Roatan, Honduras – Wednesday, May 31, 2017
Kids love making bracelets and coloring. That’s pretty common around the world, but it’s especially true here in Roatan, Honduras.
We’re having Vacation Bible School (VBS) at Bethesda Methodist Church in Flowers Bay this week, and every day more kids come. Word spreads fast here, and so do the cookies when we open a bag of Oreos.
Today we read scripture about Jonah and the whale, then made little Jonah crafts with clothes pins and paper. You can see a video of it on St. Luke’s Facebook page. The kids also love gluing little eyes onto shells and painting them all sorts of colors. We’ve used beads and string to make jewelry. It’s fun, but it’s also a way to build relationships with them. They have very little here, and yet they are so friendly and happy.
The more time we spend together, the more love and trust we build. Some of us have seen these children in previous years, and now they come running to see us. They remember our names. They’re sad when we leave. It’s harder every year for us to leave them.
There’s a little boy named Bradley, one of many children who we look forward to seeing every year. He plays the keyboard. He sings from his heart. He sings for the Lord.
I’ve always felt there are certain people in this world that are a little more divine – almost like an angel on earth. He’s one of those people. He will make a difference in this world. Bradley told us from the beginning that he wants to be a preacher. I ask him every year if that’s still his goal, and he says, “Yes ma’am, I still want to be a preacher.” My first year, he wrote me a little note that said, “I love you” and “If God has meant for us to meet again, we will.” I have that on my magnetic board at my desk.
One thing is for sure… they know we love them because we tell them all the time. I don’t think they love us as much as we love them, because that would be impossible. But I hope we’ve accomplished our goal… sharing Christ’s love with them.
– Danielle Tolbert
