Honduran Earthquake

This morning at about 2:20 am an earthquake shook Honduras. The epicenter of the quake was about 64 kilometers north of the bay islands, but the quake was felt throughout much of Central America. It was rated 7.1 on the Rictor Scale which is huge. (The world series quake in San Francisco in 1989 was a 6.9). So far it has been recorded that 6 have died from the quake. Unfortunately, in Honduras, with it being a third-world country many deaths will go unknown and unrecorded. Many houses, bridges, buildings, hotels, bridges, schools and churches were destroyed in this disaster.

It is so hard for this country to progress. It seems that as soon as any advancement is made, a catastrophe hits the country. There have been hurricanes, floods, fires, and now an earthquake. My prayer is for the many more that have been left homeless tonight. It pains me to know that the people that were affected by this quake do not have the safety net of insurance to help them with devastation. Please join me in prayer for the people of this nation that experienced the quake this morning.

Lamentations 2:19

Lamentations is a book of the Bible that often gets over looked. My mom told me to look at this verse the other day, and it really touched my heart.

19 Arise, cry out in the night,

as the watches of the night begin;

pour out your heart like water

in the presence of the Lord.

Lift up your hands to him

for the lives of your children,

who faint from hunger

at the head of every street.

God has always used children to touch my heart. I love their innocence and the way they laugh. He also has used many poor children to touch my heart. Tonight millions of children around the world are starving. They do not know where their next meal is going to come from. This verse in Lamentations is a commission to pray for the hungry children.

Matt and I are committing our lives to helping children that have lived in horrible conditions. We feel compelled to do what we can to bring at least some children off of the streets. We want to teach them about God's salvation and that life has much more to offer. It is painful to think of all the kids living in deplorable conditions around the world. If it rains they will be wet. If it is cold they will not have blankets to keep them warm.

My heart is so full of compassion for children around the world, but my words are few. Please pray for the starving, poor, homeless children around the world tonight.

Less than two months

It is less than two months before little Haley Grace is due to make her debut into this world. I am getting very excited to meet her. Right now we are in the process of getting her room ready to welcome her home. I am thankful that this baby is going to be born into parents with so much love for each other, and this child will never have to fewr that her mommy and daddy are going to split up. She is also going to be born in a family where she hears daily how loved she is by her family and by God.

Dear Lord,

please continue to form Haley so that she will be born to be healthy. Give me and Matt the wisdom to raise this little person. I pray that she will grow up to know you and to love you and follow you. I pray that she will be self-confident and willing to stand up for what is right in this crazy world. God I can't wait till she is here in my arms. I love you Lord.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

BACK TO THE BLOGOSPHERE

After much time, I have come back to the blogging world. It seems impossible to fill everyone in since the last time I blogged. I am now 7 months pregnant and living in Baton Rouge, LA. I work as a cashier at a garden center, and Matt is working in a warehouse. The last few months of our lives have been filled with transistion and change. At times we have been stressed and overwhelmed about things, but Matt and I have learned to put our full trust in God. He knows what we need and he takes care of us. I want to share with you just a few ways that God has taken care of us in the last few months.

We moved to Baton Rouge after I had a threatened miscarriage in Searcy. We wanted to be closer to Matt's parents in case anything of the sort happened again. Also, we knew that there were much better jobs available in Baton Rouge than in Searcy, AR. We spent about a month looking for jobs. On the deadline to sign our lease, we put our faith in God that he would provide for us, and we both secured a job on Friday, February 13. Praise the Lord.

Soon after that I found a new doctor since I left my doctor in Searcy. It was seemingly impossible to find a doctor that would accept me when they heard that I did not have insurance. They tried to send me to a place that no one wants to go to have their baby. Everyone in town kept telling me not to go there because I would not be well cared for. Finally, I secured a doctor. After my first visit, I told Matt I know we can easily come up with 1/3 of the OB bill, but I don't know where we will get the other 2/3 from. A few days later an unexpected check showed up in the mail that would cover the remaining 2/3 of our bill. Also, someone hit my car which has turned to be God's working. My vehicle is still drivable and runs well, but the insurance of the girl who hit me provided Matt and I with a safety net of $4000. I can only see this as a miraculous gift from God.

Another imense blessing we have witnessed from God happened last week. The warehouse in which Matt works requires the guys to maintain a 90% efficiency by the end of their first three months of work. Matt was only going to be in the high 80s. Only one person of 12 that started work with him made this efficiency level. Ten of these guys were let go. The one person left if Matt. We spent Wednesday night praying that God would allow the best possible thing for us to happen. If that was Matt getting let go and finding another job, then so be it. However, the trainers saw that Matt was a man of character and value. The spoke to the top guy at the warehouse and it was decided that Matt could stay at the warehouse, but in a position with a lower paying job. He will start working nights next week. I know to most that lower pay and the graveyard shift does not sound like a blessing, but to us this is huge. Matt and I will have time every evening to spend with each other. Additionally, Matt gets to go to church on Sundays. Before it was required that he work every Sunday. Also, Matt's new schedule will allow us to not have to put baby Haley into daycare when I go back to work. One or both of us will be home all day to care for her and to love on her.

We are still spending much of our time planning and preparing to move to Honduras. But God clearly wants us to wait for a little while since we were planning to move the exact time that the baby is due. We hope to leave in a little under two years. We feel that waiting a little bit will make the adjustments easier on our family. We have been blessed to be able to sit in on the missions committee while we are here. The committee members felt this would be a great way for Matt and I to familiarize ourselves with them and visa versa.

Praise be to God from whom all blessings flow. In the last 5 months my faith has been strengthened. I have learned that the only way I am going to make it in this life is to fully depend on my Lord and Savior.