Matthew 18:3-5
“I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me.”
This week, a group from Conroe, Texas, is using the talents God blessed its members with in order to spread His love to the people of Honduras. Last night, while the group was praising God and sort of recapping the day, the youth minister asked ‘Who did you see Jesus’s love displayed through today?’ I was not with that particular group yesterday, but the question made me think about the ten amazing new friends with whom I have spent my time in Honduras. Already, more than twenty days of this internship have come and gone, and, up to this point, I have been blessed with the opportunity to watch my fellow interns as they pour out their hearts and spirits, hearts overflowing with the love of Jesus and the desire for all to know Him. I believe the gospels show evidence time and again of the overwhelming love and compassion that Jesus had for children. He humbled Himself and welcomed children into His arms, telling His followers to do the same. This is what it means to display Jesus’s love. Sometimes, just watching the Holy Spirit at work in the lives of those around you is an amazing thing to behold. In this blog, I just want to tell and show a few of the ways that I have been blessed by the opportunity to watch the ten people around me humble themselves and display the love of Jesus Christ by opening their arms and hearts to the beautiful, Honduran children around them.
One of the first things that comes to mind took place the second week we were here. A group set up a medical clinic in Los Colorados in order to give basic check-ups to the people who lived there. They had ointments, ibuprofin, and vitamins to hand out to the people. They also performed minor surgeries and gave injections. One of the other interns, Jake, was helping a nurse translate as she saw patient after patient, many of whom were young children. Before long, Jake decided he wanted to provide the children with something to make them feel as if their little trip to the doctor was enjoyable. Grabbing the box of barely used rubber gloves, Jake started blowing up “gallitos” (little roosters) for the kids. They loved them. Every child wanted one. Before long, Jake employed a few others into his rooster-making business. He thought like a child in order to show that he truly cared about the kids coming into the clinic.
Secondly, I would like to share about my experiences with Grace. She and I have been paired up to go to schools on many occasions, so I have been privileged to watch the Spirit at work through her. At first, Grace really struggled with the fact that a lot of the Spanish she once knew, she has forgotten. It’s been awesome to get to see her put herself out there despite this and do the best she can to communicate with the children and teachers at the schools. The kids adore her. Just today, a little girl named Nancy gave Grace a note specifically for her that thanked her for being such a nice, beautiful friend to her. A language barrier can definitely be overcome when you work for the Lord’s purpose.
While I could keep telling story after story, I’m going to end with one that is not necessarily about children but is all about humbling yourself. Last week, I was given the opportunity to work alongside Michael (affectionately nicknamed “Miguelito”) on the ranch. Together we were able to milk cows by hand, and we shoveled and wheelbarrowed cow manure for about four tedious hours. At first, we took turns wheeling the manure up a hill. Soon, Michael offered to pushed while I pulled and, finally, he just took over the position of wheelbarrower all on his own. His attitude never wavered from completely positive the entire day. Even when he wasn’t the best milker the world has ever seen, even when most people would have at least had a few complaints to make about the manure duty we had been assigned. What an awesome light he has to shine.
I am so excited about the way God is working on each of our hearts this summer and feel so blessed to bear witness to His love being spread throughout Honduras. —Courtney
