The Clow Communicator

A Full Week Ahead

2012-01-15T19:46:00.000-06:00

It’s finally coming together, Lord willing. This week John is putting the final details together to get the roof on the multipurpose/soccer stadium in Armenia. Please pray for him as he gets all the details in order and as he and the workers actually put the roof on. It’s really high in the air! For those of you who have witnessed John work, you know he’s a monkey-that-loves-heights at heart. Seriously, please pray for good clear communication between the crane operator and John and the other workers.

Kathy will be spending the week finalizing schooling for the scholarship program. She has already registered 3 students. Tomorrow afternoon she will be having a meeting with the parents to go over the ‘rules’ for the year. On Tuesday she’ll register 2 more students for school. After that it’s buying uniforms and materials. Classes start Feb 6th for the new Honduran school year. Please pray for her and for this year’s scholarship students and their parents.

Thanks for your continued prayers and encouragement.

John and Kathy

Chocolate Pie

2012-01-01T18:44:00.000-06:00

This pie is VERY sacred in the Clow household. A good southern wife bakes her pies in cast iron skillets....or maybe thats just crazy missionaries who use cast iron cause they don’t own pie pans!

Guess What?

2012-01-01T01:25:00.000-06:00

I have my computer back! It arrived today...err...I mean yesterday. I didn’t have time to get on it before leaving to spend New Year’s with our friends. But when I got home I couldn’t resist. :D

Maybe now writer’s block will leave me and I can get back to monthly newsletters and blogging!!!

I pray that you all have a great and Wonderful 2012 filled with God’s peace and presence!

Couldn't Say It Better...

2011-12-23T13:51:00.000-06:00

...if I tried.

Read Mike Pettengill's Blog to see what I couldn't say better if I tried.

An Attempt At Some Sort of Newsletter...

2011-12-20T20:07:00.000-06:00

This is a post that I just wrote for our Clow Communicator Facebook page.

I know I am procrastinating! Oh intentions are well meaning....but mean nothing at all without action put behind them. It's the newsletter - that thing I just can't seem to make myself write. I think I just may still be pouting over not having my computer/newsletter templates that are familiar to me. LOL!
Maybe I should just make this our 'end of the year newsletter'? No worries, I won't.
The Clows are doing well. John is busy constructing. The workers have next week off so he is getting some 'last minute' things done this week. Our kids are on Christmas vacation and this week Team Honduras adults are providing them a VBS on the life of Christ.
Today started Hanukkah which we celebrate (in addition to Christmas of course). It's a very cool holiday with great meaning behind i...t....anyway, the kids get one gift every night for 8 nights. So they REALLY love it! Tonight's present.....Socks. No not the kind you wear. Socks is a 9 week old Miniature Schnauzer. 6 years ago when we bought Oso (our Airedale) we also got Damita (a mini schnauzer). Soon after we got her she was hit by a car and killed. We have been telling the kids for...a years now...that we would get them another one. John found Socks and that was that. He already thinks he runs the household and is trying to put Oso in his place. Oso is 'tolerating' him except for when he tries to nurse on Oso. Oh great brothers they will be!
We wish you all a very Merry Christmas. We pray that it is a day full of Christ's love and peace and hope in your homes!

ARRIVAL!

2011-12-13T10:12:00.001-06:00

The Troxells are on their way here! Mike and Ashley just finished language school and will be serving with us here in Honduras. Our team is growing and we are LOVING IT!

Praises: We recieved a 'matching fund' for the clinic in Armenia Bonito and for the seminary in La Isla! What does that mean? For every dollar donated to that project we get another dollar...up to a tune of several thousand dollars. We are grateful for this blessing and excited to watch how God brings it all togher - for His glory! We'll be posting more information in the coming weeks. But if you want info NOW, e-mail me and ask.

I am trying - I really am - to get out a newsletter. I am not sure why I am 'stuck'. John's computer is great and he's so nice to let me use it :D But I am familiar with my computer (still stuck in the States) and I have to be honest - I miss it. I miss the format of the newsletter. John's computer just won't let me do what I want to do! Boy, do I sound like a pouty kid right now...(laughing).

We appreciate that you all love us, pray for us, encourage us. THANK YOU!

Back Under One Roof...and Country

2011-11-29T15:37:00.000-06:00

We are all back together! This is a running thread of joy, not just through our family, but also through Team Honduras. As soon as summer teams ended in September traveling began. Mike to Turkey, Team Honduras ladies on a retreat, John and Mike to the States, Shannon to Peru and Mexico, Erin to California multiple times, Kathy and the kids to the States, and the last trip for the Pettengills to California to mourn the loss of Erin's mother. Please pray for The Pettengills as they grieve and for Erin's dad. Pray that God would draw him to himself and that he would come to know the love our Lord has for him.

Thanksgiving Day saw that we were all together! Plus we had the added joy of having Mark and Kymmy (some of our bestest friends from IL) spend the week with us AND having Kate (our newest team mate) finally arrive for good here in La Ceiba! In all we had 19 people in our home for dinner!

So now what? We are all trying to 'settle' back into a 'routine' - just in time for the Christmas season when we will have special ministry programs for the kids in Armenia Bonito, our kids 3 week school break, arrival of the Troxells (our team mates finishing up language school) who will be with us for 2 years and so on. Oh well! One would think that after 8 years of serving with MTW we would realize that the word routine should be used very loosely.

Here's to hoping that blog updates will begin again, monthly newsletters will resume their regular schedule, and most of all that God is glorified in everything we do and say. To Him who is able to so much more than we even dare ask be praise forevermore!

It's Not About the Passport

2011-10-27T20:25:00.001-05:00

If you are facebook friends with me then you are aware (because I have sent out a million posts over the past 24 hours) that I have been having "issues". Mike, Erin, Shannon and John all left town last week leaving me here with Abigail, Rebekah, Josiah, Evan, Maddy and Caitlin (a just-out-of-high-school friend of Shannon's who is here working with an orphanage in Armenia). I didn't mind being left alone. It's just I know that I have a tendency to get a little overwhelmed when all the kids are coming at me needing something at the same time. And, I was banking on it only being less than a week and Shannon would be back. AND, I have our dear friends, The Hines, here that I can call on at anytime. So, I was set....or so I thought.

It all started to unravel before John even left. Abigail came down with shingles. Already I could feel myself getting overwhelmed, I hate when my kids are sick and I am helpless to help them. Thankfully, she responded well to the meds and made a quick recovery. Just as she was recovering and going back to school, Evan started coughing (which always makes him hardER to handle). The day Shannon was due to return she discovered that due to a lack of the yellow fever vaccine she could not enter Honduras for 10 days (she was returning from Peru). The next day Bek started getting sick. On Tuesday I was called to come and get her from school and she spent the next two days home with me. A day later Abigail started sneezing and complaining of burning eyes and a headache. This whole time Josiah was suffering with a mouth full of blisters. And then....

Our lawyer called me and told me that immigration had lost Josiah's passport. Meaning: John is in the States. The kids and I are scheduled to fly next week to join him and attend his sister’s wedding. I can't obtain a temporary emergency passport for Josiah without John. We're stuck in Honduras.

Overwhelmed - YES! But, God had already been preparing me. That morning I woke up with the song "I will lift my eyes" by Bebo Norman in my head. In my Bible Study that morning (a study on the Psalms by Beth Moore) I read this: "I am thoroughly convinced that God times our thematic journeys into His Word to speak into the experiences He knows in advance we will have. Daily living is such a concoction of pain and pleasure." As soon as the lawyer called I started singing:
"I will lift my eyes to the Maker of the mountains I can't climb. I will lift my eyes to the calmer of the oceans raging wild. I will lift my eyes to the healer of the hurt I hold inside. I will lift my eyes, lift my eyes to You!" Did I mention that we were also dealing with Hurricane Rina?

I not only hit my knees I hit the keyboard and asked everyone to start praying. The lawyer was as distraught as I was and didn't sleep at all, spent all night praying. Immigration was adamant that the loss happened with us. We were adamant that the problem was with them. Long story made short, she returned to immigration this morning and there was Josiah's passport! Her son told her, "Mom this is a sign from God to you. You haven't been to church with Grandma and me in two weeks. You should go to church." She told me she was going to church this Sunday. And the praising started (it should have never stopped.)

And then....I went to the ATM to withdrawal money to pay our rent before I leave. The machine kept my card. I told the guard who told me I had to go to the downtown branch. The downtown branch told me the atm didn't belong to them and there was nothing they could do. Finally, I was able to get some phone numbers for the company that supposedly owned the atm - which were no help. They didn't own it either; they didn't know what to do. And the praising ceased - how quickly I forget the good that God does and IS; how quickly I begin to focus my eyes on the raging water around me and not on the ONE who calms the sea.

I drove to our neighbor's. A sweet Honduran couple who owns a local coffee shop/souvenir store. As soon as I got out of the van and saw him I began to bawl like a baby. I am sure he thought someone was hurt or something horrible. No, just a simple stuck debit card. He made several calls and found out where we needed to go/who we needed to talk to. Then he drove with me and talked to the right person. I still don't have my card. They are going to try and get it tomorrow. I honestly don't know if I will get the card back tomorrow or not. Have no clue if I am going to be able to pay my rent on time. If I will be able to fly out with my debit card. But, of this I do know:

I am the daughter of THE KING. The ONE who watches over and cares for me. The ONE who has a plan and a purpose. The ONE who knows when I feel alone and helpless. The ONE who reminds me that I am never alone and always loved. That, yes, I am helpless, but He is NOT!

Passport or no passport. Debit card or no debit card. When the world feels overwhelming yet will I praise the Maker of heaven and earth. I WILL lift my eyes!

Shingles and Airplanes

2011-10-18T13:00:00.000-05:00

I think I would like to have a 'normal' week, just once. Although, my idea of what normal would be proably doesn't even exist. Have any of you ever had a week where there were no problems, no fighting, no unresolved issues, etc? A week where kids go off to school (wake up happy and return home happy), husband or wife goes off to work and you have a blissful peaceful day at home with no housework to do, no phone calls to answer? I think what I am describing is called - vacation, not a normal week...lol!

Abigail came down with shingles last week. The girl is going stir crazy and is ready to be turned loose. We think she'll be able to go back to school tomorrow. It could have been a lot worse than it was. We are so thakful for everyone's prayers for her. She was in some pain, had some itching....but, she was able to keep her mind off with watching movies and sewing with her new machine.

We send John off tomorrow morning. He'll be gone for two weeks before the kids and I join him in the States at attend his sister's wedding. We're gonna miss him during the two weeks we are apart! He will be flying into GA, then heading to AL before going to TN where he will spend the week in Disaster Response Training. He will also be meeting with doctors for a good check up and review of his diabities. So, he'll be pretty busy, but we know he'll miss us too!

October Newsletter

2011-10-05T09:41:00.000-05:00

The Clow Communicator

October Newsletter

It's been frustrating not having my computer that has all my contacts, templates for newsletters, etc. But, God is teaching me lots through the frustration - I think He just really wants me to "Be still and know that He is God." I tend to get impatient and worry that we are not informing you enough; not be accountable to our supporters. Yesterday my cousin posted this on the Clow Communicator facebook group:

"Simply know you are loved and your work makes a difference for the better. It's not your computer that is needed. It's just you being there...for them."

September was crazy and wonderful! We had some ups and downs with the scholarship students. George decided to quit and not finish his schooling. It broke our heart as we saw him throw away a chance to improve his life, all for the pleasure of the moment of having more time to play soccer. Another student dealt with the grief of losing an aunt and a great-grandmother and having her dad show up after having not seen him for many many months. Loving on them/being there for them -- that is what it's all about. That is why we are here.

John continues to have a million projects going at once. He is trying to prioritize so that he can get the most important items competed before heading to the States on October 19th. He will be gone for three weeks. Also, he has been dealing with 'rollercoaster ride' blood sugars. He is meeting with Doctors while in the States to determine what changes may be needed with this insulin.

The kids continue to well. This week they are taking their first quarter exams. Also, the first of many birthday celebrations have begun for the girls. Rebekah has shown an amazing interest in massage therapy (of which i am most delighted with). Our teammate's, Shannon, family came to visit her this week and brought with them a massage table for Bek. Patti, a friend of the family who also came, is a physical therapist turned massage therapist. The table she gave Bek was the first table she ever owned. Patti is working with Bek 2 hours every afternoon teaching her about all the muscles and how to give a proper massage. Abigail has enjoyed creating and making things since she was little. At 2 years old she made a bathing suit out of a wal-mart plastic bag. It was quite ingenious. A sewing machine was brought for her and Shannon's mom, a wonderful seamstress, is giving her sewing lessons this week! Both girls are quite excited to say the least. And not to leave out the boys -- they are boys! Keeping us on our toes and forever running just to stay a step ahead of them!

October is hitting us hard on our finances. Our van still is not fixed (currently sitting at the shop) as well as a few other items/events (please read the prayer request to see why).

Our two biggest prayer request for this month are:

1. John and his health: He will be heading to the States on the 19th. He will meet with doctors. He will also be attending a week long disaster relief training. During his time in the States he will need to stock up on diabetic supplies and purchase items for his training. Both of these are going to be a hard hit on our finances. Please pray for all aspects - his health, training and the cost.

2. The kids and I for the two weeks we will be in Honduras without John. We will be flying to the States on Nov 4th to join John and his family for the wonderful celebration of his sister's wedding. If you remember, John's brother-in-law committed suicide a year ago Thanksgiving. God has now brought a wonderful man into his sister's life and they will be married in November! We will be making a very quick trip to the States and then returning home with John after the wedding. Please pray for our time apart as a family and our time of traveling. We were able to purchase buddy passes from a friend, but times 6 the tickets are still costly. Please pray for God's provisions.

Thank you again for the way that you love, encourage and support us! Please know that we pray for you all. We love to hear your needs and what God is doing in your lives as well. I have been convicted lately that we need to be teaching them to pray for others more. I hear so many of you telling us how our prayer card is on your fridge and your children pray for us. I would really like to instill that in our kids as well. So if you have a family photo you'd like to send us, we are going to make a board of people to pray for - we would LOVE for you to be on that board! Please e-mail the photos to clowkathy@yahoo.com

Always in His grace!
Kathy (John and the kiddos too!)

VBS in December???

2011-10-04T16:21:00.000-05:00

We Want You…For VBS

Our team wants to organize a Vacation Bible School (VBS) for the five missionary kids on our team. And, we’ve come to the conclusion that our kids would get more out of the VBS if it wasn’t our team doing it.

So…we want you! We are asking for a friend or church to come to Honduras and put on a small VBS for five missionary kids December 19-22, 2011. Would you or your church l...ike an opportunity to serve a bunch of missionaries? Does your church have a knock out youth coordinator you want to loan us? Did your church put on a great VBS this summer and you want to do it again in a third-world setting?

Our kids are ages eight to fifteen. We will provide lodging and meals for the VBS organizers.

If you or your church would like to come to Honduras and put on a VBS for five missionary kids this December please contact Mike via e-mail (mikepettengill@yahoo.com) or US phone (916/273-8776).

Finally an Update

2011-10-02T16:33:00.000-05:00

Below is the post that I just wrote for an update in our facebook -- The Clow Communicator -- group.

I'm on-line right now so thought I would send a quick update. It's raining! Our backyard is a lake so we might go swimming later. :D Things are going well with the mission. God continues to be faithful and care for us as only He can. John is busy trying to take care of a lot of little things (and some big things) that need to get done on the projects before he heads back to the States (with m...y broken computer) on October the 19th. He'll be gone for three weeks. He was stay at home dad last week as Team Honduras had our first women's retreat. It was a sweet time of fellowship and teaching/disscussion on how loving each other and those God puts in our paths on a continual basis. Ashley Troxell and Kate DeFuniak were both able to fly in and spend the week with Erin, Shannon and myself. Kate just received 100% of her support and will be joing us here in La Ceiba full time in a month. Ashley and Mike have two more months of language school, arriving in La Ceiba full time on December 13th.
We are so excited to watch Team Honduras grow and observe all the wonderous ways that glory is being given to God! Thanks for your patience with the lack of updates and newsletters. Lord willing, my computer will be back to working mid November and I will be able to get back to my routine of keeping you all informed. We love each and everyone of you and are so thankful for your support!

Our 2nd Rainy Season

2011-09-12T15:01:00.000-05:00

   We are entering our second rainy season here in Honduras. After the heat of the ‘summer’ this cool breeze and rain are a welcome relief. Makes me ALMOST feel like we are having a fall day (still a little hard to feel ‘fallish’ when I am in shorts and a sleeveless t-shirt).
   John has been busy trying finish up the house in Armenia that our summer teams were working on; in addition to all the other construction projects he has going on. Click HERE to read/see pics of some of the construction endeavors. John will be going to the States at the end of October for disaster relief training in TN. After completing the training he will be available to be sent out by MTW on a disaster response team (such as Haiti).
   Kathy has been busy with the scholarship program. We have had some hard issues lately. One student, Alicia, has recently dealt with the death of a great-grandmother (expected) and an aunt (unexpected); some personal physical aliments; has been robbed twice and threatened - these are just a few things she’s going through. Then one of our students decided that he no longer wants to continue in the program. Click HERE to read about him.
   Abigail is doing great in 6th grade. She is vice-president of her class and tomorrow will be representing her class as 'India Bonita’ (national native representative in an Independence program - still think it’s HILARIOUS that the non-native kids are being the native representative - Bek was India Bonita last year). She is already studying and preparing for the national spelling bee in February.
   Rebekah is doing FABULOUS! Recently we have had her teacher from last year and her teacher from this year say she is doing so much better. She was excited the other day when she was the only one in her class to make a 100 on a reading quiz (yes - beating her sister!); also, earning 10 extra points because she was the only one who knew the answer in Science. She still has to work harder than the other kids where books and school work are concerned - but we are so proud of the effort she is giving this year.
   Josiah is our little ‘nerd’, as affectionately refer to him. I ran into his art teacher on Saturday. In broken English, “He looks always like a...like a... like a president.” He is always well put together and does everything slow, methodical and precise - just like his daddy! Several weeks ago the kids had a tae-kwan-do tournament. Si was sad that he didn’t win any fights. However, he is still just a white belt and he fought and tied with a gold belt before losing to him in the second fight! We were VERY proud of him.
   Evan - oh Evan - what to say about that boy! Had a conference with his teacher last week. “He is so smart, but he just won’t sit still. He won’t even sit down while he’s eating his lunch.” Our reply, “He’s never sat still. If you ever get him to let us know how you did it!” :D Tomorrow Evan will be dancing a native dance with a group of kids from his school. They have been practicing for weeks and he will be all decked out in a full costume (of which I’ve yet to see - supposedly he’s getting it today!?!?!?)

Thanks for all your prayers!

MotorCross

2011-09-04T19:19:00.000-05:00

   Last spring a friend of ours saw motorcross potential in our little man. With their help and resources, Evan started competing in races. This past weekend Evan had a race. He has practiced VERY little since June and so we knew he wouldn’t be great this weekend. The first race he kept falling, getting back up, catching up to the other riders, only to fall again. He was a pretty frustrated boy. But, he stuck with it - even through tears. At one turn in the track you could hear him crying over the sound of his bike!
   “I came in last!” he screamed at me when the race was over. Encouraging him and letting him know we were proud of him not matter what, he finally calmed down. “That’s ok. I don’t need a trophy.” He listened with heart to constructive criticism on what he did wrong and what he needed to do to race better.
   He raced like a pro in his second race! Doing AWESOME. He was neck in neck for third the entire race. He ended in 4th. Pulling up to a stop, all of us telling him what an incredible race he had, with a smile on his face he says, “Let me go, Mom. I want to congratulate my friends!”
   THAT is what it’s all about. Showing a heart that makes Jesus proud! He did his job, he did his best and when all was said and done - someone else did better. And, what does my little man do? He shoves off all the praise of those who love him to focus on encouraging and congratulating his friends.
   Who wants a plastic trophy that collects dust and eventually gets broken? I’ll take my son’s precious heart that is learning to love others as Jesus loves. A heart forsaking his own praise to praise others! THAT is all the trophy I want!

Lost at Sea

2011-09-02T08:32:00.000-05:00

Last week our team mate, Shannon, said, “let’s look at a calendar and set a date.” She had graciously offered to give John and I a few nights away, something we have not had in over a year and a half. I teetered on the fence. It had been a long summer for all of us and we all needed rest, not just John and I. She pressed, assuring that they would be in school all day, it would just be at night she would have to take care of them. She sat down on my couch, computer in hand and said, “You have up to three nights - here’s the dates.” John and I talked, said maybe we would do two nights. John came home the next day telling me that Mike, our team leader, told him he was stupid if he didn’t take all three nights. So, basically being pushed out to sea by our team mates, we headed out on Monday for three nights on a small fishing village off one of the bigger islands.
Most of our time we spent talking about how much the kids would enjoy being there...isn’t that what parents do...you finally get a few days away and all you can think about is the kids! But, we knew the kids were having fun of their own. Mike took the kids to school each morning, Shannon picked the older three up in the afternoon and then Erin brought Evan to Shannon and Bethany after picking up him and Maddy after their dance practice (more on that later....another post).
In the afternoons Shannon and Bethany (after homework of course) had the kids reading and playing, making crafts and rice krispy treats - what kid wouldn’t love a week at a fun cool house that I can imagine was more like summer camp!

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! to our team mates for your selfless gift - setting aside your own needs for rest in order to give John and I time off! We love you and are so blessed to be serving with you.

Covenant Presbyterian - August 2011

2011-08-28T10:09:00.000-05:00

Our last team of 2011 was awesome! This group of mostly youth was the perfect way to end our summer team season. THANKS Covenant for all your hard work!

Don’t Despise Your Mother

2011-08-23T09:44:00.000-05:00

   I just have to say that my kids rock! Yes, they can be disrespectful, disobedient, cruel, cranky....the list goes on. But, they can also be kind, thoughtful, FLEXIBLE, hard-working and understanding...the list still goes on. Especially, they are understanding of the life that their parents put them through. :-)
   This week we got back to morning family devotions before school. I have missed this time the most, I think. We had them last week, but daddy was missing. So much sweeter and more meaningful (in my opinion) to have John reading to them - of course from Proverbs (we need all the help and wisdom we can get) and then praying over them.
   This morning we read from Proverbs 23. Paraphrased, “don’t despise your mother when she’s old”. That brought the house down with laughter and got us way off track. Evan said, “How can I take care of you when I have a family? We won’t be able to go anywhere.” Abi replied, “She’ll have her wheelchair and you can push her around.” John, “You are missing the point for what you need to learn today, respect your mother and obey her.” Of course, that wanted me to break out in song, R-E-S-P-E-C-T. But, alas, I refrained. Sometimes John thinks he has 5 kids instead of 4. Sometimes he does!

Overdue Update

2011-08-22T09:04:00.000-05:00

What a week with Trinity! Just a few of our blessings this past week were:
1. Jiro (internal/pulmonary specalist) and his wife, Gina (pediatrics) who are from Columbia served the people in Armenia with the expertise --language was NOT an issue - nothing lost in translation :D
2. Dr. Greg returned to us bringing his ultrasound machine and we got to see lots of beautiful soon-to-be-born babies.
3. A DENTIST! So many have been living for months - years - with pain from a bad tooth. Wade was such a blessing. As with Jiro and Gina we are praying that they will come back next summer (we know Greg will be back - he’s been bit with the Honduran come-back bug)!
4. We had a health fair in the local elementary school. First time doing this and it was a HUGE success! John got to translate for the ‘exercise’ class and Kathy got to translate for the ‘food’ class.

The girls were VERY sad that they had school and didn’t get to translate this week )-: It was a rough week with John living in the dorms, lots of homework for the kids, and the extra translating plus all our other normal duties - BUT GOD IS GREAT - all the time! His blessings are endless and praise to Him who we pray received all honor and glory for the work accomplished this past week.

A storm blew through on Friday and Saturday. We held our breath wondering if Trinity would make it out of Honduras and Covenant from Paso Robles, CA would arrive. With lots of prayers both teams made it safely with no flight delays! Day one of ministry for Covenant is construction and ESL - what a joy to wait and see what God has in store for this team of 8!

Trinity from PA

2011-08-14T20:48:00.001-05:00

A team of 10 from Trinity in PA arrived last night with no flight delays or lost luggage!!!

Trinity is our 8th summer team of 2011. As with the last team, 2 of the doctors on this team are fluent Spanish speakers - not just fluent, Spanish is their first language! This is always exciting as they will be able to FULLY communicate with their patients. We also have a dentist on this team - a service we have been anxiously waiting to bring into Armenia! God is going to do great things this week through Trinity = ALL FOR HIS GLORY!

John will be living at the dorms this week. Our Team Honduras has dwindled down to just 6 of us. So we are all pitching in and helping each other get everything taken care of it. Kathy, after getting the kids to school and getting all food prep taken care of for meals, will join the team some to help translate. John will be handling all construction as well as helping some with pharmacy. On Wednesday it will be all ‘hands on deck’ for a health clinic at the local elementary school!

We so appreciate your prayers for us. Evan is finally fever free and heading back to school this week (of which he is SUPER excited). Still having some coughs in the house - but we are on the up and up! We appreciate your continued prayers for us as well as our team mates and the team from Trinity.

August Newsletter and Rincon Mt

2011-08-04T11:46:00.000-05:00

Click HERE to view our newsletter.

As you know we have been in a heavy spiritual battle this month so please please please keep Team Honduras in your prayers. We have suffered illness. LOTS of car trouble with our van (gave over $600 to the mechanic and the van is STILL not fixed - john is using every spare moment to try and get it fixed) - Shannon's car has had lots of trouble as well. The Pettengill's home was burglarized and they had hundreds of dollars and possessions stolen. Shannon's really nice camera just got stollen. We had to fire 12 employees due to lack of funding of the projects. And our team is just plain tired. Through it all our team has been loving on, taking care of, and being unified to each other. SO - I know that we have asked you to pray for our team to have unity - you can stop praying for that now :-)

Today is Rincon’s last full day of ministry. They have been an incredible team. They as well have suffered strain: delayed flights, team seperated (some making it on to La Ceiba and some getting stuck in Tegucigalpa for a day), lost luggage, misplaced knee cap while playing soccer, IV’s needed due to heat exhaustion.... This team arrived with fluent spanish speakers. The doctor and his wife are from MX and actually speak very little ENGLISH. This team has been able to minister to the people in Armenia the way no team has yet been able to minister. I think the devil just didn’t want this week to happen. BUT IT DID! God prevailed and his glory shines. PRAISE BE TO HIM!

Team Honduras has next week with no team. The Clow kids and Maddy go back to school on Monday. On the 13th Trinity from PA will arrive followed by one more team after them. Pray that God will refresh us this coming week and make us ready to serve our last two teams of the 2011 season.

Rincon Is Here!

2011-07-31T22:06:00.000-05:00

The team of 17 from Rincon Mountain Pres. in AZ FINALLY arrived. I write finally because after delayed flights, 12 of the 17 arrived late last night and the remaining 5 arrived mid morning today. All are here safe, but without their luggage.

All this came on the hills of a really really long day yesterday. I got a call from Shannon that her camera had been stolen (read the story here). Then there was car trouble - yes, sweet continued car trouble. John and Mike had to fire 12 workers because funding is low. As well - the Pettengill’s new security door is not working quite right. I could go on - but I won’t. (Sean and Lindsey McCann - if you are reading this I am putting all the dashes in just for you....oh wait....i need a few....dot dot dots).

On a serious note, Team Honduras is under some serious spiritual warfare and we all covet your prayers for us. The Rincon team has some great Spanish speakers. The doctor on the team is a Mexican, fluent in Spanish and very little English. God has something great planned for this week for Rincon Mt. ; something the enemy obviously doesn’t want to happen. We eagerly await Him showing us His plans!!!

Frustrations

2011-07-30T11:27:00.000-05:00

   Yes, it’s no secret that I (kathy) get frustrated, stressed, tired, aggravated...do I really need to keep going? The past few days I have been so short-tempered with my kiddos. Why? Yes, they are tired and fighting and disrespectful - not listening. But, I also had it in my head that I was going to get a week with them w/out teams before they went back to school. That’s not going to happen and now I am pouting.
   We had/have plans to go to the islands with Scott and Kathy Craig before they leave us. The Craigs leave on Tuesday the 9th. We were going to head out on the ferry after the team (Rincon from AZ comes in this afternoon) next Saturday (6th); stay a few days; return on the late ferry on Monday (8th); Craigs fly out late afternoon on Tuesday.
   THEN - we discovered that I had ‘invented’ and extra week somehow. The kids start school a week from this coming Monday! No week off with my kids. No summer vacation or special time with them. I am feeling guilty as I read facebook posts of this friend doing this with their kids - going here with their kids - enjoying that with their kids.
   We have decided to go ahead and go to the islands anyway. The kids will just miss their first day of school. We’ll come home on the late ferry and rush to get them ready for school the next day.
   As I think about it - maybe it won’t be so bad. We’ll have a few days together, kids go to school, John and I can have mornings/early afternoons to rest and get ready for the following two weeks of teams (without the WONDERFUL help from the Craigs)! I guess there is always something positive to find in every situation. And, this is why I blog - because through writing, God opens my eyes and let’s me see that His plans are ALWAYS better than our plans!

Village Seven - Team 6

2011-07-25T08:33:00.000-05:00

VIDEO OF LAST WEEKS TEAM FROM GRACE IN MOBILE, AL

Saturday a very energetic team of 20 arrived from Village Seven in Colorado. The team is made up mostly of 17/18 year olds. They spent most of Sat late afternoon/evening at our home for dinner and orientation. Yesterday they were with us again for breakfast, Darkness2Light class, Gringo Church and dinner. Our kids are having a BLAST - and even though we never thought it was possible, this team is matching the Clow kids energy!!!
John, Bekah and Josiah are out with the team today for construction and ESL. Kathy is back cooking rice and beans and fish. Abi is home still recouping from a bad allergic reaction to mango skin. And Evan, he’s home doing what Evan does best....keeping Mom on her toes! (currently waiting for mom to finish this post so that she can play wii with him)

Thanks for your prayers for us. Pray that our van gets fixed. Pray that Shannon’s car gets fixed. Pray that we would give our all to this team and minister to them well, all for HIS GLORY!

Week Update

2011-07-22T09:08:00.000-05:00

Here’s an update I just wrote in our Clow Communicator facebook page. If you are on FB and want to join our group - click here to be directed to our page.

So the Clows are on the up and up. Appears John and Evan were able to avoid the ‘bug’!! THANK you for your prayers! We praise God that he sent John’s college friend, who just HAPPENS to be an airplane mechanic, to us last Monday. John and Kevin spent long hours into the night trying to get the van fixed. End result, Kevin (John’s friend) is in the states looking for a new alternator. The van is currently running off battery - BUT it’s working!

Update on the team: Grace from Mobile has been awesome! This small team (our smallest of the summer) has worked just as hard as the teams who proceeded them. They have hosted 3 medical clinics this week in addition to all other ministries. They are heading to the islands today - enjoying our beautiful host country - before heading back to the States tomorrow. We will pick up our new team of 17 from Village Seven in CO tomorrow afternoon. So, we have a quick turnover!

Today John and the boys have to drive to San Pedro (about 3 hours away) to HOPEFULLY get some papers signed for our residency. Kathy and the girls are going to go buy LOTS of food for the arriving team ;-)

Team 4 - Covenant Community

2011-07-16T10:30:00.002-05:00

The team from Covenant Community left this morning. They served well and hard this week. We pray God’s blessings on them for giving up their time to come here and serve! We were blessed by them - as well as by having Mike and Ashley Troxell here this week. Mike and Ashley are currently in language school and will be joining us here in La Ceiba in December for at least two years. They are members of Covenant, so they took a week off of school to come help us, and minister with, their church family.

Team 4 from Scottsdale, AZ click on the link to watch a video of the week.

As we say goodbye to Covenant we are saying hello to Grace from Mobile, AL! And, to Scott and Kathy Craig and their son Jeff who are here with us for the next several weeks to help us out with our remaining teams.

Chills, fever and coughs have been working it’s way through our family. PLEASE pray for God to remove the sickness, protection for the rest of our family and team and for the energy to do what God has called us here to do!

Team 4: You Know God’s Got Something Big Planned When.......

2011-07-11T21:32:00.001-05:00

1. Your team leader wakes up sick the morning the team arrives - totally out of commission and his responsibilities need to quickly be divided among other team mates. (and one of your kids is sick too)
2. Your city decides it’s going to turn the electricity off for 7 hours straight and 27 people are expecting dinner at your house.
3. Storm rains decided to join you - just wanting to cool you off of course!
4. In the midst of the above rains, you get everyone out to the ministry village in a van, a car and one truck. They return that afternoon in only a car and two trucks (meaning the majority are piled in the trunks of the trucks getting wet) because........
5. Your van decides it wants to notify you that the alternator has died.

That’s all just on the first day! Tomorrow is coming.... and so we praise HIM for:

1. Mike and Ashley Troxell (our team mates currently in Costa Rica learning Spanish) joined us this week to help host their home church, Covenant Community from AZ. Mike and Ashley helped John shoulder our team leaders responsibilities of orientation and leading our gringo worship service.
2. A friend of John’s had left him with a welder/generator a few months ago. John was able to hook it up to our stove and dinner got made! We even were able to hook the fridge up and some fans!
3. We WELCOMED the rains!
4. Praise Praise Praise that we had the second truck so that everyone wasn’t trying to pile into one truck/one car. If you haven’t heard, John was able to purchase a used truck last week!!! SUCH a blessing!
5. We have a great mechanic, who speaks English, and the van SHOULD be ready tomorrow!

WELCOME COVENANT COMMUNITY TO HONDURAS! GOD HAS GREAT THINGS IN STORE FOR YOU THIS WEEK :-)

Team 3 and Break Week and Leo

2011-07-05T22:08:00.000-05:00

Manor Pres had a great week. In addition to the construction and on-going weekly ministries, the team took 30 kids to the beach on Wednesday and then handed out food to 18 very needy families.
Manor has adopted Team Honduras and has and is an incredible blessing and support to us all. They set a record by being the first church to send a team 3 years in a row!

We are ‘teamless’ this week which has given us a chance to spend some extra time with the kids. We took a trip up to San Pedro Sula on Saturday to buy a truck for John! God provided the money over a month ago, but we just now found one that fit John’s needs and most of his wants :D We are so thankful for this work truck and for the extra space it will give us to drive teams around. We also took advantage of the big city and got all the kids school shopping done - well....most of it anyway. On August 8th they return to school. So we have very little time between now and then since starting Saturday we have four teams back to back.

Our intern, Leo, is currently here playing spoons with the kids. He leaves tomorrow to return to the States and to start college. We are VERY VERY sad (and mad at him) to say goodbye tomorrow. John and the girls will drive him in the morning to San Pedro. He has been such a blessing over the past 8 months. He has truly loved and ministered to the Hondurans and to our family. COME BACK SOON LEO - we’ll miss you - WE LOVE YOU!

Team 2 Update and Beginning of Team 3

2011-06-27T13:54:00.000-05:00

Christ Community Team 2

Faith Pres Team 1

Since I got a little behind on updating the blog last week, thought I would try and play catch up. We were just having too much fun with our wonderful friends, the Matthews, who lead last weeks team. We are so grateful they were able to come work alongside us last week!

We had to say goodbye to Frank and Suzanne and the team at 5am and then get ready for our 17 person team that arrived late that night on the same day (Saturday).

Manor Pres. from PA

Yesterday was a day filled with breakfast at our home. Followed by: a ‘Stewards of Children’ training, lunch while touring the city, orientation, Gringo Church, dinner at our home (thankfully prepared by Erin), then lastly to Honduran Church - which lasted until 9pm, did I mentioned Church started at 6pm!?!?! The preacher decided to preach for almost 2 hours on end times. We are in such need for God to send us someone who can pastor our first Church plant and provide some good reformed teaching. PLEASE pray that God would quickly bring that person to us!

Today Abi, Bekah and Siah are out with John working in Armenia with the team. Kathy is home cooking (and typing this blog) with her little helper, Evan.

Will try to be a little better about updating and posting pics this week :-)

Communion

2011-06-20T07:39:00.000-05:00

This was the kids first communion as members in the PCA. A few weeks ago our team leader Mike, a ruling elder in the PCA, examined the kids and reported back to our pastor, Rick Fennig (our home church Grace in Gulf Shores) that they were ready to become members. The elders of Grace approved the kids and this Sunday our dear friend Frank Matthews, a pastor from FL, served our kids communion. It was a precious site!

Team 2 Arrives Today!

2011-06-18T08:17:00.000-05:00

SO SO excited about the team arriving today. Our wonderful friends, The Matthews, are bringing a team of 7 from Christ Community Church in Gainesville, FL. Please pray for safe travels for them today.

Tres Piedras

2011-06-10T07:40:00.000-05:00

On Wednesday, after working a 1/2 day at La Isla, the team headed out to Armenia to spend the afternoon at the river with the Honduran kids. Watch the short video to see all the crazy people jumping off of the large rock - and no, John unfortunately was not one climbing and jumping, but his children are following in his footsteps. While we were all at the river John was getting the water system installed and fixing some leaks so that the team could take showers. Basically he worked while we all played :D
Video of River Day

Thursday was our family day off and we spent some great time together celebrating Josiah’s 10th birthday (which is actually today). The team went out to Armenia for a little bit of construction and then helped with the weekly medical clinic.

Today, Friday, we are heading down to the beach for a little while. After dinner the team will go to Armenia to broadcast a soccer game; an avenue to develop relationships with the men in the community.

Tomorrow the team returns home and our family is headed to San Pedro Sula for Evan’s motorcross race. Our next team arrives on June 18th.

Faith Pres - Team 1

2011-06-06T16:02:00.000-05:00

Saturday brought our first team of Summer 2011 short-term mission teams. 10 individuals from Faith Pres in California arrived to spend the week ministering alongside of us. After getting them settled in the new dorms, we brought them to our home for dinner.
On Sunday they spent most of their day here in our home either eating (or eating or eating again!), taking the Stewards of Children course, team worship, and just hanging out. We also took them on the tour of La Ceiba as well as an evening worship service in Armenia.

Evan, Bekah and Abi helping out with team worship. Evan’s learning rhythm and playing the ‘egg’.

Today, Monday, brought lots of rain with it. The team is currently in Armenia for their first day of construction and helping with ESL classes.

Medical Clinic/Pastor’s Conference

2011-06-03T06:30:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was a busy and emotional day for our team. Thursday’s are our normal weekly clinic in Armenia Bonito (AB). While John, Mike and I stayed behind to work on getting last minute necessities completed for our dorm facility. Erin, Leo, Bethany and Maddy went to AB to host clinic. Click HERE to read an exceptionally well-written account of yesterday and the death of a dear man.

Yesterday also brought the arrival of Bill Yarborough, MTW’s director of Latin America/Africa. He is here as a guest speaker at a 3-day conference we are hosting in AB. With the events of yesterday, we are so thankful that God has Bill here to help us minister to the hurting people as the mourn the loss of husband/father/grandfather and friend.

Please keep us in your prayers today. As we do all final prep and finish work on the dorms. As Bill speaks tonight at the conference and Shannon and her brother lead in worship. As the rest of us try to make ourselves available for whatever God should ask us to do today.

June

2011-06-01T20:13:00.000-05:00

Happy June 1st. Let the summer begin!
June Newsletter

The link above will get you to our June Newsletter with a brief calendar of what June holds for us. With the arrival of team means that I will be posting more often on the Clow Communicator. If you are on facebook, we also keep a 'Clow Communicator in Honduras’ group page where we will be posting frequent photos throughout the week.

Blessings to you all!

Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow....

2011-05-31T09:07:00.000-05:00

Praise Him all creatures here below. Praise Him above, ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost!

I love the Doxology. I love that my kids know and sing the Doxology. If there is one thing my heart desires it is to instill an attitude of thankfulness. To see them praise our Father in every and all circumstances. In teaching them, I am reminding myself that our primary purpose is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. It’s not about Him enjoying us (although He does - “...rejoices over me with singing” Zephaniah 3:17) but about OUR enjoying HIM. Enjoying being in His presence and letting Him know that we do.

Today I am praising Him that our dorms are going to be available for our first summer team that arrives on Saturday. Now, there is still SO MUCH to do to get them ready and outfitted. In the mist of that our team is also holding a medical clinic on Thursday. Also, our Latin America director arrives Thursday afternoon to be the guest speaker at a 3-day Pastor’s conference we are hosting in Armenia. I don’t feel like praising; I feel overwhelmed. But, I know that in all things God is God. God is good. God’s ways are so much better than my ways. So, I lift my voice and I sing:

Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow!

Boys Soccer Day May 28, 2011

2011-05-29T17:27:00.000-05:00

On Saturday, John and Josiah (along with our teammates Mike and Leo) took 12 boys from Armenia to an indoor soccer field. Here is a 2 minute video of their day!

Gearing Up!

2011-05-22T09:58:00.000-05:00

May has been our month for gearing up for the summer. The kids are nearing the end of school; studying and taking exams (of which they finished on Thursday and all did great!!!). John in the mist of getting the dorms ready for June 4th also had to take a week off and devote his time to support raising. Kathy has been working up a food menu for the summer and other general preps for the arrival of our summer teams. This week starts the REAL prep of buying food, finishing the dorms, moving items into the new facility (Lord willing), etc...
This week: kids are in school just 1/2 days, John is back to the dorms to get them finished, and Kathy starts buying and pre-prepping food.

PLEASE be in prayer for rain for us. It hasn’t rained since mid March. Armenia is totally out of water. People have no water to bath, wash clothes or cook with. It’s also very hot here - so pray that God will bring relief soon to our beloved Honduras!

Growing!

2011-05-09T18:35:00.000-05:00

Team Honduras is growing! Shannon Innes (pictured 3rd from the left, behind of Josiah) joined us here in La Ceiba on the 1st of May. We have had the JOY of having her stay with us until her house is ready for her to move in. We are so excited to have her here after months of waiting for her to finish language school in Costa Rica. She will be starting a ministry for young single mothers. We can hardly wait to see how and where God takes this ministry. Already He is opening doors.

Soon to join us will be Mike and Ashley Troxell, currently in language school, and Kate DeFuniak who is raising support in the States.

May Newsletter

2011-05-03T09:55:00.001-05:00

Our May newsletter can be viewed HERE. The links in the newsletter are not working so here they are:

Fruit of the Spirit Video
Abigail’s Video

The sound was disabled on Abi’s video because the song she picked and she hasn’t had time to fix it. But, we are so proud of her work that we wanted to give you the link anyway. Abigail also keeps her own blog where she does a great job! Bekah has one too, but doesn’t write as often (-:

Blessings,
John, Kathy, Abigail, Rebekah, Josiah and Evan

...Unless They Are Sent?

2011-04-27T08:52:00.000-05:00

It’s hard to believe we are fast approaching our 1-year anniversary of living in Honduras! On April 27^th of last year we loaded up our van and said goodbye to Kathy’s parents and a final earthly goodbye to her grandmother, and made the long drive to Texas where we spent a week saying goodbye to John’s family.

May 4^th will be our Honduran anniversary (May 7^th will be 8 years since we first started field service with Mission to the World (MTW) ). God has truly blessed us over and beyond by allowing us the privilege to live and serve Him here in Honduras. We hope that you have been keeping up with all the ins and outs via our blog and newsletters. So much has happened in our first year that it’s impossible to sum it up in a short note!

Being field missionaries is only a small part of Team Honduras. The team must also consist of prayer warriors and financial supporters.

How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” Romans 10:14-15 NIV

We are in need of financial supporters to join our team in bringing the good news to the people of Honduras. Would you prayerfully consider supporting us with either a one-time or a monthly pledge? You can give on-line HERE or download our prayer card HERE or contact us for more information on how you can give.

We pray God’s abundant blessings on each and every one of you!

In His Grace Alone,

John and Kathy

Armenia Day

2011-04-25T21:30:00.001-05:00

We have three girls who are in our school scholarship program. Part of the scholarship requires weekly discipleship classes. Our intern, Bethnay, normally leads these classes, but Kathy stepped in today since Bethany is away for a short trip to the States.

They are currently learning how to learn more about God through studying His names. Please pray for Alicia, Nancy and Greicy that they would grow every day in the knowledge of who God is!

Fruit of the Spirit

2011-04-16T18:55:00.000-05:00

here is a video of 25 kids from armenia (our ministry village) playing in our backyard!

That’s My Man

2011-04-14T08:14:00.001-05:00

I got an e-mail from our team leader. It said, “Our first sighting of howler monkeys in Armenia.”

My man loves climbing! Even more when it involves construction, welding, etc... PLEASE pray that funding would come in soon for our La Isla Project so that he can start climbing there like he’s doing here in Armenia :-D

Don’t Take My Mangos!

2011-04-12T14:41:00.000-05:00

Missionary life is definitely not always loving and giving. I am a person just like any other and oh does my sinful, stingy, selfish nature shine when I DON’T want it to.
Yesterday there were four workers from the electric company working on the lines in front of our house. I was in the kitchen washing the dishes. From the window I can see my beautiful mango tree that is full of almost-ready to eat mangos. As I observe one of the workers with a pole in either hand, looking side to side as if to see if someone is watching him, I get rather curious. He screws the poles together and I see a hook on one end. I walk out the kitchen door just as he reaches up to start picking my mangos.
“Hey - leave my mangos alone! If you would have asked I would have been happy to give you some, but don’t rob me!” With a huge grin on his face he lowers the pole, avoids looking at me and walks down the sidewalk until he is out of my sight. I go to our front garage and watch him pass by still grinning from ear to ear. Well, that just boils my blood all the more. My lid wanted to blow when I heard the electrician who was up on the ladder singing, “Tengo hambrito” (i’m a little hungry) over and over while the other two workers just laughed. I had to just walk back inside the house.
Poor John! He got an ear full when he got home :D. I was just a fussin’. He’s such a great man (and he’s going to be TOTALLY embarrassed by my writing this), always taking the griping from me that really is directed toward others. He always has been such an earthly example to me of Christ and his unwavering, always and forever love. Christ bore all - takes all on himself. All the yelling and griping we deserve from ‘robbing' from others (for our sin), he takes it all! I am so thankful that he takes my sin, my anger so that I can stand before the Father in HIS righteousness. It feels so great to be clothed by Him!
So, I repented. I am sorry I yelled at the man who tried to steal my mangos and then laughed at me when I yelled at him. If he comes back I’ll go pick one myself and give it to him....maybe!

April Newsletter

2011-04-01T10:17:00.000-05:00

To view our April newsletter click on the link below. Within the newsletter are a few links which unfortunately don’t seem to be working. I have linked them below.
April Newsletter

This link is to an aprox 4 minute you-tube video that highlights ministry events over the past year. If you watch all the way to the end you’ll hear the kids voices! In order: Abi, Bek, Si and Evan
First Year in Honduras Video

MTW offers an on-line giving option for those interested.
On-line giving link

Doing Concrete the Easier Way

2011-03-23T09:34:00.001-05:00

John here - this is my very first post on our blog. Kathy usually does this and does a wonderful job of it too.

On Tuesday we got the 2nd floor of the dorms in La Isla poured. I ordered ready mix concrete to be delivered in trucks rather than mixing by hand. This accomplished several things - less than one day as opposed to two, happier workers, consistent mix, no cold joints-it is one continous pour from start to finish. To accomplish this same task by hand mixing on the ground in almost the same amount of time, we would have had to hire 12 or more workers. The size of the property and project just did not allow for this.

The first truck arrived at 9:30 am and the third(last) truck pulled away at 2:30 pm - 19 cubic meters or almost 25 yards of concrete. The guys stayed around until after 5:30 pm finishing and wetting down the floor to allow it to cure slowly. It was a long day and the guys were very tired. Fabian told me he could lay down and sleep like a baby right there on the freshly poured concrete. They did a great job. I think it safe to say that most, if not all, have never made a pour like that and not mixed the concrete by hand.

Here is a video link to my YouTube channel with a few videos of the pour:

http://www.youtube.com/user/jkclow

This gets us one step closer to having the dorms liveable the first of June when the first summer team arrives. Please continue to pray for this project. We need additional funding to keep it going. Pray for continued safety for the workers. Pray for their families. They are great men. They take good care of their families. They are not all believers. Pray that God would fill these men with His grace and mercy and all of them would come to a closer personal relationship with Him.

Under The Mango Spring 2011

2011-03-12T20:19:00.000-06:00

Please take time to watch this video! It shows the progress of the construction of the La Isla project.

Women's Day Out 1

2011-03-06T20:32:00.000-06:00

This is my favorite video of our first women’s day out. We took 9 ladies from Armenia Bonito to a local hotel for the day. They gave each other pedicures, played in the pool (the first time many, if not all, had ever been in a pool), played in the ocean, ate lunch and took naps in hammocks. It was the first time that they had ever had a full day away from their kids and housework. It was PRECIOUS watching these women have fun! Check out the video section in the side bar to see the other videos from the day.

March Newsletter

2011-03-03T13:03:00.001-06:00

March Newsletter

The link above is to our latest newsletter. Thanks again for all your prayers for us!

Final Day for Ray, Jose and Matt

2011-02-26T10:09:00.000-06:00

Manor Pres Team ended their week long trip to Honduras with a half day of work and a half day of enjoying the beautiful country we have the privilege of living in.
In the morning they spent their time helping out the Honduran workers on our La Isla project.

After sweating all morning a trip to the river was in order!

Ray, Jose and Matt - we are greatly appreciative for all your hard work this week! You were truly a blessing to us and we loved having you in our homes and serving alongside us this week.

Day 4 for Team

2011-02-25T12:16:00.000-06:00

On Thursday the team split their day between construction and clinic.

The team brought stuffed animals with them. They chose the clinic as the perfect place to hand them out!

We are, as always, grateful for Dr who volunteers his time 1X a month to help the people in Armenia Bonito.

Construction is great and needed - but so is time spent loving on the children who get little to no love.

And what day would be complete without a friendly game of soccer...

...and dinner out at a local restaurant!

Celebration of 1 year of work

2011-02-23T22:17:00.000-06:00

Today was day 3 for Ray, Jose and Matt. They worked hard in Armenia Bonito building a retaining wall to help direct flood waters away from the school building.

John is still adhering to Dr’s orders to take it easy.

At noon the Honduran workers went home to clean up and get their families. They returned to the project at one for a celebration of 1 year of working. It is very rare for these gentlemen to have steady work. A day, a week there, maybe a month or two. In February of 2010 work started in Armenia Bonito. In February 2011 we celebrate that our workers have had steady work for 12 months!

Mike saying a few words of thanks for all their incredibly hard work.

The wives, mothers, kids listen with pride to their men getting thanked and praised.

Then John took all the men aside and gave them a bonus - we are so thankful to God for supplying the money through donations made to the AB project so that these men can have steady work, and even a little extra this week!

Of course, what party is complete without pizza?

There are no pics to show - but after the pizza was consumed - a friendly soccer game between the Hondurans and Gringos took place on the ‘almost’ completed soccer field. Hondurans won!

Last but not least - Matt, Jose and Ray helped out with the weekly English classes that our intern Bethany has taken over teaching.

All in a Honduras day!

Day 2 Manor Pres

2011-02-22T22:48:00.000-06:00

No teacher strikes today so everyone was able to get out to Armenia bright and early.

don’t we live in a beautiful country?

OK - back to teams:

They worked all morning in the hot sun. Moving dirt, tying rebar...all those different construction tasks.

After which they had a yummy lunch of a traditional food....balleadas!

Did I mention what a beautiful country we live in....even if viewed from behind bars?

Ok - back to teams:

Tuesday afternoons we host a Kids Club. The team jumped right in and helped out with it. For the next several weeks we are doing a “fruit of the Spirit" theme.

After a hot full day we took the team to a local restaurant for more balleadas!

Thanks for your prayers! Tomorrow we have a special event with our Honduran construction workers. Check back tomorrow night for some FUN pictures and to read about the event!

First Work Day for Ray, Jose and Matt

2011-02-21T20:00:00.000-06:00

The three gentlemen from Manor Pres in PA got A LOT of work accomplished today!

The plan was to head out to Armenia Bonito (AB) for a full day of construction work. But we all know the most important word in missions....FLEXIBILITY!

There was a teacher strike today and the road out to AB was blocked off. John did a U-Turn and headed to the La Isla (LI) property for some fun concrete work.

No concrete trucks....just shovels...

... and buckets...

on a side note: who votes that the mango needs a tree house?

check ____ yes or _____no

Back on track. After a few hours in LI the guys loaded up and headed out to AB. They used the 20 minute ride as their lunch break. As soon as they arrived they were ready to dig a trench and put in the foundation for a wall.

All in a days work!

Manor Pres from PA

2011-02-20T21:11:00.000-06:00

3 gentlemen from Manor Pres in PA arrived late last night. Today we arranged a full day for them:

Breakfast @ the Clows (pre breakfast entertainment included the witness of Oso killing a kitten and a bat)
Darkness 2 Light, child sexual prevention course
Lunch and orientation
Tour of La Ceiba
Gringo worship service
Dinner (complete with cake for a birthday celebration - Matt, one of the volunteers, turned 18 today. What a blessed way to celebrate your birthday - on a mission trip!)
Drive out to Armenia Bonito (AB) to attend Honduran Church.

It was a long day with LOTS packed in. Matt, Jose and Ray (as well as the rest of us) have enjoyed their first full day in Honduras. Tomorrow it’s out the door at 7:30am for AB and several hours of construction. Please pray for safety tomorrow as they put on gloves and get dirty working alongside our Honduran workers.

John is doing much better. His neck is still sore, but he’s excited about getting back to work. Pray for his protection. He is ready to be back up the ladder and working on the roof!

Never A Dull Moment

2011-02-17T09:10:00.000-06:00

Monday afternoon while the Kathy and the kids were watching Swiss Family Robinson, John was out on our patio trying to get the roof finished before our mission team shows up on Saturday. Evan went to the kitchen for some food and returned screaming “Daddy fell! Daddy fell!” Running into the kitchen Kathy found John with blood running down his face and doubled over. Straight to the van, Straight to the ER. After an hour or so we were done and headed back home where John removed the bandage so Kathy could look at the stitches. This is what we found.

Not looking so good, huh?

After posting pics for Erin to take a look, as well as consulting with Dr. Greg (who was just here from Trinity Pres in Harrisburg, PA for a week of medical clinics), we decided a second trip to a DIFFERENT ER was needed.

A little better wouldn’t you say?

The next day we took John for a CT scan. Praise God no fractures. The man was on a ladder that went forward while he feel backward, his head and neck hitting first. It could have been a lot worse than 10 stitches. He does have a mild concussion and has been ordered to NO WORK for at least week. Dr. Greg would prefer 2 weeks. But, if we can keep him from lifting a hammer (or a climbing on a roof to weld) until next Monday then we’ll be doing good!

Please pray for a quick physical recovery. We have a short term team arriving on Saturday and John is needed to guide them in the construction. Please pray for him to ‘rest mentally’ and not get aggravated that he can’t work. Please pray for him to rest knowing that God is in control!

Katie B.

2011-02-15T12:23:00.000-06:00

Katie B is a dear friend! I was blessed to have met her in college. She and her husband Scott have given God so much glory and honor through the long road of cancer that they have walked. God blessed them with two beautiful children, Daniel and Bethany, who they have trained and taught to follow in the ways of our wonderful LORD.

On Sunday Katie was able to watch her youngest be baptized. One of her dreams was to be able to witness the salvation of her children. With that dream fulfilled, God called Katie home to him today. She now is dancing with Jesus and having her ‘pain free’ party!

While I rejoice for Katie, my heart is broken for Scott and the kids and Katie’s mom, Judy. Please pray with me that God would give them His peace that passes all understanding.

I love you Katie B. Thanks for being such a great friend and a true testimony for your Jesus! I know that as soon as He saw you today He said, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” Dance Sweet Katie B, Dance with Jesus!

School Supply Fair

2011-02-10T14:22:00.000-06:00

Take a look at this great video that our teammates put together!

School Supplies

2011-02-09T17:36:00.000-06:00

The Honduran school starts every February. Government public school is provided through the sixth grade. But even with the school being free many parents do not even have the funds to purchase the needed paper, pencils, glue, etc.

Many of you sent packages of school supplies or $ for us to purchase supplies. In the end we were able to purchase over 2K in school items. We loaded up our van and headed out to Armenia Bonito. This is what we arrived to find.....

I wasn’t even able to get the entire line in the photo. It curved around the corner where a huge crowd was gathered around the door the knew they would enter through. The flyer we handed out said we would open the doors at 9. We showed up at 8. My best guess is that the line started forming before 7!

With the use of our scholarship students we formed a line and handed out pencils, sharpeners, erasers, pens, crayons, markers, notebooks and rulers - there was also a ‘random’ table where we allowed them to choose 1 item: such as - play dough, calculators, sharpies, etc...

THANKS TO THOSE OF YOU WHO HELPED US GIVE OUT SUPPLIES TO OVER 400 STUDENTS! MAY GOD BLESS YOUR GENEROSITY!!!

Check out this short video of the day

FEBRUARY NEWSLETTER

2011-02-05T16:47:00.003-06:00

Link to February Newsletter

Our Speller Bee

2011-02-04T07:05:00.000-06:00

We are on our way to the capitol of Honduras, Tegucigalpa. Abigail is representing her 5th grade class in a Spelling Bee tomorrow. She is such a bright student - loves reading and writing. She has always been wonderful with words and spelling.

She’s just a little bit nervous so please pray for her!

Please pray for safe travels as well all make the 7 hour trip there (today) and back (Sunday).

Scholarship Student Photos

2011-02-01T20:11:00.000-06:00

Our 5 scholarship students that we are able to send to high school for the 2011 school year.

Alicia was one of our students last year. We are very proud of the work she accomplished. We are excited to watch how she will flourish in 2011!

Nancy is also a returning student. As well, we are very proud of her accomplishments. We are excited about what the future holds for her!

Carlos is one of our new students. He just graduated from 6th grade and is excited for the blessings of furthering his education.

Gracie is also a new student. She graduated top of her 6th grade class. She as well is more than excited about her opportunity to go to high school.

George is also a returning student. He is definitely our ‘macho’ teenager. He’ll never let you know it, but he is excited about his opportunity to make a better life for himself and his family.

Scholarship Shopping

2011-01-31T19:23:00.000-06:00

Plans had been made to go shopping last Friday with our 5 scholarship students and one parent/guardian. With all the health issues from last week those plans were put off until today. By the time we got all 5 students and parents together at the designated meeting place (this took just under an hour to accomplish) we headed out to the first store. That one store turned into a dozen stores before the day ended. But, we have most everything they need. From skirts to shirts to pants to shoes to socks....we even got belts for the boys and backpacks for all!
And of course, what kind of shopping day would it be with out eating out. A stop at Pizza Hut for a feast. The students have been on several outings with us so they were not as blown away by the enormity of the food we ordered. Mozzarella bread, hot wings, pizza and dessert. One thing we have noticed when we take the kids out is that they rarely eat all of their food (even if it is just a hamburger and french fries). They always make sure they take some home to other siblings or parents whom they live with. Today was no exception. After eating all five families were given a to-go box to load up on left over pizza.
We are sad to report that a camera was not taken during our outing ): The day provided so many good-missed shots! Tomorrow a group photo of our 5 students has been arranged, so check back in a few days to see the smiling faces of our scholarship students.

Yep....Teams Start Soon!

2011-01-30T12:12:00.000-06:00

Since our first summer of hosting work teams we have had to endure the weeks before. I say endure because it never fails that ‘something’ happens. Crises, kids get sick, problems of some kind.
On Tuesday sweet little Anna McCann was hospitalized for pneumonia. On Wednesday Kathy had horrible pain in her back, right side. Thursday she went to the Dr and was told it was her gallbladder and would probably need surgery, tests were ordered for Friday. Thursday night John and Leo both became ill with a bad case of food poisoning. Saturday Josiah woke up with the worst cough he has had in over two years, the dreaded croup. Yep, short-term mission teams are right around the corner. God has something awesome for those teams we will host - something He has had planned before we ever arrived in Honduras (before He even formed Honduras)! The enemy, however, does not want to see those plans fulfilled and God’s glory shown in our little corner of the world He has called us to minister to. Well....even in our storms we will praise Him!

We praise Him that Anna is home and doing better!
We praise Him that Kathy is feeling better, all test results came back normal and no surgery needed!
We praise Him that John and Leo are eating again!
We praise Him that Josiah slept through the night and the croup cough is gone this morning!

AND - We praise Him that His glory will be shown in Honduras!

A team of 5 from Manor Presbyterian in PA will arrive on February 19th. We are excited to start preparing for their week here!

Day 5 Medical Clinic

2011-01-15T10:30:00.002-06:00

   Day 5 was the last clinic for Dr Greg and Pastor Dave. Day 4’s clinic was brought to a short end due to weather. We anticipated that Day 5 would end much the same. Our plans: a quick trip out to Armenia to follow up with a few patients before coming back into La Ceiba for a quiet afternoon. God had other plans!


   One boy was in a tree with a machete. A slip of the hand and Dr Greg was needed to put in 7 stitches.

   Before the day ended 34 patients were seen and treated before coming to an end. From the common cold to a 9 year old girl that needed to be treated for STD’s (please pray for this precious girl as we follow up with her - for God’s wisdom for us to know what to do).
   The final patient was a home visit way up the muddy wet mountain (please pray for God to provide us with a 4x4 - the van was a little shaky driving up). The patient had arrived at the clinic on Tuesday with a very nasty abscess in her leg. Dr Greg was very worried about her and didn’t want to leave until he was sure she was doing better. He was happy, as were we, to see that she was so much better and on her way to recovery.
   We are also happy to report that one of the teenagers in Armenia made a profession of faith! Please pray for Leo as he follows up and begins to disciple.

   Thank you for your prayers for us this week. In all Dr Greg treated 150 patients (not including the missionaries). As we are so grateful for all the physical needs that we are met, we are overjoyed as we rejoice in the two souls who came to know Jesus this week.

Day 4 Medical Clinic

2011-01-13T20:53:00.000-06:00

Today it REALLY started raining. So much that we had to shut clinic down early. The building in which we are currently hosting clinics has a concrete floor, brick walls and a tin roof with some holes in it. Makes for a difficult time to hear. Especially when the waiting room, triage, examining room and pharmacy are all in the same room! Today we saw 16 patients in Armenia and then all the Clows and interns were treated to a doctor visit on the Clow’s back porch :D

One of my favorite parts of clinic has been watching Dr Greg and Pastor Dave pray for each patient. Here Greg is praying for Bety and her daughter Graci. Bety was notified that her brother in Houston may have been killed . We are currently trying to find information out for her. Please pray that God will lead us to the right people who can provide us with information. Please pray for Bety as she is in this time of not knowing. Bety helps us out with our clinics and Graci is one of the newest scholarship student recipients.

It really was cold enough today for jackets! Well...not so much cold as rainy and windy. But when your use to high 80’s and sun. Low 70’s and cloudy calls for long sleeves.

Day 3 Medical Clinic

2011-01-13T07:02:00.002-06:00

Dr. Greg has been so instrumental in the lives of the people of Armenia Bonito. We are so grateful for his service and ministry this week.

Leo, our intern, has taken over running the pharmacy. He is doing a great job along with Carlos and Adan, his two sweet helpers (they would be so mad if they knew I wrote that they were ‘sweet’).

Jamie has served twice here in Honduras. Her first time was for a year and then last summer for 10 weeks. She joined us this time for about 2 weeks. We are thankful for her willingness to give up her winter break to spend time with us and the kids in Armenia.

Bethany, an intern, has been doing a great job with in-take and triage. In the picture above she is being helped by Angie who just graduated from nursing school. Angie lives in Armenia and it is a beautiful thing to see her serving and helping her people!

Thank you all for your prayers for us this week!

Day 2 Medical Clinic

2011-01-12T08:43:00.000-06:00

The Reason For It All

Pastor Dave was given the privilege of leading Jose to Jesus! Jose and his family (wife and kids are sitting in the back right side) came to day 2 of our clinics hoping to get physical healing. Jose also received spiritual healing! Jose lives/works in the Caiman Islands and is home visiting his family for a short time. His English is very good and Dave was able to present the gospel to him in a way that he understood. After praying to receive Christ, he was given a Bible and promised Dave he would read it.

Please pray for God to raise up a godly man who can disciple Jose.

Pray for God to raise up Jose to become the spiritual leader of his family.

Eric returned with the x-rays of his arm. Dr Greg improvised in order to read them!

Last August Dr Greg performed an ultra sound, providing assurance to the mother that her baby was alive and healthy. Dr Greg predicated the baby would be born on 1/8/11

On 1/9/11 a healthy baby girl arrived. Dr. Greg got to hold the two-day old infant whom he had seen via ultrasound the last time he was in Honduras.

Day 1 of Our First Medical Team of 2011

2011-01-10T20:04:00.000-06:00

Dr. Greg has come to Honduras a few times already to help us out. We are excited, thankful and blessed that he has returned again to serve the people of Armenia Bonito with his gifts and talents. We are also thankful for Pastor Dave traveling with him. He was extremely helpful as he prayed with the patients, made pipe cleaner crosses with the kids, handed out toothbrushes, and so much more.

We were very blessed to have Melanie, a senior from the school that the Clow kids go to. She was incredible as she worked side by side with Greg and translated for 32 patients.

The above is a picture of Eric. He is the welder who works for John on our construction projects. Two weeks ago he was in a horrible car accident where he lost a best friend and his cousin. He is responsible for saving the life of a little girl who was in the car with them. In the accident he hurt his left arm and ribs. Greg was able to examine him and confirm he needed to keep his appointment with an orthopedic doctor. That appointment is tomorrow after which he will bring the x-rays for Greg to look at. Surgery is more than not going to be needed. Please continue to pray for Eric.

Tomorrow we will hold another clinic. We greatly thank you for your prayers for God to renew our strength and provide the care for the people of Armenia Bonito, Honduras.

January Newsletter - Medical Clinics

2011-01-08T22:27:00.000-06:00

John is at the airport as I write picking up two men, a doctor and a mission’s pastor, from a church in PA. This week we will be hosting at least 4 medical clinics in Armenia Bonito. This will be our first team for 2011. After a 5 month break from teams, we are eager to host this week! We are just as eager to report to you what God does this week. May His glory forever shine through our works and words.

Thank you for your prayers!
Click on the link to view our January newsletter
January Newsletter

Armenia Property

2010-12-15T14:16:00.001-06:00

John and our Honduran workers have been BUSY with the property locations. This week a big concrete pour on our future school has been going on.

For a limited time MTW strategic funds has agreed to match every financial gift receive 1:1. If $100 is given, $200 will go to our project. So on and so on!!! We are very excited about this opportunity to raise money for our Armenia Property.

Please click here to read our Team Leader’s blog for more info about the property.

Tis the Season

2010-12-13T14:01:00.000-06:00

I have been thinking that I really don’t have much to blog about. But, during team meeting were discussing what we have done lately and what we have coming up and I realized - maybe I do have some things to tell you.....

Last Friday we hosted a medical clinic. Click here to read about it from our team mates blog.

John’s job during medical clinic is running the pharmacy - it’s my opinion that he has the hardest job on the team!

This time I got the BEST job of chatting with patients as they waited. Something I have no problem doing. I also got the privilege of praying with several of them as well!

This week in addition to our Kids Club and English classes, we will be taking several kids to a Christmas Program at a large church. After feeding them dinner of course. Then on Saturday we will be hosting a Kids Christmas Party in Armenia - planning on 200+ kids! We will attempt a Christmas/Gospel message, Christmas songs, food and presents.

So that’s for this week - after that we get super busy spending the money that supporters are sending in for school supplies. We are also in the process of getting everything together for our 5 scholarship students.

We are, however, looking forward to two weeks off with our kiddos! It’ll be fun to spend some time with them - time that doesn’t include homework or Science projects!

Armenia Pastors Conference (Dec. '10)

2010-12-06T18:16:00.000-06:00

Here is a video of the pastor conference that we hosted this past weekend in Armenia.

December Newsletter

2010-12-04T20:35:00.000-06:00

December Newsletter

Here is a year end summary of 2010, complete with some pictures.

Feeling Behind

2010-12-01T21:41:00.000-06:00

It seems as if so much has happened since my last blog post. We helped our team mates with a party for the kids who participated in a series on The Ten Commandments; SUPER busy with Science Fair projects; we welcomed another intern, Leo; kids were in a talent show (Abi and Bek won 1st place!!!); we hosted Thanksgiving dinner; we received the sad news of the death of John’s brother-in-law (day after Thanksgiving).

John flew out on Sunday the 28th (Kathy’s birthday as well as John’s sister’s birthday - not exactly a happy occasion this year) to spend a week with his family in TX - he will fly back on this coming Sunday.

Kathy and the kids have been busy with living life here in Honduras, homework, the usual..... We are missing John, but are doing fine. We so appreciate our team helping us out, checking in on us......

Today a Honduran pastor from the other side of the country arrived here in La Ceiba. Tomorrow starts a three day pastors conference in our ministry village of Armenia Bonito.

For some reason my December newsletter is not wanting to post - but this month was a paper mail-out. So, if you are on our MTW list you should be receiving one in the mail. If you are not on our list, hopefully I can get the thing to post soon!

Scholarship Students

2010-11-20T08:17:00.000-06:00

The Honduran school year runs February to November. Public school is only offered through the 6th grade, after that there is a fee or tuition at a private school. The poorer class rarely goes on to complete high school. Instead, at the age of 11 and 12 they start their ‘careers’ of clearing fields with machetes (boys) or cleaning houses (girls). For the 2010 school year, 4 students were selected as scholarship recipients. This is a huge blessing to their families - a chance to increase their economic status. Unfortunately, we had one student drop out. But our other three finished strong. We are VERY proud of them! To celebrate we hosted a lunch for:

Nancy and her father

Jorge and his father

Alicia and her grandmother

We gave them a ‘buen trabajo’ certificate with the verse from Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

We are greatly appreciative, as our the families, for the generosity of the supporters in the States who provide the finances for these students to get an education. For the 2011 school year we have chosen 2 more students to receive a scholarship. If you would be interested in supporting one of these students please contact us for more information.

Quiet Day

2010-11-16T11:37:00.000-06:00

Quiet days rarely happen in my world. I venture to guess that they rarely happen in your worlds either. Today, God knew I needed a day to just sit. A day when I didn’t have a lesson to plan, a party to plan, a husband asking for my help to do something, kids screaming and fighting to be first in line to get mom’s attention (well...that’ll come at 2:30). Last week was awesome, but crazy. I loved having the kids from Armenia over on Saturday, loved having the medical clinic on Friday, loved teaching English on Thursday, LOVED that my girls turned 11 and I got to spoil them on both Tuesday and Wednesday! But the week ended with my being worn out and sick....yes sick! That dreaded stupid cough returned to our house. Abi started with the cough on Tuesday, Bekah’s been a little stuffy, and mine started Saturday. By Sunday I couldn’t breath and felt horrible.

Yesterday all I wanted to do was curl up in my bed, but that didn’t happen - too much to do! Team meeting, followed by a stop at the school where our Armenia scholarship students attended and then out to Armenia with John. Then back just in time to get the kids from school and start homework, dinner and getting the kids ready for school the next day and IN BED!

God is good and I slept restfully last night. Not waking up in coughing fits and feeling rested when I got up this morning. My chores for the day are done and no one is home! I am cuddled up on the couch, writing and listening to a new album I just downloaded Audrey Assad.

I have been wanting to get the girls hooked more on the new young Christian artist instead of the Disney young pop stars.... I have been really convicted lately that what goes in their eyes and ears builds their character, actions, etc... So, instead of letting them fill their mind with who’s dating who, who likes who, who is cute, who is not...etc... I want to fill their mind with God! Oh to have my two precious girls be so in love with God that it shines in everything they say and do.

Ok - so I am just rambling now - so I’ll shut up - I am proud of you if you made it this far. Must mean that you too are having a quiet day with nothing else to do!

English Party

2010-11-13T18:39:00.000-06:00

22 kids (plus the four Clow kids) hung out at our house for a 4-hour party! These kids who rarely, if ever, get out of their small village had a blast playing Wii, jumping on the trampoline, eating pizza, playing cards and just hanging out being kids! Our prayer is that they saw the Gospel being lived out in word and deed today!

Bethany was placed on ‘trampoline’ duty. I think she ended up with the hardest job of the day! She has quickly won the hearts of the kids. And I think it’s safe to say that they have won her heart as well.

The older girls were ecstatic to meet Baby Anna for the first time. Lindsey was in her element hanging out and loving on them. She has been an incredible mentor to this group of girls who adore her.

Sean was placed on Wii duty (of which he didn’t mind at all). He has developed relationships with these boys - planting seeds that will be our blessing to get to watch grow. It is very evident that they respect Sean - what a blessing he has been to them.

It was fun today watching John interact with the boys. Teaching them to play ds games...

turn flips on the trampoline (notice the trampoline is sitting in water)....

playing in the street.... wait...WHAT?!?!? Yep, that’s Sean and John playing soccer in the street with the boys. What else were they suppose to do? The yard was a lake!

Thanks to John’s engineering mind in making a path through our “lake” to the trampoline, Evan was able to teach a few of his tricks to the boys.

Josiah followed his father and played in the street....

as well as a little friendly card competition....

Bek grabbed a few of the girls for some dancing time....

while Abi joined in the fun...

And me.....someone had to take the pictures!

Medical Clinic

2010-11-12T18:31:00.000-06:00

Today we hosted a medical clinic. It’s the first one since the Pettengills have been gone. With the help of a local doctor we were able to see 31 patients. Nothing real serious, mostly just the common cold. We did have two pregnant women who came to get checked. All good!

I was mostly excited to see ‘my’ sweet Samuel - it’s been several weeks since I have seen him. He followed me around all morning calling me ‘Mama’ and giving me lots of hugs and kisses. And, of course, the hugs and kisses were returned right back.

So, while I was off playing, John and Sean were actually working.....

and so was our new intern, Bethany

and of course, the dr.

but the cows....

we had to turn them away - no time to see them.

ok - so I guess you should that I did do some work today

But mostly I just played with the kids!

Abigail and Rebekah

2010-11-10T12:59:00.000-06:00

November 10, 1999 changed our lives forever!

Abigail Ruth joined this world at 3:52pm. Her name means ‘My Father’s joy' and she is truly her daddy’s delight (and her mama’s too). Our prayer for her is that she will grow to be her Heavenly Father’s joy above all.

Waiting two and a half hours later to join her sister........

Rebekah Ami was born (with MUCH celebration) at 6:25pm. Rebekah means ‘entices with her beauty’ and Ami ‘a bond-servant’. Our beautiful girl truly has a servant’s heart. Our prayer for her is that she will grow to be a servant of the King!

Today I am missing all our photos that are packed away back in TX. I did pull out a few at the last minute and brought with us to Honduras (which is why I was able to scan these in to show you how big our girls have gotten). This next picture is not on their birthday, but right around the same time!

Such big girls they have become!

WE LOVE YOU WITH ALL OUR HEARTS, Abi and Bek. Thank you for making us a Daddy and Mommy.

Happy Birthday Baby Girls!

October/November Newsletter

2010-11-08T07:53:00.000-06:00

Finally got out another newsletter. Click below to read

LINK TO LATEST NEWSLETTER

My Precious Beautiful Abstract

2010-10-29T13:53:00.000-05:00

Our sweet Bekah girl is our second born twin. Since she was a toddler I have called her my abstract, my child who does NOT fit into any box or mold! She can be wild and crazy, distracting, annoying, childish (well...she is a child), mean, the list could go on.
BUT - she is also tender hearted, hard working, a servant like none other, she thinks of others and their needs, creative, the list DOES go on!
Many don’t see this side of her because they are distracted and focused on what irritates them.

Are we like that in the body of Christ? Focused on what are brothers and sisters do that irritate us; things that we don’t like? How incredible would it be if we looked passed each others faults and encouraged each other’s talents and gifts. If we didn’t put each other into boxes we think they should fit into. Then the world would know that we are children of God by the love we have for each other!

Bek is struggling in school right now because she can’t sit still and pay attention. We got report cards yesterday and the other three were all on honor roll. Bek, however had some failing grades. Not as many as we originally thought and nothing that she won’t be able to pull up. School is just not her thing, but it’s where God has her right now. Learning submission and that sometimes in life we have to do things that we may not enjoy.
I am so proud of her in that she was able to show joy for Abi, Si and Evan. With determination, “I’m gonna make better grades, Mom.” I don’t care if Bek is on honor roll or not. It’s her heart and character I care about. Oh that John and I can be the parents that teach our children to love the Lord their God with all their heart, mind and soul. That we would be able to build Godly character (love, kindness, gentleness, SEL-CONTROL...) in the four that He has entrusted to our care.
Please pray for Bekah as we try to work with her and her teacher in the area of organization and staying on task. Pray for us as parents that we would, above all else, have wisdom!

School Supplies 2010

2010-10-22T12:32:00.000-05:00

The following video is of our team mates handing out school supplies for the 2010 school year which is coming to and end soon. It’s time to start gathering supplies to hand out for the 2011 school year. If you would like to be apart of the school supply drive for the 2011 school year, please contact us for information on how to do that. Thanks for watching!

Video of Armenia Property

2010-10-15T18:07:00.000-05:00

Our Honduran workers have been steadily constructing our multi-purpose/recreation facility. While all of us were away at the required MTW conference in Mexico last week, the floor got poured! The next building started is the high school which our faithful workers are constructing quickly! Enjoy the video.....

Hopefully soon I can post some photos/videos of our downtown property which is also moving along quickly!

back to reality

2010-10-14T21:00:00.000-05:00

It seems the last three weeks have been anything other than routine. We have had a few strong rain storms that kept us from ministry work as well as kept the kids home from school. Then the past 8 days we were in MX for an MTW conference that happens every four years. We had a great time with the 300+ MTW Latin America Missionaries and a time of learning and being refreshed spiritually, mentally and physically. The kids were blessed to hang with other kids who are living the same life they live.
We arrived back home around 10pm last night and the kids were up bright and early and out the door for school and quarterly exams.
And then the rain started......again! I was suppose to go out to teach ESL. This is the third week in a row that I have had to cancel class. It’s frustrating, but I know that God is the one who sends the rain.

5 Months

2010-10-04T13:15:00.002-05:00

On May 4th we arrived in Honduras after months of 'waiting' on God to get us here. We were caught up in a whirl wind as soon as we landed and don't think we will be out of it anytime soon. But hey - that's the way we work best and the way we love living life. Most days, anyways!

In 5 months we found a house, purchased all items for our house, hosted 9 short terms teams, hosted boys and girls nights out, facilitated child sexual abuse awarness classes, started construction on two properties, registered the kids for school and got them going (btw, they are doing great and loving school...Bek not as much but she's getting there), started teaching ESL, helping out with kids club, hosted a vitamin clinic.....oh the list goes on so I'll quit here and stop boring you.

Point is, God is SO faithful and we have been nothing but encouraged and confirmed that we are right where God wants us to be , AMEN!

Definitly NOT Our Plan

2010-10-01T11:30:00.000-05:00

Yesterday the kiddos went off to school. I started prepping for ESL that I would teach that afternoon in Armenia. Next Lindsey and I prepped for the medical clinic for today. Then I went back to the house to finish ESL prep and pack up. Drove to the school @ 2:30 to pick Evan up - the rain started. Had a feeling I should just get the other three and take them with me (they have been staying after school every day for Spanish tutoring, taking the bus they are usually home by 4:30). Went by the McCanns to pick up Sean and Lucy so they could go to Armenia with us - helping with ESL and handing out flyers about todays medical clinic - the rain got worse.
By the time we got out of town and to the dirt road leading out to the village the rain was a storm and the dirt road was a river. We made the call to just turn around and head back home. The water in the streets was so high in some places that it was waist-deep on people walking. Sean got Evan and I home w/ out too much trouble. The kids had to wait at the school for over an hour after tutoring ended and then another hour on the bus to get home - close to 6 they walked in the door cold, wet and so so so hungry. John ended up braving the dirt road river to get our workers back to their homes - he got home just after 6. The rain poured for hours - our yard became a lake.
Sometime during the night it stopped. The kids dressed for school and we got ready for medical clinic. Then school got canceled so we left the kids here with Lindsey while we left for Armenia. Sean called - clinic canceled. We are in Red Alert because we are suppose to get more heavy rains today and tomorrow - worse than last night. Right now, just clouds - we'll see if the rain returns.
I laugh because last week we had tropical storm/hurricane warnings. We ended up having rain, but no winds and nothing that caused major flooding. Last night was totally unexpected and caught quite a few people by surprise - ourselves included.
I laugh because of all the prep work thinking we would be teaching ESL, hosting medical clinic, etc.... Nope - none of that happened. Just goes to show - we can do all the planning and prepping we want, but when God wants to send rain.....He sends rain.

lack of correspondance

2010-09-29T16:53:00.001-05:00

the lack of blogging is no indication of lack of 'buisniness' in our home. We have been helping the McCanns on Tuesday afternoon with Kids Club and in turn they have been helping us out with English on Thursdays. Construction is well under way at both locations which is keeping Mr Clow VERY busy! This Friday we are hoping to add a Medical Clinic to the mix. We should know tomorrow if the Dr. will be back in town from the capital. I let you know tomorrow if it's a go so that you can be praying.

The kids have been super busy this week with Spanish tutoring every afternoon (all except Evan). Evan and Kathy have been getting an hour or so of sweet one on one time. The other three arrive home from school around 4:45. Please say a pray for Bek and her school work. That child is just like her mama and LOVES to talk - but, it's effecting her grades. Please pray that we as parents will know how to 'kindly' motivate her!

Thanks for your prayers!

Evicting the Tenents

2010-09-17T08:37:00.000-05:00

The purchase of the La Isla Property (our downtown location that will hold our dorm facility in addition to other facilities) was finalized on Saturday! That same day John, the kids and I took a drive over to indtroduce the kids to the tenents who were currently living there -- BIG, HUG, LEAF-CARRYING ANTS!

Those things were monsterous - I mean really. Of course, as usual, we didn't have the camera with us. John did have a bag of posion which he put in a few of the ant holes before he ran out. Yes - he RAN OUT. If you look at the picture above, anywhere you see brown, is nothing but an ant mound. And, it extends out of the picture. On Wednesday, John took some of the Armenia men to the property with more posion. But, the ants heeded their eviction notice and were gone. We were all shocked - they couldn't find one ant! They spread some more posion anyway. On Monday they start the clean-up process and John starts the 'hoping-to-receive-permit-papers' process. Please pray that we get these permits quickly so that we can begin building dorms!!!!

Update on the Armenia Property:

GOD BLESSED US WITH OVER 50K!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Praise you Father for your faithfulness!

We know can keep our workers busy busy busy. The guard shack on the property is now finished and functioning. A BUNCH of sacks of concrete got delivered yesterday and is resting peacefully and safely locked up in the guard shack.

Please continue to pray for God to continue to provide for both properties so that the work here in Honduras can continue - all for the glory of the ONE who wants His Gospel to spread to all nations.

Feeling a Little Lost

2010-09-11T23:43:00.000-05:00

So my computer had to go back to the states. John and I are sharing an old laptop, cause his is also in the states. Don't get me wrong, I am SO THANKFUL that we have a computer to use - and even more blessed that we are able to each have our own. It's just that I miss my Mac ): I got use to the way it worked and now using Dell again seems really strange...hahaha! Ok, really I am just trying to justify why I have slacked up on blogging and posting pictures lately. Really it's just that I have been lazy, but only in blogging....hey, there's my justification - I've been too BUSY...not lazy... to blog! Yea - that's it -- way too busy!!!

On Tuesday's we have been helping the McCanns with Kids Club and on Thursday's they help us out with ESL. John has been super busy with all our Honduran workers and the construction projectS....yes 2 projects! Officially TODAY papers got signed and the La Ceiba property is now ours!!! We still need to get building permits, but there is clean up to do and tenenets to evict (be watching for a post and pictures about the current little tenets...it's sure to be a good one!). LORD willing, we will have permits in hand soon!

Yesterday was Dia del Nino. The McCans and John and I went to Armenia to play games, sing songs, read a book and most importantly (to the kids) pass out hotdogs and gift bags! Then we headed back to the city to pick up the Clow kids, who by the way were on a MAJOR sugar high from all the candy they had been eating from their class parties. Like they need any help in making them MORE active.

Maybe the next post I'll have some pictures to share :-)

September Newsletter

2010-09-05T20:17:00.000-05:00

Click here to view our September Newsletter

The bottom of the second page is our address here in La Ceiba. Some info got left off = so here is our address in full:

Po Box 1145
La Ceiba, Honduras
Central America

We hope that you all have a great Labor Day!

ESL

2010-09-03T08:25:00.000-05:00

Kathy has taken on the weekly ESL classes. This past class the kids jumped right in and helped her out. It was chaos - but it was fun! We’ll try for a little more organization next week!?!?!

After class we got some of the kids in Armenia to pose with our new van. We look forward to boys night out and girls night out when we can pile several kids in the van and bring them back into the city for some fun and fellowship!

Ending the Break

2010-08-27T13:11:00.002-05:00

Here's an attempt at playin catch up since the 15th of August:

1. Our last team of the summer ended and we had a restful weekend, thinking that we would have a week to get the kids ready for school to start on the 23rd of August. Long story made very short, we discovered on the 15th at 4 in the afternoon that school was starting at 7:20 the following morning! So, the kids have now been in school for two weeks - they are LOVING it and so are we. We are very proud of Abigail, who was voted as class president yesterday. Equally proud of Bekah who won 3rd place in a drawing competition and was voted as 'prettiest girl' in her class and voted to be 'Indian Girl' in a special celebration of Honduran Independence. And we can't forget the boys. Josiah was chosen first day of school to represent his class in a spelling bee (of which we think is at least city wide - maybe country??? correct information can be a little hard to come by here in our beloved host country). And last but not least, Evan. Our last first grader is doing fabulous! His "I don't know how to read" has turned into reading quite rapidly, aceing spelling test and becoming ever so independent (as if he wasn't already). So, that's it for the kiddos...

2. John is excited to be out working on the property in our ministry village of Armenia Bonito. Please please please watch the following video to get a better idea of what John is doing.

3. Kathy is enjoying the much need quiet respite of being all alone in the home....LOL! Actually, she has been using her time to get back to getting the house set up and getting the family settled into Honduan life. She as well as all four kids and now John are nursing a nasty cough...please pray that our family will get back to great health - SOON! As far as ministry, Kathy is taking over the scholorship program, so she will be managing the current 3 scholorship students as well working at identifying 2 more candadiets to add for next school year as well as increasing sponsors. If you are interested in sponsoring a scholorship student for next school year, please contact us for more information. And....Kathy and the girls will be taking over teaching ESL out in the village one day a week.

We are going to leave this post as it is already a lot longer than it should be. Be looking for pictures soon!

Overview of La Ceiba, Honduras

2010-08-19T06:05:00.000-05:00

Here is an overview video of the work we do here in Honduras

Trinity, Our Final Team of 2010

2010-08-14T07:49:00.000-05:00

Our final team of the summer left this morning. This team did SO MUCH work and ministry. In addition to construction work, Kids Club, English Camp they also had 3 days of medical clinics in which they saw 258 patients! Watch this video to get a small glimpse of all the team accomplished.

Medical Clinic

2010-08-12T08:38:00.000-05:00

The team has hosted 2 medical clinics and will be hosting a 3rd one today. So far they have seen and treated over 150 patients! This all plus working construction on Maria’s house and our property, hosting Kids Club and helping with ESL. They have worked and ministered hard this week. Today will be their last day of ministry as they take a day ‘off’ tomorrow to enjoy our beautiful host country.

The Roof

2010-08-10T20:40:00.000-05:00

John doing what he loves! He has worked in the hot sweaty weather for two days now putting on the roof to Maria’s house. Yesterday he took his shirt off 2X and rang the ‘water’ out. Today wasn’t quite as bad, but he was still pretty soakin’. He’ll be back at it tomorrow - what a guy! I LOVE my man!!!

Tuesday Morning

2010-08-10T09:39:00.000-05:00

The team will be putting a roof on Maria’s house - BTW, Maria had a baby girl on Saturday. I was hoping she wouldn’t have it until the team got here (since this is a heavily medical focused team). Wouldn’t that have made a great blog post: Team Puts Roof on a Mother’s House and Delivers Her Baby! LOL. However, she did remove sweat from a team members forehead and then made a cross on the baby’s forehead...??? Not sure I’ve ever heard of that one before??? Anyway, we are very thankful that the baby is here and both mom and daughter are healthy. We are thankful that this week the baby (and the rest of the family) will have a new home to live in.
The team also starts their first clinic today. This week we are providing three days of clinics to the people in the village, in addition to all our other events. Gonna by a busy - yet GREAT - week!

Let the Week Begin.....

2010-08-09T08:03:00.000-05:00

Our team of 12 from Trinity PCA in Harrisburg, PA will be starting their work/ministry week today. They will be putting the roof on Maria’s house (see last post to view a picture of Maria). In the afternoon they will be helping out with ESL. We are excited to have this team with us and look forward to ministering with them all week!

Final Team

2010-08-06T20:05:00.001-05:00

Team number 9 for the summer arrives tomorrow night. We were suppose to have had a tenth team, but they had to cancel. We have had a week off and are now rested and ready to give our all for the last week of summer work teams.

Maria is a single mother. As you can see, she is ready to give birth any day now. Her home is our final project of the summer. The team this week will be working on putting the roof on her home. Please pray for Maria and for the team as they minister the Gospel to her and her family through their deeds.

A few more prayer request, if you don’t mind....:D

***Please be in prayer this week for us and our work team. It is actually a medical team, so we will be having 3 days of clinics instead of just one. We will also continue with construction, English, and Kids Club. It’s going to be a busy week!

***The boys and Bek have a nasty cough that is keeping John and I awake at night - they seem to sleep right through it and wake up rested??? Please pray that God would heal their coughs and give John and I some much needed rest!

***Please be in prayer for wisdom and direction as we search for a vehicle. God has graciously provided the money (which was received by our bank today!) so we are seriously starting ‘the search’.