THOUGHT FOR TODAY: Saturday afternoon all the employees had gone home except the guard, so I had some genuinely free time on my hands. My first thought, "Maybe I can find an American football game on TV." Then I thought, does that really support what I say are my priorities? So I decided to spend some time praying before doing anything else. I think it was the right choice. I know what a boost I get when one of my children chooses to spend some of their free time with me. In that respect, I don't think our Heavenly Father is much different. My prayer time was very rewarding. After an hour or so, I went looking for the football game.
We passed out the Christmas gifts to the kids from Seis de Mayo today. I didn't know if we would be able to do it; we had so much rain with high winds during the night that there was water in our office, dining room, and stairwell this morning. Temperatures were in the mid-60s; for Honduras, that's extreme cold. Nevertheless, before eight o’clock the crowd was growing, even in the driving rain. Many didn't even have an umbrella; some of the little kids showed up in snowsuits. It went fairly well although there is always arguing, and pushing, and crowding. Beto was worth his weight in gold today. He embraces the military approach and we usually have to hold him back; but today we didn't even try to restrain him. Tomorrow we are to go to El Sauce, but Alfredo said that this morning water in the low spots was up to his waist. We'll have to wait and see.... A prayer request at ICF church yesterday, "Please pray for my husband. He went to El Salvador two weeks ago to bring in a container. It was supposed to take two days and he isn’t back yet." Alec Gilen said whenever he brings in a container there are always things stolen. God has blessed us more than we realized.
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: Saturday afternoon all the employees had gone home except the guard, so I had some genuinely free time on my hands. My first thought, "Maybe I can find an American football game on TV." Then I thought, does that really support what I say are my priorities? So I decided to spend some time praying before doing anything else. I think it was the right choice. I know what a boost I get when one of my children chooses to spend some of their free time with me. In that respect, I don't think our Heavenly Father is much different. My prayer time was very rewarding. After an hour or so, I went looking for the football game. Lourdes told me yesterday that she went to the Minister of Labor to ask special permission for Carlos to work here as a minor. Not surprisingly, she was turned down; but at least she went. Not exactly sure how we're going to handle this; he will be starting carpentry classes with Alfredo on Monday… We have spent the last two days sorting and organizing all the things that came in the container. We will begin handing out gifts in El Sauce on Monday; and here on Tuesday to the kids from Seis de Mayo… I think I have seen more Christmas decorations here in Honduras than there are back home. Even the tollbooths are decorated. Stores pack their shelves with everything you can imagine. Since every employer has to pay an extra month's salary in December (including us) those who have jobs have extra money to spend.
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: Reading 1Timothy 6:10… I've noticed I feel a good bit more secure with some extra money in the bank. How much of that does it take to be a lover of money? I have never seen myself as such, but I have noticed my pursuit of God is much more intense when all we have is food and raiment. In my case at least, a financial reserve can result in a degree of independence. If we had not often been forced to depend only upon God over the last 12 years, some of the highest moments of my Christian experience might never have happened. I think that God often uses my lack to keep me on track. At noon yesterday we had passed our last inspection, signed our last document, and paid our last fee (except for one that hasn't been determined yet). We went home and waited me; and finally received our freight at about three o'clock. We had a good crew on hand so we had everything out and undercover by 5: 30. That part of the mission, accomplished. We spent most of this afternoon hauling the power tools and some of the fabric over to the warehouse. We will continue tomorrow…. Nicholas and I went to San Pedro this morning and I drove home in the brand-new microbus. What a blessing; that is going to help the ministry so much. God's special blessing on those who made it possible…. Marcus has decided not to buy the Chevy van, but it looks like we have another buyer… It will likely be Monday before we can start handing out the children's gifts; they are being very patient. While they line up waiting for the gifts, their parents line up waiting for sheets of plywood and 2X4s the lift vans are made of. Some of them will actually make a "house" out of the quarter inch plywood.
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: We all believe in the omniscience, omnipotence, and omnipresence of God; and of His unending love toward us. But we have to do more than believe. "The devils also believe, and tremble”. A good test of the strength of our faith in this matter -- when a tough problem arises which vanishes first? The problem in the face of our faith; or our faith in the face of the problem? We spent eight hours on the dock today; not even the 4 dock workers broke for lunch. They removed every one of nine 4' x 8' plywood crates that completely filled the container; took all the boxes out of each one, and the inspector went through every single box. Then they repacked and retaped the boxes, put them back in the crates, and put the crates back in the container. Incredible amount of work. There were a few snags: the rubbing alcohol for the clinic: they thought we were going to drink it and tax it as liquor. The lumber could also be a problem; we'll find out tomorrow. Those who packed the crates did an outstanding job of numbering the boxes, listing them on an inventory, describing the contents of the boxes, etc. Everyone was very impressed. The inspector thanked us at the end for the good job everyone has done… I finally made it to the super market today. I have been trying to get there last Wed. Victorina feeds me breakfast and lunch but I have been eating out of cans for dinner. Hot dogs never looked so good…Nissan called; the new bus is ready to be picked up… The new steel door was installed on the factory building today.
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: Today I came across I Timothy 6:4-5. It talks about men involved in “… quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions, and constant friction between people of corrupt minds, who have been robbed of the truth….” It reminds me of our politicians on the evening news. We picked up the red (Chevy) van yesterday and drove it to San Pedro today. It runs good! Hopefully I'll be able to close that deal too, before I leave in December. Early in the morning we will go to San Pedro and meet with the shipper, go to the bank, and then get back to the dock in Puerto Cortes as soon as possible. Please pray that the final cost will be reasonable; that they won't find any "hot items"; and that we can get the container to the Mission Center this week. Kids everywhere are asking, "When is it going to be here?"… Mauricio had to cancel yesterday. We were going to begin configuring the production center. We will try again on Tuesday.... I was on the phone with Jeff this am when a rooster crowed. He said, “That makes me want to be in Honduras”. We had our annual Thanksgiving dinner at ICF church today. It was great to be there and see everybody again. The day was saddened somewhat when we learned that Al Bustamante, our good friend who tutored Mike and Jeff and also taught them how to cook, has cancer. I think they discovered it only last week, and he will have surgery this week to remove one of his kidneys. Please, put him on your prayer list.
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: Even before I read Richard Wurmbrand’s comment, I was thinking about joy; and the absence of it. I’m sad to say, I doubt those closest to me would call me joyful. I’m like many others; I’m looking in the wrong places. For example, right now the thing that would bring me joy would be to get our freight released as cheaply and quickly as possible. Yet I know that’s not joy; it won’t last. Real joy, the one that’s a fruit of the Spirit, is of a different dimension; it’s immune to hard circumstances. It looks like we have hit a snag already in getting our freight released. We’ll have to go to the shipper Monday and try to some get help from their end. We're pretty much finished handing out children’s gift tickets. Nicholas recorded name and age of every one of the 450 children up to age 12 in Seis de Mayo. Flor should have her 350 finished by tomorrow. Speaking of children, we started giving milk and a cookie to our preschoolers. We were having a dozen or so in class. Yesterday, 50... I have learned that employing Carlitos, a minor, could pose a serious problem for us unless his mom goes to the Department of Labor and gets special permission. I had to send him home today and he started to cry. Nicholas will take her to settle the matter as soon as possible. Over lunch today, our dentist, Doctor Rios said he’ll he be spending more time out here next year as he now has patients that are returning every six months for a check up. He also offered to pay for some more equipment to be installed so he can do more types of procedures…. Two coral snakes have been spotted in our "backyard".
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: Richard Wurmbrand spent much of his adult life in a communist prison being tortured for his faith. He was eventually granted amnesty and spent his last years in California. He concluded after such an extraordinary life, “I have found truly joyful Christians only in the Bible, in the underground church, and in prison." If material possessions really do bring happiness and satisfaction, he would have found joyful Christians in the USA as well. It seems we may be looking for joy in the wrong places. I left the house in Broken Arrow this morning at 4 AM and arrived at the house and Los Portales at 2:30 PM. As soon as I arrived, Nick and I went on over to the Nissan dealership. The money from our bank has not yet reached their bank so we weren't able to take the bus today. However, the deal is closed. They will install the CD player and tint the windows per our agreement. The money should arrive this week and will drive the bus home. What a blessing! When we got back to the mission center I translated the container inventory list into the Spanish and collected the remaining documents. I handed them to Nicholas at 4:15 and he took off for the customs agency; they close at five. Those are two of the things that were really heavy on my mind.
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: I recently made some comment about spiritual life. No sooner had I spoken when I realized, the term spiritual life is really a misnomer. For a Believer there are no justifiable distinctions between professional life, social life, spiritual life, etc. There is just our Life. This came to mind when I had a little free time and was thinking about taking a stroll through the mall just to look around. Certainly there is a time for R&R, or our favorite pastime, but there is no time for meandering. It's not our time to spend. We belong to God; and our time belongs to Him. On the way home from Kentucky Cheryl and I met a retired minister and his friends and shared with them that we are missionaries in Honduras. One gentleman said, "I know there are lots of people in Honduras but would you happen to know the Oakleys?" Of course he was speaking of Mark and Shanda and their family who were very close friends of ours in Honduras. We had a great time speaking of our fondness for the Oakley family. We got back to Tulsa yesterday afternoon (Mom Longstaff is with us) just in time to attend a championship banquet of the cross country team from Metro Christian Academy. They chose Gathering Hearts to receive pledges runners had collected for improving their performance times during the year. What a blessing. It was a generous amount; so many people will be helped. We owe special thanks to Matt and Kathy Pile, Jim, and Dan. Today has been extremely busy trying to get everything done before I return to Honduras on Wednesday.
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: I woke up this morning struggling with some difficult problems to be solved today; namely, coming up with the documents to get our freight in Puerto Cortes released before the end of the week; and also how to close the deal on our new bus at the agency in San Pedro -- and do it from here. When I'm on track I remember some advice the Lord gave me to share with a group I was addressing some time ago. He said to tell them, "We can do it My way and you let go; or we can do it your way and I'll let go." When I’m in charge I usually want to go directly from A to Z and get it over with. However, cutting across lots can give you muddy shoes. His way generally takes a little longer, and we have to listen carefully, but His way always includes unexpected benefits that we would never realize on our own. And sure enough…. Our freight arrived in Puerto Cortes yesterday, so now we have seven days to process it. The customs broker will let Nicholas start the process as soon as I send a signed release and certain other documents. Some of that information is back in Tulsa so I won't be able to do that until Monday. I will be returning to Honduras on Wednesday… Being back in the States and watching the “news” with all its trivial content, I am reminded once again of our incredible capacity for communicating, with so incredibly little to say.
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: If our lives are to illustrate the unmistakable presence of God, many of us will have to initiate a radical change. What do we change? Years ago I sat in an evangelistic meeting and heard the preacher say, "Unless you make a major change in your prayer life today, in five years your spiritual life will be no further along than it is right now." The reverse of that is also true. If we make a major change in our prayer life today, in five years our spiritual life will be much further along than it is right now. In fact, I think we would be astonished if we could see how much further along. I haven’t written much since Erica Paz’s wedding on 10/30 because Cheryl and I have been taking a little time off. We will spend a couple days in KY with family and missionary friends the Fields; and then back to Tulsa.
THOUGHT FOR TODAY: The Bible says our lives are open books, living epistles, seen and read by all men. This is a serious matter; no time for light reading. Onlookers should be seeing more than the absence of certain habits and the presence of certain others. They need to be seeing things that are difficult to explain except for the presence of God. |