Honduras, Round 2, Blog 1, Ground 0

Scott Anderson

There’s a sense in which this trip has snuck up on us. As I write this we are only five weeks out from our July 9 departure. Three years ago (you can view our 2012 blog here) when we made the trip it seemed like there was such a swirl of activity and anticipation. This time around, not so much. The activity is there, but not the “swirl.”

But, as I think about it, it isn’t because we are any less excited or energized about what awaits. If anything, I suspect those of us who made the trip in 2012 to NPH Honduras are looking forward to it even more. We know what awaits. We have people we want to see again. Aldo was in a wheelchair when we last saw him. Now he is walking. Maybe Amber can catch Chele again and see what he’s doing with his art, and tell him about her candle-making. Josue, Elzer, Santos, Adriana, Bernice, Breylin, Carmen, Eduardo, Esther. All these remarkable, clear-eyed, enchanting children; all these committed self-giving adults!

We remember the hope that is stirred within us when we encounter this extraordinary Honduran community, this “family” of about 600 who nurture these kids and make up this remarkable place with such an infectious spirit, and speak to a larger NPH community throughout Latin America. We remember well the gift of faith that we brought home with us as we saw firsthand what people committed to one another, what people who followed after their founder’s refusal to believe that we can be more generous than God could create, and then shared those stories again and again. The Christian short-hand for this, I think, is Kingdom of God.

No, this isn’t about a lack of energy, but an absence of anxiety. It is about an increase of faith rooted in memory and an increase in proficiency. We know the territory. We have a pretty good idea of what to do. We’ve effectively raised the nearly $20,000 in funds we need to make the trip with a quiet, but no less inspiring display of generosity that is remarkable to those of us who’ve had an insider’s glimpse. We’re on schedule to complete all the steps necessary to make the trip with an inter-generational make-shift family of our own. The papers are in order; the flights are booked. A couple of final meetings will help us to address final tasks and, more importantly perhaps, clarify our goals and commitments as a group.

There is no lack of energy. There is an absence of drama. That’s what happens, I think, when we remember that God is in the mix, and seems to especially show up among the so-called “least” we look to visit who are so profoundly rich.

So I hope you’ll follow along as this story develops. We’ll have pictures to show you and stories to tell. And you may just find your own faith strengthened as your prayers and energy join with ours to see what God is up to.

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