New Opportunity!

Update 6/29: Here are two pictures from us teaching this last Monday:

Hailey and I met the one-and-only school teacher in our community the other day. She teaches 28 children from our community, ranging from 5 years-old to 14 years-old. Once children finish this school at 14 years-old, they will be done with school for the rest of their lives (unless their family has the money to send them to school in another village, which is extremely rare).

Starting tomorrow, Hailey and I (and Micah) are going to the school every Monday to help the students learn English. We are SO EXCITED for this opportunity to help our community, and it will be a great way to get to know other people as well. In addition to each Monday, I will send 5 of our students each Thursday to help as well. Not only will this be a great way for our students to get involved in the community, it will be a great way for them to use their English. Teaching is a great way to learn!

When we were at the school, one of our employees (who came with us to introduce us to the teacher) explained the current condition of the school. The government is supposed to bring food to the children (rice, beans, corn for tortillas, etc.) to eat each day. However, the food is not prepared and often does not come. If the food doesn't come, the children don't eat for 6 hours while they are in school. If the food does come, the mothers of the children are responsible to cook the food at home and cary it (some for several miles) to the school. Even then, the food is cold and the portions are so small. In addition, the water supply to the school is contaminated and dirty, and many of the children are often ill.

Hailey and I were truly touched and want to help with these two problems. For the materials to construct a kitchen/dining room, it would cost about $700, and to provide clean drinking water it would cost about $600. We have the volunteers and people from the community who will work for free to help these young children, so all we need to buy is the materials. If you are able to help in any way (every $5 helps), please see our "Support the Rahms" section of our blog. If you send money to our church to sponsor this project, please write "Honduras School Project" in the memo line.

Location for the New Kitchen

Current "Kitchen" that is unusable

We recognize many of the people who read this blog have already helped us financially, so if you are unable to give, please pray that we are able to raise the money. These children's education, health, and well-being will be vastly improved by making these few changes. Thank you for considering sponsoring this project! We are blessed by your thoughtfulness and generosity!

More pics....

Mom helping a student with an assignment.

Micah and "Ni Ni" working hard together :)

 "Hi Ho, Hi Ho it's off to work we go!"

Eating a snack together after a hard days work.

 Making homemade tortillas.

 A precious moment.

 Business Leadership class; mom uses her Dave Ramsey skills. :)

A week with Mom

My mom arrived last Friday and will be leaving this Sunday.  The time with her has been so wonderful and such a blessing.  We have done many projects and just enjoyed each others company and conversations.  Here are some pictures from this week:

Mom arriving on the back of Joseph's motorcycle!

Reading a Bible story to Micah before he goes to bed.

Washing her clothes on the Pila and enjoying it!

 Mother and Daughter cleaning clothes together.

 Planting carrots in the garden.

 Micah enjoying jumping and sitting in the puddles by the river.

For some reason I could not post more pictures on this post so a second post

 with more pictures will follow!

A Few Funny Conversations...

In Belize, Hailey said a few things that we got a good laugh at, so I figured I'd write briefly about them.

The first was right after we got off the boat and were walking (in 110 degree real feel heat) to our hotel. Hailey had a heavy backpack and Micah, and I had another heavy backpack and Micah's pack-and-play. Here is how the conversation went (remember, Belize's national language is English).

Hailey: Disculpe, donde esta Seaspray Hotel (to a younger man who looked Latino)

Young Man: (with a funny look) Uhhhh, it's right down that road on your right!

Hailey: Oh (with a surprising, yet embarrassed look), thank you

Of course we walked away laughing, even though we were both dripping with sweat and slightly annoyed that we hadn't found our hotel yet.

The second conversation was our last night in Belize and we ate at a little Italian Restaurant. This, by the way, was hands-down the best Italian Food I have had my entire life. If any of you ever visits Placencia, Belize, you must visit the only Italian Restaurant in town, only a few blocks up from the boat dock. We had found out that the restaurant was a family operation, and that's when this conversation happened.

Hailey: (to the waitress) Is the cook your husband?

Waitress: (smiling) No, he's my dad!

Hailey: (embarrassed once again) Oh, tell him the food is amazing.

I told Hailey to tell the waitress that her dad looked so young, making her question a compliment instead of feeling like the waitress looked twice her age.

Anyhow, we had some great laughs in Belize and while we're happy to be back in Honduras, we miss our vacation!

Health Update..

The good news is that Hailey and Micah have remained well the entire time that other people have gotten sick around here. The bad news is that I have both a parasite and a bacterial infection. I went in last week for a stool sample (which cost an entire $2 US) and was told that I have blastocytis hominis (which is a parasite). I was prescribed, well I should say given because there is not really such a thing as prescriptions in Honduras, a couple different types of medicine to fight the parasite and the infection. So far they seem to be working OK, as my stomach pains have mostly gone away and my bathroom visits seem to becoming much more "normal" than they had been for a couple weeks.

I knew before coming to Honduras that parasites and bacterial infections would be much more likely, but I guess I just didn't expect to be one of the lucky ones so quickly. We met with a guy in Nashville prior to leaving the US who had lived in Honduras for 10 years and lives with two parasites in his stomach that are incurable. He laughed when he told us and said, "The good thing is that I will never get fat and I get to eat for three!" I thought his sense of humor regarding something that seems so foreign and scary in the US was fairly weird, but I think I understand now.

While I appreciate the concern and the help that I have received from doctors, family, and friends back in the US (I really, honestly do), I am not so concerned. I know plenty of people (including excellent doctors) might tell me that I should be concerned, but I'm not. I figure that I will just keep doing the things that are in my control (take medicine, try to eat the right foods, wash my hands, etc.) and if the parasite dies, great, and if not then I have a friend for the rest of my life :) In all honesty, I think that Hailey and I are just that confident in what we are doing here in Honduras that a parasite just seems like part of the job. Plus, it gives me a little excuse to eat more of the food I really like ("I need to gain some weight back", or, "the parasite is extra hungry today"), and gives me a good excuse to not eat the food I don't really like ("The parasite is giving me an upset stomach", or, "the parasite is resistant to this type of food").

But in all seriousness, I am feeling quite a bit better and hope that this means once I'm done with my current medicines that I will be all better. Sometimes these kinds of things are pretty resistant to medicine and it can take a while to get rid of them, so hopefully that's not the case for me.

BELIZE

Well,  we made it to Belize to finish off our week of vacation to renew our visas and I thought you might like to see some pictures and hear a few things about our time here.

We are having a very relaxing and despite some bumps in the road getting here we are so thankful for this time we get as a family. We took a boat from Puerto Cortez, Honduras to Placencia, Belize. The ride was bumpy but beautiful.  It was Micah's first boat ride and though at first he didn't like the life jacket, he ended up being able to take it off and fall asleep and enjoy the trip :)

We are staying at a humble hotel called Seaspray Hotel. For the first 2 nights we are staying in a cabana...our own little "house" off from the rest of the hotel that sits RIGHT on the beach.

Walking through the small town of Placencia that seems a little run down but filled with character,  you wouldn't think that just 3 blocks from the main raod was a GORGEOUS white sand beach...but there is :)  The view from our room is just like a postcard.  

 Micah is LOVING his stay at the beach!  He enjoys being in the water with his mommy and daddy and trying to grab the seaweed that floats by on the waves :)  The water is so warm here, be probably thinks it's just one BIG bath! haha

"Come join us mom!"

 I love this picture of dad and son.

Micah loves sitting in buckets :)

Bad News...then WORSE News

The bad news is that there was a huge storm last night that carried into this morning so we couldn't leave for Belize because the government of Honduras wouldn't open up the port. So now we have to pay for two hotels tonight and spend one less day on the beautiful beaches of Belize.

The worse news is that it gave me a chance to go to the doctor here in Puerto Cortes, Honduras. I have been having stomach pains and horrible diarrhea for about a week now. I wake up every morning and lose about 25% of my body weight in the toilet and then don't visit the bathroom for the rest of the day. Not to mention the lack of energy, horrible stomach cramps, dizziness, and other awesome symptoms!

Nearly half the girls at our school got sick with similar symptoms, but theirs went away in 2-3 days. After a week, I finally decided to see a doctor. I was quite surprised by my ability to communicate with him, but wasn't too happy with what he said. Most likely, he thinks that I have an intestinal parasite. I have had all the symptoms common with an intestinal parasite and he said that my colon and intestine are both inflamed. He said it also could be a bacterial infection. He gave me two types of medicine (one for bacterial infection and one for parasite), but before I take them I have sent their names to an RN friend to check to make sure they are legit. If they aren't legit, or they don't work, I will be looking for someone to get their hands on some good US medicine and find a way to get it to Nasvhille, TN before June 16th so my mother-in-law can get it down to me when she visits.

If I were lazy, the good news would be that I can officially remove my pants and shorts without undoing the button since I have lost so much weight in the last week (which is not a good thing for an already skinny guy). Also, I have been looking forward to eating brownies, ice cream, pizza, hamburgers, and many other foods this week, and that was ruined this morning when the doctor told me that I should only eat veggies, chicken, soup, and rice. I'm not really sure I understand why since everything I eat comes out the same way the next morning anyway. I was so excited (joke) to hear that I get to eat exactly the same things I've been eating every meal for the last three months on my vacation to Belize.

Needless to say I am a bit bummed this afternoon, but still happy to be relaxing in our hotel with my wife and son. I sure hope to get this parasite (if it even is a parasite) under control before he eats my entire body from the inside out - is that even possible?

Days 1 & 2

Many of you know that our passports are only good in Honduras for 90 days. After 90 days in the country, every non-Honduran citizen needs to leave the country for at least 72 hours. Also, leaving to one of the three neighboring countries (El Salvador, Guatemala, and Nicaragua) does not count, so we are “forced” to go to Belize.

We left the campus on Saturday morning and had a ride by car to San Pedro Sula. It was nice to not have to take the bus that first stretch. Then we caught a bus in San Pedro Sula to Puerto Cortes and we arrived in the middle of the afternoon. The first thing that we realized about Puerto Cortes is how much hotter it is than where we live up in the mountains. I thin it was in the 90’s with a “feels like” temperature of over 100 degrees.

We were dropped off in front of a grocery store, so I asked the nearest cab driver to take us to Hotel Costa Azul. We didn’t have reservations because we hadn’t actually planned on arriving until Sunday, but there was a change of plans. Anyhow, they had a room for us and we were glad to get settled in after a long day of traveling. The rest of the day we just relaxed, read, ate a delicious dinner (steak and chicken) at the hotel restaurant, and went to bed around nine.

On Sunday, we woke up and went to the continental breakfast at 7 AM (when it supposedly opened). Unfortunately for us, the hotel hadn’t even let the cooks into the kitchen, so it was a long wait for our food, which wasn’t a big deal since we didn’t have any plans all day. After breakfast we played with Micah for an hour or two before he was ready for his nap. We put him down and spent a couple hours reading, checking email, and doing other miscellaneous things. (FYI, I read a book called “Heaven is For Real” in one day. It is a story written by a pastor about his four year-old son’s experience in heaven. I know, it sounds unbelievable, but you should read it – it’s pretty crazy).

After Micah woke up, we took a taxi into town for lunch and a little walk. We ate a Pizza Hut (I know, sounds lame in Honduras, but after you eat rice, beans, eggs, and tortillas for three months straight, some pizza sounds delicious) and walked to the nearest grocery store. After purchasing a few items, we took a taxi back to the hotel.

Micah had his first experience in the pool and after the initial shock and nervousness; he enjoyed it quite a bit. We spent the rest of the afternoon lounging around intentionally not doing very much.

A few other things to mention:

- I am still sick after 5 days of horrible diarrhea and stomach pains. About half the students got it and they were over it in 2-3. I am the lucky one who gets it for much longer.

- We are currently waiting to take a taxi down to catch our boat to Belize. After two beautiful (and extremely hot) days in Puerto Cortes, it is POURING down rain right now and the boats are waiting to see if they have authority from both ports to leave. If we don’t leave today, I have no idea what the next step is since we have to leave the country. The boats only are scheduled to leave on Mondays and return on Fridays – just enough time to renew our passport.

Well, I think that’s it for right now. We will try to update you while we’re in Belize – that is, if we make it to Belize. For now we are just hoping to get a call any minute saying the boat is on schedule to leave in two hours.

By the way, we all know that we need haircuts :)

Our First Trip Alone…

Hailey and I took our first trip alone into the nearby village when Micah was taking a nap a few days ago. One of the other volunteers offered to read a book outside our home in case Micah woke up from his nap early (of course he did, but Carol rocked him back to sleep in our hammock). It was fun to get out just the two of us, and was especially fun to cruise around together on my motorcycle – that is, until the downpour began. We got absolutely drenched on the way home. We contemplated stopping at a house for shelter, but quickly realized that we have to cross the river at several places. Often, after a big rain, the river rises so much that a motorcycle is unable to cross. We did not want to get stuck away from Micah, so we decided to continue in the storm. Here are a few pictures of our trip – take a look at how wet we were when we returned.

A Few Fun Pictures:

The sun shining bright as we left...

 and the rain cloud we spot as we head back home...

 and us arriving home drenched and happy!

A Funny Conversation

Hailey and I were talking the other day about how smart Micah is and how surprised we are that he is learning so much at a young age. Here is a summary of our conversation:

Hailey: “It’s crazy how smart Micah is. He understands so much more than I thought he would at 16 months.”

Joseph: “Yeah, he tries to say almost every word that we say – even in Spanish.”

Hailey: “He’s a genius.” J

Joseph: “Micah, are you a genius?”

Micah: “Yeah!” (With a snicker, as if he knew exactly what he was saying)

Hailey and I started laughing hysterically, which, of course, meant that Micah started laughing as well. Micah is always making us laugh! 

Only One Thing Is Needed

Recently I was feeling very useless. I felt like there was nothing I could do for the Lord, at least anything that really mattered.  Sure, there are always chickens to chase after and feed, always a garden to tend to, always dishes to be washed and always something to clean up. “But what do those have to do with the Lord?” I thought.  In the States opportunities to serve people were endless! I could walk down the street and find at least two homeless people to share with or talk to.  There was always a friend I could take out to coffee to encourage and pray with.  I could call anyone I wanted, whenever I wanted just to let them know I was thinking about them.  I could sign up for a hundred different volunteer opportunities to serve single women, homeless teens, etc…  Each day I felt like I could be so fruitful for the Lord and DO so much.

But here, I felt like “Why would God call me to a place where it seems like I am so far from anything and anyone?  It is a good motorcycle away to the next “village” where multiple houses are.  There are 4 hours of the day, at least, where the girls here are in class and I have nothing to DO…but of course, look after animals and plants J "

I know being a mother of a 16 month old keeps me pretty busy but with just one child I still have some down time where I can do other things like when he is taking a nap or when he is content playing on his own.  While I still have some time I wanted it to be used for the Lord at best as it can be.

I was getting so anxious!  “Lord, show me what I can DO for you!  Please! I want to be used and it seems no matter how hard I try to seek out opportunities, there are none there. I know that cannot be the actual case…you must have something for me to do, people who need encouragement...something!”  This was my daily cry to the Lord.

I needed someone to talk to about this, someone who I knew could probably relate.

My friend, Jannekah, is a missionary in Kenya with her husband and her two young children.  I know she lives in a place that is much more populated than I do, but she is a wife, a mother, an American, and a woman who desires to do the will of the Lord daily.  I wrote her an e-mail expressing my desire to serve the Lord but feeling useless and the Lord used her to encourage me and point me to the truth. 

I have a completely new perspective and I am so grateful for my friend.

She reminded me of Joseph in the Bible and the fact that he knew he was born for greatness but he had to take care of chickens and do the dishes in Potiphar’s house. He was also in prison for 8 years! I am sure he felt like his tasks were not important as well, especially compared to the Longings of his heart. But as Joseph obeyed God in those small tasks and worked at them with all his heart, God was lining up his destiny; those tasks led him to be Pharaoh’s right hand, in charge of all of Egypt!  (You can read his story in Genesis 37-45)

She also reminded me of the huge ministry that I have being a mother and a wife.  Focusing on being the Helper that God made me to be for Joseph and focusing on training Micah in the way that he should go is a worthy task and so pleasing to the Lord.  Praying for my family and encouraging them is a huge ministry and I should be taking advantage of the down times that I have and realizing how precious those moments are.

And lastly, she reminded me when Jesus was at the home of Martha and Mary. (The story is in Luke 10:38-42)  Most of you probably know the story, but in a nutshell, Martha kept herself distracted by all the preparations and Mary chose to sit at the feet of Jesus. Martha complained to Jesus and asked him to tell Mary to help but what Jesus said I am sure came as a surprise to Martha and it is helpful for me to put my name in his reply:

“Hailey, Hailey,” the Lord answered, ”you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed.  Mary has chosen what is better and it will not be taken away from her.”

What a great reminder…it is easy to think that there are SO many things that NEED to be done, isn’t it?  But there isn’t….most things can wait but there is only ONE things that is truly needed, the most important thing in life is our relationship with Christ Jesus. He reminds us in Matthew 6 that if we “seek first the Kingdom of God” ALL things that we need will be given to us.  Why can’t we trust that?

My friend reminded me that Jesus’ is more concerned with having an intimate relationship with me than He is in what I DO for Him.  And in reality, the closer I become to Lord and the deeper our relationship is, the clearer my understanding of His Will will be and my life will naturally flow with His. There will be no worries, no tribulations, and no cares that will leave me wondering or anxious.  I will be so aware of the Lord’s presence in my life that I will be at ease and resting assured in His love.

So from now on, as I continue to abide in Christ, I will delight in the busy times and delight in the slow times knowing and trusting that God is at work and that he will use me when and where he sees fit! I will focus on the ONE THING THAT IS NEEDED.

I will end by sharing a quote that my friend shared with me that is from one of my favorite devotional authors:

Oswald Chambers "The aim of the missionary is to do God's will, not to be useful, not to win the heathen; he is useful and he does win the heathen, but that is not his aim.  His aim is to do the will of the Lord."