Just Take the Nex Step

HELLO!
 How have things been going for you all? I hope this finds you well and blessed. It has been two months since I last wrote. A lot has been going on. I have been staying busy with school, work, and church. Most of you all know this, but for this who don't I am very involved in my college ministry. I am an intern and on the leadership team. I lead a bible study during the weeks. So when I say I am busy with church it is a GOOD thing. haha I very much enjoy staying busy with church. haha School has been hard to be committed to. My heart is not in it. It is hard to focus, but I am pushing through. God is giving me the strength I need to stay in it and get focused.

Yesterday was a bitter-sweet day. Yesterday marked four months ago I left my heart with a few children in a country in Central America. I miss them more and more every day. I know some people probably get tired of me saying I miss those kids and I miss Honduras, but when you experience what I experienced then you would understand. The smiles on those kids will make any problem you have diminish. The hugs and kisses the children give you will show you what true love is. It's just that simple. You fall IN LOVE.

I have given you an update on my "physical" life, but what I want to share with you all is a "spiritual" update in my life. Last time I talked about God's timing and how it is perfect. I fully believe in that, especially after the last few weeks. I believe God has been speaking to me about "the next step". My prayer for a while now has been for God to show me the next step to take. He has also been teaching me to trust in Him and in Him alone. You make think, well Hayley, that is kind of a given because God tells us all over the bible to Trust in Him. Yes, God does tell us every where in the bible that we should Trust in God. It is a lot easier said than done. When you put all your Trust in God you must not worry about the past, present, or future. You must fully rely on God. This includes in every situation of our life we are to let go of control and let God take control. This is not easy for me. I am human and my human nature is to plan every thing out for my future and to take control of every situation in my life. This is not trusting God. This is telling God that I can do better than Him and that I know better than Him. This is all false. I am nothing without God. I fail at everything in life if I don't have God in the center. God must be the center of my life.

 This is a huge lesson God has been teaching me since my freshman year of college, but especially these past few months. I know God wants me to take the next step, but I don't know what that next step might be. I have been praying the Lord would show me. I ask that you would pray for me. Please pray God would open up the door for the next step. Pray it would be a clear answer from the Lord. I struggle with knowing what the Lord clearly wants or has for me sometimes. Pray that I would not struggle or have any doubts.

Thank you to all of you. Thank you for being my prayer warriors. Thank you for being the spiritual leaders and guidance in my life. I pray the Lord blesses you for all you all have done for me. I love you all so much. I want to give a special thank you for my mom and dad. and Heath. Thank you Mom for never giving up on my. Thank you for praying for my salvation for 17 and a half years. Not once did you give up on me. I pray I can be the type of mother and spiritual leader to my children the way you were for Heath and I. Thank you for encouraging me to follow after what God wants for my life. Thank you for allowing me to go to Honduras. Thank you for releasing me into the Lord's care so that I can do what he has for me to do; share the Gospel internationally. Dad, thank you for always being the head of our family. Thank you for showing me how to be a Godly young woman. Thank you for showing me how to laugh and be goofy. Heath, thank you for being the spiritual encourager. Thank you for pushing me to get involved in FBC Tuscaloosa. Thank you for setting a Godly example to follow in my college years. Thank you for asking the hard questions. Thank you for challenging me to grow deeper in my faith. Thank you for pushing me out of my comfort zone. Thank you for all the brotherly love.

I pray that you all would pray about sponsoring a child at The Good Shepherd Children's Home. Please pray and seriously consider changing one of these children's lives. You can be "that" person who shows them to Christ. You could be the impact that they need. Show them the love of Christ that Christ first showed you. Go to http://www.gsch.bmdmi.org/ and click the link sponsorships. You can look at all the children and choose a child you feel God is leading you to sponsor.

Martha

Some of the boys at school.

Lester playing around at Casa Verde

Fatima

Jessica y Armando

Benjamin

Every Sunday and Saturday afternoon the boys play soccer

This is a precious smile

Ruth studying one afternoon

Abner y Lester

Jimena

Some of Casita 9

This is another smile that will make you forget all worries in the world.

Alexis

Lupe, Karolin, y Sindy

Lupe

Kimberly

Probably one of my favorite pictures.
Fatima loves swinging

I loved hanging out with these boys in the afternoons

A typical picture of some of the teens talking and enjoying one another.