Honor the Veterans

 Happy Veteran's Day! 

Enjoy these pictures of the flag. What a beautiful sight to see it blowing in the wind. It's hard to believe that the freedoms hundreds of thousands of people fought for and died for can be given away so easily. They're easy to give away but hard to get back. Therefore, they must be protected and highly valued. I'm thankful for the courage, brave, warriors who believed America was worth fighting for. I'm grateful for the veterans of this land. Without them, we would not enjoy our country as it is today. A simple 'thank you' doesn't seem fitting enough after all they have gone through. In fact, I recently thanked a veteran for his service, and he replied with "it's nothing." Well sir, to me, it is something. It is a sacrifice. A sacrifice of comfort. A sacrifice of family. A sacrifice of self. A sacrifice of health. A sacrifice of years of life. Veterans are heroes in my eyes, and as long as I live, I will gratefully honor them. 

America, Remember the Cost

In this world of constant change, very little still remains of the heritage we've known, or the freedoms that once reigned. The sacrifices that were made so that freedom might be saved must never be forgotten or lost! 

America, remember the cost! 

Remember the cost for freedom - the blood that has been shed. Remember the cost for our liberty - the white, the blue, the red. The price that has been paid by those who fought, who gave, who died, that freedom could never be denied. 

America, remember the cost! 

As the founding fathers knew, there must be a place to stand. They chose the Word of God as the framework of this land. For equality to reign and for justice to remain, this plan of God's design must not be lost. 

America, remember the cost! 

Remember the cost for freedom - the blood that has been shed. Remember the cost for our liberty - the white, the blue, the red. The price that has been paid by those who fought, who gave, who died, that freedom could never be denied. 

America, remember the cost: the cost to build a nation in spite of tyranny; our sons and daughters gave their lives for the cause of liberty, liberty, liberty! 

America, remember the cost! 

Here's the music video for this song. 

This song is called I Love This Land. 

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same."    ~ Ronald Reagan

Honduras ~ part 7

 June

Starting off the month, the missionaries took us to Club Campestre La Joya on the banks of Lake Yojoa. Click on this link La Joya if you want to visit their facebook page. This place is a unique mixture with classic cars as its main theme. It's a buffet/cafe/museum all in one. It was definitely the most unique eating experience I've ever had and quite fun! That huge Hot Wheels photo op is right outside. You can drive your car into it to take a picture. So cool! 

The outside

After paying, you can take your ticket and pick a buffet line to get food from and walk around to look at all the cars. 

A couple old cars were converted into dining spaces. 

We girls dined in style in the converted car. 😅

I spy an Elvis license plate. My favorite is the Florida one which says 'You've Got A Friend In Jesus.' Amen. 😄

Motor taxi converted to a dining space. 

The outside has a pool, playground, and pretty grassy space to sit and look at the views.

I wish my camera had been with me on this trip but alas, these phone photos will have to do. They definitely do not capture the full beauty of this place that you can only see in real life.

The lake is after the grassy area, but it's far away so my phone wasn't able to capture it. Gorgeous views.

Pictures of the students crafts.

Jair

Genesis

Steven

Celebrated Jayden's birthday. At every single birthday party they have a pinata. 

After a Wednesday night church service a group of us went to the ice cream shop. It was a fun, laughter-filled evening.

The 3 hermanas - amigas. 

The last day of 1st grade.

This picture of a bush is not the best, but it reminds me of an adventure story. I was scheduled to fly out on June 8th very early in the morning. The previous day, Kara, Kristel, and I had gone to the city for some girl time together. Plus, the power had been out since 2 pm. and it was no use staying home. On our way back home, it started pouring. We were stuck in traffic for a while because of some trees that fell down in the road. When we finally made it back, I left immediately to have dinner with the Cardenas family. What a lovely time with this family. We sat outside in the hammocks and talked and listened to the rain. It was refreshing and a special time of fellowship. (Plus, I got to practice Spanish!) The power still had not come back on by the time I went back home, so Kara, Kristel, and I talked for a while. None of us could sleep because of how hot it was. We finally went and tried sleeping in the van since it was cooler. That didn't really work. Then Kara decided to go on a middle-of-the-night drive. We went down the dirt road next to the church to see the city lights on the mountain. A beautiful sight at night. Of course, a dirt road + a ton of rain = mud. The van got stuck deep in mud. So there we were at 2 am. Trenton came with his car, and we finally decided to leave the van there overnight. He took us home in time for me to grab my luggage and head to the airport. And that's how the last night in Honduras ended with a bang. 😅

Last picture of the country. 

VOTE!!

Hey ya'll!

Election day is this week so please make sure you do your duty and vote for President Trump (because there is no other option) in what is probably the most important election ever. 

Now, a note to the Floridians: on November 5th we will also be voting on several amendments. Amendment 4 is to legalize abortions in Florida so make sure you vote NO on this one! Every life is precious to God and should be to every Christian as well. I was sad to hear a Christian tell me that she was pro-life except when the exceptions happen, then she wasn't so sure. If exceptions are just that, exceptions, why do many people focus on them like they are the rule? And Christians, out of all people, should be the most pro-life people, yet many are hesitant to support life in all cases. This is heartbreaking. 

The amendments are important so make sure you read up on them before voting. 

If you need a voting guide, here's a fabulous one that was put out by Florida Family Action. Click on it to make it larger to read. 

Seekers of God's Heart

Click here to listen to the song if you're viewing this on your email. 

Until we give you first place

Until we let you begin to fill us with your spirit, 

Renew us from within, 

Nothing matters, nothing's gained; without your holy presence our lives are lived in vain.

Lord, we want to know you, live our lives to show you,

All the love we owe you, we're seekers of your heart. 

Because your heart was broken, because you saw the need, because you gave so freely, because of Calvary, we can now be called your own complete creations, filled with you alone. 

Lord, we want to know you, live our lives to show you all the love we owe you, we're seekers of your heart. 

O Jesus, blest Redeemer, sent from the heart of God. Hold us, who wait before thee, near to the heart of God.

This is a beautiful song. Many times the Scriptures say that when we seek God we will find him. It is possible to know the heart of God. But we can't know it if we're not searching. You are as close to God as you want to be. Do you want to know God and his heart more? Knowing him comes through discipline and spending time in the Word and in prayer. If he is not first place in life, does anything else really matter? I want to live a life that matters, that's in tune with God. How about you? Sincerely seek God. You will find him.

1 Chronicles 16:10-11 - "Glory ye in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord. Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face continually."

Psalm 119:2 - "Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart."

Psalm 105:4 - "Seek the Lord, and his strength: seek his face evermore."

Jeremiah 29:12-13 - "Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart."

Honduras ~ part 6

May 31st our school took a field trip to a train park. 

 

I love these kids so much. They sang almost the whole way there. lol

Dara

Visiting the train park was just a day loaded with fun. They have quite a few old trains you can walk in as well as a playground. We ate pizza outside and got to go on a train ride through the town. 

Videos of the children playing. 💕

Genesis

Rosalyn

Rosalyn, Jayden, Steven, Genesis

L. to R. Jayden, Steven, Genesis, Rosalyn, Dara

Each class was split in half so there could be an adult with each group. This was my group of kids for the day, and we had a blast. They are just the sweetest, funniest, cutest, most helpful children. 

I don't think I've ever loved more deeply than I have these little sweet people. They will always be in my heart, and I look forward to the day we can see each other again. 

Everyone thinks Kristel looks like the president of Honduras, Xiomara Castro, (picture below) so we all got a kick out of Kristel waving as we drove through town. Many people stopped to stare. 😂

Here comes the train. 

Until next time...... :)