Not About Me

So I've realized that pretty much every blog has been about me, granted I am the one in the foreign country but, this year is not about me, it's about Him and them, Him being God and them being the people that God chooses to touch through me.... or am I wrong, is this whole thing about me and my spiritual, personal growth? I think it's both. You always hear people say, I went into the mission field thinking I was helping people and they ended up teaching me so much more than I ever could have taught them: this is true, I've experienced it before. But at the same time as a part of my personal ministry and work for Christ I have chosen to come here to Honduras, b/c I want to do something for someone else for once, I don't want it to be about me, I want to completely submit to doing God's work in serving others completely and wholly, not partially or with ulterior motives. I want Him to work in me and through me... wait that makes it about me then doesn't it?!
At the hogar here, we have a grand total of 42 kids (I think). We used to have 43, but a girl left this past Monday. She is the first one to leave since I been here and much to my dismay, I do not think that she will be the last. This time it was ok because I haven't been here long enough to have really built up any deep personal relationships with the kids yet, but I know that as time goes on, kids leaving will not be an easy thing to deal with. It's different here, than in the States where most of the time if someone has no skills they can kind of get by. When a kid/teenager leaves there are so many factors to worry about: Have you taught them everything they need to know in order to survive out there on their own? Will they be smart enough to not get caught up in anything that they shouldn't be doing? Where will they end up in life and how will they get there? With the schooling that they have or haven't had, will they be able to provide for themselves? And most importantly, how do they view God and where He fits into their lives? Life here is HARD!

Among the 42 kids here their ages range from 8 to 19, including three or four older ones that grew up here and either haven't left because they aren't mentally capable of being on their own, or because they have yet to find a job, so they still live here and work/help out here.

Not all, but most of the kids that are here are here for one of four reasons: 1- they are true orphans, meaning that they have no family and were found on the street; 2- their parent(s) abandoned them because they simply didn't want them; 3- their parents brought them here or abandoned them because they were not physically/financially (money, in jail...) able to provide for their children; 4- the home situation was not a good one: abuse, not eating, parents wanting to use/sell their children for different things (food, clothes, drugs, etc.), children running away, etc. 

At this point there are some kids that I know better than others, but I can very quickly see myself getting attached to each and every one of them, the older and younger ones. Besides some weekends, for the most part life isn't that boring here. When it's time to work, all of us, children, adults and volunteers alike, work hard. But we can also have so much fun :) They make me laugh, which I love and when in doubt I can always someone to accompany me.

Also included in our large family, there are 6 adults that work here, live here, and run the hogar, plus the 10 volunteers that are here.

Ok, well, I think this is enough for now. Thank you so much for your emails and prayers, they are greatly apprecitated!!

Until later.... Mandy :)