Roatan Mission Trip 2008 - Day 1

DAY 1: Hello church! This is Gabra and I'm the official scribe for Team Roatan 2008. I'll be sending emails daily on behalf of the team to share with the church what is happening on our trip and Judy Otto will forward them on to the church. Thanks, Judy! As I start this email, we are watching geckos chase bugs across the walls in the dining room! The geicos are our friends as they help to keep the mosquito population down! None of the geicos has tried to sell us any insurance yet and they don't have an Australian accent, they chirp. I remember once thinking that I never wanted to go to places where creepy crawly things moved on the walls and ceilings. God has a sense of humor! I asked if they will crawl on us during the night and was told that they stay up on the walls and ceilings. Whew! Adam walked into one of the guest rooms with his equipment and saw a cockroach the size of a mouse. It died by stoning. On the flight from Minneapolis to Houston Friday night, we were blessed with a brilliant cloud display as we went around a huge thunderstorm. Various hues of pink, orange, purple, blue and yellow turned the clouds into something similar to the Grand Canyon of the sky with poofy cotton balls thrown in. It was absolute splendor! The flight was perfectly smooth, no turbulence, and as I looked out the window I could sense the Hand of God was on that plane and that He was giving us a spectacular show to look at out the window as we started our trip. The Lord has already been moving in neat ways. We loaded our suitcases with medical and construction supplies. We also bought a four foot level to bring down to SonRise Inn so that they can use it for their construction projects. We were told by several ticket agents that we would not be able to bring the level through security. We prayed over the level and it went through Minneapolis with supervisor approval. We were told it may not make it through Houston though. Gabra's bag was searched in Minneapolis for a large dark object which turned out to be her Spanish/English Bible. However, we lost four containers of PVC pipe glue as it was flammable. Thankfully, the rest of the flammable canisters of glue made it to Roatan without bags being checked! In Houston, the level went through x-ray and the security guard said he was thinking of buying a five foot level! So we were thrilled that the level made it to Roatan. We disembarked in Houston around 10p Friday night and got our first taste of extreme heat and humidity compared to what we're used to in Minnesota. Everyone was in a sweat and we all realized that we all will look the same: wilted and sweaty (sometimes stinky) and that since we all look that way, we won't worry about trying to impress anyone too much! It's super hot and humid in Roatan and we are constantly soaked with sweat and have very dewey and shiny faces! We left Houston for Roatan today. Adam got detained at security in Houston for about 15 minutes as they wanded him and searched for whatever might have set off the alarm. He was inside this clear bulletproof cubical with his arms outstretched for about 15 minutes as we all watched, pointed and giggled at him! It turned out to be foil from chewing gum. Laurel McKeever and Darla Keith met us at the Houston airport after getting up at 2am to make their flight to Houston. That's dedication! We all arrived safe and sound in Roatan this afternoon with all of our suitcases and were met by prearranged customs officials, Banjo and Orlando, who took care of getting over 50 pieces of luggage through customs without any issues. We are settled in at the SonRise Mission Inn which is about 100 yards from the beach. Our hosts are great and have prepared delicious food for us for lunch and supper. We all have jobs to do at the Inn too. I'm the water girl and my job is to keep the water coolers filled with water throughout the week. The others have to wash dishes one night this week. I think I got the better deal! The septic system isn't very good here so we are not allowed to flush ANY used toilet paper. But it could be worse! One of the highlights of the day was taking a swim in the ocean! After being sweaty all day, we all donned our suits and headed to the pier. Some of us, me included, bounced our way down the steps into the water after biffing it on the slippery stuff on the steps. The back, ankle and backside pain only lasted a few minutes thankfully! The water temperature was like bathwater and it was absolutely wonderful swimming around in such a beautiful place. Those of us with natural lifejackets don't even have to tread water -- we float upright like bobbers in the salt water. Another highlight of the day was taking a ride to the Bay Island resort where we saw beautiful gardens with huge, gorgeous flowers all over the place. The vegetation and flowers here are absolutely beautiful! The variety of flowers, flowering shrubs and trees display the creative handiwork of God. We ask for your continued prayers for our safety and health and for Pastor Adam who has had some dizziness with the heat and he has to play the guitar and sing. We had a sweet time of worship tonight and met two other missionaries from New York who work at the clinic. We also ask that you would pray for our ministry to be fruitful as we will lead the worship service and Sunday school tomorrow. Well, I'd best go for now. It is now 11:23p your time and only two of us are still up. I'm in the cocina at the kitchen table and I can hear something rustling around in a cupboard by the water spout so I think I will fill the jugs tomorrow morning and head back to my room! I'm leaving you with some photos of the scenery on this island so you can see how terribly we are "suffering." :) Love in Christ, Gabra and the rest of the Team Roatan 2008