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A couple weeks ago Kimberly lost her camera. She had taken it outside to the garage during a yard sale at our home but she was sure that she had brought it inside and had taken it with her to the basement. We both looked all over the house but had essentially given up. I was sure that once we cleaned the basement we would find. So we went on with our lives.

A few days later, Isaac was sitting on the couch and had pulled it out from one of the cushions and was playing with it – but was not able to hide it again once we saw him with it.

While we were not looking he was going around and taking pictures, and then hiding the camera again. He did this with peanut butter m&ms a few months ago. He kept breaking out with a rash (because he is allergic) and we could not find out why – until we found his stash of candy.

So the pictures above are his photos, enjoy. He definitely has his own style.

Kimberly went to Orphanage Emmanuel last year and I could tell it really was a meaningful and spiritually revitalizing time in her life. Upon her return she said that I had to go next year and I was very reluctant to say the least. I did not want to take away from her experience but I had no desire to go – I was dealing with comments in my mind like, “it just about broke us to pay for her trip, how could we both go?” and “How would we take care of the kids?” and on top of all that I knew that if I went, I would probably be “hooked” too.

The last thing I wanted was to fall in love with hundreds of children, and then have to leave them. So I stuffed the thoughts deep in my brain, and Kimberly started praying. Well a year rolled around, Kimberly started raising money so she (we) could go and sure enough, she raised her amount so that it didn’t break us for her to go again.

Then the dreaded phone call came – the pastor who had planned to go had backed out for personal reasons and all eyes seemed to roll on to me. I said, “I couldn’t get my passport soon enough (I did). I couldn’t afford to go (turns out it was already paid for.) Great, they needed a pastor, it was paid for, and Kimberly’s prayers had been answered.

So I went, and the trip was amazing. I had never traveled over-seas, so I was introduced to the Honduran poverty and corruption, but far more importantly I was introduced to a ministry that is truly making a difference in the lives of hundreds of children and has done so for over twenty years.

I could have “knuckled-down” and refused to go, but that would have been going against all the evidence that God had worked it out for me to go (in spite of me). I also, would have missed a spiritually rejuvenating experience that comes once every decade or so. God wanted me to “go,” because he was going to use me to minister in His name, and he wanted to move in my heart; to change a piece that was beginning to grow cold and hard.

After over a decade of pastoring God in mercy would not let me become bitter, hardened, cold, and sarcastic. He renewed my hope (not in Him, for He is always faithful) in myself. When the world falls down around us, we begin to feel crushed, that is when God reaches down and pulls us from the rubble and says, let’s build. And he begins the building process in our hearts. If this is how you feel, then look around; there is more than likely someone praying for you, and His hand may be reaching out to you. I am thankful for the gifts of God, my wife and His providence.

I have had several people ask me about Kimberly and my recent mission trip to Honduras. I had intended to journal while I was there but due to poor internet connection and a busy schedule I was unable to do so. And to be honest the experience was so emotionally overwhelming that my entries would have been trite and dishonest (only because I would be writing something just to get something out). I was asked by others on the team what I thought about the experience while we were on the field and I honestly could not adequately explain in a few words the emotions and feeling I was experiencing. I really can’t describe (this coming from a person who communicates for a living) what it was like, but I can put the feelings into the form of a few stories. So the next series of entries will be me trying to share a life changing experience with you.

I will begin by telling you of my experience of the toddler house. The children at Orphanage Emmanuel are divided into age groups and gender, but the youngest children have the boys and girls together, where they live in age graded housing. Kimberly and I on this particular morning were serving in the clinic (due to an outbreak of chicken pox) and because of fever and diarrhea the clinic was running low on diapers. So I was sent to the Toddler House to get some more and bring them back to the clinic.

As I approached the Toddler House I was first amazed at how orderly and clean everything was. All of the clothes were folded and sorted by color, and then stacked into cabinets. There were about six older girls from the orphanage who were helping a staff member. I approached the woman in charge of the home and explained why I was there and she began to talk with the other girls about where to get the diapers, and was giving them instructions. It was at this time when the children there became aware of my presence.

They all began to rush me, hugging my leg, pulling on my hands, pulling on shirt, and all speaking Spanish. I couldn’t understand their words but I understood their hearts. These children wanted me to hold them, hug them, touch them, just love them. I began to think about my three year old son Isaac. What if he were here, and had no mother, no father, no one to tell him how wonderful he is.

It was as if the air around me began to get thick, and I felt my heart in my throat. As they were pulling me I began to weep. All of these children, and all they want is someone to hug them, smile at them, hold their hand, and tell them that they are loved. The staff love them, but they are only a hand full in comparison to 415 orphans, and their focus is on clothing, preparing meals, organizing their day, etc. . . They need volunteer teams to come in and to love the children. So, my job for 10 days was to simply love children.

The first thing that I came to realize was that I went to Honduras to simply love, hug, smile at, and hold hands with children. My background is that of an organizer and “fixer.” I work at the executive level of a church — I put out fires, and deal with problems. In Honduras there was nothing for me to “do” but love children. This filled my heart with joy like nothing I have done in a long time. We make life so complicated, there it became very clear and uncomplicated. God said to me, “Drew, just love the children.” Even now this brings tears to my eyes. Just love the children.