Honduras Journal
  
July 31, 2001: DAY TWO
Greetings from the Mercy Ships in Honduras! I am
so full of joy and good News!
Early yesterday morning Kim Gates of Katy won
the "Where in the World is Susan O'Donnell?" Contest and a four day
cruise! Congratulations, Kim! By the way, I'm free if you need me to go along on
the cruise!
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Katy Freeway, ha! Traffic jam Honduran
style!
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Now, that's a big rig!
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As you can see from the pictures, traffic in
Honduras is not like it is in Houston. Here it really is a jungle out there! Big
rigs here are four legged and if they don't want to stay in their own lane,
you'd better move over and let them have yours!
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A joyful son who accepted Jesus today,
his new Bible by his side
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It's his ride home from surgery!
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Today was a good day. I met Patricino and his
father, Jesus. Patricino brought his father to the ship to have his eye operated
on and the cataract removed. Jesus (Hay-zoos) is a proud man who has been unable
to work for months because he is blind in one eye and practically blind in the
other. The factories won't hire him because of his eye problem and he can't work
in the fields because it's too dangerous for him to use the sharp machete that
he needs to clear the brush for planting. He lives alone and tells us that
without the surgery he can't work and if he doesn't work, he has no food to eat.
For Jesus, the Mercy Ship and the doctors and staff are a Godsend.
I have to tell you, the surgery to remove the
cataract would have been amazing enough on it's own. But, the truly wonderful
event today was not about anyone's surgery, it was about new life in Christ.
Because you see, as his father was being cared for by the Mercy Ship's doctors
and nurses, Patricino was being told about Christ and his love. Before the day
was over, Patracino had asked Christ into his heart. His smile was as big as all
of Honduras!
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Tomorrow the eye patch comes off
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The people here are so sweet ...
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We followed Jesus and his son back to their
house. It's a one room cement home in the middle of a busy neighborhood. Jesus
must wait until tomorrow to remove the bandages and see again. Then, he says, he
plans to accept Christ as his Savior too!
The work I have seen by the men and women on
board the Mercy Ships is miraculous. But, I want you to know that the money you
give to support this work is going to more than just the medical care and the
operations. You are supporting a work of love. I saw the joy on the faces of
those who heard the prayer Patricino prayed in accepting Christ today and I saw
the tears that fell in the operating room when one of the patients had to be
turned away because her eye condition couldn't be fixed after all. These people
are truly living out the scriptural challenge of the Father to 'love one another
deeply!'
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Jesus loves the little children, all
the children of the world ...
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We're making a video of my trip for
you!
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I am so blessed to be able to see this
firsthand. I promise that through the pictures I am sending you this week and
eventually through the video we're making of the trip, I will try to help you
experience some of what I am seeing, too.
Remember, you can help with the work that is
going on here by donating $25 or more to help restore sight to the blind and
give them the Word of God in their own language! Please help. I have fallen in
love with these people and know that God loves them so much. We have a chance to
be His hands and feet in giving them a better life.
I will write more tomorrow, but for now…it's
my turn to clean out the bilge pump…uh...what's bilge anyway and how did it
get so dirty?
Cuidate!
Remember you are loved!
Susan O'Donnell
KSBJ-Honduras
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