My name is Matthew and I am from Gladbrook, Iowa. After being blessed with the experience of a previous one-week mission trip to Ministerio de fe Vida Nueva, during which I and a group from E-Free Christian Church of Marshalltown assisted in the construction of the bilingual Christian school, I was filled with excitement at being able to be a part of what God is doing in Honduras. Wanting to get a better feel for how individuals are serving God in missions and to gain perspective from living in a developing country, I asked if I could return, but this time for longer. Dago gave his permission, and the eight weeks of November 13, 2011- January 6, 2012, were scheduled for my stay.

Right from the start this trip was different from my previous stay. Instead of staying in the dorm building, I got to live in the boys’ house. While there, some of my responsibilities included leading the boys in prayer, helping make sure the chores were done and the house was clean, and getting them to bed on time. I also got to share in the responsibility of maintaining and developing the Children’s Home. Mowing the lawn, working on the school, and helping Alex or Leo with whatever needed done made up most of my day. The rest of my day was filled with playing soccer, teaching the kids English (or them teaching me Spanish), and washing sweaty clothes. Through all of these activities I have developed new friendships with the kids and staff of the children’s home. I was also blessed with being able to see more of Azacualpa and the surrounding area. I especially enjoyed trips out of the compound because it provided me with a chance to see what Honduras was really like.

All-in-all, I would consider my volunteer stay at the Children’s Home to have been a hundred times more rewarding than my amazing one-week experience. I would highly encourage anyone who has a heart for service or wants to experience what God is doing in missions to consider spending any amount of time at this amazing place.