A much needed reminder...

But this is the LORD's reply: I would no more reject my people than I would change my laws of night and day, of earth and sky.
Jeremiah 33:26

Feel like God's abandoned you? Like He's not listening? Maybe you've done something so awful you think for sure He's through putting up with you. It's an impossibility. How do I know? I just look out my window and see it's night time. How can I be sure? Well, there was a sunrise today. Am I certain? Hold on... yep, the ground hasn't given way and the sky hasn't fallen. I am positive.

When you're tempted to believe God's turned His back on you, look outside. If night and day continue, if earth and sky remain, God's still got His eyes on you and He is for you.

What can we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Romans 8:31

Highlights From Honduras

We've got lots of catching up to do! I've been waiting to share my experience in Honduras with you but have been having technical problems with my blog. Finally, it seems that I may have found a way around them. 


The mission to Honduras was incredible. We spent 2 weeks ministering in 2 cities, Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula. I've tried to capture some of my most memorable experiences into short stories. The first is about a girl named Yensi who I met on our first day at a girl’s teen detention center called Mujeres Adolecentes. 


Our team was hosting a craft making bracelets. We passed out the materials and watched as the girls happily started on their jewelry. All but one. 

Yensi sat at the corner table with her head resting  on her folded arms, staring past the beads and string. I made my way over, sat across from her, and in my broken Spanish  asked if she needed help. Without looking up, she said no. Fumbling through our language barrier, I asked what was wrong and understood only one word of her response. “Triste”. It was enough. One of the few words I remembered from high school Spanish class. Triste means sad. 

I called a translator to help me continue talking with her and found out more of her story... Yensi was 14 years old. She was in the detention center for protection. The police arrested her mother on drug charges and found Yensi had been sold by her mother to a man for sexual purposes in order to feed her habit. Yensi lived with this man for 3 months before the police found her. She spoke very stoically about this until she explained how much she missed her sister. That’s when the tears came. Her 12 year old sister was living with an aunt and Yensi desperately wanted to see her.

I tried to comfort and encourage Yensi with the scriptures that tell of God’s love for her, that He sees all, and that He has a purpose for her. She quietly listened as the translator shared my words. I prayed with her asking God to reveal Himself clearly and have His way. After we prayed, the girl next to Yensi began helping her make the bracelet and the translator and I  moved on to  check on the other girls.

Her story echos in my head and heart standing in stark contrast to the tame life I live. I am reminded that the light shines brighter in the darkest places. And Yensi has been in terribly dark places. God’s grace and healing power are magnified in the deepest pain and the most heinous sin. That is my hope and prayer for Yensi. That she would embrace the magnitude of God’s grace and healing through His son.