Another sucessful trip!

I should have been "on the ball" and scheduled a post to be posted when we left, I just wasn't. 3:30 am is just an awful time for anyone to wake up. For anyone familiar with our pattern, yes it was time for Kids Konnect!  This time Selah and I took the trek to Dangriga on the bus. I was better prepared and we had jackets for the time on the bus with the AC.  We both attempted sleep but it just didn't happen.

Upon arrival we got to spend some time with the Groff family. It was nice to catch up with them. Selah was disappointed because their boys were in school.

This trip had me spending my first day as one of 3 experienced Kids Konnect participants. The rest of our team were "newbies" .  I had different responsibilities in that I was asked to make sure things ran smoothly. I wasn't sure I could pull that off, but the team was so fantastic,  my job was mostly triage.

Of course we did have a conversation about warm vs cold culture. People come to see the doctor, but our main goal is to reach them with the love of Jesus. What I appreciate about Kids Konnect, is they are also warm culture in their approach. One is encouraged to take the time they need to talk, pray and encourage the person in front of them. This means that often there is a wait for care. Most Belizeans don't have an issue with this. The Americans may though. We all spend time learning and I appreciate that.

We had the privilege of working with nursing students from Indiana. Their hard work and dedication was an inspiration.

 Of course we also enjoyed the company of some "old favorites" those who come every time or several different times.  It is just a joy to serve alongside both the short term team, and the long term missionaries.

\Selah thrived in this setting. She enjoys being a part of the mission, as well as having some responsibilities.  I am not sure the polite Southerners appreciated her take charge attitude. Selah could learn a thing or two about southern respect.

When all is said and done we are thankful for another time we could serve with the Kids Konnect community!

Celebrating Resurrection Day

As a child I attended Perkasie Mennonite Church.  It was a tradition to go to a Sunris service. After the service, there was always a meal. I admit mostly I remember is a meal. Our conservative Mennonite friends asked if we would be doing a sunrise service. Nathanael quipped "If I had a sunrise service, I would be the only one there"

We did not choose to have one!  

We remembered that Easter is traditional for going swimming.  We knew if we attempted to have church in a "normal" way we were likely to have a very small/if any attendance.

We decided to have a service at Honey-camp Lagoon.  One of the families who attends church has a grandfather who owns land along the lagoon. He allowed us to use the lagoon free of charge. 

The next blessing was a huge one. Upon hearing our plans the women in church took it upon themselves to bring the food. They said they realized that I put a lot of work into making meals.  We thought about bringing food "just in case" but decided against it.

It really felt like we chose well. The van was so full of people, food, and a small table. Nathanael tried to capture it, the picture does not do it justice. Even sitting in the front seat, I had 2 kids on my lap (don't tell the car seat police)

Nathanael had a small service at the lake. We did some worship songs, and he told the story of the Resurrection.

After the service, we had a great time! We ate and swam. (there was enough food!!) Abigail even spent some time learning to fish like the locals, with a line, a hook and some dough at the end. She says she didn't catch anything but the process was fun.

I hope your Resurrection day was as blessed as ours was!

A time of Retreat

This past week I missed a blog post.  I realize this is pretty unusual for me. I feel it is imperative to communicate with supporters. I think you want to know what is "going on" in our lives.

Zephaniah, Zion, Selah and Abigail rest from our short hike we took at a national park along our drive


The reason for the absence was our time in Guatemala.  Eastern Mennonite Missions firmly believes in the need for a yearly retreat.  The missionaries go on retreat per the area they are in. We joined with 9 other units (families and singles) in Chiquimula Guatemala.  Before you go thinking we were in the lap of luxury for the week, let me assure you that we weren't. The main meeting area has AC, but everywhere else wasn't.  The air was more dry, (actually much around us appeared dead) but hotter by about 3-5 degrees.

Selah and Phyllis Groff pose for a photo at Western Dairies in Spanish Lookout. The only (food) drive through in the country


The children over 10 stayed in a dorm style building with students from the Vida220 program. What a blessing for them and us. I am ever thankful for people who come into our lives valuing our children. Abigail and Selah enjoyed the freedom they had, hanging out with young adults and other TCK's their age.

Spring got a ladies day out during the retreat. These are the other EMM women serving in Central America


I really appreciated the balance in the retreat. We had a session a day, prayer time in the evenings, and hours of freedom in the afternoon.  It was a time to enjoy the company of others we can relate to. It also helps us know how to pray for each other.

The kids had so much fun with other TCK's

Some of our interesting moments involved having a van full!  Mostly of Davis/Groff families as we traveled to Guatemala.  We added two Vida people for the Guatemala leg. No seat was empty!  We again are thankful for the blessing of our van!

We had an unexpected stop when after checking the air in the tire, the service attendant busted our stem. We are thankful that there were no injuries due to the flat tire. We also happen to stop where there was a restaurant, and the kids got to jump on a trampoline. 



Of course there's always border crossing. Sometimes Nathanael and I stand back in wonder at the stark difference in our childhoods and that of our children.  Both crossing into and out of Guatemala went without an incident. I even accidentally brought in some contraband (Peppers from Guatemala).

the line at the Belizean border on our way out of Belize

Thank you for joining with us on this journey. We hope and pray you have a great week celebrating Christ's finished work in our lives.  If you're interested in what we did as a church, you'll have to wait till next week :) (too much to cover in one blog post)

 one of our times of worship