Loving the Children of Orphanage Emmanuel

Let me begin by saying we have an incredible team! Everyone has been so
unified and ready to serve and work where needed. The tension within the
political realm continues to mount and yet our team presses on with one
goal in mind, to love the children of The Orphanage Emmanuel. We left
this morning at 6:15 local time and traveled three hours by bus to a
village called Guaymacia (wi maca). We entered a guarded compound which
was built as a safe respite for children who were abandoned or taken from
their homes due to abuse or neglect. To describe the beauty of this place
would make anyone think we were vacationing at a “high dollar” resort.
With over four hundred children to house, clothe and feed the spotless
campus speaks well to the control of only ten full-time staff members.
The beauty and excellence of this place can be attributed to many
churches throughout the states who have given time and resources. One
familiar church to those in Randolph County is First Baptist Opelika.
Although the beauty and excellence of this place is breath taking, the
needs are overwhelming to a small staff of people. One of the greatest
resources needed is people. I pray that God will give our church and
other churches the opportunity to help meet some of the needs here at The
Orphanage Emmanuel.

As I said earlier, we begin early this morning with a two hour bus ride
to our destination North of Tegucigalpa. When we arrived we were greeted
by some of the staff and given the opportunity to rest and fellowship
with each other because of the unexpected early arrival. While this time
seemed to be wasted, our team was given the opportunity to know one
another more closely.

Following lunch we walked to the "Toddler House" where we played with
children who ranged from two to four year olds. These children were
amazing. They desired to be held, touched, and played with and we could
not love them enough. What seemed to be only minutes of play with the
children was actually two hours. The Orphanage has a very strict schedule
and at 4:00 we were asked to exit so that the children could be fed and
readied for bed. The campus comes to a halt following dinner and all the
children are expected to be in their cabins soon after. This may seem
quite ridiculous to have children in bed by 6:00 pm but their day begins
as early as 4:00 am with chores followed by a worship time and Bible
reading at 6:30 which they call “Circle”. Following “Circle”, they eat
breakfast and attend school. Tomorrow will give us a better idea of what
a typical day holds for these children and I will tell you more about it
as we learn.

Now on to what I know most are waiting to hear. The political tension is
worsening in the major cities of Honduras. The president has vowed to
return to office on Thursday and the military has declared that he would
be arrested for crimes against the state as well as drug trafficking. The
latest news can be found at CNN.com. We are safe and feel confident that
God is going to see us through this time.

Because of the uncertainty of what might happen, Four Corners has chosen
to cut our trip short and evacuate us as soon as possible. Gary spent
more than two hours on the phone this afternoon rearranging our tickets
for a flight out of Honduras on Saturday. This was the only time that all
twenty-seven team members could fly to Miami together. While we will be
back in the states on Saturday, most of us will be spending the night in
Miami and leaving out Sunday for our return home. Please pray for the
people of Honduras as they begin a very trying and uncertain time in
their lives. We know that God will watch over us and cover us with His
mercy and grace. We do ask that you remember us and the work we must
complete here at The Orphanage Emmanuel.

Steve Dean