Home is where the heart is

We knew that God had called us to the country of Honduras.
Our kids were all on board excited to go to a country they had only heard about.
We decided to see if we could take them on a fact finding trip to see it and experience it for themselves before the final move. 
Dale, the amazing deal finder found us a great price on tickets and we paid for it from our own personal savings.

It was absolutely incredible seeing the way each of my children fit in down there. My heart was full and bursting with joy as I just stood back and watched them hug and play soccer and tag with children who spoke another language.  They loved these kids and loved playing with them.
I watched them in ministry with Dale with the Bible lesson, game and puppet show. I saw my kids become alive.

My son Ben told me at the one school that he didn't want to go to a private school, he wanted to go to this one; run down, dirty and in an area run by gangs, that is not exactly "safe"
He just wanted to be with these kids. " I love it here" he told me.
He also made a very wise observation, that "Poor people are more joyful because they don't have as many distractions."  It's so true.

Over there our children were excited to be there.  They loved every moment and at times as frustrating as it was for Dale and myself....they were way over the top excited. I don't know if I have ever seen them so happy and content.

We attended an English speaking church on Sunday afternoon called CCI . Each of the our kids made new friends with the other MK's there. ( missionary kids) They want to go to that church when we move.

I cannot tell you what a comfort it is to know that beyond a shadow of a doubt that they WILL be ok there. It may take some time to adjust but they will be just fine. They know that God has called them too to Honduras.
Seeing their excitement and joy; seeing them come alive around the children in the Schools of Hope; the fact that they all said they cannot wait to move to Honduras is only further confirmation that is exactly where God wants us to be.

When our nine days were over, none of us wanted to come back. We all felt a sense of belonging that this land; Honduras was home.
We knew we had to return though to continue to raise our support to go...but our hearts remain in Honduras.

The morning of our departure we had our usual devotions together and Judy read from Joshua 1.

Joshua 1:9... This is my command- be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

So, we know that whether we are here in Stratford finishing up the work that is to be done still here or in Tegucigalpa...that he is always with us! He is never going to leave us or forsake us.

Ps 16:8 I know the Lord is always with me.  I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.

H.U.G.S. from Canada

When we set foot in Honduras, we had with us 7 hockey bags, loaded to the max with our belongings and items to store there for when we move. Two of those hockey bags were crammed full of underwear to give away to the children in one of the schools.

It is such a common thing, something so basic that here in Canada we don't give it a second thought.  But in Honduras, in the areas were poverty runs rampant, that is not the case. It is surprising how many children actually do not wear underpants.  Most likely on their meager wages cannot afford it.

When we found out there was a need we got the word out there about wanting to do an underwear blitz.  My mother in law got the ball rolling with her church's ladies group and they alone collected about 150 packages.  The response was overall incredible. People even mailed us cheques from Ontario to B.C. to help contribute.  Since we noticed most people were donated girls underwear we used the cheques to purchase boys underwear, as it would be not be fair or ethical to give to the girls and have nothing for the boys.  They would have been so disappointed and heart broken.

Previously before we left for Honduras, I had gone through all the underwear--dividing it into bags according to boy/girl and according to size.
The night before the great Honduran Underwear Giveaway we counted each of those bags out as to exactly how many we would need per class. Every person would get the same amount. As you know packages of underpants range any where from two pairs to nine.  At first we were packaging up three pairs per child, but we had nothing for the group of boys in grade 4. That would mean that the grade 4 girls would also have to go without. You cannot give to one and not the other in the same class, so no one in grade 4 would be receiving any.
As a solution we went through the Grade 3 and Grade 5 bags of boys and re packaged them into
packs of two each, taking the extra one from each bag and putting it aside for the Grade 4's. Miraculously there was exactly enough.  A huge sigh of relief!
I was reminded of a miracle in the bible where Jesus fed the tired and hungry crowd of five thousand on a young boys lunch. There was more than enough. He is so faithful!

The reaction from the kids when they received their gift of underpants was incredible. Something so simple brought so much joy to these children. Their faces lit up with happiness. One class was so excited they whooped and cheered and tossed their underwear up in the air.

Some of the girls in fourth grade were giggling as they received theirs, quickly hiding it under their desk as though they were embarrassed. It was the sweetest thing!
Their smiles said it all. So thankful. So grateful. So happy.

The amazing thing was how the underwear multiplied, especially with the boys where we honestly did not have enough to go around. In the end we had more than plenty. We had enough to go around again and give each and every boy and girl and additional pair of underwear. Not only that but there was underwear left over for Randy and Judy to distribute to their discretion. They know the families were the need is the greatest.

As the children were leaving to go home, one small girl who was perhaps 6 or 7 grabbed my arm and
said in clear English, "Thank you very much!" Her beautiful face shone with happiness.

So we too say Thank you Canada for giving and making this all possible...and giving the children a HUG from Canada!

 siao

Project Underwear

In about three weeks we are taking our children on an exploratory trip to Honduras.
Thanks to Dale who was able to find tickets for a great price. He is a great deal finder!
It is important to us that you know this is not coming out of our missions budget or from the pockets of those who are supporting us in actually moving to the field.
We paid for it ourselves.
We want the kids to experience life in Honduras before we go to the field; meet the children in the schools we will be working in and ministering to, visit potential schools that they themselves will attend and just see a bit of the country where they will be living.  All three of them are pumped about this upcoming trip and are counting down the days.

During the Christmas break we met up with the Lundrigan's at a Tim Horton's in St. Catherines. Most of you know this, but they are the couple with whom we will be working in Honduras. They were home over Christmas and we wanted to get together to visit and catch up. It was so great to see them again and re connect.
Since we had people asking us  what they can donate for us to bring down, we asked Randy and Judy and Judy's reply surprised me. "Underwear"
Many of the children there do not wear underwear under their clothes simply because they do not have them.
Can you imagine? A child eight or nine or even older never owning a pair of underwear, something here in Canada that is a basic need. That would be unheard of  here.

Since finding out about this need for underwear, my mother in law started a project with her church's woman's group. They are collecting new underwear and we in turn will take it down with us when we go in Feb. They are collecting for little girls, but it is also the school boys that need underwear as well.
Also, there is a Zehrs in Kitchener that found out about this project and they have donated between 25-30 packages!  Wow!
The ladies in her church are so excited about the great response. It's funny to see them oohing and awing over underwear!
It's something so simple and basic but it will be huge blessing to those kids!

If you are interested in helping with the "underwear project" and you live in the Stratford or Kitchener area, donations can be dropped off at Kitchener Gospel Temple with a note that it's for the Ladies Ministry or if in Stratford you can drop them off at our house or Bethel Church.
Right now I would suggest checking out the sales at Zellers since they are closing their doors for good in a few days..it would be a good time to stock up and donate to the children of Honduras!

I am not entirely sure how we will go about handing them out to the kids, but I am looking forward to seeing the beautiful smiles on their faces!

He hears..He answers!

I just want to share something really neat that happened to Dale this past week. It really was an answer to prayer before it was even uttered.

Dale was working at his desk when a call came in for him. As per usual when he talks on the phone, he removed his hearing aid and set it on the desk. When the call was finished he put it back in his ear. There was a problem however. It didn't work.
He shut it off and on...nothing but silence.

A call was made to one of the hearing aid places in town, and he took it in to them. They thought perhaps moisture had got into them so they put it in a dryer  ( for hearing aids) overnight.

The following afternoon after not hearing from them, he called to see what was up and was informed that the dryer did not work. He scheduled an appointment for later in the day. They told him the problem was not moisture but something was digitally wrong with it.
He was given two options. He could send it in for repair for about $500 or replace his hearing aids for around $2500.00  Neither was a great choice. Dale told him why: that we were leaving for Honduras for missions. The man at the hearing aid place remembered hearing about that and understood his plight...the need to hear but also not being able to afford it at this time.

Then it was like a light came on. Just the previous week a lady came in and brought in brand new hearing aids that had never been worn. They had been her husband's and he refused to wear them because they frustrated him.  Rather than him not wearing them she thought someone else might make better use of them. The set was identical to the ones Dale had before...just a different colour and there they were...just sitting in a desk drawer.
They were set for volume but not quite loud enough for Dale so the volume was adjusted. When put in the ears there was a lot of feedback and it was discovered that the feedback had never been set in the first place! No wonder the older gentleman had been so annoyed with them!
The problem was no one remembered who had returned them....Dale was blessed with them at no cost..absolutely free!  Remember...these are BRAND NEW hearing aids! Amazing!

God knew Dale would be needing a new hearing aid. He provided a way for him to have it before we even asked . That would have been a huge cost and would have cost a fair amount of stress as it would have been unavoidable. I mean one has to hear, right..? To come up with the money for it though would have been a stretch as it was not budgeted for.

God knows what we have need of and before we even pray..He knows! He knows what is on our heart and He cares..even about hearing aids. He is so faithful!

The Perfect Gift

 

 

A couple of days ago, I sat down with four of my daycare children and gave them the gifts I had so carefully purchased for them. I knew I had found each of them the perfect gift..they would love them, I was sure!

For three of them, it seemed I did. One little girl said "It's just what I've always wanted!" Her older sister seemed in awe..."How did you know I LOVE horses?", while the youngest girl, not even two, clutched her new doll to her chest and her whole face lit up..."Mine!"
It made me happy inside to see their excitement and smiles.
Then came the fourth child. He tore open his gift, the one so thoughtfully wrapped with him in mind...but instead of a smile he angrily tossed the gift aside and said with a whine..."Awww...it's not lego starwars!" He crossed his arms and a scowl marked his young eight year old face.  He sat there pouting and I sat there, jaw dropped!

I have to admit it made me angry. To think the gift I had so carefully chosen for him, thinking he would love it; that it would be so carelessly tossed aside like a piece of garbage..that hurt!

It reminded me of something else. Christmas is but a few days away and if it were not for Jesus, there would be no Christmas. He  is the "reason for the season"
God sent his only son to be born in Bethlehem.
The Perfect Gift, wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger...in what would normally be used for the animals feeding trough.  Humble beginings for a King.
God knew that one day the baby Jesus would grow to be a man, and that one day that man would give his life for us all. He would die a brutal death on a cross, so that we; each and every one would in turn have eternal life...His gift to us...His perfect gift if we accept it.

Yet so often we go through the Christmas season losing our focus. We are busy and stressed, trying to get it all done, house cleaned and decorated, baking done, meal planned while we try to find that perfect gift for our loved ones. We can so easily forget the reason that we even have Christmas and it's Jesus.

What will we do this Christmas with the most Perfect Gift?  It's up to us.
We can cast it aside; rejected or we can embrace Him...God's perfect gift to us..Jesus!  The reason for the season.

John 3:16
For God so loved the world that He gave his only son, that whoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life.

His timing!

 

 

 

It has been a while since I wrote anything on the blog so I figured it was time for an update!

Initially when we first knew we would be going to Honduras, our plan was to move in February. We had been told though by more than one source that it was unrealistic; that it takes most missionaries up to eighteen months to raise their support to the place were they could purchase their plane tickets to go.
I guess in hind site maybe we were  too confident it couldn't possible take that long! That seemed like forever!  A lot of it was that we just wanted to go, get to Tegucigalpa and get to work on all that He has for us to do there. We are still pumped to go and want to get there as soon as possible...but maybe now are a little more realistic about how long it really does take.

First of all our funds are not where they need to be for us to go in February.  The other thing is, it would mean pulling the kids from their schools here in Canada and risk losing their school year. Then we would be immersing them right away in a new country, new school, new house, totally different culture, new everything! Overwhelming to say the least.  Not too mention the emotions they will be dealing with. I know kids are resilient and our kids have had several moves in their lives and they always seem to adjust well..but this is going to be a huge change; the biggest one yet in their lives. The change with the most goodbyes.
That being said; we are planning an exploratory trip to Honduras at the end of February. Dale was able to find cheap tickets for us to go. The kids will see the Schools of Hope that we will be working in, mingle with the children there as well as visit potential schools that they themselves could be attending,  tour the city and hopefully take them to Valle de Angeles, the market and maybe even the mall.  They will have a few days to experience life in Honduras! Now, hopefully they don't change their mind about going..lol



Now the plan is to go sometime later on in the summer, Lord willing if the funds are there for us to actually go then! I believe that we will be there when HE wants us to be, as it is His timing, not ours even if we want to rush ahead of things. There are reasons we are still here, and not headed there in February. He sees the big picture. His timing is ALWAYS perfect and ALWAYS on time!

All that being said, we are looking for people who could partner with us monthly. The fact is that we do have a budget to raise in order to live there and do the work that is waiting for us. If the budget isn't raised, we can't go.
If anyone would consider partnering with us monthly, your support would be greatly appreciated and will help us bring Jesus to these kids!

Thank you and God Bless!

Here is a link if you wish to donate to Ruttans in Honduras! Hopefully this link will take you to our page

http://paoc.org/donate?mID=488

 

 

 

 

What do our kids think of all this?

Many people have asked us how are kids are feeling about moving to Honduras.
Below are their initial reactions.

Jacob:

Before the words were even out of our mouths, Jake, our oldest son said. "Please tell me that we are going to move to Honduras!"
Our jaws dropped because out of all three of our children, we assumed Jake would be the one to give us the most grief.
That was not the reaction we were expecting. He totally shocked us by being a hundred percent on board with us.  He wanted a change in scenery, to experience a new culture, a new beginning and a chance to start over.
A few people know how over the years we have struggled with him from day one. One issue after another. We would overcome one obstacle only to be thrown something else, something worse than before. At times things looked hopeless and the feelings of despair were overwhelming at times.  We were at our wits end spent allot of time crying out to God to get through to him.  Nothing seemed to help. Not art therapy when he was young, not counselling, not a trip to the police station, not the intervention weekend with his older biological sisters...
But then this summer something happened.
We allowed him to help at a christian camp. At first we were not going to allow him to go, but we really felt like God was saying "let him go"
I spoke about this in another entry so I guess I am repeating myself here...but he came back from that camp a changed young man.
I can say with confidence that he is not the same guy he was before the summer. His demeanor, his attitudes, the way he spends his spare time, what he watches on TV, the music he listens too....
He gave his life to God, totally, one hundred percent....and He changed him from the inside out.
Where counselling and therapy failed...God prevailed, and it's beautiful!
I am so proud of him.

Jake is a very gifted guitar player and artist.
Favorite colour.... lime green.
Favorite music ...Hillsongs United
Favorite movie...Avatar

Benjamin

Our middle child Ben is a blond haired, blue eyed sports enthusiast.  He has always been very good any sport he sets his hand to try,  very good natured, with a sunny personality. He is a thoughtful kid, always asking if there is anything he can do to help. Ben is full of energy and fun. He was NOT so keen on going to Honduras in the beginning.
He loves his sports especially snowboarding and how would he do that in Honduras? And friends...he has a couple really close friends. It would be HARD to say goodbye to them. In his words, we were forcing him to go, not giving him a choice or a say in the decision. He was very adamant about how he felt.
However in August he met other MK's ( missionary kids) who were in the same boat as him.  Some of them had spent most of their life outside of Canada. One had never lived here but had spent his whole life in Senegal and much preferred it there to here. Between the friendships he made with the other MK's, and the influence and leadership of Matt Janes, the MK's youth pastor, and God speaking to his young heart...Ben's heart was changed.
I will never forget when Ben stood in front of everyone at Segue; adults, youth and children. Dale and I looked at each other, not knowing he was going to do this and not knowing what was going to come out of his mouth when he said.."When my parents first told me we were going to Honduras, I did not want to go, but now I am looking forward to it."
It was all I could do to keep the tears from flowing.
Out of all the kids, Ben is giving up the most because of his love of winter and all things to do with winter. He for one is praying for a ton of snow before we go!

Favorite Colour ... Blue
Favorite Movie....Hunger games
Favorite Sports...Snowboarding, Basketball, Skateboarding.

 

 

 

Elisa is our youngest child. She is a happy 11 year old who loves to sing, dance and shop.
She is our drama queen. She is very outgoing and loves to talk...though she does have her shy moments.
Her first reaction was to be excited...over the top as Elisa can often be.
Then reality sunk into her heart. While she was excited and happy to go, she thought of all the goodbyes, all the things familiar she would be leaving behind and it made her sad.
Going to the mall and hanging out with her friends, walking around the avon river, playing at upper queens park, her grandparents, her pets....
If you asked her today how she was feeling she would tell you.
Happy. Sad.

Favorite Colour....Purple
Favorite Music....Yancy, Deana Hoyles
Favorite Movie....Soul Surfer