A Video

While working in Honduras, we have had the opportunity to work with some other awesome groups like the Missionaries of Charity. One order we are quite close to is the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal (CFR's). Though we have different missions, we work together for most of the retreats and things like that. It's good to see all the different parts of the Body of Christ.

Brother Tobias is one of the CFR's. He is quite gifted musically and wrote this song. I thought I'd share it.

Hope

Something that has always amazed me about the people I have met here is hope. So many people have faced so many difficult situations but still have a deep hope and faith. This is why I am here: to accompany the people.

One woman that inspired me when I first met her is named Lesbia. Her father owns a coffee farm even though he is very old (like 80), can barely walk, or move his hands from arthritis. One day some kids were stealing coffee from the farm and one of them was shot in the arm. Well, the police came and arrested this father and took him to jail. Lesbia had to borrow a lot of money to bail him out. But she told me that it was worth it. He is her father and is so old that he would die in jail. Then the trial kept getting pushed back and pushed back. (This was all happening last July and August and still hasn't been resolved that I know of.) Yet, through all of this, Lesbia still had a deep hope.

There is a girl that I know named Lourdes. She comes to a young women's group that we lead and is about my age. She just graduated and is trying to find a job to support her family. Currently, her older sister is the only one who works, but she was just diagnosed with cancer. She has two young children and if Lourdes can find a job, maybe she can go through treatment. This week, Lourdes and her sister both came to the women's group (her sister has never gone to Church, but wants to know God.)You would never have guessed what was going on. They were both so positive.

The encounters I have with people here continue to amaze me. I hope that I can continue to walk with those I have met and help out along the way.

An Update of the Happenings

Well, it has been a busy week. I can't believe I have almost been back here a month! Some highlights are as follows:

• I am now helping with correspondence between the scholarship program here and in the States. Since I already work so much with this program, I am excited to be able to help in this way too. I really do believe that education is the key to a better future for both these kids and for the world as a whole. (Of course that's what I think; I'm a teacher.)
• These last couple of days I have been subbing for a friend at one of the bilingual schools. I have enjoyed it and appreciate the opportunity. It is a confirmation that I am where I am supposed to be at this time in my life: missionary and still being able to get in a classroom from time-to-time.
• Speaking of teaching, I have been asked to start teaching English lessons to the students in the scholarship program. That way, when they see it in high school, they should have at least some familiarity and be better equipped to be successful in that class. Mostly I have just been trying to do lesson planning, but where do you even start?

Well, those are some of the things that have been going on down here. I hope everyone is doing well. God bless.

San Pablo

I hope the feast of the conversion of St. Paul finds you well. We could learn a lot from him. In the first reading today, Paul goes out to persecute the followers of Jesus and has a crazy change of heart after seeing Him on the way. Almost right away, he speaks out and shares the Good News. It reminds me that, though I have certainly not experienced something as crazy as what happened to Paul on the road, every time God draws me closer to Himslef it is not for me alone. That gift is meant to be shared.

That brings me to my time here in Honduras. God is so good. And I desire to share what I have been given in whatever way I can. I pray as we start getting farther into the new year that we can all live this reality more fully. There are plenty of opportunities if we look for them, whether that be with our families, friends, coworkers, or kids in a scholarship program in a foreign country.

Back to Honduras

Happy New Year to all. I just wanted to post a quick update. I am back in Honduras after a blest break with my family. It is good to be back and I am excited to get started. Have a wonderful winter (I do not miss it.) God bless!

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas! May it be filled with many blessings.

To think, we celebrate a baby born over two thousand years ago. But it wasn't just any baby; it was God. I don't think we can wrap our minds around that. How many times have we heard the Christmas story? In my case, so many that I forget the earth-shattering significance of that night in Bethlehem. But if God became man, if Jesus is God, that demands a response. This has been a point of reflection for me over the past months. The video below could easily be set in Bethlehem and changed to say, "He is Jesus, the Son of God, you owe Him your allegiance." And like Boromir, we have the choice to say "I will follow you, my King, my God," or "I have no King; I need no King." Jesus, the Son of God, was born. What is our response?

Home for Christmas

I just wanted to give a quick update. I am home for Christmas now (and 35 degrees has never felt this cold). It is a blessing to be here with my family. Like always, it is strange to come back to the States. I am still trying to wrap my head around the American version of celebrating Christmas as compared to the life of relative simplicity that I have been living. But like I said, it is a blessing to be here. I wish you and your family a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

I also posted some more pictures. You can view them at this link:

Jamie's Facebook Pictures

Please note, that last time some people said they could not view the pictures on Firefox. It works for me, but if you are having problems, try using a different browser.