacher Chris, I didn’t have time to do my homework.” To which I replied, “Didn’t I see you outside playing yesterday afternoon?” They started to open their mouth to reply and then thought better of it. This is one advantage to living where you work. I won’t offer any excuses for the lateness of this update, there isn’t one (though I wish I had spent more time playing outside instead:).

We returned to Honduras mid-January and spent a week with our great friend, Gustavo, and his family near the capital city of Tegucigalpa. This was longer than originally planned because our car was not drivable. Long story…thankfully, another friend, Osman, lent us one of his trucks so we could get home. Then, three weeks later, he and his wife drove halfway to our home (12 hours roundtrip) to swap cars! The whole time he made it seem like we were doing him a favor! His generosity and trust are an unbelievable blessing.

School classes began in February with twenty students: Kindergarten through sixth grade. The most challenging class for me this year is a combined 3^rd and 4^th grade. I’m not sure how those one-room schoolhouses in pioneer times did six grades at once! I have to say I am both excited and a bit sad for the 6^th grade class. I have been teaching these kids since the 3^rd grade and I will miss them when they start 7^th grade at a new school.

We were also able to attend the first-ever class reunion for Instituto El Rey. This is the high school I taught at for six years (2003-2009). Since they had never had one before, they invited all sixteen years of graduated students! It was a very emotional and encouraging gathering. Most of the students I had not seen in over 13 years! As you can imagine, a lot happened in that time, and it was wonderful to catch up and hear about the different paths their lives had taken. And in February we had a great visit with Earl & Sharon Washburn, the administrators of IER when I worked there.

This year for Easter Week we returned to the city of Comayagua for their traditional celebration. We soaked in the 486-year history of our favorite Honduran city for a whole week. The highlight was the incredible sawdust carpets that are made by hundreds of devout locals. Their works of art don’t last long, but each is made as an act of love and sacrifice to God.

On a personal note, I realized last year that my work / life balance was not sustainable in the long term and unhealthy in the short term. As a result, I have made some changes that accept my physical and emotional limitations while acknowledging my need for a consistent spiritual connection. As Jesus says in John 15:5, “I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” In practical terms this means working less hours and incorporating healthier habits into my daily schedule. If this sounds all-too familiar to you, I recommend the book, “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry” by John Mark Comer.

We are thankful for:

• Our bodies being free of parasites after a year-long battle with them! Sharon has been rejoicing daily!
• A generous donation to purchase a laptop computer.
• Our brother in Christ, Osman, blessing us with his vehicle.
• Our niece Alaina and Sharon’s sister Kim received cancer-free scans!
• The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and the adventure He is taking us on.

Please pray for:

• The healing of Sharon’s shoulder. She injured it and is now in a sling for at least two weeks. She cannot drive or work and the constant pain has also made her migraines worse.
• Relief from increased migraine frequency (Chris & Sharon both).
• A mental health counselor for the children at our ministry.
• God’s Holy Spirit of unity and Christ centeredness to be manifest at Give Hope 2 Kids.

Chris and Sharon