Honduras Trip Part 4

Sunday - Day 5

On the Seventh day, God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day.
Genesis 2:2

That pretty much sums up what today was for us as we were able to sleep in, enjoy a local church service, then experience rest at the beach.

But let me first back up and cover the previous two days. Friday was a good day of work which saw us finish nearly four more rows block on the house. I honestly didn't feel much in the way of accomplishing something on Friday, mainly because of the fact that only operating the saw all day meant I wasn't able to interact with the local workers as much or truly see the fruits of my labor.

That changed that afternoon. During the afternoon all block laying ceased in favor of mixing concrete and pouring the floor. This was my first true chance to interact and develop relationships with the locals, and though there was a language barrier, we were able to develop a routine and pattern that allowed us to get our work done.

Saturday morning was the hottest time that we have experienced so far on this trip. The heat was simply oppressive. As the time drew on, it became harder and harder to even pick up the saw, let alone a brick. However, in the time of the most opposition are the best results found. Saturday morning saw us finish the four walls, then Saturday afternoon saw us finish one gable and the roof slats.

Which brings me to today.

Let me start off by just saying how much I truly love going to church in another country. This is true for two reasons. One reason is that even though I may not fully understand what is going on or being said, I know that the worship is genuine.

Secondly and more importantly, worshiping in another country serves as a reminder to me just how awesome and big God truly is. That he is loved and praised no matter where in the world is a great thing to see for it shows that we can't box God in and try to say that he "belongs to us."

The second thing that we did today was to go to the beach. While this may not sound like an act that will result in much praise, for me it truly served as a reminder of the beauty of creation and just how great the world that God has made for us is.

Sitting in the water just off the shore, looking at the mountains that ringed the Pacific Ocean inlet we were in just made me praise God all the more and led to an even greater appreciation for where I was.

Well thats all for this, but there are four more days on this trip, so we will see what God will continue to show me this week.

Honduras Trip Part 3

So, after too long of a lay over between posts, here is part three.

Thursday - Day 3

So, where to start. How about the beginning? It is a very good place to start.

Wow, did I really just write that? I must be more tired than I realized. Oh well, today was our first day on the work site, and I must say that I am amazed at just how productive we were. While not quite Taylor's "one best way," it was pretty darn close.

All I can do for that is to give all the glory and honor to God. He enabled us to achieve the goals that we set for ourselves, which for today meant getting five layers of brick put down as well as getting a start on putting down a concrete floor.

My main job in getting this done involved working the block saw with my best friend, Nathan. For those of you who don't know what a block saw is, imagine a rotary saw, make the blade 14" wide, attach a two-stroke gas engine, and make it as loud as a rock concert. Oh yeah. If you need a visual, click the link. http://www.transtools.co.uk/store/images/uploads/ts-400.jpg

Anyway, our job was to use this beast of a machine to cut blocks to size. So to sum up, today I was bringing glory to God by using the biggest power tool I have ever seen. That was awesome.

As I was in Brazil and Argentina, I was constantly amazed at the poverty that is rampant in this area. Yest, just as in Argentina and Brazil, I am further overcome by the joy that they people possess. It is truly a beautiful and amazing thing.

Well that is all for now.

Honduras Trip Part 2

Wednesday - Day 1

So, we're here. That's really the best way to describe today. I must say that I truly love the ironies of flying into the Third World. While inside the airport the nation tries to make itself appear clean and modern and economically well off, two steps outside and this illusion is instantly shattered.

Anyway, we are here. An eventful day of flying, speedily walking (not running) in the Miami airport, lunch at KFC watching Champions League soccer in Tegucigalpa, then the drive and introduction to the city of Choluteca. And all I can think is "Thank you Lord for getting us this far."

Today was the easy day, as tomorrow is when the true work starts. Tomorrow is when we start building the house, which was and is the reason that we are here in the first place.

I have prayed about this trip, and I am greatly anticipating helping another that it might lead to bringing glory to God. What I need to pray about now is that I not let the petty things get in my way and prevent me from being fully able to share the Gospel. Things such as discomfort, heat, laziness, all are things that can sideline me if I let them.

So, as we go out tomorrow, I just need to keep in mind why I am here, who I am here for, and in the end, it will result in the bringing of glory to God.

"For am I now seeking the approval of man or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." Galations 1:10

Back from Honduras

So, I just got back from my construction mission trip to Honduras and it was a great trip. While I was there I journaled about the trip and am now going to post them here over the next few days. Enjoy.

Pre-Trip

As we prepare to travel to Honduras, I feel that a thing that I need to do to better prepare my heart for the worship that I will be giving through the sharing of the Gospel is to compose a prayer that I will say everyday.

Lord,

I fall on my knees, humbled at the awe of your awesome presence. I praise you for all that you are and all that you have been and all that you will continue to be. Lord, I pray that your will will guide me and my actions as I strive to serve you. I pray that you will bless me and be with me in all things that my works may bring you more glory. Lord be with my friends. Allow us to make a difference in the lives of the people that we will be working with. Allow us to become discouraged in times of hardship, but instead show us the way to overcome and bring you the glory and honor. Lord I pray that you will bless us with safety in our works and that will grant us the ability to finish what it is we will be starting. Thank you Lord for the blessings that you have bestowed upon me, especially the blessing of being able to go out into the world to spread you word. Please bless us and forgive us in all we do, for it is in the name of your son Jesus that I pray,

Amen.

Breaing Cross, Will Travel

So I need to update this thing more often...

Anyway, I want to first just send a little bit of praise upwards to the Big Man and just praise Him and thank Him for the blessing that he has bestowed upon me in terms of the ability to lose weight and get healthy. I know that it was He that allowed this change to take place in my life, and I fully intend to use this blessing for the furthering of His kingdom.

This was put into perspective today when I compared three different sets of passport pictures I had, starting with the one that is on my passport (which was taken in December 06), then a set that was taken before my trip to Argentina (which were taken in February 08), then a set that were taken today for me to send to the International Missions Board. Wow, the change is so noticeable, and for me to recognize that in myself allows me to further praise God for this blessing, in that I can see just how far I have come along.

Anyway, now that that is out of the way, the main reason for this post is an announcement of missions, as the title infers. Namely, this post is my request for prayer as tomorrow I will be departing for the Central American nation of Honduras with a group of college students and adults from my home church in Moore County, NC, to build a house with the North Carolina Baptist Men.

This will be my first trip to Honduras and also my first international trip involving construction, so I am a little apprehensive about this trip, but as I wrote about earlier, that is just something that happens to me anytime I about to need my passport. However, I know that I am going to do the work of the Lord, and for that reason I am calm for I know that whatever happens to me on this trip, I am doing the will of the Lord through the Great Commission and that I am putting myself into His hands.

I ask that you all will pray for me and the rest of the team that I will be on. I ask that you will pray for the people that we will be working with in Honduras, that they will have open hearts to the Gospel as we share it with them through the construction of a house.

I will be journaling every day that I am in Honduras, so I will be sure to post those entries when I get back stateside. Until then, just pray for us as we travel and may God bless us all.

Weight of Family

So, as I have usually led off with recently, it has been too long since I posted here. But, I have a valid excuse in that I have been very busy with final exams and papers for the past 12 days, so yeah.

Anyway, I was talking to my grandfather on the phone earlier this evening, and more specifically we were talking about my aspirations to go into the missions field. Over the course of the conversation, he told me something that took me a moment to swallow and took me a while to think about.

He said to me "You are going to make the Arno name worthwhile."

Now, this took me aback in two ways. One was that I always thought that my last name was a great thing, and something that I took pride in. However, secondly and more important was the weight that was seemingly put on me with that comment, that it would be through my actions that good things would come to my family.

Now, first, let me address the first thought. I discount this in that I know it was initial reaction. I have always and will always take pride in my last name because I know what it represents to me and that is all that matters.

The second thought was that I would be responsible for my last name being brought to be more worthwhile, if there is such a way to do it. Let me point out a few things first off about my grandfather. My grandfather is a man who is very critical of many things, however he loves every one in his family and while he may say things that sound overly critical, he does not mean bad things from what he says.

So to hear him say that I can make our last name worthwhile really took me aback, for in his complement of me, he seemed to be in turn putting down the rest of the family. And I know that this is not what he meant.

Now, as to the weight that I felt from this comment, all I could think about was "What can I do that can do this? If what other members of my family have done haven't done that, then what can I do?"

All I know is that I feel pride in my last name and that I don't think that there is any need for me to make it more "worthwhile," but if my actions will make others view my family in a more favorable eye, then so be it.

God's Blessings

It has been too long since I wrote anything new.

So, as those of you who know me or who have read my blog over the course of the year know, I have been embroiled in a battle to get healthy so that I can go overseas and better serve the Lord in missions.

Well, at the start of the year, I weighed just over 300 pounds and felt that the goal was too big to handle, that it would take forever to get down to the target weight that I needed. I felt that yes, while I would be doing this for God, it may be just a little too big for me.

And that was the first mistake that I made in the beginning of this process. I doubted the ability of God to work in my life and as a result made it more difficult for me to get started in this process. I still remember when I had hit a 10 pound loss thinking, "Wow, I have a long way to go," not "Wow, I have been blessed with this initial accomplishment."

So, now I sit here, three months later having lost 53 pounds and I am thinking "What was I thinking?" I actually had the gall to doubt the size of God, yet through this He has blessed me with the ability to go on and lose this weight.

I know that my motivation for doing this was good and for God, and as a result I know that God blessed me with the ability to do it. And that is the greatest thing about this.
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Now, I need to share with you what the poem that I posted nearly two weeks ago means.

In my mind, this poem is rather dark because it is supposed to reflect the true nature of life without a relationship with Christ. And further, the poem is dark in the nature of my fear of others thoughts when I try to share with them my faith.

I know that I wrote about how I worked to overcome this fear while in Argentina, but I think that it is something that you can never fully overcome. There is always an uneasiness when it comes to telling others about who you are, no matter how much you have done it.

So, there you have it.