Carlitos
“How am I going to start this blog?” That was the question I spent all morning thinking about, but after much thought and reflection on the events of this past week, I have decided that the only appropriate way to start this blog is by saying that God is good. So there you have it, God is good. He allowed my team and I to do some incredible things this week. We continued our ministry in Los Pinos, were able to spend some time in a public hospital, visit a government run orphanage and even witness Honduras’s Independence Day parade.
The hospital was by far the roughest part of my week. I never would have guessed that Tegucigalpa’s public hospital would be so different than the one in my own home town. It would be a stretch for a patient to expect even one percent of the privacy and comfort that has become so normal to me. Although the experience was a bit uncomfortable, it definitely stretched me and helped to open up my eyes. It was an experience that I wouldn’t take back if I could.
This brings me to IHNFA. IHNFA is a government run orphanage where our missions contact facilitates a girl’s bible study on a weekly basis. While the study was being run, my team and I wandered into a different building on the property. This building happened to be the developmentally disabled block. My heart was broken. I was drawn to a six year old child named Carlos. Carlos has a growth on his back and can’t walk or talk. He has pretty severe convulsions and is stuck lying on a waterbed all day. Despite his situation, he still managed to crack a smile as I sat beside him and stroked his hair. After we left IHNFA, I couldn’t help but take a look at my own life. I have so much going for me. Health, family, friends and a relationship with the living God yet some days I still wake up and choose to bear a negative disposition. Carlos reinforced in me the truth about happiness. Happiness is a choice. We can choose to wake up and look at everything wrong with our lives or we can choose to focus on the positives. God used Carlos to leave a mark on my heart and I hope he can be an inspiration to you as well.
The hospital was by far the roughest part of my week. I never would have guessed that Tegucigalpa’s public hospital would be so different than the one in my own home town. It would be a stretch for a patient to expect even one percent of the privacy and comfort that has become so normal to me. Although the experience was a bit uncomfortable, it definitely stretched me and helped to open up my eyes. It was an experience that I wouldn’t take back if I could.
This brings me to IHNFA. IHNFA is a government run orphanage where our missions contact facilitates a girl’s bible study on a weekly basis. While the study was being run, my team and I wandered into a different building on the property. This building happened to be the developmentally disabled block. My heart was broken. I was drawn to a six year old child named Carlos. Carlos has a growth on his back and can’t walk or talk. He has pretty severe convulsions and is stuck lying on a waterbed all day. Despite his situation, he still managed to crack a smile as I sat beside him and stroked his hair. After we left IHNFA, I couldn’t help but take a look at my own life. I have so much going for me. Health, family, friends and a relationship with the living God yet some days I still wake up and choose to bear a negative disposition. Carlos reinforced in me the truth about happiness. Happiness is a choice. We can choose to wake up and look at everything wrong with our lives or we can choose to focus on the positives. God used Carlos to leave a mark on my heart and I hope he can be an inspiration to you as well.
God bless,
Kevin
